Jacob S Kounin Classroom Management Techniques Who is

Jacob S. Kounin Classroom Management Techniques

Who is Kounin? Kounin is a classroom behaviourist theorist Best known for his two studies done in 1970 He wrote the book, "Discipline and Group Management in Classrooms" Kounin worked to combine both discipline and learning in the classroom Kounin believed that organization and planning are key to engaging students This relationship is characterized by

Rationale Focuses on preventative discipline: using techniques and strategies to prevent misbehaviours from occurring.

Case Study: Give suggestions of what proactive discipline is Examples of proactive discipline (what does it look like in the classroom? )

Achieving Classroom Management Through Preventative Discipline Key Ideas: Ripple Effect “Withitness” Overlapping Movement Management Ø Smoothness ØMomentum ØGroup Focus and Accountability

Strategy 1: Ripple Effect By correcting the misbehaviour of one student it can positively influence the behaviour of another

Strategy 2: ‘Withitness’ Awareness of what is going on in all parts of the classroom ØTeachers have eyes on the back of their heads! Classroom layout benefits the teachers ability to see all students at all times

Strategy 3: Overlapping When teachers can effectively tend to two or more events simultaneously Students are more likely to stay on task if they know that the teacher is aware of what they are doing (body language)

Strategy 4: Movement Management Smoothness: ØSmooth transitions between activities Momentum: ØAppropriate pace and progression through a lesson Group Focus and Accountability: ØKeep the whole class involved and interested

When Managing the Classroom, Try to AVOID Dangling: ØTeacher leaves a topic and introduces new, unrelated material Flip-flop: Ølike dangling, except that the teacher inserts left-over materials from a previous lesson

Avoid… Thrust: Ø teacher forgets to give clear instructions at the appropriate time of a lesson. ØTeacher must then re-explain the instructions to each student on an individual level Stimulus-bound: ØTeacher is distracted by an outside stimulus and draws the class’s attention to it

Classroom Applications Be aware of what is happening around the classroom. Intervene before misbehaviours escalate. Use routines, explanations and smooth transitions to gain the attention of the students. Keep all students involved through constant supervision and accountability. Reduce off task behaviour and boredom by creating challenges, extending tasks, providing progress and adding variety. Be able to attend to more than one event at the same time. Note: Classroom management is most effective when these applications are applied at the beginning of the school year.

References Kounin 1970 http: //www. educ. uvic. ca/epls/faculty/rowles/kounin 1. htm Jacob Kounin http: //scied. gsu. edu/Hassard/mos/10. 2. html Kounin, Jacob from Wik. Ed http: //wik. ed. uiuc. edu/index. php/Kounin, _Jacob Learning Environment Article from The Premiere Website for Health and Physical Education http: //www. pecentral. org/climate/april 99 article. html Maine Education Association http: //www. maine. nea. org/index. htm The Kounin Model from Approaches to Discipline http: //www. solwebs. net/sgfl/teaching/discplan/koun 1. htm West Dunbartonshire Council http: //www. wdcweb. info/home/