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Chapter 4 - Classroom Management

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 November 2010

Jack C. Richards
Affiliation:
Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore
Willy A. Renandya
Affiliation:
Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore
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Summary

TEACHERS' CONCERNS

Language teachers are familiar with the intended outcomes of Communicative Language Teaching, namely, for students to use the new language in speech and in writing for a variety of purposes and in a range of contexts. Teachers also have access to many textbooks setting out activities for doing this. What they often struggle with in their own classes is how to manage classroom learning to achieve these ends. The following comments are grouped into three broad categories: motivation, constraints, and the teacher's role.

Some teachers are concerned about students' motivation:

Students in our school are learning English because they have to. It makes motivation really difficult for the teacher.

Students don't want to use English in class when they can say the same thing faster in their own language. What do other teachers do if one or two students refuse to speak?

For others, constraints are things that teachers believe are stopping them from managing an ideal learning atmosphere:

How can we organize group work when the desks are all fixed to the floor in rows?

Our classes are huge. Whenever I organize tasks, things get messy, such as some students finishing ahead of the others and wasting their time.

How do experienced teachers manage when all the students are at different levels?

We have to achieve examination results. Anything that doesn't lead there is not valued by the school or the parents.

It's hard to access authentic materials for my teaching.

Type
Chapter
Information
Methodology in Language Teaching
An Anthology of Current Practice
, pp. 40 - 48
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2002

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References

Lewis, M. (1998). Diverse levels and diverse goals in a community class. In J. C. Richards (Ed.), Case studies from second language classrooms. Alexandria, VA: TESOL
May, P. (1996). Exam classes. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Oxford, R. (1999). Anxiety and the language learner. In J. Arnold (Ed.), Affect in language learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Stevick, E. W. (1996). Memory, meaning and method. Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle
van Lier, L. (1996). Interaction in the language curriculum: Awareness, autonomy and authenticity. London: Longman
Williams, M., & Burden, R. (1997). Psychology for language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

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  • Classroom Management
  • Edited by Jack C. Richards, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore, Willy A. Renandya, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore
  • Book: Methodology in Language Teaching
  • Online publication: 10 November 2010
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667190.007
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  • Classroom Management
  • Edited by Jack C. Richards, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore, Willy A. Renandya, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore
  • Book: Methodology in Language Teaching
  • Online publication: 10 November 2010
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667190.007
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Classroom Management
  • Edited by Jack C. Richards, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore, Willy A. Renandya, Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO) Regional Language Centre (RELC), Singapore
  • Book: Methodology in Language Teaching
  • Online publication: 10 November 2010
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511667190.007
Available formats
×