Traversing the Piranha-Infested Waters of Classroom Management
This article was originally published in the 2013 Fall issue of the Utah Music Educators Journal.
Managing students in a music classroom is something like crossing Piranha-infested wa- ters. You might come out unscathed, unless they smell blood. If that happens, all you can do is hope your life insurance is paid up!
Robert Coleman
What does it take to keep students from “smell- ing blood in the water?” It is a rare collegiate training program that prepares teachers to face all or even most of the eventualities encoun- tered while teaching. One can have towering musical skills, understand the psychological, sociological and pedagogical underpinnings of the adolescent experience and be able to create the perfect scope and sequence for their students but still fail miserably at realizing a successful music program.
What is for many the elusive element is a clear understanding of and personal ability to manage students in a respectful, efficient and determined manner. Managing students in a music class- room is more than a learned skill. It is a talent deeply rooted in a teacher’s psyche that requires development through practice, patience and the deft ability to project positive leadership. The teacher must possess or develop a persona that students want to be around – that they can re- spect and trust.
During recent interviews, two teachers describe their efforts to manage student behavior and mu- sical instruction. They speak about their devel- opment in this area as a work in progress, evolv- ing with increased experience. Their methods and rationale are described in this article made possible by the generosity of these educators.
Eileen Dempsey
Eileen Dempsey teaches strings in the Davis School District at Northridge High School and its feeder schools, including Sunset Jr. High and 5 elementary schools. Dempsey has been teach-
ing for 24 years and serves as a master teacher for Weber State University’s string project, an orchestra program for pre-university string stu- dents.
She has noticed how music programs help stu- dents become better individuals, gaining nec- essary skills needed for everyday life. Her stu- dents – especially the shy ones – have grown in confidence and become excited, transform- ing themselves into integral members of their school ensemble.
Stop the Chaos
“I’m invested in every kid,” Dempsey said. “It’s a privilege to be invited into their lives. I make them behave accordingly.” She knows that no- body learns much in a chaotic classroom – ev- eryone must be on the same page. She likened an undisciplined classroom to tying shoelaces together. People don’t progress when that hap- pens; they just fall on their faces.
“I’ve taught noisy classes before,” Dempsey noted. Her response was to jack up the instruc- tional pace, having them play and play, so no- body had a chance to say anything. She says stu- dents need to be accountable for their behavior and to that end she has developed a system of honor slips.
Honor Slips
In Dempsey’s classes, students receive citizen- ship grades by earning honor slips, rectangles of brightly colored paper given for good behavior, like consistently putting their instrument cases in the correct location. An “H” (honors) citizen- ship grade is given when the student earns four slips throughout the course of the term. Con- versely, students lose honor slips for infractions, such as playing out of turn. A student who loses four honor slips receives a “U” (unsatisfactory) grade – something especially severe for high school students in Davis County.
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