MENTORING TEACHERS IN BEHAVIOUR MANAGEME

Behaviour Management Teacher Mentoring

Student behaviour management remains the number one issue of concern for teachers

Behaviour Management is central to maintaining an orderly, productive and safe learning environment. There's simply no way a teacher can be effective without high level behaviour management skills.

Behaviour management remains at the top of the list of concerns for teachers and the school leaders who support them. Sadly, behaviour management isn't taught thoroughly enough in pre-service teacher training and many school leaders report that coaching their teachers in behaviour management and supporting them when things aren't going well in their classrooms is one of the most challenging and stressful parts of their role.

Mentoring a colleague in behaviour management requires that the mentor possesses a high level of experience and skill in behaviour management. In addition to this, the mentor needs an in-depth understanding of collegial support, the mentoring process, and the ability to quickly build relational trust with colleagues.

For the majority of teachers, the thought of inviting a stranger into their classroom to observe them, teach alongside and provide skill-based feedback creates feelings of vulnerability.

I thoroughly enjoyed working alongside Bill to further my behaviour management skills. I learnt so much not only about my students, but also about myself as a teacher and ways to improve my practice. I would recommend Bill to any teacher who wants to enhance their knowledge of behaviour management techniques.

Sarah - Primary Teacher

Bill has extensive experience working alongside teachers, both modelling and explicitly teaching effective behaviour management practices as well as making the link between effective teaching and student behaviour.

Student behaviour is influenced by the quality of teaching and a teacher's understanding of confounding issues such as student personality, class cohesion, student's sense of belonging, goals of misbehavior and learning difficulties.

Bill's background in School Counselling, school systems of behaviour management, Restorative Practices and Learning Disabilities gives him a wide view of classroom management and his personable manner and empathic approach ensures that he works well with those he mentors, helping them to make changes to their practice that stick.

A typical mentoring arrangement follows the following outline, but of course varies depending on situational needs:

Bill meets with the leader (1) and then the teacher colleague (2), to see where the perceived difficulties in classroom management might lie
The teacher colleague and Bill co-construct a mentoring plan prior to an initial observation detailing:
- How the observation will happen (when/where)
- What students will be told about my presence in the room
- What specifically the teacher wants me to observe and feedback on.
A debrief follows after the initial observation, ideally the next lesson, or later the same day (release will need to be arranged). In this debrief, Bill suggests areas to be developed and recommends reading or viewing prior to the next visit. Bill and the teacher colleague then plan the next classroom mentoring session(s) and decide on the format:
- observation and feedback
- Bill teaching and the teacher observing
- team teaching
- combination of the above
After this classroom mentoring session Bill and the teacher colleague again debrief (ASAP) and make plans for ongoing work.
Upon the conclusion of the mentoring sessions, Bill meets with the teacher colleague and member of leadership to develop a plan for ongoing development and collegial support of the teacher.