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It’s almost a truism among educators to say that classroom management is all about relationship management. Learning requires a great deal of vulnerability, and there’s no doubt that educators need to earn the trust and respect of their students. But if classroom management is about the deeply human endeavor of creating a fun and safe community where young people are able to learn and grow together, what role does software have to play in managing the classroom?
At the end of the day, it’s up to the educator to make the connections with students that will enable learning and keep building on a sense of community. Classroom management software can help by giving educators more opportunities to engage with students throughout the day. Here are three ways your classroom management system could help support engagement and interaction with your students.
Language learning
We’ve all had the experience of hearing a recording of our own voice and feeling a little surprised, even disconcerted perhaps. That slight change in perspective from hearing your voice coming from inside your head to coming from outside can almost make it sound like a different person.
Help students who are learning a language overcome this and make the perspective shift. Have them record their voice using your classroom management system so that they can review their pronunciation individually or with help from yourself or a classmate. Whether the student is in a foreign language class, learning English as a second language, or simply learning new words as their literacy develops, a recording can help them spot pronunciation errors they aren’t even aware they’re making as they speak.
You can also use recordings to help students see how far they’ve come in their language journeys. Capture recordings early in the year while students are working on vocabulary in small groups, reading aloud, or practicing conversation with partners. A few weeks or months later, make a similar recording and then share both with students to show them how much they’ve already learned.
Social-emotional learning
Most classroom management systems will have some kind of tool that allows students to tell teachers how they are feeling without speaking up in front of the whole class, but that’s just the beginning of the social-emotional learning potential at your fingertips.
SEL is more complex than simply keeping an eye on students, but there are ways to use the classroom management software to foster the supportive and engaged learning community all educators seek. For example, teachers can discreetly keep an eye on individual students from a distance, allowing students to practice independence and self-management in a safe and supportive environment. Simple nudges and notes of encouragement can get students back on track. Likewise, congratulate them for progress and good efforts with virtual badges. It feels more personal and genuine if the message comes only to that individual, like the teacher has specifically recognized their effort.
For group work, either to help solve problems in the group or to gauge progress, record interactions so students can review and reflect on how they interact with their peers. Perhaps they are interrupting or not allowing partners to speak and simply don’t realize it.
Providing clear instructions can help students focus on the task at hand and help eliminate anxiety. To help them get to work with confidence, teachers can make screen recordings of instructions or procedures for students to follow or refer back to as needed.
Whether you are eliciting student feedback, encouraging independence, or trying to reduce students’ cognitive and emotional loads, a high-quality classroom management system will have tools to help you make your classroom a safe space for experimentation and growth. And when students are reaching out, testing the waters beyond their limits, it’s a clear indicator that a supportive learning environment is present.
Building the home-to-school connection
A 2002 report from the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory found that “when schools, families, and community groups work together to support learning, children tend to do better in school, stay in school longer, and like school more.” Fortunately, a good classroom management system is a wonderful tool for inviting student families into the learning process.
We talked earlier about recording students at different points in their language development journey to show them their progress. Why not also send that video to your student’s family to share their success? Or, just as you might create a screen recording to explain directions or procedures for students to refer back to, create similar videos to share with families. Even the most supportive adults in a student’s life might feel they aren’t equipped to help, perhaps because they struggled in school themselves or because they feel unable to help with the technology their students are using. A screen recording showing families how to log on to essential learning or school-to-home communication tools, a video of you explaining how to solve a math problem, or a screenshot of their student’s work annotated with your observations about the successes and challenges they encountered while completing it could be the key to extending the learning day for a student with a beloved family member.
A good classroom management system will also make it easy for students to get in on the act. Invite students to speak up when they would like something recorded or otherwise made available to share with their caregivers. If your classroom management system has a student journaling feature, ask them to regularly reflect on the challenges and successes they’ve had over the previous week to send to their families along with other artifacts about classroom fun, their individual victories, and their growth.
Classroom management software can certainly help teachers manage transitions, distribute materials, or make sure students are on task. It’s great at providing practical procedural support throughout the school day. But the real magic lies in opening up endless new opportunities to connect with students and the people who support them.
