Ratios and Classroom Management

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Administrators, from the Assistant Principal on up, are always telling teachers that classroom management is the key to effective learning taking place in the classroom. In theory, and in practice, I agree completely. Administrators at Central Office and the State Department of Instruction believe that all classroom management failures are the fault of the teachers. I disagree with that completely, in theory and in practice. Take one of my four 7th grade math classes for instance. My first period class, as a group, is barely manageable. There are 28 students in the class. Of those 28, 17 do math at a 4th grade level or lower. (That’s a 17:11 ratio of those at least 3 grades behind to those less than 3 grades behind.) Precisely 1 student is actually working at grade level. (That’s a 1:27 ratio of students at grade level to students not at grade level.) The other 10 are at a 5th or 6th grade level. Despite all but 1 student in the class needing some level of remediation, I am required to teach them the 7th grade curriculum at a 7th grade level. You can imagine what happens when students who understand math at a 3rd or 4th grade level tune out because they cannot understand what I’m teaching. I do my best to break it down as much as I can, and to differentiate for those students, but am constricted by the requirement to complete the 7th grade curriculum and prepare them for the 7th grade End-of-Grade test. Adding in many of these students inbred need to talk incessantly whenever the teacher stops for a breath, and sometimes while the teacher is teaching, and it becomes impossible to teach for a full period because so much of the period is spent getting them quiet and back on task. We’ve made phone calls home, had conferences, elicited promises from parents, sent kids to other classrooms, sent kids to Time Out, some have been sent home for a day or two, and still there is no improvement in their behavior. There is a reason such a large fraction of these students doesn’t seem to care about school. Many of these kids come from a background that doesn’t give them hope for the future, thus they don’t see the importance of getting an education. Young people who think all the doors to a better life are closed for them have a hard time accepting the idea that a good education is their key to a brighter future. My colleagues and I are feeling a lot of frustration because we are doing everything we can to make lessons interesting and engaging. We try to convince these children that we care about them and their futures. Yet, all the while we’re being told we’re not doing enough by higher administration and politicians. It’s no wonder there is an impending teacher shortage in this country. Why would anyone in their right mind want to become a teacher in this current political and educational environment? Sorry for ranting. I just needed to get that off my chest.