I’ve been really pleased recently to have the opportunity to speak about the Australian Education Research Organisation's (AERO’s) evidence-based classroom management resources in the media. These resources, commissioned by the Australian Government, provide practical advice to teachers, based on the latest research, to help them maximise student learning in their classrooms.
We know that teaching is a complex task that requires consistency, patience, good humour, thoughtfulness and application of best practice. We also know that we are fortunate in Australia to have a hardworking cohort of teachers who bring these skills – and many more – to the classroom each and every day.
At AERO, our role is to support the important work of our frontline teachers and educators, and others in the education systems, to make good decisions about their teaching practice by exploring, and building on, the evidence base, and giving people access to those insights. This isn’t about a return to the ‘good old days’, but rather a contemporary, forward-looking view – applying what we know now to our work.
It’s not our role to mandate practice, and nor do we seek to do so, regardless of some of the ambiguity around this notion in this week’s media coverage.
In our resources, we recommend explicitly teaching students about behaviour expectations at school. Explicit teaching is not at odds with creating an engaging, respectful and inclusive classroom environment. In fact, when classroom procedures and expectations are explicitly taught, modelled and reinforced, it creates a predictable environment where all students can feel safe, respected and able to focus on learning.
I encourage anyone who is working towards great outcomes for students to consider what current contemporary evidence can tell them. AERO’s research and resources are a great place to start.
Keywords: engagement, disruption, disruptive behaviour