a diverse classroom
Every class is guaranteed to have a mix of different children with different needs. Apart from cultural and intellectual differences, students' circumstances at home and their personality and character can also affect learning and cannot be forgotten in planning. A lack of care and awareness can lead to underachievement and/or the feeling of insignificance. Teachers must be aware of the students' differences, how to appropriately address each students' needs and help them become the best they can be. Listed below are some diverse needs that you may come across in your classroom.
Low self-esteem/withdrawn
Low self-esteem, shyness or withdrawal may be attributed to a student’s personality or situational responses to specific stress factors. Students are particularly susceptible to self-consciousness during confronting social situations that contribute to feelings of psychological vulnerability. Social anxiety can develop gradually in response to ongoing experiences of failure, mistreatment or rejection from peers. A student’s academic, social and emotional development can be adversely affected by low self-esteem, as these students attempt to avoid or disengage with learning experiences involving public performance or evaluation. Consequently, it is vitally important that the teacher is able to enact a range of strategies to encourage these students, instil self-efficacy and build their self-confidence in social and academic situations (Thomson & Rudolph 1992).
Strategies to overcome student withdrawal
References:
Brophy, J 1995, Elementary Teachers' Perceptions of and Reported Strategies for Coping with Twelve Types of Problem Students. East Lansing, MI: Institute for Research on Teaching.
Education World 2000, How can teachers help shy students, educationworld.com, viewed 20/08/2015, http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr267.shtml
Gilbert, R 2011, Shyness in the classroom, shakeyourshyness.com, viewed 20/08/15, http://www.shakeyourshyness.com/teachingshychildren.htm
Rosenberg, M, Wilson, R, Maheady, L & Sindelar, P 1992, Educating Students with Behavior Disorders. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Shore, K 2015, The student with low self-esteem, educationworld.com, viewed 20/08/2015, http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/shore/shore059.shtml
Thompson, C, & Rudolph, L 1992, Counseling Children (3rd ed.), Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks & Cole.
For more information:
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr267.shtml
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/shore/shore059.shtml
http://learn2study.org/teachers/shy.htm
http://www.shakeyourshyness.com/teachingshychildren.htm
- Don’t label students as ‘shy’ (Education World 2000)
- Encourage peer involvement: cross-age mentor programs, tasking confident peers to befriend withdrawn students, involving them in small group cooperative activities (Rosenberg et al. 1992).
- Ensure group activities are approachable, easy to learn, involve rapid turn taking, requires involvement of all members, allow for multiple students to take turns at one time (Gilbert 2011).
- Alter the learning environment: grouping and seating withdrawn students with outgoing peers (Brophy 1995).
- Minimising opportunities for stress and embarrassment (Brophy 1995)
- Make them feel important: design ‘special’ activities and responsibilities for withdrawn students to complete (Brophy 1995)
- Showcase their achievements: display their ‘quality’ artwork around the classroom, invite them to talk about a particular hobby or interest they succeed at (Thomson & Rudolph 1992).
- Articulate specific praise toward them and their work in a genuine way (Shore 2015).
- Show them tangible and concrete evidence of their progress on a regular basis (Thomson & Rudolph 1992)
- Talk to the students about their personal interests and encourage them to take pride in them (Shore 2015).
- Initiate private talks with the student on a regular basis to motivate and encourage them (Brophy 1995)
- Notifying the student’s parents about their progress and accomplishments in class (Shore 2015).
- Teach them how to greet others and initiate social interaction (e.g. “can I play too?”) (Brophy 1995)
- Be on the look out for bullying and teasing: remind students of school and class bullying policies, deal with bullying whenever it occurs, console the bullied student and build their mood back up (Gilbert 2011).
References:
Brophy, J 1995, Elementary Teachers' Perceptions of and Reported Strategies for Coping with Twelve Types of Problem Students. East Lansing, MI: Institute for Research on Teaching.
Education World 2000, How can teachers help shy students, educationworld.com, viewed 20/08/2015, http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr267.shtml
Gilbert, R 2011, Shyness in the classroom, shakeyourshyness.com, viewed 20/08/15, http://www.shakeyourshyness.com/teachingshychildren.htm
Rosenberg, M, Wilson, R, Maheady, L & Sindelar, P 1992, Educating Students with Behavior Disorders. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Shore, K 2015, The student with low self-esteem, educationworld.com, viewed 20/08/2015, http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/shore/shore059.shtml
Thompson, C, & Rudolph, L 1992, Counseling Children (3rd ed.), Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks & Cole.
For more information:
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr267.shtml
http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/shore/shore059.shtml
http://learn2study.org/teachers/shy.htm
http://www.shakeyourshyness.com/teachingshychildren.htm
bossy/controlling
First, it is important to understand the difference between bullying and bossing. Bullying is recurring aggressive behaviour. It can be physical or verbal, or it can be a subtle action. Bossing is habitually ordering others around. The important distinction is intent: With bullying, the intent is to hurt others or make them feel uncomfortable; with bossing, it’s generally to get one’s way (York, 2015).
Children who are controlling tend to have big ideas running through their minds and they want things done exactly right (Hurley, 2011). They tend to be egocentric (thinking only of oneself, without regards for the feelings or desires of others) and want things to be done their way. This means these children struggle to take ‘no’ for an answer (Hurley, 2011). Children who are consistently bossy tend to have a dominant personality and like to be the leader in most situations, meaning they might even be controlling towards you as the teacher! Apart from personality, other reasons for their bossy behaviour can come from: their inflexibility, insecurity, trying to gain control, limit testing, attention seeking, overconfidence and/or copying the behaviour of another child or an adult (Carter, 2012; Hurley, 2011). However, on the positive side, these students tend to be bright, gifted, creative, and possess strong leadership skills. The bad news is that they can become isolated because no one likes to be bossed around all the time.
Children who are controlling tend to have big ideas running through their minds and they want things done exactly right (Hurley, 2011). They tend to be egocentric (thinking only of oneself, without regards for the feelings or desires of others) and want things to be done their way. This means these children struggle to take ‘no’ for an answer (Hurley, 2011). Children who are consistently bossy tend to have a dominant personality and like to be the leader in most situations, meaning they might even be controlling towards you as the teacher! Apart from personality, other reasons for their bossy behaviour can come from: their inflexibility, insecurity, trying to gain control, limit testing, attention seeking, overconfidence and/or copying the behaviour of another child or an adult (Carter, 2012; Hurley, 2011). However, on the positive side, these students tend to be bright, gifted, creative, and possess strong leadership skills. The bad news is that they can become isolated because no one likes to be bossed around all the time.
Signs of 'controlling' behaviour
Strategies to stop the controlling behaviour
- Telling other students what to do or that they are doing things wrong
- A strong need to follow rules
- Having difficulty waiting for their turn
- Struggle with listening to others and making comprises
- Always the ‘leader’, never a ‘follower’ in groups
- Focuses on winning
- Interrupts often
Strategies to stop the controlling behaviour
- Teach respectful behaviour and talk explicitly: build self-awareness skills, help the student realise the impact of his/her behaviour on their relationships with other students.
- Be the boss: reinforce that you as the teacher are in charge and that her role is to be a student committed to learning and listening to the teacher.
- Assign leadership roles: put the student in situations where he/she is not in control and teach him/her the process of learning how to be a follower. This will also strengthen the independence of other students in the class. A students is most likely controlling because he/she has always been the one chosen to be in charge in previous years and labelled as the ‘teacher’s helper’. This is why he/she might automatically think they are in control of everyone.
- Reward respectful behaviour: word of praise and/or your class’ reward system when the child is displaying respectful behaviour such as working well in a group, sharing etc.
- Provide choices: Often children become bossy in an attempt to gain some control over their lives. Provide choices and give them some control when you can (e.g. free time activities)
References:
Carter, W. 2012, Bossy children in need of correction, The Charlotte Post, accessed 19/8/15, http://www.thecharlottepost.com/index.php?src=permalinks/Bossy_children_in_need_of_correction
Fernandez, M. A. 2013, Child behaviour: bully or bossy?, Scholastic teachers, accessed 19/8/15, http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/child-behavior-challenging-gifted-students
Hurley, K. 2011, Bossy Boots: Tips for stopping bossy behaviour, Practical Parenting, 19/8/15, http://practicalkatie.com/2011/08/08/bossy-boots-tips-for-stopping-bossy-behavior/
York, S. 2015, Setting limits: When a child is bossy, Scholastic teachers, accessed 19/8/15, http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/setting-limits-when-child-bossy
Carter, W. 2012, Bossy children in need of correction, The Charlotte Post, accessed 19/8/15, http://www.thecharlottepost.com/index.php?src=permalinks/Bossy_children_in_need_of_correction
Fernandez, M. A. 2013, Child behaviour: bully or bossy?, Scholastic teachers, accessed 19/8/15, http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/child-behavior-challenging-gifted-students
Hurley, K. 2011, Bossy Boots: Tips for stopping bossy behaviour, Practical Parenting, 19/8/15, http://practicalkatie.com/2011/08/08/bossy-boots-tips-for-stopping-bossy-behavior/
York, S. 2015, Setting limits: When a child is bossy, Scholastic teachers, accessed 19/8/15, http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/setting-limits-when-child-bossy
socioeconomic status (SES)
Australia is a country of ‘sociocultural incongruence’. As a result, school students are going to possess differences in social and cultural capital according to their socioeconomic status. In partnership with the students, school and community, the teacher plays a pivotal role in bridging this sociocultural incongruence and allowing all students access to the forms of capital valued in Australian society. Such bridging relies on combatting deficit discourses that suggest students and families from low socio-economic backgrounds (LSES) are to blame for poor academic performance. Rather, the teacher must seek to value the contributions of these students, maintain high expectations and deliver high support using a variety of strategies (Devlin et al. 2012).
Strategies for teaching LSES students
Meeting essential needs
In addition to supporting LSES students academically, in some cases teachers may be required to meet their basic physical, social and emotional needs. If teaching in an identified LSES school or area, consider the following advice:
For more information:
Devlin, M, Kift, S, Nelson, K, Smith, L & McKay, J 2012, Effective teaching and support for students from low socioeconomic status backgrounds: Practical advice for teaching staff, Sydney: Office of Learning and Teaching.
DEC NSW: Low SES Communities National Partnership Policy
http://www.lowsesschools.nsw.edu.au/Portals/0/upload/resfile/Low_Socio-economic_Status_School_Communities_National_Partnership_Information_package_for_Reform_Extension_Initiative_Schools.pdf
Socioeconomic Indexes Map (NSW)
http://www.healthstats.nsw.gov.au/Indicator/soc_seifa_lgamap/soc_seifa_lgamap
http://www.lowsesschools.nsw.edu.au/lowsesresources/ResourceLibrary/ResourcesforTeachers.aspx
Practical Advice for Teaching in Low SES Schools
http://www.lowses.edu.au/assets/Practical%20Advice%20for%20Teaching%20Staff.pdf
Strategies for teaching LSES students
- Know and respect them: Understand that LSES students and their families are often time poor due to financial constraints. Offer flexibility and extensions in regard to homework. Communicate with them and develop an understanding of their interests, life experiences and learning styles.
- Let them contribute: Give LSES students an important voice in the classroom by allowing them to contribute to class discussions frequently.
- Value their contributions: Connect learning to their life experiences, interests and real world by providing relevant tasks. Use their experiences to drive discussions and tasks.
- Offer variety and choice: Provide students with a wide variety of activities and let them negotiate the content, process and presentation of learning experiences.
- High expectations: Always maintain high expectations of LSES students’ outcomes and future. Instil self-belief and confidence in their learning. Communicate your expectations using clear language they can understand on frequent occasions.
- High Support: Build on their prior knowledge, alter the learning content, provide scaffolding through modelled and guided activities, prescribe collaborative work and provide examples of expected outcomes.
Meeting essential needs
In addition to supporting LSES students academically, in some cases teachers may be required to meet their basic physical, social and emotional needs. If teaching in an identified LSES school or area, consider the following advice:
- Packing extra food for students who don’t bring lunch
- Packing extra jumpers, hats and pants
- Having deodorants and clean school uniforms on hand
- Being wary of expectations for bringing donations, toys or art supplies to class
- Seeking out the school counsellor for advice on anxiety or stress
For more information:
Devlin, M, Kift, S, Nelson, K, Smith, L & McKay, J 2012, Effective teaching and support for students from low socioeconomic status backgrounds: Practical advice for teaching staff, Sydney: Office of Learning and Teaching.
DEC NSW: Low SES Communities National Partnership Policy
http://www.lowsesschools.nsw.edu.au/Portals/0/upload/resfile/Low_Socio-economic_Status_School_Communities_National_Partnership_Information_package_for_Reform_Extension_Initiative_Schools.pdf
Socioeconomic Indexes Map (NSW)
http://www.healthstats.nsw.gov.au/Indicator/soc_seifa_lgamap/soc_seifa_lgamap
http://www.lowsesschools.nsw.edu.au/lowsesresources/ResourceLibrary/ResourcesforTeachers.aspx
Practical Advice for Teaching in Low SES Schools
http://www.lowses.edu.au/assets/Practical%20Advice%20for%20Teaching%20Staff.pdf
custody and divorced family
When parent are separating or are divorced it is critical that principals attain a copy of any court orders stipulating the educational welfare and interests of the student/s. In the absence of a court order both parents have a right to know where their child is enrolled and participate in school activities. Moreover, either parent is permitted to picking up their child during the school hours provided, however, only if the child shows no hesitancy, there are no concerns for the child’s safety and when necessary is agreed upon by the other parent that it is acceptable.
If a court order is in place that a parent is not abiding to or is not consistent with the other parent’s wishes, the parent should be informed to leave the school grounds or the police will be contacted. If is not appropriate to have family disputes on school grounds and child’s welfare is first priority.
For more information, refer to: http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/schoolsweb/gotoschool/familylaw/familylawguide.pdf
If a court order is in place that a parent is not abiding to or is not consistent with the other parent’s wishes, the parent should be informed to leave the school grounds or the police will be contacted. If is not appropriate to have family disputes on school grounds and child’s welfare is first priority.
For more information, refer to: http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/media/downloads/schoolsweb/gotoschool/familylaw/familylawguide.pdf
Supporting students through changes to family circumstances
References:
Ellington, C 2003, 'Effects of Divorce on Children and Ways Schools Can Offer Support', PhD dissertation, Cedarville University, Ohio.
Teach-nologoy n.d., Helping Students get through divorce, accessed 18/8/2015, http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/parents/divorce/
- Discussion opportunities; allow students chances to share their feelings, be caring and accepting of their views and thoughts.
- When discussing families in PDHPE remember to mention there are many types of families, make diversity and inclusion and an important part of your classroom
- Remember to communicate with parents, try (if acceptable) to keep both parents in the loop about the student’s progression.
- Provide an environment that is structured and consistent; sometimes during divorce it can be an emotional time for the child, providing a classroom/environment that is structured and stable will help. This can be achieved by ensuring schedules are followed and classroom rules are maintained.
- Keep a boundary, divorce is not an excuse for disruption and inappropriate behaviour.
- Build a rapport with student so they may feel safe, comfortable and included within the classroom.
References:
Ellington, C 2003, 'Effects of Divorce on Children and Ways Schools Can Offer Support', PhD dissertation, Cedarville University, Ohio.
Teach-nologoy n.d., Helping Students get through divorce, accessed 18/8/2015, http://www.teach-nology.com/teachers/parents/divorce/
children at risk of harm (Child protection)
New South Wales has undertaken the effort to develop the
first known state-wide, multidisciplinary mandatory reporting guidance tool in
order to achieve the following goals:
- Assist mandatory reporters as they gain familiarity with the reporting threshold of risk of significant harm.
- Help ensure that children and families requiring statutory child protection services are promptly reported.
- Help increase direct family contact in response to reports of risk of significant harm by eliminating time spent on reports that could be diverted for more appropriate service/services.
- Provide alternative options for reporters to assist children, young people and families who would be better served outside of the statutory child protection system.
DEC Professional Responsibilities
The NSW DEC policy sets out rules and responsibilities of staff in relation to child protection including training, reporting on safety, and supporting children and young people, as well as monitoring, evaluation and reporting requirements.
Click here to access the " Protecting and Supporting Children and Young People Policy".
Click here to access the " Protecting and Supporting Children and Young People Policy".
“The aim of child protection education in primary schools is to assist students in developing skills in recognising and responding to unsafe situations, seeking assistance effectively and establishing and maintaining relationships and strengthening attitudes and values related to equality, respect and responsibility. This document will assist teachers in implementing child protection education within the framework of the NSW Board of Studies, Personal Development, Health and Physical Education (PDHPE) Years K-6 syllabus.” (NSW DEC, 2011).
Click here to view child protection training modules within the PDHPE curriculum.
For more information:
NSW DEC Professional responsibilities
http://www.dec.nsw.gov.au/about-us/careers-centre/school-careers/teaching/your-teaching-career/approved-teachers/casual-teacher-induction/professional-responsibilities
NSW Teacher’s Federation – Legal Stuff
https://www.nswtf.org.au/pages/legal-stuff.html
State Legislation & Reporting –NSW
https://www.childwise.org.au/page/41/state-legislation-reporting-nsw
Keep Them Safe: A shared approach to child wellbeing
http://www.keepthemsafe.nsw.gov.au/
Possible signs of abuse
http://www.community.nsw.gov.au/docs_menu/preventing_child_abuse_and_neglect/what_is_child_abuse/signs_of_abuse.html
How to Recognise the Warning Signs of Child Abuse
http://teaching.monster.com/benefits/articles/2058-how-to-recognize-the-warning-signs-of-child-abuse
For more information:
NSW DEC Professional responsibilities
http://www.dec.nsw.gov.au/about-us/careers-centre/school-careers/teaching/your-teaching-career/approved-teachers/casual-teacher-induction/professional-responsibilities
NSW Teacher’s Federation – Legal Stuff
https://www.nswtf.org.au/pages/legal-stuff.html
State Legislation & Reporting –NSW
https://www.childwise.org.au/page/41/state-legislation-reporting-nsw
Keep Them Safe: A shared approach to child wellbeing
http://www.keepthemsafe.nsw.gov.au/
Possible signs of abuse
http://www.community.nsw.gov.au/docs_menu/preventing_child_abuse_and_neglect/what_is_child_abuse/signs_of_abuse.html
How to Recognise the Warning Signs of Child Abuse
http://teaching.monster.com/benefits/articles/2058-how-to-recognize-the-warning-signs-of-child-abuse