How To Handle Disruptive Students in the Classroom 

I don’t think most people outside the education system know exactly how difficult it is in the classroom. Having to deal with behavior in the class is one thing but if you combine that with lack of support from administrators it makes the job nearly impossible. Thank you for taking the time to write a comment.

Very well said. It is one of my pet pieves that the minority of a few takes away valuable resources for the majority of students. And to be clear we are not talking about just adolescent behavior we are talking about serious behavior. I am curious where you live. I live in California Inited States and compared to others we allow a lot more destructive behavior.

@@theclassroommanagementguy I live in an inner ring suburb of Cleveland, Ohio and taught suburban parochial, inner city public high school, inner city Job Corps, inner city community college, and tried being a Benedictine brother for one school year also inner city Cleveland. I also have navy shore patrol experience evicting violent drunks from the giant enlisted club at Pearl Harbor back in the late ‘70s. I’ve also guided wilderness canoe trips at youth camps in Canada which catered to both ordinary kids at the YMCA camp and then rich boarding school kids at a private camp, both on Lake Temagami. The situation in the Cleveland public schools was pretty ridiculous even back in the ‘80s. The kids at the parochial school were spoiled brats in my opinion. I am aware that unless there’s a county school for kids with behavior disorders these public schools are pretty much stuck with what they’ve got unless the kids commit serious felonies and get packed off to juvie. I also knew former youth leaders from juvie here in Cuyahoga County and they loved it, which is perverse. They liked that the kids could be marched around by youth leaders and even thrown in solitary for screwing off in class. At the community college the campus police would actually beat the kids up if they gave them any crap, then check for outstanding warrants to pack them off to the county jail. I got fed up in ‘88 and became a merchant seaman. I now think that the public schools should be privatized and that mainline protestant churches should all start parish schools to suck up vouchers which could be forthcoming.

What ruined the Cleveland public schools was when they shut down the so called bad boy’s school, called Thomas Edison school, as part of the court ordered desegregation settlement, because apparently there were too many minorities sent there. Then also they stopped transferring students who’d assaulted teachers, leaving them in the same buildings. That’s when they couldn’t retain younger teachers anymore. I was the youngest male teacher in the building at the age of 30. Most people were near retirement. Their enrollment has declined by half in the past forty years.

@@marcmeinzer8859 you have a lot of experience in so many different areas. You have some great insights and I agree some changes would be good.

@@theclassroommanagementguy There will be a major cataclysm in American education. Look for a triggering event which prompts mass privatization. Also, post pandemic college professors cannot get students to show up, hand in work, or even take exams. The number of incompletes has skyrocketed. A good 1972 book on these topics is DOWN AND OUT IN ACADEMIA by Ben Morreale [Pitman 1972]. Never forget that the author of BLACKBOARD JUNGLE quit teaching high school in the South Bronx after just 17 DAYS! All the way back in 1950. The movie came out in 1955 featuring soundtrack by Bill Haley and the Comets.

Thank you for watching the video and thank you for those positive words. Have a great day.

Thank you taking the time to watch my video and thank you for taking the time to write such an awesome comment. It amazes me that it takes 6 years of college to become a teacher but nothing really prepares you for life in the classroom.

Oh my gosh. All of your advice is golden. I like how you talk to the kids outside. My favorite thing you mentioned is how you text the parents. That is such wisdom because you are so correct about you never know what you are getting into when you call home. Thank you for sharing.

If the student doesn’t want to leave the class to speak to you ?

@@stacyr4768 I would do my best to quietly call administration and about having the student escorted to the office. The key is trying to avoid a direct conflict since that is what the student wants.

@@theclassroommanagementguy Thanks. Isn’t it used against teachers when they call admin ?

@@stacyr4768 That really all depends on the situation frequency and relationship with administration. If for every problem administrator is called then it looks bad. But if it happens once in a while with a student that is a chronic problem your administrator should be understanding.

Good evening Teddy. First let me say thank you for watching my videos. I truly means a lot. Regarding being the best substitute the key is all about classroom management. As a teacher what I hope for is being able to come back to my class with nothing stolen or broken. Also the classroom presentable. If the students did not complete the work that is okay as long as my classroom is in order. So I would suggest before you leave for the day just take 15 minutes to straighten up the room. Regarding how to interact with the kids I would follow the steps on the other video I created which is Top 3 Tips for Substitutes.

@@theclassroommanagementguy Thank you so very much! I did watch your video on "Top 3 Tips for Substitutes"! Great advice there, also! Thank you for your quick response, you have made a great impact in my research!

Thank you watching my videos. I will be happy to create a video about how I handle cell phones and other technology on the classroom. Look for it on June 18th.

Thank you watching the video and please feel free to share it with anybody who you think would find it helpful.

How dare you ask to share a youtube video

I feel you pain. Trust me I do. I have been doing this 20 years and it feels like the system is stacked against us. I am not saying this is the silver bullet but this approach has helped me out tremendously in my classroom.

I first what do be sure they cheated. I once accused two students of cheating when they didn’t actually do it. Talking about having to eat humble pie. The first thing I would do is front load the kids letting them know if they cheat they get a zero. Then if they cheated I would give them a zero and call home. Depending on the student but more importantly the parent either the student keeps the zero or the parents and I work out an agreement. I hope that helps. Have a great day

Wow. You got my mind racing now. Do you work at a private school or is it a state policy

@@theclassroommanagementguy Public schools in MD.

@@RoopaDudleyPaintings That seems like it would be a hard place to work. What options do you have of kids get out of control.

@@theclassroommanagementguy Most schools have poor discipline system or standards. Everything falls on the teacher to fix.

No detention, no taking away recess, no zeros (even if they do NO WORK AT ALL). Disruptive and defiant students leave the classroom and go talk about it with an admin, come back with a cookie and do the same behaviors. And when they do, it's the teacher's fault. Its bad classroom management. Its never the student's behavior and there are rarely consequences.

You just made my day by your comment. Thank you so much. I am scared to ask what happened at school today. Hopefully tomorrow will be better. Take care