Book Reviews

What your teachers don't know and your students can't tell you

What your teachers don't know and your students can't tell you.

Author: Mark Nicolaides
www.easyclassroommanagement.com

Chapter 1: The essentials
Chapter 2: Your state of mind
Chapter 3: Your appearance
Chapter 4: What to say to a class
Chapter 5: How to speak to a class
Chapter 6: Body Language
Chapter 7: Success Habits

The author has been a teacher for the last 13 years and aims to share his experiences of trying to gain the "compliance" in the learning environment with young students.  He claims that everything in the book works but if you want to get something specific out of the book then use the chapter headings for your particular need.

Chapter 1: The Essentials
This chapter aims to cover your need to be a leader and the basic psychology of students.
As a teacher you are the leader.  Pupils expect it and they will only follow someone who they believe  they can trust.  He states that ALL children:

• on the outset want to learn
• they want to be liked
• they want approval from the teacher
• they want to feel safe in the classroom
• they want to feel important
• they want to be inspired

If this is not happening in your classroom then their basic needs are not being met.  However, if basic rules are followed in each lesson this will go a long way to achieving the above points.

Chapter 2: Your state of mind
This is the most important element you can control to influence your classes. The author recommends a film called "The Secret" because it gives an insight into the essential mechanisms in which we can create anything in our lives.  If you believe you are a good teacher then the rest should follow.  It recommends that preparing for a lesson is vital and gives a check list of what to do- tell yourself you are a good teacher and visualise a well behaved class.
I think these ideas are good if you are starting out in your teaching career or are having massive problems with your class, but not something you would have time to do before every lesson.

Chapter 3: Your appearance
It is true to say that people send out signals all the time.  How we look is the first thing pupils take in when they walk into your classroom.  This chapter basically makes you think and assess what messages your clothes say about you. I think common sense on this one prevails- nothing to revealing or scruffy.  He advocates a suit as a good idea to give a signal of authority.  I am sure that individual schools will have their own policy on dress codes for staff.

Chapter 4: What to say to a class
Again, I think this chapter would be great for NQT's (Newly Qualified Teachers) wanting to make a great first impression.  It encompasses your initial first impression and how to put the class at ease.  The author  gets you to ask questions of yourself and how you want to be perceived as a teacher.  He gives 4 useful points for "good protocol" to use in any new class:
1. A formal meeting and greeting of each pupil
2. Register
3. Two minute introduction of yourself
4. A well structured lesson
The rest of the chapter covers putting the children at ease, really liking the children you are in charge of, how to give instructions, repeating key words and phrases and if you make a mistake to apologise for it.
I think one of the most important sections in this chapter is how to deal with confrontation.   Good advice is to take advice from other teachers after the heat has died down.  Being emotional and reactive is the response that many trouble makers want.

Chapter 5: How to speak to a class
1. Be concise- waffling is an invitation for trouble for children who get bored easily.
2. Speak faster, change pace, tone and volume- again all ways to keep children interested.
3. Use silences- for effect in the right place!
4. Never shout or get angry- It is true that this baits certain pupils.
The chapter finishes with ideas on how to speak persuasively.  A 3 to 1 technique is recommended-  give them 3 plausible reasons that are not your motive to do something and then tell them the actual reason.  He gives three examples of how this works and it is about the yes/no balance.  In my mind a positive before a negative works better.  I think this idea is really a matter of opinion.  You will know how receptive your class are to getting things done.

Chapter 6: Body language
This chapter covers all areas of the body!  Head, eyes, arms, hands and non-verbal communication.  The author goes into the psychology of different bodily gestures.  For example, folding arms means you are quite defensive.  There is a good do's and don'ts list at the end of the chapter for overall good body language.

Chapter 7: Successful habits
This gives a checklist of how to be a successful classroom practitioner. He is quite right when he says that  we must be role models for our students.  How we are has a massive influence on our young charges.  Trust is key in successful classroom management.  Other important areas mentioned are- consistency in your style of teaching, routines for lessons, classroom expectations and praise and sanctions.  There is a useful list of sanctions that you could use.  He finishes off by discussing the importance of planning and understanding why pupils misbehave.  Again he goes into the thinking of why children feel like they have to misbehave.  There are some guidelines on how to make breaking the rules less rewarding.

This is a very positive books packed with lots of ideas.  It makes you analyse your own classroom practice and could hold answers if you are lacking in a certain area.  It is a well laid out book if you just want to dip into it for something specific.

Anna Crichton    

Magic Classroom Management

Magic Classroom Management- How to get the most from the worst kids in school.

www.classroom-management.org

This e book is very readable and gives a lot of ideas to overcome any problems you might be encountering in the classroom, from mild disruption to serious behavioural issues that could be making your teaching life a misery.

The author is American and reading this I got a sense of the difference in problems and ways to solve them that could be encountered in America and Britain.  However, a lot of ideas can be taken on board and adapted for your own situation.  As long as you apply a common sense approach and know what works for the kids you teach, this book could help you!
Magic classroom management is a long book but is helpfully split into an introduction considering why teachers have to deal with behaviour problems in the first place, followed by 3 main sections with sub-sections.

What I am going to do is give an overview of the themes of each section and pick out useable examples for taking into the classroom.
Introduction:
The author starts of by saying that children are badly behaved.  This is his bottom line and the view that he has come to as a science teacher for many years.  There are many outside influences that children are affected by, such as T.V, print, internet and cinema.  Whatever the causes are we, as teachers, need to decide whether we accept it or challenge it?  I think that most good teachers would want to get the most from the children they teach and surely accepting bad behaviour as part of the everyday norm is a sign of defeat!
He makes a very good point when he says that the one thing you as a teacher have control over is yourself.  The way you deal with problem children is under your direct control and everything else is not, so it will only cause you stress to dwell or change it.
Part 1:
The easiest way to deal with behaviour problems is to prevent them happening in the first place

From reading this heading it does sound logical that this would be the case!  This section aims to focus on the skills, attributes and environmental factors which must be in place before behaviour management can be successful.  In section 1.1 it features attributes of 'The best teacher in the school.'  This is useful to compare to your own personality, so you can identify areas that you might like to work on.  It goes on to suggest that keeping children feeling good about themselves can reflect on their behaviour: "a child in a good mood in a lesson is less likely to misbehave during that lesson."

He places quite a large emphasis on teacher humour and how this can have a positive effect on the behaviour of pupils.  He suggests telling jokes to lighten the atmosphere and having funny quotes of the week.  I personally thought the idea of going to a comedy club to see how the professionals use humour was a step too far but make your own judgement!!  There are 2 links to funny poetry for kids.

The next area he focuses on really is lesson planning.  I.e:  making sure lessons are interesting and appealing.  Again, common sense tells you that being well planned and trying to find an interesting way to put your point across will go quite a way to holding your audience.   Tied in with this is rewarding good behaviour through reassurance and praise. 

I thought a really interesting idea was the 3 different learning styles which children might get on best with- auditory, kinesthetic or visual.  Knowing how a child learns best is a good way to keep them on board.  Page 18 gives good subject examples of the 3 different methods.

Part 2:
Dealing with disruption and pupils who are off task.

If you have tried everything in section 1 and you are still having problems then this section gives practical ideas about what to do. Basically there is a 4 point guide to getting a child on task:

1. Ignore the behaviour- you can't deal with all bad behaviour so choose what could go unnoticed and be more effective with dealing with the big problems.

2. Use non-verbal signs- a frown, shake of the head,finger to lips is a good way to deal with the culprit without disrupting the whole class.

3. Be near a disruptive pupil - physical proximity might deter them.

4. Use verbal signs- do this if the above has failed!

The rest of section 2 is a five step script that stops disruption.  The 5 headings are:

1. State what you want them to do calmly and clearly.

2. Explain exactly what will happen to them if they continue to misbehave.

3. Give them time to think about your instruction.

4.If they have done as you've asked, acknowledge it!

5. What to do if the sanction has had no effect.

This last section is quite detailed and gives scenarios of a script you could adapt for yourself.

Part 3:

Coping with crises, conflicts and difficult situations.

This section gives steps to deal with major disruptions:

"A crisis situation doesn't just happen without a  build-up or warning- there is always a trigger."

There are 3 stages leading up to a crisis and it is up to the teacher to recognise, reduce or remove them.  It is harder to deal with once the crisis is fully underway.
Stage 1:
Response to a trigger.
Perhaps a crisis at home?  Look for signs of  anxiety.  Gives examples of what to say and do.
Stage 2:
Heightened distress and anxiety.
Look for verbal abuse, aggressive body language or being increasingly withdrawn.  Again gives examples of what to say and do.

Stage 3:  At this point if all else has failed the child would have to be removed from the class, according to school policy.

Conclusion:
At the end of the book are very useful resources to use- ideas for rewards, activities to get to know your pupils, a fun way to train your pupils not to shout etc.

Overall, a good book with useful ideas, but magic classroom management, you decide!

A Crichton

Better Classroom Behaviour

Better Classroom Behaviour

Phil Freeman and Mary Hartley (1999 rev 2002)

Illustrated by Craig Dixon

Published by the Chalkface Project ISBN 1 86025 448 9

The aims of this ebook are stated to be:

Better Classroom Behaviour provides activities that develop and support positive behaviour in school. The pack is suitable for use in PSE* lessons and offers a variety of activities, some written (in a variety of styles) and some discussion based ... The activities encourage students to reflect on how different types of behaviour can affect their own and others’ learning and development.

The pack is suitable for Key Stage 3 and 4 students in mixed ability groups. Why Have Schools? page 9, and My Previous School, page 11, are more suitable for students at the beginning of Key Stage 3.

* I don’t know what a PSE lesson is and it is not defined in the ebook.

The table of contents of this ebook is extensive and far too long to put in its entirety into a review. Let me just give you a few ideas of what is in this ebook then:

·         WHY HAVE SCHOOLS? The role of schools in promoting learning and good behaviour

·         MY PREVIOUS SCHOOL Focusing on learning and development in previous schools

·         TICKS AND CROSSES Evaluating the system of rewards and sanctions in the school

·         RULES OKAY A prioritising task to assess the relative importance of particular rules in society

·         WHAT A GOOD LESSON! Discussing the conditions necessary for effective learning

·         TEACHERS ARE HUMAN TOO A scriptwriting activity to raise awareness of teachers’ feelings and emotions

·         THEY’RE DISTRACTING ME! How to deal with anti-social and distracting behaviour

·         IN MY DAY... Analysing how education and schools have changed over the years

·         ROLE MODELS Raising awareness of the importance of suitable role models

·         CLASS CLOWN Devising strategies for dealing with class attention-seekers

The general guidelines given on page 4 of the ebook are useful and need to be read and understood. These guidelines spell out how to read and use the ebook:

·        Teachers’ notes are opposite the main page of each section

·         Preparing for the lesson: what to do before the lesson begins ...

·         The lesson: how to structure and move through a lesson:

·       Thought starters

·         Reading

·         Oral work

·         Brainstorming

·         Research

·         Working in role or ‘imagine’ exercises

·         Written work

·         Following up the lesson

I am not going to try to review the entire ebook since that would take far too much time and wouldn’t necessarily be useful for you. I am taking four chapters or sections and giving my views on each of those. I have chosen the four sections purely on the basis of their physical location in the book: near the beginning of the ebook, one quarter of the way through, one half way through and the final one near the end of the ebook.

The four sections being reviewed here are

·         Why Have Schools?

·         What a Good Lesson

·         Partnership

·         Class Clown

Why Have Schools?

As stated above, this section begins with a page of teachers’ notes which are structured as follows:

·         Aims

·         Preparation

·         Points To Be Aware Of

·         Classroom Management

·         Extension Activities

The aim of this lesson is

Students reflect upon the need for, and the purpose of, schools. They consider the role of schools in promoting learning and good behaviour.

There is a large picture on page 11 of the ebook, the vast majority of which is taken up by a drawing entitled Cave Dwellers High. That illustration shows a teacher dressed like Fred Flintstone but sporting a bow tie, there are pictures of dinosaurs on the wall behind him and there are two children using flints and crude hammers and g clamps. On another wall, also behind the teacher, there is a notice that says:

National Curriculum

Hunting

Cave cleaning

Clothes making

Cooking

Here are the five points that comprise the lesson:

1 What are schools for? Brainstorm all the reasons for having schools.

2 Look at the illustration of Cave Dwellers High. What subjects would you add to its National Curriculum? Make a list of all the subjects that you think should be taught in present day schools.

3 Could people other than teachers provide for learning? Come up with three ideas for different ways of learning some of the subjects on your list.

4 Write down some of the difficulties in educating young people today. How do schools try to overcome these problems?

5 Draw up rules for learning in Cave Dwellers High. How would you encourage students to behave well? What would you do if they broke the rules?

Well, it’s wacky! This is a different approach to what we might consider could be a traditional view in that at least it is attempting to capture the imagination. As a vehicle for an effective lesson, however, would this work? I can imagine some children would love it and some will be insulted by it. Others will get bogged down worrying about the dinosaurs and yet others will no doubt worry about what other stone age things they think should be on the national curriculum for Fred Flintstone.

You might also have spotted that I have latched on to Fred Flintstone without really thinking about: because there have been new films on Fred and his antics over the last few years, I assume that even young children will be familiar with him and might make the same connections that I have.

What’s my alternative to the teaching of Why Have Schools in the context of Citizenship? At this stage I don’t know. Let’s look at another lesson plan, set of ideas for classroom management and see if there are any further clues there.

What a Good Lesson

The aims of this lesson are:

Students investigate the conditions necessary for effective learning to take place. They draw up a list of suggestions for what makes a good lesson.

In terms of class room management, the advice given for this lesson is:

Class feedback after Activity 1 will enable you to focus on crucial points.

In Activity 3, you may wish to highlight the idea that effective learning is not possible when there is disruption. There is scope for role play of the situation in the illustration if you wish.

As with the previous lesson, there are just a few points or activities for the teacher to set and there is a large illustration to work from:

1 Think about a really good lesson that you have had recently. What made it good?

How did the teacher make it a good lesson? How did the students help to make it a good lesson? Tell a partner about the lesson and why it was effective.

2 Look at the picture of a typical lesson in Woodhead High School. Brainstorm all the things that are preventing learning from taking place.

3 In groups, make a list of everything that helps to make a lesson effective. Compare your lists.

4 Imagine that you are the teacher in the illustration. Decide three things you would do to improve the lesson. Use your list from the previous activity to help you.

Activities 1 and 3 I like: traditional but realistic and highly focused: the majority of pupils can respond to all aspects of them.

Activities 2 and 4 relate to the illustration. It’s a pity I can’t replicate the illustration here but it portrays a riotous classroom scene with all sorts of mayhem going on. There is a point to the illustration as it shows the teacher saying, That’s rubbish, you stupid child. A pupil leaving the room saying, I need to go to the toilet. Back in a minute. There is a riot going on and, as a reflection of when the illustration was drawn, there is a pupil listening to a personal TAPE PLAYER!!

Activity 2 contains an in joke too, as the school is called Woodhead High ... this is a bit dated now!

I suppose this illustration is more sensible than the stone age one in that it is at least modern and contains things that will be happening somewhere throughout every school day. Using an illustration such as this must be rather limiting though. The general emphasis of this lesson could easily become a colouring in lesson as the extension activity is for pupils to draw yet another cartoon of a learning situation.

What will the high achievers in this student group be doing as their slower colleagues are colouring in?

Partnership

The lesson on partnership relates to

... the partnership between parents, students and school in effective education. They design a leaflet to promote ways of working together.

Again there are four activities for this lesson:

1 People often talk of education as a partnership of students, their parents and the school. What do you think this means?

Brainstorm your ideas.

2 How could your school, its students and their parents form an effective partnership?

The illustration should give you some ideas.

3 Design a leaflet suggesting ways in which the partnership could encourage effective learning.

4 Write a letter from your school to the parents of a (sic) imaginary student about whom the school is concerned.

Swap your letter with that of a partner.

Write a reply to your partner’s letter.

And again, there is an illustration to hand out; and again, the illustration is to be used as central to part of the lesson.

The illustration shows three pairs of people:

·         Parents

·         Teachers

·         Students

Each pairing is accompanied by a pithy statement, such as the parents saying that they want firm discipline and lots of homework.

Of the three lessons I have reviewed so far, I like this one most. Again, all pupils can be persuaded to have an opinion of the contents suggested by activities 1, 3 and 4. Whilst the illustration in this case is nowhere near as wacky as in the previous cases, you might think that it could constrict any discussions that the pupils might have.

The points to be aware of notes in the Teachers’ Notes section wisely points out that

Students’ family backgrounds may be very different, with some parents or guardians being less supportive of the concept of partnership than others. You will need to show sensitivity regarding situations where home/school relationships are fraught.

A good and concerned teacher and school environment will be aware of the sensitivities here but still, they need handling carefully without a doubt.

Class Clown

At primary school, I don’t remember a class clown but throughout secondary school there were three in our class. I have to say, though, that they weren’t as riotous as some clowns that are depicted on television and in novels and so on; but they were there. Of course, some class clowns bring relief to teacher and pupils alike. Like this bit of banter between a boy and teacher during a Classics lesson,

Boy:                 I think I’ll go to Oxford sir

Teacher:           The only way you’ll get to Oxford Boy is on the X13 bus!

In this ebook, the lesson has the aim of making pupils aware of others’ attention seeking behaviour and devising strategies to deal with it.

1 All schools have their share of students who behave badly to get attention.

Brainstorm the kinds of behaviour you associate with ‘class clowns’.

What are the effects of this behaviour on the teacher and on other students? Think of at least three points.

2 Discuss the reasons for students behaving like the one in the illustration.

Write down the main ideas you come up with.

3 What advice would you give a) his teacher b) his classmates about how to deal with his behaviour? Report back to the class.

4 Make a list of guidelines for dealing with ‘class clowns’.

There is an illustration to accompany this lesson and it features in one activity to be used in the lesson. It shows four class clown situations that the pupils should recognise and discuss.

There isn’t the same warning in the Teachers’ Notes as far as sensitivities are concerned but there ought to be: class clowns usually are attention seekers simply because they don’t get enough attention at home. Look around the staff room or the office and make a note of the chatterboxes: they are likely to be the ones living alone or in a strained relationship where one to one communication is restricted.

I think a fantastic resource here is the film Kes. It’s an old film now, set in northern England in the 1960s but it illustrates a lot of the points made in this lesson and, more interestingly, throughout this ebook. There are some marvellous performances in this film by adult and child alike. I’m afraid I’m not sure what classification this film has but I am sure it was on the television again fairly recently during the day so it can’t be more than a PG. If the film isn’t appropriate, the book, or extracts from the book, certainly is.

There is a mis identified class clown incident in this book, by the way, when the central character, Casper, starts reciting the sea areas in the Shipping forecast from the radio: Dogger, Fisher, German Bight ... the teacher dismisses Casper when he could have used him to enhance the lesson. Priceless!

Overall, I would be wary of using this ebook in its entirety but then again I have never taught Citizenship to anyone other than my own children and my reactions are purely based on what I think I might feel if made to take part in these lessons using the resources and activities as presented here.

Reviewed by

Duncan Williamson

14^th January 2008

eTeach: A Teacher Resource for Learning the Strategies of Master Teachers

ebook Review

Adam Waxler (2004) eTeach: A Teacher Resource for Learning the Strategies of Master Teachers

The chapter headings of this ebook are

Chapter 1: Strategies

Chapter 2: Time Management

Chapter 3: Presentations

Chapter 4: Reading

Chapter 5: Homework

Chapter 6: Grading

Chapter 7: Review Games

Chapter 8: Room Layout

Chapter 9: Methods

Chapter 10: Classroom Management

Chapter 11: Closure

Waxler begins this ebook with the following insights:

Have you ever noticed that the older students get the more teachers seem to move away from teaching strategies that are proven to work?

Why in kindergarten are students actively engaged in learning, but college students end up sitting and listening to a professor lecture for three hours?

Think about it ... in which class did the students really learn more?

The focus of this ebook is on well educated students as opposed to well managed students. The ebook is based on the premise that the best "management system" is a strong "instructional system".

He then says:

I am currently using every strategy that is written in this ebook in my own classroom (unless noted).

And then

However, while the ebook is suited for all levels of education, from kindergarten right through graduate school, my middle school experience definitely shines through.

The ebook however, is not more suited for secondary education.

Chapter 1 is the strategy chapter in which Waxler sets out what he considers the fundamentals of good teaching. One is the pass option that he gives his students: I have to confess that I don’t understand the purpose of it.

I do like much of what else Waxler has to say in chapter 1 but I’m not sure that I like his delivery style: I get the impression that he is acting out a military role.

Teacher: OK, please finish up what you’re writing. Now take 2 minutes and share your answer with your partner.

Teacher: How much time do you have, Gabby?

Gabby: 2 minutes (or “pass”)

Teacher: And what am I asking you to do, Tania?

Tania: Share our answers with our partners.

Teacher: 2 minutes…GO!

The strategies are:

Checking for understanding

The pass option

Wait time

On the clock

The all write and the pair share

The interaction sequence

The monitor map

Chapter 2 concerns time management and Waxler says that time should be split into two:

The year

The day

Actually there is nothing unusual here. Take a look at what Waxler calls the curriculum map and you’ll probably find that you have prepared one before: I certainly have. Waxler is from the USA so he talks about things such as the 8^th Grade, which mean nothing to me: not a criticism, just something for non Americans to get to grips with.

There are other matters under review in chapter two, for example State examinations, that are definitely American. You will need to read these parts very carefully if you are not working in the American system.

The rest of the book is a good and solid list of top tips for teacher and Waxler is careful to remind us from time to time that checking for understanding is important. He also emphasises the importance of setting objectives by making the good point that if you don’t know what the kids are supposed to learn then how will they?

I would be interested to know who agrees with is, from chapter 4:

YOU MUST INCREASE YOUR STUDENTS' KNOWLEDGE AND INTEREST IN A SUBJECT BEFORE YOU READ ABOUT THE SUBJECT!!

Waxler then says, also on page 36

The problem was, like many teachers, I was teaching the mini lessons in the wrong order. There is a tendency for teachers to assign reading at the beginning of the class, followed by a lab, an activity, an experiential exercise, or even a movie or film clip.

I have very rarely assigned pre reading and I know that the only teachers likely to are teachers of adults and highly motivated self starters.

You might not agree with this either, chapter 5 on page 41:

Homework should NEVER be used to teach new material.

With adult and highly motivated students I have done this. Does it work: well, an email from student Carl at 10:30 in the evening on Saturday night asking me for some advice on the new topic suggests that it might!

Waxler does then go on to give some really sound advice on setting homework: see the rest of chapter 5!

Chapter 7 is well worth reading as it contains a lot of good ideas for reviewing your pupils’ work. I would put a lot of top tips here but there is a severe copyright warning at the start of the ebook.

In summary, I haven’t reviewed the entire ebook here but have tried to give you a flavour of what’s in there. This is an American book written for American teachers but don’t let put you off. The links and ideas all revolve around American centric history and social studies so anyone hoping for a set of teaching resources for the UK will be hard pushed to rely on this one.

As I said above, I don’t always appreciate Axler’s militaristic style but I do respect the tips and insights he is giving.

Reviewed by Duncan Williamson

5th January 2008

Classroom Management

ebook Review

Lee McIntrye (2007) Classroom Management 101

I rather liked this ebook although it does read a little like a top tips for teachers ebook, it is worth reading and not only by trainee teachers either.

The chapter titles for this ebook are:

Chapter 1 Classroom Management and Why it's So Important to Your Success In The Classroom

Chapter 2 The First Steps Towards a Peaceful Classroom: Identifying Where You ARE Going Wrong With Your Classroom Management

Chapter 3 Proactive Classroom Management: A Teacher's Secret Weapon

Chapter 4 Positive Classroom Management: A Positive Teacher Means Positive Students

Chapter 5 Setting The Boundaries: Kids Can't Follow The Rules If They Don't Know What The Rules Are

Chapter 6 Reward The Good Behaviour Of Your Students: Reward Yourself With Less Stress. Hassle And More

Chapter 7 The Effectiveness of Powerful and Consistent Sanctions In Your Classroom

Chapter 8 Non Verbal Communication And How It Can Be Ultra Effective in the Classroom

Chapter 9 Improve Your Classroom Management With The Language of Choice

Chapter 10 Keeping Your Class Interested And Its Impact Upon Your Classroom Control

Chapter 11 Preparing For The Worst: Managing Confrontations in the Classroom

Chapter 12 You and Your Teaching Style: The Different Faces of Different Teachers

Chapter 13 Minor Disruptions Within The Classroom and How to Deal With Them

Chapter 14 What to Say and How to Say it

I have to say that these are the title you would expect aren’t they. Certainly, as a trainee teacher, there are many really good ideas that I would have liked to have had some guidance on. That’s not to say I was a disciplinary or classroom management nightmare but there are things here that would have helped me.

I am not sufficiently up to date with ebooks on this topic to say whether McIntyre has written an earth shattering ebook, but I do think it is a good companion for teachers who need to hone their classroom management skills.

I am just going to give a few examples of the things that McIntyre says: just a few because there is a severe copyright notice in the ebook.

It could have been me speaking:

When I have a good day at school I feel amazing. I swear it's the best feeling ever. Some days I just want to leap in the air and give someone the cheesiest high five!

My good days are when my class, or a particular pupil, has finally done something that I've been trying to teach them for days, or weeks, or all year. When a kid aces a test. Or just when I feel like I've really 'connected' with the class.

My bad days are when the class just won't do as they're told. The days when they're supposed to be working quietly and they just won't. When it’s snowed for the first time in years and they're so over excited that absolutely no work gets done.

That's the thing with teaching. The good days are amazing, but the bad days are horrific. Mind you. that's what I love about my job.

Page 6 of the file although there is no pagination in this ebook.

I have said exactly the same from time to time and I am sure many teachers have. Even people who aren’t school teachers but who teach or train from time to time, do get a good feeling from having helped their fellow man in this sort of way.

One of the first things I thought when reading the ebook was that it could have been written by someone who was talking about management in general and not just classroom management. This is not really an accident I suppose as management children and their learning environment is no different to managing employees and colleagues and their sales room, office, factory ...

In chapter 1 McIntyre talks about:

· Fighting fires

· Shouting

· Sarcasm

· Being prepared: here, for example, McIntyre says

If you're unprepared you won't be able to concentrate on managing your classroom or teaching your subject

Isn’t that absolutely true? Yet how many times have you experienced a classroom situation in which the teacher or trainer has lost their place more than once or twice? I once went to a conference at which the world’s biggest authority in my own subject area was speaking and he made a right mess of it: he kept losing his thread, he dropped his slides (yes, acetates!) and apologised for his mistakes. I was shocked at such unpreparedness by such a person at such an event. I wouldn’t have dared be anything other than on top form.

· Not following through: this is a key one and is one that many managers would do well to look at. How many parents, let alone teachers and managers, have said to their children something like, “If you do that again I’ll ...” but then fail to act on the threat? Read what McIntyre has to say both here and throughout the ebook. Read this ebook for his ideas here if nothing else. Sound, solid, good advice.

· Low expectations

· Playing favourites

The rest of the ebook is in similar vein: a lot of good, solid, down to earth ideas. Just look at the chapter headings and see whether those topics are those that you need guidance on. I’ll bet they are.

In terms of style, however, I do have a gripe or two. The style was rather flat and somewhat unconvincing. It is a short ebook and I appreciate the need for brevity but I wasn’t always convinced that McIntyre really was the teacher in the story. That’s not necessarily a problem and a criticism at all, though; just a matter of style.

Because I felt that about the style I wonder if others will and if they will be put off by it. I’m not looking for something as gritty as Kes but I want to be more convinced that the stories are first generation in a case like this.

I would also have liked to have heard about the times when McIntyre didn’t get it right. Now, he starts out this way by saying that he had a lot to learn, how he had problems admitting his shortcomings and so on and that’s good. However, it would be very useful to hear the stories of failure and how he learned from them.

I would also like to know where McIntyre got all of his ideas from. Now I am not accusing anyone of plagiarism or anything like it; but I am sure that McIntyre didn’t think of everything in this ebook by himself. I might be doing the man down and if so I am sorry; but if he didn’t think of everything then some ideas of his sources would have been excellent.

For example, you’ll read about raffle tickets: an excellent idea and I think for doubting Thomas, some idea of where the idea for them came from and so on might convince them of their merits. The idea of phoning pupils’ parents when they have done something good as opposed to phoning home only when they were bad. I have to say I have come across this with one of my children: where the teacher was much more than an anonymous member of your child’s world. The situation I am referring to was one where the teacher really would call us in the evening or over the weekend, along the lines McIntyre suggests. I have to say, though, that my experience was not in the UK and I should also say that none of the teachers of my other children phoned me at home except very rarely. All of my children went to good schools, too, I hasten to add.

Clapping as a classroom control mechanism: good idea and I can see how effective that might be. Read about it in this ebook. Using a musical instrument as a classroom control mechanism: ever thought of that? It’s here too.

One thing that has puzzled me but it’s not a major issue: I read the ebook quickly but am unsure whether McIntyre is British or American. Some language and spellings are American; but then he refers to the UK specifically once or twice.

On the whole, then, a good ebook to refer too for novice and experienced teacher alike.

Reviewed by Duncan Williamson

3^rd January 2008