The Importance Of Classroom Management

Introduction “The number one problem in the classroom is not discipline; it is the lack of procedures and routines” (Wong, n.d.). “Classroom management is often noted as one of the most influential factors in determining success for first-year teachers and as the most influential factor in students’ academic success (Marzano & Marzano, 2003, p. 6).

Of the countless terms and jargon used in the field of education, classroom management is too often confused or used interchangeably with discipline. As Wong and his colleagues explain, “Discipline is behavior management. Effective teachers manage a classroom; they don’t discipline a classroom” (Wong, et al., 2012, p. 60). Classroom management is described often in books, journal articles and professional

“Thirty percent of new teachers leave the profession after three years and nearly 50 percent leave after five” (National Commission on Teaching and America’s Future 2008). Teachers leave for a variety of reasons, but Anthony Xenos found “many teachers cite uncooperative student behavior, insufficient or nonexistent support, and minimal success in positively influencing students’ lives” (Xenos, 2012, p. 248). Long time educator, Paul Pedota noted “that one of the most frequent reasons cited in the literature regarding the problem of staffing and retaining qualified individuals is the lack of student discipline” (Pedota, 2007, p. 163). Furthermore, Pedota also found that many teachers who have left teaching “commented that although they felt that during the preservice training period sufficient time was spent on classroom management, they were not truly prepared for the realities of the classroom, which contributed to feelings of frustration, anger, and helplessness” (Pedota, 2007, p.