Clearly defining what is required of students in the class as well as having high expectations will help teachers get the most out of their students in their subject area
Many of today’s students enter high school with poor study habits, as well as poor work habits. For young teachers who are first beginning to find their teaching style, it is imperative that certain fundamental procedures are outlined for the class they are teaching. By clearly defining what is expected from the student in the class as well as clearly communicating the means through which academic performance is to be measured, the teacher has the best of chances of getting the maximum effort and best academic performance of each student in the class.
Be clear, right from the start
The first thing a teacher should give their students on the first day of class is a list of class room procedures that are to be followed in the classroom. In this manner, the daily routine of how the class is conducted is available to the student from the outset. Classroom procedures will include topics as to how students are to be ready for the class to begin when the bell rings, how to ask questions in class (say by raising their hand and waiting to be acknowledged by the teacher), how the class begins with what procedures, how emergencies and fire drills will be handled, how a student requests to go to the restroom, etc. In short, the classroom procedures are a simple and organized way to train students to follow a set of procedures that will allow the class to proceed smoothly. This is necessary in order to allow the maximum potential for each student to learn in a safe, orderly, and organized fashion.
Going over the course itself
Once a teacher has established the classroom procedures, they can proceed to going over the syllabus of their course. The syllabus at a minimum describes what academic material is covered in the course. The syllabus should contain the name of the book, the author, the edition as well as the units or topics that will be covered throughout the course. A good syllabus will contain a timeline (which can be set or flexible) which details the dates different topics will be covered throughout the entire course. The syllabus also should contain the dates of all examinations or tests to be given in the course. In this manner, students can plan ahead during these busy times to best achieve fulfilling the goals outlined in the syllabus.
Get sorted
A highly organized and prepared teacher then gives their students an assignment sheet. This sheet will contain all the assignments by date as well as their due dates for the entire course. This shows students that the teacher is expecting that work to be done, but also makes students be aware of what they as students need to do to accomplish the goals spelled out in the class procedures, the syllabus, and the assignment sheet. The student will all these materials at the beginning of the course can ever deny or be confused as to what was expected of them as well as by what date. In this way, the teacher maximizes the academic performance each student can achieve at the very beginning of the course.
