Ask any veteran teacher and they will tell you that the stronger the relationship with the student, the less likely behavioral problems will erupt in the classroom. Good relationships equal good classroom management, pure and simple.
Meet John Gunderson. A 17-year veteran, he teaches at Dana Hills High School in Orange County, Calif. He estimates the student demographics as about 80% White, 17% Hispanic and the other 3% from various other ethnicity groups. Gunderson describes his school as having an "economic advantage."
In the video below, he talks about the importance of building authentic relationships with students.
Look For:
Go Deeper:
Rethinking Classroom Discipline [1]
In Bob Peterson's book review of Marilyn Watson and Laura Ecken's Learning to Trust: Transforming Difficult Elementary Classrooms Through Developmental Discipline, building trusting relationships is highlighted as an important component of classroom management.
Reflect On:
Ready Resources:
Use poetry to build relationships in the classroom [2] from Rethinking Schools
Reflect on [3] the qualities you bring to teaching and how they impact your relationships.
Links:
[1] http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/18_02/revi182.shtml
[2] http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/21_03/rais213.shtml
[3] http://www.tolerance.org/teach/activities/activity.jsp?ar=921&pa=7