List of Disruptive Classroom Behavior

Disruptive Behavior is when a student acts in a way that is  difficult and this prevents them and other students in the class from studying.This type of behavior usually results in the teachers attention becoming focused on that child and preventing other classmates from receiving the attention they deserve.

There are many forms of disruption that can take place in a classroom throughout all  grades.They can be broadly grouped together as follows :

Talking in Class

When a student talks to other students out of turn, this becomes disruptive in a classroom .It makes it difficult then for both the teacher and the class to concentrate on their tasks. An uncooperative  student can ask endless unimportant questions even argue with a teacher. If this student dominates the class it is disruptive .

Excessive Noise

These can be divided into two categories : –

A student that continuously rummages loudly through a backpack or desk creates unnecessary noise. This can be very disturbing. Excessive noises are distracting to other students and teachers. Students could be dragging their chairs across the floor or pretend coughing. All of these will bring attention to the child and disruption to the rest of the class.

A very annoying but common noise disruption is the ringing of mobile phones and texting even if these are on vibration. Most schools have restrictive media policies but often these will be ignored by students. Teachers have many personal methods for dealing with students who use mobile phones in their classes.

Research has shown that the test results of schools in which mobile phones have been banned show  considerable improvement after such banning. However many schools do allow phones for safety reasons. It is part of a middle and high school students life. Most teachers do not allow students to use these in class.

Late Arrival in Class

When a student arrives late or leaves early it is disruptive for both the students and the class. A student strolling in late will  cause the teacher to halt the lesson to acknowledge the student’s presence. A lesson may then have to be altered or repeated to include this student.Obviously there are emergencies and special occasions, but a student who consistently arrives late disrupts the class as a whole.

Cheating

When a student is found cheating in a classroom environment it becomes very disruptive. Teachers normally have to take time away from other students to address this behavior and even leave the classroom to involve senior teaching personnel.

Threatening behavior

Sometimes students can become rude disrespectful and abusive to teachers. This is obviously disruptive and needs to be dealt with firmly. The whole process of disciplining or removing the student from class will disrupt and cause anxiety in the classroom .

Teachers

Finally if you as a teacher considers your class as very disruptive, then consider that part of the problem could actually be with you the teacher. An effective classroom management program should be instituted. Sometimes a teacher can help make a problem worse by seeing a class generally as disruptive when in fact most of the class are behaving well. Try to identify problem areas and triggers.

Disruptive behavior can have negative effects not only in the classroom environment but also on the school experience as a whole. Taking time out to analyze why an individual or class is disruptive will go a long way towards helping to ensure a quiet productive class.