Strategy: Using Active Supervision
Check-Up Menu > Using Active Supervision
Use this strategy to improve these areas:
Overview
Actively supervising students during independent and group work is an effective way to promote on-task behavior in the classroom and prevent the occurrence of problem behaviors. It is also a way that you can increase positive contact with the students in your classroom.
Purpose
Deliberate and active supervision provides opportunities to focus on and reinforce desired behavior while having a planned, measured response to discourage misbehavior.
How Using Active Supervision Connects to CARES
Active supervision provides you with increased points of contact with students and additional opportunities to build authentic relationships. Because you have had other positive interactions with students through active supervision, students are less likely to feel targeted when you have to provide corrections to them. Actively supervising students offers you the opportunity to more frequently “catch them being good” and be able to provide them with authentic behavior-specific praise. Providing active supervision allows for more instructional time and overall positive interactions over time, ultimately supporting the development of a positive classroom climate.
Some key elements of effective active supervision:
1) Move constantly and deliberately around the classroom, providing particular attention to problem areas, activities, or students who are known to have difficulties.
2) Systematically scan the class for visual indicators of on-task behavior as well as behavior issues. Continue scanning even when working with an individual student or group of students.
3) Maintain high rates of positive contact to increase the likelihood of positive behavior while decreasing the incidence of unproductive behavior. As you circulate the classroom, project a helpful and open demeanor as you answer questions, provide assistance, and give friendly precorrections.
4) Provide behavior-specific praise that clearly describes the behavior that you want to see more of (see Using Behavior-specific Praise). For example, “Evan and Alex, you are using a level one voice and have completed half of the project. Great collaboration.” It is good to provide at least three positive comments for every negative or corrective statement you make.
5) Use redirection to guide a student who is off task or misbehaving. Move toward any student who is off task or engaging in misbehavior. Sometimes, adult presence is enough of an intervention. If you need more than proximity to provide redirection, speak in a calm, clear tone to tell the student to stop the behavior while stating the expected behavior. For example, “Aniyah, you are talking and the expectation is that you will work quietly on your math assignment.”
How To
How to Use Active Supervision in Your Classroom
- First, identify the activities, groupings, and projects your students engage in that are not teacher directed (e.g., cooperative learning groups, peer-assisted learning, independent work).
- Next, identify the behaviors students should engage in to be successful during these activities. Determine the voice level, movement, and engagement expectations. These will be the behaviors you target with behavior-specific praise (e.g., “You have worked persistently and are using your time well.“).
- Next, identify the signs of typical off-task behavior or misbehavior (e.g., students gesturing, talking, out of seat or out of area) and determine how you will respond to these behaviors (e.g., redirect, verbal reprimand, logical consequence).
Example Videos:
Dot Charts
Video Prompts:
- This video demonstrates a teacher using dot charts during active supervision.
- Notice how the teacher comments on the student’s work, provides feedback, and then puts a dot on the student’s chart. When the chart is full, the student knows they will earn a reward.
- How might using dot charts with your students help keep them engaged in their work?
- What did you like about the way the teacher used active supervision here?
- How might you incorporate some of what you saw in this video into your daily teaching?
Moving Between Desks
Video Prompts:
- Notice how the teacher moves around the room between the desks, commenting on the work she sees as she goes.
- Notice how the teacher provides behavior-specific praise (“I see very neat and pretty writing. Good job.“).
- How do you think the way the teacher moved around the room and commented on the work helped to keep students on task?
- What did you like about the way the teacher actively supervised the students’ work?
- What could you do to make it easier for you to move around your classroom and use active supervision?
Private Comments
Video Prompts:
- Notice how the teacher checks in with each student as they do independent work.
- She comments on their work, provides feedback as needed, and gives a lot of praise privately to each student.
- How do you think the students felt as the teacher privately gave each praise or commented on their work?
- What did you like about the way the teacher used active supervision here?
- How might you incorporate some of what you saw in this video into your daily teaching?
Strategy Tool
Use the Dot Charts strategy tool to help you increase your active supervision and reinforcement of expected student behavior.
We’ve provided some dot charts in PDF format for you to download and print for use in your classroom.
Single Page
2-up
4-up
Autumn Leaf
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4-up
Autumn Things
Single Page
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4-up
Harvest Corn
Single Page
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4-up
Octopus
Single Page
2-up
4-up
Pumpkin
Single Page
2-up
4-up
Snowflake
Single Page
2-up
4-up
Sports Things
Single Page
2-up
4-up
Spring Things
Single Page
2-up
4-up
Thanksgiving Turkey
Single Page
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4-up
Winter Things
Single Page
2-up
4-up
All of the Above
Single Page
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4-up
Reflection
Take a moment to reflect on whether your plan is going to work.
Goal Setting
Use the following form to set your active supervision goals.
References to Other Relevant Resources:
Reinke, W. M., Herman, K. C., & Sprick, R. (2011). Motivational interviewing for effective classroom management: The classroom check-up. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Stormont, M., W. M. Reinke, Herman, K. C., & Lembke, E. (2012). Academic and behavior supports for at-risk students: Tier 2 interventions. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
Sprick, R. (2009). CHAMPS: A proactive and positive approach to classroom management. Eugene, OR: Pacific Northwest Publishing.
Sprick, R., Knight, J., Reinke, W., Skyles, T., & Barnes, L. (2010). Coaching classroom management: Strategies and tools for administrators and coaches. Eugene, OR: Pacific Northwest Publishing.