How Classroom Management Software can reduce post-pandemic stress in the classroom

With the start of a new post-pandemic school year just around the corner, many districts are finding it increasingly difficult to retain teachers, and it is often due to health concerns not related to the virus. It turns out, the real culprit is stress. 

Stress tops the list of self-reported, pandemic-related reasons teachers have left the profession in recent months, with some teachers pointing to never-ending work hours and a general feeling of being undervalued. Distance learning challenges, like lower student engagement, left many teachers unsure how students were faring academically and emotionally, making it even tougher to prove — or achieve — success. 

And these stressors may not let up just because students head back to the classroom. Re-establishing the “norms” of classroom behavior and participation may prove challenging after a long break — much less a year-plus of distance learning. 

For teachers to reduce stress inside and outside of class, it’s vital they have the skills and support they need to maximize every moment of teaching time and limit interruptions. That’s where classroom management comes in. 

The new challenges of classroom management  

Classroom management is the set of techniques and skills teachers use to create and maintain appropriate student behavior, optimize student engagement, and ensure their classes run smoothly. For many years, the best practices of classroom management stayed relatively consistent and primarily involved setting clear rules and then verbally correcting students when they did not follow those rules.  

But with the addition of 1:1 learning, classroom management evolved to also include the management of devices, as well as students’ experiences and limitations while on those devices. Then, as the pandemic ushered in distance and hybrid learning, teachers were no longer just faced with managing a classroom, but individual students working from disparate locations, largely disconnected from their educators and each other. 

Teachers began to face a new set of challenges in keeping students engaged and on track: 

1. Knowing what students are working on – When a student is working on a digital device, it can be difficult to know whether they’re on task or not. Before digital devices, teachers could typically see what students had on their desks, making it easier to tell whether they were working on schoolwork or engaged in something else. 

2. Getting students on the same page – The boundlessness of the Internet makes it easy for students to get lost, intentionally or not, wasting valuable class time. Just getting students to look at the same web page at the same time can be an exercise in patience. 

3. Limiting digital distractions – Even the most studious kids can find themselves down an Internet rabbit hole, distracting from classwork and even put them in an unsafe or compromising position. Making sure students have the web-based limits they need to stay focused has become an important aspect of classroom management. 

Classroom Management Software reduces stress during class time 

Classroom Management Software like LanSchool, is designed to address these challenges and the digital learning evolution of the classroom, by extending teachers’ capabilities and oversight in the digital space. Moreover, it gives teachers new opportunities to expand students’ online learning experiences in a guided and thoughtful way. 

There are a few ways classroom management software can help teachers reduce stress in their classrooms: 

1. Monitor comprehension and progress – Screen monitoring capabilities enables teachers to check on the progress of the student during a particular assignment. This can also be useful to gauge the level of comprehension during a lesson. If a student appears to be struggling, the teacher can offer direct assistance.  

2. Redirect early finishers – Teachers can use direct messaging feature to discreetly assign follow-up work to early finishers in an effort to keep them engaged and discourage them from distracting other students. 

3. Set limits – Web filtering enables teachers and IT teams to decide which sites and apps are on or off limits to students, making it much easier for them to stay on task and avoid unsafe or inappropriate content. 

4. Correct behaviors – Calling students out on bad behavior used to be its own kind of distraction, but classroom management software enables teachers to reach out and discourage the behavior on a one-to-one or one-to-a-few basis. 

5. Regain focus – Teachers can blank students’ screens to redirect attention toward themselves. They can also push websites and apps directly to students’ devices to quickly get everyone on the same page during a lesson 

6. Encourage shy students – Many students are uncomfortable participating in lessons or asking questions in the classroom setting. Messaging allows these students to contact the teacher discreetly, better addressing the needs of these students.  

Classroom Management Software supports teachers and students

The benefits of using technology in the classroom extend beyond the scholastic lessons’ students learn on their devices. 1:1 programs are training students to become resourceful digital natives, who will be comfortable using computers and technology in their future careers.  

Without classroom management techniques and software providing the necessary level of oversight and transparency, technology can become a hindrance to teaching. With the appropriate tools in place, it can support teaching in ways prior generations may have never conceived possible. The balance lies in combining the right practices with the right software. 

Many of today’s teachers say they are comfortable learning and incorporating new technology into their classroom. No other edtech gives teachers more oversight and opportunity than classroom management software, making it a vital tool for reducing classroom stress and ultimately helps teachers enjoy teaching again.   

Interested in enhancing the classroom management experience with classroom management software? Sign up for a free trial of LanSchool Air here: https://lanschool.com/free-trial/