Teaching For Dumbies - How to Dominate Your Class and Increase Their Grades

Classes can become absolute nightmares if you don't have the right skills and techniques to cope with everything your students can throw at you. A great teacher needs to be able to stay one step ahead of their class, and be able to use ethical mind control techniques to keep your pupils under tight control. Here is a quick guide on how be an expert teacher and exert effortless leadership in the classroom.

1. Talk to as many of your students as possible before the lesson begins; it slowly coaxes them into a work mode, and will be less reluctant to listen when you finally start teaching.

2. Make sure you know every students name. If you can, print out the thumbnail pictures and memorise them before class. Not being able to put your finger on a name in the wrong moment can really put a dent in your authority.

3. The best kind of praise is praise made as public as possible. Don't stop at simply putting pupils work on walls, but invite teachers in to 'marvel' at their effort, and announce good work to the class. This is particularly effective for increasing the academic confidence of the troublemakers.

4. Don't undermine yourself with self-critical comments for comedy effect. Inexperienced teachers often turn to cheap comedy in a desperate attempt to win some short term popularity from their pupils. This can often turn nasty however, as bad jokes can quickly turn into a career-long nickname and pupils will stop taking you seriously. While at school myself, a science teacher hinted in a joke that he cross dressed at the weekends. A perfectly worded joke in a social situation perhaps - but the class used it to torment him for the remainder of the year. Don't make the same mistake.

5. Know your subject thoroughly. Be prepared to answer the weirdest and most wonderful questions ever conceived on whichever topic you decide to teach. A half-hearted run through of a textbook will not arm you with enough material for a lesson. You only need to be caught out once to seriously lose respect and authority from a class of students.

6. Go for novelty treats. Handing out chocolates on your first day may sound like a desperate technique, but students love novelties and especially chocolates. You'll temporarily win the classes admiration, which can really help in laying down the foundations for your relationship with the class.

7. Finally. Show a down to earth attitude. Frequent references to pop culture really work well for young teachers. Chatting about music, news, and celebrities occasionally as a short break will increase your authority and influence over students, and actually help build relationships with those students who would previously refuse to answer questions in class.

Build these 7 quick tips into your teaching routine, and you'll instantly see a change in the way you're perceived by your class. This change in perception will increase your leadership and make your life so much easier. Don't be a dumbie, act upon this advice the next time you walk into a classroom!