Classroom Management Tips That Prioritize Connection Over Control

July 16, 2026

Woman at a table with elementary-aged children

Today's teachers aren't just managing classrooms; they're navigating shorter attention spans, increased student anxiety, chronic absenteeism, smartphone distraction, artificial intelligence and learning gaps that persist years after the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, there is a need for additional classroom management strategies in response to rapidly evolving technology, global disruptions, and increased expectations for individualized learning.

At the same time, teacher burnout still remains a significant concern. Many educators feel pressured to cover curriculum while also acting as counselors, technology managers and behavior specialists, adding to existing job pressures.

These changes have presented challenges, but they’ve also helped shift mindsets and create discussions around what students need and how teachers can accommodate those needs. One positive area of change is classroom management strategies that create environments where students want to participate. When students feel seen, valued and empowered, they're more likely to stay engaged and take ownership of their learning.

Outlined below are areas where educators can make gentle shifts in their classroom management strategies to support student confidence, encourage self-directed learning and help all students feel comfortable to fully explore their curiosity.

Identify where you can shift from compliance to agency

If your classroom management has been centered on compliance, it may be time to loosen the reins to empower students to steer their own course in behavior and productivity. What educators have learned over time is that we are no longer in a culture that supports students sitting quietly for long periods and following directions to a T.

Having a classroom rooted in a compliance mindset can create a culture of intimidation and anxiety, ultimately threatening the joy of learning. Today's students are savvy and have been navigating their own learning through access to computers, smartphones and tablets. Creating a classroom environment that supports skills they’ve picked up through technology can transform the day-to-day experience.

Students thrive when they have ownership over their learning, and providing choices doesn't mean sacrificing structure. When teachers offer students opportunities to make meaningful decisions throughout the day, it is the difference between students having to do their tasks and students getting to do them.

Preservice teacher candidate Junaisy Colon is preparing to teach elementary school in the fall. She intends to foster student agency among her students.

"One key idea I would incorporate into my classroom management is the importance of 'leading' students, not just managing them," she said.

Ms. Colon believes it is important to involve students in decision-making and give them a voice, which she says helps build respect and responsibility.

"As a teacher, I want to be a mentor and role model, not just enforce rules. Focusing on encouragement, high expectations, and strong relationships will help create a classroom where students feel valued and motivated to learn."

Social Studies teacher Michael Winter agrees.

"My goal has never been simply to maintain order; it’s to inspire...students need teachers who motivate and influence them, not just control them," he said.

Teachers can support student agency by:

Establishing classroom norms early

Never underestimate the power of structure. Block out time during the week so students can anticipate and get excited for the moments when agency is boosted in their learning routines.

Providing multiple classwork selections

It is now well known that each unique individual has a different learning process. Some thrive on visuals, while others work well with written directions and so on. When presenting classwork to students, offer multiple routes to the same destination.

Choosing independent or group work

Consider the introverted and extroverted personalities in the classroom and understand how these personality predispositions affect a student’s work preferences.

This focus on agency is important because when students have a voice, classroom expectations become shared commitments, rather than rules imposed by the teacher.

Engage in phone boundaries instead of phone battles

Smartphones and wearable technology are inescapable in modern society, including our classrooms.

On average, children receive their first phone at age 11, with almost all having one by age 15. Meanwhile, children eight and younger spend an average of two-and-a-half hours with screen media daily. This affects quality classroom time, as half of school leaders (53%) report negative impacts on academic performance, mental health and attention spans.

Many districts and states, including New Jersey, have implemented cell phone bans to curb phone use in the classroom. This presents new rules for educators to uphold.

To help students adhere to the rules without animosity, set boundaries rather than rules.

Phone storage pockets

Cell phone storage in classrooms gives students reassurance that their phones are in the room without becoming a distraction.

Designated technology breaks

Use technology as a reward when students engage in high-quality learning or show respect and cooperation during their time in the classroom.

Lessons on digital wellness

Students are growing up in an always-connected world. Helping them recognize when technology supports learning—and when it interferes—is a life skill they'll carry beyond school.

Incorporate activities that strengthen attention and focus

The COVID pandemic decimated attention spans, with 75% of teachers reporting student attention spans have dropped since the pandemic.

Many students struggle to maintain focus for extended periods, especially after years of interrupted learning and increased screen time. Rather than expecting uninterrupted concentration for an entire class period, design lessons around how attention naturally works.

Brain breaks

Getting student focus back on track can be as simple as getting up and doing 10 jumping jacks, which is what first grade teacher William Werner tried. He found that the activity helped reset students’ brains, shaking off the distraction they had been feeling.

Alternating learning styles

Sitting for long periods is challenging, even for some adults. Break away from the desks and chairs by alternating learning styles throughout the day. Form a circle with chairs and host a class discussion, incorporate movement and make time for hands-on, collaborative work.

Games to help with learning recollection

Rutgers Alternate Route is a big fan of review games, with our candidates tasked with creating their own. Here are resources with these candidate-created games teachers can pull from:

Incorporating frequent transitions throughout the school day keeps students mentally engaged while reducing opportunities for off-task behavior.

Invite social-emotional learning into the classroom

Not every behavior problem is a discipline problem.

Students may act out because they're overwhelmed, embarrassed, anxious, exhausted or struggling academically.

Social-emotional learning (SEL) has proven successful in classrooms because it encourages teachers to look beneath the surface of behavior rather than react only to what they see. In doing so, teachers build a culture of empathy and respect, communicating to students that belonging is key.

Adults play a critical role in modeling and teaching what it looks like to speak up safely, which is why incorporating SEL practices into daily classroom life can be transformative for students.

When challenging behaviors occur, ask questions like:

What need is this student trying to communicate?
Has something changed recently that has thrown off a student’s routine?
Do assignments employ learning methods students find most comfortable?
Is the student seeking attention, connection or avoiding failure, and how can teachers respond to each of those needs?

A good SEL strategy doesn't mean eliminating consequences. Instead, consequences become opportunities for learning rather than punishments to be feared. These restorative conversations help students reflect on how their choices affect others while developing emotional regulation and problem-solving skills.

ESL Teacher Erik Supardi is excited to try restorative justice in his classroom.

"I believe it is important for students to express their side of the story and to challenge them on what is considered fair," he said.

Mr. Supardi's vision includes the type of restorative practices implemented at Attleboro High School in Massachusetts, where students run a Youth Court that administers consequences for low-level peer infractions.

He says, "I would like to implement a court-style procedure where the two students present their case and the rest of the students are the jury to determine the consequence."

Teachers interested in learning more about implementing these practices can access insightful guidance and resources.

Support culturally responsive classrooms

Effective classroom management begins long before a teacher redirects behavior or enforces rules. It begins by creating a classroom where students feel seen, valued and connected to the learning.

Culturally responsive teaching is much more than celebrating food, clothing or holidays; it is a research-based approach grounded in relationships and brain science. When students see themselves reflected in the curriculum and experience a sense of belonging, their attention, engagement and willingness to participate increase.

When culturally responsive teaching is incorporated, teachers spend less time managing behavior and more time supporting meaningful learning. Rather than relying primarily on compliance, this classroom approach cultivates intrinsic motivation and deep learning, making it one of the most effective classroom management strategies available.

View mistakes as part of the learning journey

Making mistakes is a scientifically supported part of the learning process, which means students are more likely to retain information when they feel comfortable making mistakes and self-correcting.

A recent study found that making deliberate errors can lead to meaningful learning experiences, while a separate study found success among students who monitored their own learning process, a practice known as “error-monitoring.”

In the report, co-author Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, a professor of education, psychology and neuroscience at the USC Rossier School of Education, said traditional teaching methods are “potentially teaching kids to curtail their natural curiosity and exploration to try to memorize correct answers, but not to try to use information from the world to figure stuff out.”

Instead of upholding a right-or-wrong environment, teachers can help students become comfortable with productive struggle by celebrating effort alongside achievement.

These are lessons Keenan Reid is imparting in his classroom. During a social media chat, he explained, "As an 8th grade history teacher, I give feedback that focuses on effort, progress, and specific ways students can improve, whether it’s written on assignments or shared during class discussions, to help them keep growing/working."

Middle School Math teacher Nathan Pared uses a similar approach addressing mistakes.

"Instead of saying wrong when a student gives an incorrect answer, I say, Great thinking! Let's see if it works,” he said. “I do this to support student thinking and give them confidence to try problems, even if the answer is not correct."

A bevy of teacher feedback practices reinforce the case for embracing mistakes in this post.

Teachers can help students learn from mistakes using the following strategies:

Model thinking aloud during difficult problems

Encourage talking out loud when it is productive and tied to the learning process. Coach students on thinking aloud without disturbing one another.

Share examples of revisions and learning from mistakes

Including examples of mistakes helps normalize them as part of the learning process, teaching students persistence instead of expecting a right answer on the first try.

Praise persistence rather than perfection

That persistence? Celebrate it. Cheer on the student who got to the answer by adding extra steps to their process. Congratulate the student who figured out how to remove a step to get closer to the answer. Each of these encouragement strategies helps students feel safe learning.

Students who aren't afraid of making mistakes are more likely to participate, ask questions, and take intellectual risks.

Look for opportunities to incorporate creativity

Students are naturally more invested when they can create and engage with information, rather than consume it. And with careers more diverse than ever, these creative moments can connect students with both learning and goals as they enter the real world.

Consider incorporating:

Student-created videos

Students no longer need to ask permission to use an expensive camcorder for projects; they now have easy access to smartphones and tablets, which open up more options for video projects. Filming and editing videos also develop storytelling skills, and setting time limits (30 seconds, 60 seconds, three minutes, etc.) helps shape critical thinking by prompting consideration of which information is most important to a narrative.

Podcasts

Laptops and video conferencing have made the art of podcasting accessible to anyone with these tools. With most schools issuing laptops to students, there is an opportunity to engage them in telling a story without visuals for support.

Graphic novels

This is an area where teachers can encourage artists in their classrooms and delve deeper into the kinds of messages art can convey to others. How would a student tell a story if they had to rely primarily on artwork instead of a textbook-style narrative?

Digital storytelling

Products and services like Canva have made digital design accessible, and with communications and marketing increasingly central to careers, graphic design is a useful skill to learn early. Teachers can assign students digital campaigns for reports, in which communication is delivered through slides or graphics.

Strong relationships = strong classroom management

Classroom management today looks different than it did just a few years ago. After many experienced life as virtual learners for part of their studies, students benefit when connection, collaboration and purpose are prioritized alongside clear expectations and consistent routines.

The most successful classroom management strategies help students develop ownership over their learning while supporting their social-emotional well-being. By creating opportunities for student agency, establishing healthy technology boundaries, incorporating movement and creativity, and viewing mistakes as valuable learning opportunities, teachers can improve student engagement and build positive classroom cultures that support academic success.
No classroom is perfect, and every group of students brings unique strengths and challenges. The goal isn't to eliminate every behavior issue, but to create a classroom where students feel respected, motivated and confident enough to participate, ask questions and grow.

If you’re considering following your dream of teaching, Rutgers Alternate Route can offer you the support and training you need to succeed. Be sure to follow Rutgers Alternate Route on Twitter and sign up for Alternate Route’s monthly newsletter for more information and stories from the field of education.