[General] Classroom management: Motivating students

[juchoo]

A question for all teachers out there: What would you do if you had a class of students who have been placed in a level way above their proficiency level?

They have been struggling in class for the past few months, and some have clearly given up hope of ever understanding anything that goes on in class.

How would you deal with the syllabus vs the students' best interest? (Ignoring the syllabus is not an option.)

How would you motivate these demotivated students?

If some students are clearly uninterested in class (sleeping, chatting, etc), would you segregate them from the ones who do want to forge on?

I would greatly appreciate any thoughts on this.

 

[Abstract Idea]

A question for all teachers out there: What would you do if you had a class of students who have been placed in a level way above their proficiency level?

They have been struggling in class for the past few months, and some have clearly given up hope of ever understanding anything that goes on in class.

How would you deal with the syllabus vs the students' best interest? (Ignoring the syllabus is not an option.)

I would try to conciliate both, focusing in the student's interests and bringing some extra material for their proper level. Maybe I would go through the syllabus as fast as possible, trying to conquer the students complicity (since ignoring the syllabus is not an option).

How would you motivate these demotivated students?

If some students are clearly uninterested in class (sleeping, chatting, etc), would you segregate them from the ones who do want to forge on?

Depending on the number of interested students and on their degree of willingness to learn, I would.

 

[juchoo]

Thanks for replying. I have been struggling with the idea of segregation -- wondering whether it would make matters worse if I moved the attentive students to the front since I would be essentially showing the inattentive ones that I'm no longer paying any attention to them. I'm still considering the pros and cons of this, as the number of inattentive students far outnumber the attentive ones.

Anyway, thanks for your thoughts!