Setting student teachers for success in behaviour management

Over the past three years, Hasan Ali (Assistant Headteacher - Behaviour) and I have worked closely with IOE’s Ben Hammond to support initial teacher training through our partnership with UCL, with a particular focus on behaviour and routines.

The challenge

Recognising that behaviour management is one of the most challenging areas for trainee teachers, Hasan and I discuss strategies rooted in real classroom practice, using live, responsive feedback to address trainees’ questions, supported by carefully considered explanations, examples, and relevant educational research. Our work has centred on equipping PGCE trainees with practical, consistent strategies that align with whole-school approaches, ensuring they feel confident and prepared when entering the classroom during their placements. Alongside this, I have contributed to subject-specific training for modern foreign language (MFL) trainees, focusing on how to establish clear expectations and maintain strong routines within language lessons, including modelling the use of “Kingsmead language” to support calm, safe, and purposeful classroom environments.

The partnership

My partnership with UCL has developed over more than eight years, evolving from hosting MFL trainees as a subject mentor to working at a whole-cohort level across multiple subject areas. This long-standing collaboration has enabled a strong alignment between university-led theory and school-based practice, ensuring trainees receive a coherent and consistent message around behaviour for learning.

In recent years, Hasan and I have been welcomed back for three consecutive years to contribute to Behaviour Hotseat sessions, where we respond to trainee questions centred around behaviour and classroom routines. These sessions provide trainees with the opportunity to explore realistic classroom scenarios, think critically, and hear how experienced practitioners would respond in the moment. Through this, trainees are able to think about, and rehearse the language and strategies needed to manage behaviour effectively and build confidence in their practice.

We have also shared our training video on the “7 Steps to Behaviour,” providing trainees with a clear model of what effective behaviour management looks like in practice, including routines, consistency, and teacher language. In addition, I have led a session for MFL trainees, demonstrating how expectations can be explicitly taught and reinforced within a language-rich environment using Kingsmead’s consistent approach.

The results

The impact of this work has been significant in supporting trainee confidence and competence in behaviour management. Feedback from UCL trainees consistently highlights the value of practising “in the moment” responses through hotseat questioning, with many noting that it demystifies behaviour management and provides them with tangible strategies they can immediately apply in their placements. Trainees report feeling better equipped to establish routines, use clear and consistent language, and respond calmly and effectively to low-level disruption.

Our contribution has also strengthened the partnership between Kingsmead and UCL, positioning the school as a centre of excellence of behaviour for learning.

Trainees placed within the school arrive with a shared understanding of expectations, language, and routines, allowing for greater consistency and quicker integration into classroom practice.

The inclusion of the “7 Steps to Behaviour” model has provided trainees with a clear, structured framework, enabling them to visualise and replicate effective practice.