- Standing at the whiteboard and cover the material are the best. Too many teachers try to be students' friends, or have fun games or "computer assignments" that get nothing really done.
- Having time for individual students with problems. Set the class off on exercises then walk round, don't wait for students to come to you because they won't.
- Not putting up with disruption in the classroom at all. I've seen far too many teachers give second and third chances until the kids pick up on the fact that the teacher won't ever react and then do what they want and intefere with the good students' learning. The best kind of discipline is where the student feels like they let the teacher down if they don't do their work, so much more effective than detention or something.
- Being regular with setting work and homework, clear about deadlines and what is expected, and returning marked work promptly. That way students can get into a routine. Set just enough homework so that everyone practices the skills but not mindless repetition.
- One one hand, realise your job is not to teach to the exam but instead to get the students excited about the subject so the exam takes care of itself. However when it gets close to the exam spend a lot of time on exam answering technique and short revision summaries, because a little effort there gets a lot of marks.
