General Pedagogy and Classroom Management
Foundations
General pedagogy covers the organisation of teaching and learning conditions: lesson planning, classroom climate, group dynamics, differentiation, and authority. You should know the main pedagogical currents (traditional, active, differentiated, competency-based) and their implications for classroom practice.
Classroom management
Key concepts: rules and routines, positive discipline, prevention over sanction, differentiation (content, process, product), and conflict resolution. Authority in a Burkinabe secondary class rests on legitimacy, consistency and respect, not on fear. Know the difference between formative discipline (guiding behaviour) and punitive sanction.
Traps
Candidates often propose sanctions as a first response to disruption, or confuse differentiation with lowering standards. Another trap is describing a classroom climate as 'good' without naming observable indicators (participation, mutual respect, time on task).
Worked example
Two pupils chat persistently. A weak answer: exclude them. A strong answer: analyse the function of the behaviour, adjust seating or task difficulty, restate the rule, and monitor. Rule of thumb: prevent, then intervene at the lowest effective level, and always preserve the pupil's dignity.