12 classroom management strategies for high school teachers

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High school learners are approaching adulthood, and they expect to be treated like it. That impacts how educators manage their high school classroom. While elementary learners want to please their teachers, and middle schoolers need help with social and emotional skills, high schoolers have different needs. They want to understand the meaning behind rules, they’re often skeptical of authority, and they deal with stress that carries into the classroom. 

Effective classroom management strategies for high school are about partnership not control. Let’s explore 12 strategies specifically for this age group, and ways to use Hāpara to create a safe and engaged digital environment.

Build relationships differently with older learners

High school learners need to feel respected and seen as individuals. Take time early in the semester to discover what learners care about, whether it’s a sport, a creative interest like dance or art, a future career goal, or a club at school. 

At the beginning of the school year or semester, share a quick Google Form survey using Share Files in Hāpara Teacher Dashboard. This is a simple way to gather information about your learners’ interests. Then you can mention those interests later, showing that you actually paid attention and care.  

That kind of relationship-building is a very effective way to manage the classroom. When learners feel a genuine connection with their teacher, they’re more likely to want to meet your expectations and try their best.

Co-create your class rules

Teenagers need to feel some ownership over high school classroom rules, or they’ll find ways around them. During the first week of school or the new semester, instead of posting the rules or presenting them, ask your class to help you create the expectations. Some example questions could be:

• What does a productive classroom or digital learning environment look like?
• What helps them focus during group work, independent work, and digital learning?
• What gets in the way of focusing?

Write their answers in a shared class Google Doc, and help your learners turn them into shared agreements. Then share out the finalized document with the class and refer back to those shared agreements throughout the semesters.

Learners who help create classroom norms are more likely to hold each other accountable and less likely to push back.

Develop a clear cellphone strategy

While some states and districts are implementing cellphone bans for elementary and middle school, in high school there’s still flexibility on how phone use is handled. For example, some high school learners actually use their phones for academic purposes, while some have jobs or family responsibilities and can’t turn their phone completely off during the entire school day. 

That said, most educators feel that cellphones take away from learning in the classroom. The Pew Research Center shared that about 72% of high school educators say that “students being distracted by cellphones is a major problem in their classroom.”

If your state or district doesn’t completely ban phones during the school day, ask learners to help you create a phone agreement, along with your other class expectations. Here are some questions to ask:

• When and why should phones be turned off and put away? 
• Where should phones be stored?
• When are phones allowed during class time, if at all?
• What happens if someone doesn’t follow the agreement?

Again, learners are more likely to respect expectations around phones if they help set the expectations. 

Make your class expectations feel relevant

High schoolers tend to want to know why. When a rule or expectation doesn’t have a reason, they don’t see the meaning behind it, and may not think it’s important enough to follow. 

When you connect your expectations to something that actually matters to learners their age, you’ll get buy in. For example, when you create expectations around class participation, talk about the communication skills they’ll need in college or at a job. When discussing how to stay focused, connect that to their own goals, whether it’s applying to a college or trade school or staying on top of grades for a sports team. 

Incorporate restorative practices

When a learner is disrespectful, having a private conversation is more successful than discussing it in front of the class. High schoolers respond better to being treated as people who can reflect and improve. They don’t want to just be seen as a problem. Ask them what’s going on and truly listen rather than being accusatory. 

Edutopia suggests the restorative practice of using “I statements” to express your emotion connected to the learner’s behavior. This is a helpful way to make a learner less defensive and more aware. 

Recognize stress and anxiety

High school learners may be feeling stress or ongoing anxiety related to family issues, part-time jobs, social lives, college applications, AP exams, or post-graduation plans. That stress may show up in the classroom as an inability to focus, irritability, withdrawal from class activities, and even disruption. According to John Hopkins Medicine, it can also become physical such as showing up as fatigue, headaches, stomach aches, or pain. 

Creating safe spaces in high schools could look like a regular check-in in the classroom. Checking in at least once a week can help you understand what’s going on with learners. Open a Google Form link onto learners’ screens using Share Links in Hāpara Highlights. It could be a basic form with the question “How are you feeling today?” Then include a scale of 1 to five and an optional comment section. 

If you notice that a learner is repeatedly showing signs of anxiety, consider sending them to the counselor or nurse. With Hāpara Hall Pass, you can quickly create passes without wasting instructional time, and allow the learner to get the support they need.

Manage independent activities intentionally

During independent activities in class like trigonometry problems, biology research, an English essay, or reading a nonfiction history text online, it’s easy for learners to get distracted. High schoolers know how to look “busy” while doing something off task on their class device.

Hāpara Highlights gives educators visibility into what learners are actually working on without hovering over learners’ shoulders. On one page, you can see active browser tabs across the class. If someone is off task, you can discreetly send them a message using the Announce feature or the Chat feature in Highlights. You can also record browsing history while you work with learners at their seats and review that history after class. 

You can also set up a Filter Session in Hāpara Highlights during independent activities. When you discuss class expectations with learners, ask them about sites that are most distracting. Let them know that you’ll add these to a Filter Session, which blocks access to the sites, to help them stay focused.

During an assessment, on the other hand, you may want to create a more focused environment. In that case, you can create a Focus Session that restricts learners to only the assessment URL.

Build a culture of academic integrity

Every high school educator needs to talk about using AI with the learners. This is another area where you can create expectations with learners and have an honest conversation at the beginning of the school year or semester. Here are some questions you can discuss with learners:

• When does AI help with learning and when does it get in the way?
• What’s the difference between using AI as a supportive tool and using it to do class work for you?
• How should we manage AI use during assessments?
• What happens if I see AI use in your Google Doc history in Hāpara Teacher Dashboard?

Hāpara Engagement Manager and former high school educator Lisa Monthie recommends using AI in positive ways to engage learners. For example, you can use AI tools to create leveled texts, brainstorm new engaging activities for learners, break down learning standards, analyze learning data or visualize concepts for learners.

Have a clear system for absent learners

Chronic absences are an issue in high school classrooms. RAND research found that in the 2024-25 school year, about 22% of K-12 learners in the U.S. had been chronically absent, meaning they missed 10 or more days from school.

When a learner misses several days, it’s difficult to catch up and creates stress. One way you can help is to use Hāpara Teacher Dashboard to share class Google Drive files with materials, assignments and resources with the learner. They can either work on the activities at home or see exactly what they need to do to catch up when they return to class.

Adapt your approach for different classes

If you teach a mixed schedule of classes and grade levels, you may need different high school classroom management approaches. For example, AP learners want more autonomy during digital learning, while an elective class with freshmen might need more structure. Differentiate your strategies for the learning group, rather than using the same approach across all your classes.

Be honest about what you don’t know

Teenagers know when you’re being authentic and when you’re not. If you make a mistake, they’ll respect you if you’re honest. Maybe a lesson didn’t work the way you wanted or you’re not sure of an answer. When you’re honest during these class moments, you’ll build trust that will carry through the semester and help you better manage the class day to day.

Create a digital environment for high school learners

High school learners don’t want their teacher sitting behind a computer closing off-task tabs every day. They do need structure, though, especially when they’re doing independent work on devices. Hāpara gives high school teachers the tools to create that structure in a way that respects students and helps them stay safe and engaged during digital learning.

Whether you’re scheduling a Focus Session to keep learners on task during an assessment, checking in on browsing activity, or sending a message to a learner who’s been struggling, Hāpara helps you easily implement high school classroom management strategies.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the biggest classroom management challenge in high school? 

Developing buy-in is the biggest challenge for educators who teach this age group. High schoolers are less likely to follow rules without an explanation. Strategies that give learners ownership over classroom rules, phone agreements and digital learning expectations are more effective.

How is secondary classroom management different from earlier grade levels? 

High schoolers are closer to adulthood and want to be respected. They also want more autonomy, respond better to honest conversations, and deal with different levels of stress than younger learners. Educators need to include learners in decision-making and give them a voice.

How can I manage devices effectively in a high school classroom? 

A class-created phone agreement and a tool like Hāpara Classroom Management helps keep learners on track. Hāpara lets educators guide and monitor activity on school-issued devices during class to keep learners safe and engaged.

What should I do when a high school learner is disruptive? 

It’s best to have a private conversation with the learner instead of calling them out in front of the class. High schoolers often respond well to restorative practices and having their teacher listen to them.

How do I handle chronic absenteeism in high school? 

The goal is to help learners feel less overwhelmed. Use Hāpara Teacher Dashboard to share resources directly with learners so they can see exactly what they missed and where to start or stay on track at home.