The classroom manager is responsible for ensuring that academic standards are maintained. Each state has curriculum guides, standardized tests and teacher expectations. If, for example, students get to high school but can't read it is because the classroom managers in the earlier grades failed to detect the problem or arrange for remedial instruction. In schools with disadvantaged students, managing this component can be demanding.
Classroom managers are responsible for monitoring student behavior. Vigilance is often necessary to make sure students are paying attention in the classroom and not bullying on the playground. Unacceptable student conduct includes refusing to participate in the class, disturbing other students and engaging in loud or abusive language. In some schools, classroom managers are expected to deal with all these problems. In others, there is more administrative backup and support.
As classroom managers, good teachers make sure their students all feel appreciated as individuals. To achieve this, a teacher has to embrace the idea that all students are, first and foremost, individuals, each with his own strengths and weaknesses.
Covenant management refers to being able to manage the class as a group. As in the military, the common good sometimes takes precedence over individual concerns. Another way of looking at it is from the perspective of "team spirit." Some teachers can relate to students as individuals, but have difficulty managing them as a group. Effective classroom managers create a sense of common good and students respond by wanting to be members of the group.