Best classroom of the month: a fair shield that keeps every classroom in good order

Best classroom of the month: a fair shield that keeps every classroom in good order

Published By

Umar Shariff
Education
Nov 5, 2026

About the author: Umar Shariff has run a school and redesigned the process flow across all of its departments, turning it into a model school. As a school process consultant, he has helped schools in India and Saudi Arabia write the process guidelines that make them quality learning institutions. He is passionate about teaching and still teaches today.

In short: A best classroom of the month award is a shield given each month to the class that scores highest on a published sheet. The compartment head scores every class on a few categories: academics, cleanliness, attendance and punctuality, learning resources and interaction, uniform, discipline and English communication. Most points come from records the school already keeps, and two are physical checks done by rotating checkers from outside the class. Lapses are counted per student so class size is fair, and the winner gains recognition, not cash. Below: why classroom awards lose their meaning, the categories and where each score comes from, fair counting, rotating checkers, a worked example and a free kit (PDF guide and Excel workbook).

Free kit for school leaders and compartment headsGet the best classroom kit: PDF guide + Excel trackerGet it free ↓

On the first working day of the month, two classes believe the shield is theirs. One has the tidier room. The other had the better marks. The principal asks the compartment head how it was decided, and the answer is "we all felt Class 7-B deserved it". The shield goes to 7-B for the fourth time. By Thursday, nobody in the other classes is wiping the desks.

A classroom award can do real good. It makes a room something students look after together, it rewards attendance and punctuality, and it gives the school a reason to look at every class once a month. It only works when the criteria are published, the evidence is real and the judges are not the classes themselves. The free best classroom kit at the end gives you the sheet and the workbook.

Why do classroom awards lose their meaning?

Five habits kill them, in roughly this order.

Why classroom awards lose their meaning: the criteria are opinion, only what is visible counts, large classes are penalised, a class marks itself, and the same class always wins
Five reasons classroom awards lose their meaning
  • The criteria are opinion. "The best-looking room" changes with the judge, so students learn that effort and outcome are unrelated.
  • Only what is visible counts. A tidy room wins over a class with strong attendance, a better average and kind behaviour.
  • Big classes lose. If every lapse costs a point, a class of 40 loses points twice as fast as a class of 20 for the same behaviour.
  • A class marks itself. When the class teacher or the students do the checks, the result is trusted by nobody else.
  • The same class always wins. If the gap is wide, the others stop trying, and the award has done the opposite of its job.

The fix is not a better shield. It is a better sheet, better evidence and better judges.

What is the best classroom shield?

It is a monthly assessment sheet, one per compartment. Down the side, the classes of the compartment. Across the top, the categories your school chooses, each with a maximum number of points. At the end of the month the compartment head totals each class, the highest total is the best classroom, and the principal approves the result. The winning class holds the shield for the next month.

How the best classroom of the month works: records and physical checks feed a monthly sheet, the compartment head totals each class, the principal approves, the winner is recognised and the sheet is shared with every class
From evidence to the best classroom of the month

Classroom evaluation criteria: which categories, and where does each score come from?

Each category is tied to evidence, so nobody has to guess. The categories below come from a shield sheet used in a school we worked with. They are a sample. Replace them with what your school wants to see.

CategoryEvidenceWho provides it
Academic performanceFailures, class average and the number of top scores in the month's exam, see exam analysisExam coordinator
Classroom cleanlinessCobwebs removed, floor, desks and benches, lights and fansRotating checker, dated and signed
Attendance and punctualityFull attendance, the class monthly average, late arrivals, late submission of notebooks and homeworkAttendance register, homework register
Learning resources and interactionA chart per subject on the current lesson, a model per lesson, no chorus answers, answering in order, students asking sensible questionsRotating checker
Uniform and groomingUniform, haircut, nails, neat hair, pressed dress and polished shoesClass scoreboard
Classroom disciplineSeating, sitting position, movement, quarrels, polite languageClass scoreboard
English communicationUse of English in classClass scoreboard
Parents' attendanceParents at school meetings, if your school tracks itSchool meeting records

Some schools add a category for values and routines that matter to them, such as prayer discipline. The categories, the maximum points for each and what earns them are settings your school defines.

Count per student, so class size is fair

The original sheet deducts a point for each lapse. It is simple, but a class of 40 loses points faster than a class of 20.

Counting lapses fairly: Class 7-A with 40 students and 6 late arrivals has a rate of 0.15 per student, Class 7-B with 20 students and 4 late arrivals has 0.20, so the larger class does better
A larger class can have more lapses and still be the more punctual one

Work with a rate per student: lapses divided by the number of students. Class 7-A (40 students, 6 late arrivals) has a rate of 0.15. Class 7-B (20 students, 4 late arrivals) has a rate of 0.20. The raw count says 7-B is better. The rate says 7-A is. Convert the rate to points with one rule for every class, and put a floor under it so a category never goes below zero.

Classroom cleanliness checklist: rotating checkers and evidence for every point

Two categories need someone to look at the room: cleanliness and learning resources and interaction. The rules below keep those checks credible.

  1. Checkers come from outside the class. Compartment heads, duty teachers or class leaders from another class rotate each month.
  2. Every check is dated and signed. The sheet shows who checked, when, and what they saw.
  3. A window, not a day. The check happens any time in a published week. Classes know the criteria, not the hour.
  4. Observable items. Use a checklist with four levels: perfect, average, poor, not done. For example, "floor swept, no paper, no dust along the walls".
  5. Show the sheet to the classes before the month starts. If a class knows what perfect looks like, it can reach it.

The categories fed by other registers

Four categories (uniform, discipline, English communication, parents' attendance) are not scored again. They are read from the class scoreboard and the school's records, so the best classroom sheet adds no new work for teachers. That is the point: the scoreboard measures habits student by student, the best classroom sheet reads the same facts class by class.

What the winning class gains

Keep the recognition modest and public.

  • The shield on the class door for the month.
  • Names at assembly. The class teacher and the class leader are named, and the class is thanked for something specific.
  • A small shared privilege, chosen by the school, such as choosing the assembly reading or first pick of a library period.
  • No cash or gifts. A reward that costs money makes every close result a dispute.

The sheet is shared with every class, with its own scores and the winner's. A class that finished second can see exactly what to improve.

The class leader's part

The class leader receives the sheet with the class teacher, signs it, and brings the result to the class. The leader helps the class prepare for the month: who looks after the board, the desks, the charts and the models. The leader does not score any class, including their own.

A worked example, step by step

Take a made-up compartment with four classes at a sample school in October.

A sample monthly best classroom sheet for four classes: Class 7-A scores 83 out of 100, 7-B 79, 7-C 74 and 7-D 68
A sample monthly best classroom sheet for one compartment
  1. Week 1. The compartment head shares the sheet and the checklist with all four classes and publishes the checking week.
  2. Mid-month. The exam coordinator sends the academic figures: failures, class average and number of top scores for each class.
  3. Checking week. A duty teacher checks cleanliness and a head from another compartment checks learning resources and interaction. Both date and sign.
  4. Records are read. Attendance, punctuality and late submissions come from the registers. Uniform, discipline and English come from the class scoreboard.
  5. Lapses become rates. The workbook divides lapses by the number of students and converts the rates to points.
  6. The compartment head totals. Class 7-A leads with 83 points, 7-B follows with 79.
  7. The principal approves. The shield goes to 7-A. The sheet is shared with every class.
  8. Next month. The shield is passed on and the checkers rotate.

The monthly routine

The monthly best classroom routine: week one the compartment head shares the sheet, in the checking week rotating checkers visit, in the last week records are sent, at month end the compartment head totals, the next day the principal approves
The monthly routine for the best classroom shield
WhenWhoWhat
Week 1Compartment headShare the sheet, the checklist and the checking week
Checking weekRotating checkersCheck cleanliness and learning resources; date and sign
Last weekExam coordinator, class teachersSend the academic and attendance figures
Month endCompartment headTotal each class on rates; mark the winner
Next dayPrincipalApprove; shield passed on; sheet shared with every class

Start in 30 days

Start the best classroom award in 30 days: choose categories and write checklists, share the sheet and brief the checkers, run the checks, total and approve
A 30-day start for the best classroom award
  1. Week 1: choose the categories, the maximum points and the evidence for each. Write the cleanliness and interaction checklists.
  2. Week 2: share the sheet with the classes and brief the checkers. Agree the checking week.
  3. Week 3: run the checks and collect the records.
  4. Week 4: total the sheet, approve the winner, pass on the shield and share the results.

Download the free best classroom kit

The kit has two files.

  • A PDF guide with the categories and the evidence for each, per-student counting, the rotating checks, the recognition ideas, a worked example and printable checker forms and a shield sheet.
  • An Excel workbook where you set your own categories and points, enter each class's figures and the checkers' ratings, and get points per category, a ranked sheet and the winner. The sample categories and points are only an example. Replace them with your own.

When the sheet fills itself: academic data in one system

On paper, someone gathers figures from the exam sheet, the attendance register and the scoreboard before the shield can be awarded. In a system where those records already live together, the academic, attendance and scoreboard categories fill themselves and the compartment head only adds the physical checks.

HAL Edge, HAL's education management system, keeps academic routines, faculty performance and school data together, in Arabic and English.

Get the next routine in your inbox

One practical school routine a week, each with its free PDF guide and Excel tracker. Unsubscribe any time.

Frequently asked questions

What is a best classroom award?

A monthly award for the class that scores highest on a published sheet covering categories such as academics, cleanliness, attendance and punctuality, learning resources, uniform and discipline.

How do you judge the best classroom fairly?

Publish the criteria, tie every category to evidence, count lapses per student so class size does not matter, use rotating checkers from outside the class and share the full sheet with every class.

What should a classroom cleanliness checklist include?

Observable items such as cobwebs removed, floor, desks and benches, and lights and fans, each rated perfect, average, poor or not done, with the checker's name and the date.

Should the prize for the best class be cash?

We suggest not. Recognition such as the shield, naming the class teacher and leader at assembly and a small shared privilege keeps the focus on the class, not the reward.

Can a school choose its own categories and points?

Yes. The categories, the maximum points, the evidence and the rules are settings the school defines. The kit includes a sample you can replace.

Is the best classroom kit free?

Yes. The kit is a free download: a PDF guide and an Excel workbook that scores each class from your own categories and ranks them.

Umar Shariff