It is time to restate the class rules and procedures and to make adjustments as necessary. The class belongs to the students therefore the first step is to have a class meeting to rehash the class agreement and make changes as necesary. It would be unfair to change things without involving the students. If the rules that are in place are not working, obviously there needs to be change or the students can redirect their efforts to follow the rules. At this point it's their choice. If the situation does not improve after the meeting they lose their choice and it becomes mine.
I would have a meeting with the disruptive students. If they have been punished under the old rules with no results I would provide a deterrent to their behavior such as doubling the punishment to get then refoused on the class and offf themselves.
I would be outside my door each day before class begins. I would greet and compliment students as they entered the room. I would arrange the seating to sperate the three boys, trying to move them clase to me but still apart from one another.
I would revisit my lesson plans. It would seem an appropriate time to so more hands-on activities, but I would also take some tie to discuss graduation and its importance. Cell phones would not be allowed to be on display in the room. Paper and pencil would be on display only when in use of the lesson.
If I have been consist in applying the school and class rules consistent in applying the school and class rules, the student should come back into line.If they do not they have lost the privilage of owning their class. At this point I would become more of a dictator in order to protect those students who still want to learn. As on the highway, speeding fines double in a construction zone. So to would punishment for misbehavior in a learning zone.
If the three boys still refer to behave, I would make calls to the parents. If there still is a problem, I would involve an administrator and schedule individual meeting with the parent and child with an administrator.
Holding a class meeting is a fabulous idea because it makes students feel that they are part of a community of learners and that they have a say in their personal education.
ReplyDeleteI do not know if doubling the punishment would lessen the disruptive behavior. To decrease a behavior, it is best to start by collecting data to see why the behavior is occurring and the frequency with which the behavior is occurring. By knowing this information, decreasing the behavior becomes somewhat more simple than if you do not know why the behavior is occurring.
Behaviors students demonstrate can happen for a variety of reasons such as: the student wants to escape (a certain subject or assignment), the student wants to get attention (the student makes jokes and the class laughs), the student wants to make a demand (the student shouts out during class), or a student wants to self-soothe (the student picks at their nails, plays with their hair).
When trying to decrease a negative behavior, positive reinforcements should always be tried first before negative reinforcements or punishment. Students should be rewarded for good behavior and the negative behavior should be ignored or, if it is severe enough, it should be punished.
I believe doubling the work would make a student feel more resentful towards the teacher and would make them want to keep exhibiting the negative behavior.
Noel, I think you made very clear two points that I also consider key on class management. The first is involving the students on setting the class rules. The fact that rules are not working is because there is something in there that do not work for the students. So, making them to participate in setting the rule will have two advantage: 1. They will have the feeling that we are taking their opinion in consideration, which is always important for the students, and 2. they agree to follow the rules since they consider them as important as you.
ReplyDeleteThe second point is consistency in applying rules. As a students nothing bothers me more that a teacher that did different things with different students, so now as a teacher, I think it is very important for the students to know they are all equal to you.
I completely agree with your premise that the classroom is ever changing and is not 'static". As such making adjustments as necessary (adapt and overcome as we used to say in the Army) is certainly a proven approach. I also agree with your assessment that the class should feel that they have some say in the rules (expectations) set forth for them. Of course they can not have complete autonomy in this (can you imagine!!) but allowing students to point out a rule which maybe has not been completely thought through of well applied (maybe the bathroom pass policy needs changing) gives the kids an opportunity to be part of the classroom community and help set their own enviroment.
ReplyDeleteI love that you stated ‘the class belongs to the students’, I think that as teachers we can kind of forget this which can lead to complications and power struggles. Making changes together as a class shows students that you respect them and see them as an equal, my favorite classes growing up were always the ones where the teacher had this same belief.
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