Managing Classroom Behaviour 21st Century Challenges, Approaches and Solutions

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Managing Classroom Behaviour 21st Century
Challenges, Approaches and Solutions

• April 19, 2006

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Minimising Disruptive Student Behaviour

• Janilee Abrikian
• PALS Jamaica
• April 19, 2006

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Putting School Violence in Context

• Everyone is trying to analyse it
• Some say it is more prevalent than ever

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Putting School Violence in Context

• The reality is that we are more and more alarmed
  by violent children.

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Putting School Violence in Context

• Of more concern than the debate over an increase
  or a decrease, is the mix of the nature of
  violence which seems to have changed in the
  direction of more violent acts.

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The Faces of School Violence

• School violence wears many faces kicking
  pushing, shoving, grabbing, verbal abuse, gang
  activity, bullying and intimidation, gun use,
  assault

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Relation to Social Trends

• 1) Where violence is a pervasive part of life,
  the school bears less blame for violence.
• 2) In a generally peaceful society, where schools
  are violent, schools bear more blame and are
  expected to solve the problem to a greater extent.

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Relation to Social Trends

• To what extent is school violence a school
  problem?
• Should the school be seen as the primary place to
  stem violence?

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Putting School Violence in Context

• In general, schools thought to promote violence
• Have high rates of exposure to violence and
  victimisation.
• Display an inability to effectively monitor and
  discipline children, especially for the seemingly
  minor conflicts which occur between children at a
  high rate on a daily basis.

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Putting School Violence in Context

• Teachers/schools cannot immediately or directly
  alter the social factors that create students
  problems

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Putting School Violence in Context

• But if we understand the factors that contribute
  to the problem, we will be
• better able to
• Place student failure and disruptive behaviour
  (including violent behaviour)
• Create environments that reduce rather than
  intensify their effects.

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Putting School Violence in Context

• Undeniably, behaviour is influenced by factors
  outside the control of the school.
• Teacher effectiveness has a significant impact on
  how students behave and learn and how they
  feel about themselves.

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School Factors Influencing Student Misbehaviour

• Overcrowding
• High student-teacher ratios
• Insufficient curricular course relevance combined
  with low student achievement and apathy which
  gives rise to disruptions.

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School Factors Influencing Student Misbehaviour

• Poor facilities design
• Adult failure to act because they fail to
  identify potentially inflammatory problems are
  reluctant to admit a problem believe that
  nothing will work simply do not know what to do.

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School Factors Influencing Student Misbehaviour

• When discipline problems occur in school, to what
  extent can they be traced to dysfunction in the
  interpersonal climate and organisational patterns
  of the school, rather than to malfunctions in the
  student?

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The Search For Solutions

• Working to increase discipline, order and safety
  in schools requires all parties to examine the
• Attitudes
• Behaviours
• Values
• that define them.

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The Search For Solutions

• Meaningful behaviour change will need to include
  discussion about underlying beliefs related to
  issues of power, control and authority.

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The Search For Solutions

• Meaningful behaviour change will need to include
  discussion about teachers instructional and
  management goals and the congruence between these
  and their management strategies.

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The Search For Solutions

• Teachers skills in dealing with inappropriate
  student behaviour has to be a major focus in
  combating unproductive student behaviour.

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Classroom Teaching Two Major Tasks

• Classroom teaching has two m ajor task structures
  organised around the problem of
• A) Learning
• B) Order

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Classroom Teaching Two Major Tasks

• Learning is served by the instructional function.
• Order is served by the managerial function of
  organising classroom groups, establishing rules
  and procedures, reacting to misbehaviour

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Classroom Management Skills Key

• Teachers classroom management skills are a key
  factor in influencing students achievement and
  behaviour.
• The key to successful classroom management is
  prevention of problems before they start.

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Responsive Classroom Management

• Classroom management has always had to be DYNAMIC
  and RESPONSIVE to changing situations.

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Responsive Classroom Management

• Some of the old approaches are relevant.
• We need new paradigms to help us address and
  reduce the problems that exist today.

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Goals of Reducing Student Misbehaviour

• One way to determine the goal or goals of
  reducing student misbehaviour is to answer the
  question
• What do I want to accomplish in responding to
  inappropriate behaviour?

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Goals of Methods to Reduce Unproductive Behaviours

• To instill self-discipline.
• To enhance intra- and inter-personal
  relationships.
• To help students to make better choices.
• To help students develop social skills.

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Goals of Methods to Reduce Unproductive Behaviours

• To create a classroom climate in which all
  students can achieve.
• To make learning fun for all.
• To improve productivity in the classroom.
• To give students life skills.
• To develop individual ability for problem
  solving.

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A Framework

• A classroom in which all students are accepted by
  the teacher and their peers.
• A classroom in which classroom rules and
  procedures have been carefully taught and
  consistently monitored.
• A classroom where students are involved in
  interesting work at which they can succeed.
• A classroom where problem solving is taught and
  used consistently.

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Framework The classroom, A community

• 1) A classroom in which all students are accepted
  by the teacher and their peers.

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The Classroom A Community

• When children experience belonging and feel that
  they are valued, they become involved in their
  own education and they seldom need to misbehave.

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The Classroom A Community

• Psychological Safety
• A climate where individuals are free to express
  diverse opinions without fear
• Individual and cultural differences are accepted,
  not judged
• Students feel protected against unprofessional
  criticism, intimidation, verbal abuse, bullying,
  and violence

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The Classroom A community

• Mutual respect.
• When students are working together respectfully,
  teachers do not have to spend a great deal of
  time addressing inappropriate behaviour.
• Teachers will have control of their class, but
  they will not have to act in a controlling manner.

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The Classroom A community

• Classroom Climate and School Climate
• Student learning and student development are
  significantly influenced by the quality and
  characteristics of the classroom climate ( and
  school climate).

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The Classroom A community

• Classroom Climate
• Teachers are responsible for establishing and
  maintaining positive classroom climates.

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The Classroom A Community

• Meeting Needs
• Students behave appropriately and effectively in
  environments that meet their basic personal and
  psychological needs.

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Framework Proactive Strategies to Minimise
Student Misbehaviour

• 2) A classroom in which classroom rules and
  procedures have been carefully taught and
  consistently monitored.

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Minimising Behaviours

• Most of the work in minimising student
  misbehaviours takes place in the area of rules,
  procedures, routines, organising groups.

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Management Strategies - Categorisation

• Classroom management strategies can be divided
  into two broad categories proactive and reactive.

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Reactive Approaches

• Reactive approaches are the behaviours that the
  teacher uses in response to problems and
  conflicts when they arise.

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Proactive Approaches

• Proactive approaches have to do with the planning
  in which the teacher engages before contact with
  his or her students and the techniques to prevent
  discipline problems from occurring.

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Proactive Approaches

• The difference lies in the teachers ability to
  prevent discipline problems.

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Proactive Strategies

• Proactive teachers teachers dont just react to
  the school environment, they shape it. They take
  charge.
• Teacher action can prevent or alleviate almost
  all discipline problems.

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Proactive Approaches

• Proactive approaches include
• Effective classroom organisation
• Effective group process behaviours
• Effective classroom rules and procedures
• Resilience training
• Stress management

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Classroom Rules

• Be clear in teaching classroom rules.
• Monitor student behaviour.
• Give corrective feedback.
• Reteach rules that students frequently fail to
  follow.

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Why Rules May not Work

• Students dont know the rule or do not understand
  it.
• The rule is too vague or too general.
• The rule keeps changing.
• The rule violates a strong need or value.

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Increasing Student Acceptance of Rules

• Students need to be involved in developing rules.
• Rules need to be clearly stated.
• Few rules.
• Students must accept rules.
• Monitor effectiveness of rules.
• Parent acceptance of rules.

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Effective Procedures To Minimise Student
Misbehaviour

• There are five general areas in which teachers
  need to teach their students how to act

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Effective Procedures Minimise Student Misbehaviour

• Use of classroom space and facilities.
• Procedures during class activities.
• Procedures during small-group work.
• Behaviours outside of the classroom.
• How to behave at the beginning and end of the
  school day.

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Establishing Control Through Class Routines

• Establish a few simple procedures.
• Teach them to students.
• Be consistent.

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Teaching Procedures

• Effectively teaching procedures to students is
  similar to good athletic coaching.

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Teaching and Monitoring Classroom Procedures

• Discuss the need for the procedure.
• Solicit student ideas.
• Have students practise the procedure until it is
  performed correctly.
• Reinforce the correct behaviour.

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Framework Instructional Management Skills to
Minimise Disruptive Behaviour

• 3) A classroom where students are involved in
  interesting work at which they can succeed.

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Maximising On-task Behaviour and Academic
Achievement

• Giving clear instructions.
• Beginning a lesson.
• Maintaining attention.
• Pacing.
• Using seatwork effectively.
• Summarising.
• Providing useful feedback and evaluation.
• Making smooth transitions.

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1. Giving Clear Instructions

• When presenting a lesson, clear instructions for
  the activities should be provided.
• A significant amount of disruptive behaviour
  stems from students not knowing how they are to
  proceed or how they can get assistance when they
  need it, or what they should do once they have
  completed the activity.

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2. Beginning a Lesson

• Teachers need to find effective ways to get
  students attention.
• The goals and activities for the lesson should be
  clearly described and a motivating activity
  should also be part of beginning the lesson.

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3. Maintaining Attention

• Although teachers complain that it is hard to
  hold students interest, teachers need to
  stimulate more consistent attention than what
  often happens.

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4. Pacing

• The teacher can vary his or her tempo. Breaking
  activities into short segments is a useful
  technique.
• In lessons over 30 minutes, short, structured
  breaks can be allowed.
• Teachers will be more effective if they vary
  their style of instruction.

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5. Using Seatwork Effectively

• Be seatwork, we mean those times when the
  teachers has assigned an activity to student
  which they do on their own, at their desks.

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5. Using Seatwork Effectively

• Seatwork should be designed to provide students
  with meaningful pracatice while enabling teacher
  and student to assess the students progress.
• Seatwork should therefore be checked and
  monitored by the teacher.

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5. Using Seatwork Effectively

• Teachers should have optional learning activities
  ready for when students have finished the primary
  task, thereby continuing to keep them on task.

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5. Using Seatwork Effectively

• The teacher should also look into whether all
  students should get the same seatwork.
• Students can also engage in group work.

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6. Summarising

• It is useful to focus students on talking about
  what they learned for example during one day at
  school.
• This will help student focus on what they have
  learned and how that learning relates to specific
  learning goals or to their own lives.

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7. Providing Useful Feedback and Evaluation

• Student performance is enhanced when students are
  given specific feedback about their performance.
• Generalised feedback like Nice work and Good
  are not specific. Feedback should be honest.

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8. Making Smooth Transitions

• Classrooms should be arranged for efficient
  movement.
• The teacher should have his or her materials
  ready for the next lesson, the next part of the
  lesson, the next class.
• Time lost in transitions from one lesson to
  another (in the elementary classroom) could be
  significant.

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Framework Problem Solving to Minimise
Disruptive Behaviour

• 4) A classroom where problem solving is taught
  and used consistently.

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Power Methods. Do They Work?

• Many teachers rely on power to control behaviour.
• How do students respond to power methods?

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Why Do Teachers Resort To Authoritarian Methods?

• Lack of skills/tools?
• It is an easier way of controlling to students?
• The culture of the school?
• Makes teacher feel powerful?
• Large class size?
• Physical environment?
• Insecurity?
• Pressing needs of the curriculum?
• Their own socialisation?

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Authoritarian Control Versus Natural Authority

• Teachers can replace their authoritarian control
  with natural authority.
• Natural authority That readily-accepted
  leadership associated with obvious competence,
  interest and concern.

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Benefits

• There are benefits to teachers and to students in
  giving up authoritarian control.
• What are these benefits?

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Benefits to Fewer Teacher-directed Behaviours

• Students learn to take responsibility for their
  behaviour.
• Students learning tends to be more permanent.
• Students develop multiple problem-solving skills.
• Students become more creative in finding new
  modes of behaviour.

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Benefits to Fewer Teacher-directed Behaviours

• Students are more empowered to make choices.
• Saves time which can be spent on learning other
  skills.
• Creates a positive learning environment.

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A Gentler Society

• Eventually, all of these student and teacher
  outcomes lead to a gentler society.

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Change in Teachers Role

• How does the teachers role change when students
  become involved in problem solving?

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Change in Teachers Role

• Teacher becomes a facilitator and a motivator.
• Teacher empowers students.
• Teacher fosters critical thinking.
• Self-esteem is built.
• Student confidence is built.
• Creativity is encouraged.

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Problem Solving to Minimise Student Misbehaviour

• Involving students in examining their behaviour
  with a view to developing mutually-acceptable
  strategies that will alter that behaviour.
• It requires time to negotiate and agree on
  methods for changing the behaviour.

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Problem Solving- A step-by-step Approach

• Step 1
• Establish a warm and personal
• relationship with the student and be willing to
  get emotionally involved.

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Problem Solving Between Teacher and Student

• Step 2
• Deal with the specific, current behaviour.
• - What happened?
• - What did you do?

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Problem Solving Between Teacher and Student

• Step 3
• Help the student to make a value judgment about
  his behaviour
• - Is this behaviour helping you?
• - Is it helping others?

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Problem Solving Between Teacher and Student

• Step 4
• Together, work out a plan for changing the
  behaviour.
• - What can you do differently?
• - What do you need me to do?
• - What do you need other students to do?

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Problem Solving Between Teacher and Student

• Step 5
• Get a commitment from the student to carry out
  the plan
• - Are you going to do this?

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Problem Solving Between Teacher and Student

• Step 6
• Follow up by checking to see if the plan is
  working
• Step 7
• Do not punish the student by being negative and
  do not accept excuses if the inappropriate
  behaviour continues.

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Problem Solving A Major Method

• We all do it.
• However, how systematically are problem-solving
  approaches implemented in classroom management
  plans? In schoolwide management plans?

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Class Meetings

• Class meetings allow both teacher and students to
  resolve problems openly.
• Teachers will need to prepare their students for
  the concept of class meetings.

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Class Meetings - Rationale

• The opportunity to discuss things that people
  like that are working well, as well as things
  that need to be changed.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• Should be held whenever considered necessary.
• Whether or not there are issues of concern to be
  discussed, hold a class meeting at least once a
  week.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• Sit in a circle if possible.
• Problems relating to the whole group will be
  discussed.
• Problems that concern two or three individuals
  will not be discussed in class meetings.
• It is the issue that must be addressed, not a
  person.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• An agenda will be prepared before the meeting.
  Older students could prepare their agenda item
  before hand, and e.g. put it into the designated
  container in between meetings.
• Students may write their agenda item on the
  chalkboard and sign their name on it.
• If children cannot write, the can tell the
  teacher the mater they want to discuss.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• The items will be discussed according to the
  ordering of the agenda.
• The goal of the meeting is to find a positive
  solution to the problem, so discussions must no
  focus on punishment.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• If someones behaviour is the topic of
  discussion, the student needs to agree to have
  his or her behaviour discussed.
• Feedback should be sensitive.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• The student may choose to leave the room while
  the others strive to come up with ways to help
  the student. The information will then be shared
  with the student.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• Alternatively, the student may choose to discuss
  the behaviour with the teacher and a small group
  of students.
• The results of this discussion will be shared
  with the class at the next class meeting.

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Class Meetings - Guidelines

• Students responsibilities during the meeting
  include listening to the speaker, not talking
  while someone else is talking, staying on topic
  and contributing ideas.

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Classroom Meetings

• How comfortable do you feel about holding
  classroom meetings as a way of addressing
  problems?
• How must I change my attitude if I am to use a
  classroom meeting approach?
• What skills must I develop if I use classroom
  meetings?
• What training must I give my students before I
  start?
• What support do I need from the principal?

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Problem Solving A Major Method

• Problem solving responds to a number of
  socio-emotional needs of students.
• Problem solving helps remediate a wide range of
  skill deficits experienced by many students who
  consistenly behave unproductively.

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Other Approaches

• Self-management
• Social skills training
• Contracting
• Cognitive skills training
• Conflict resolution programme

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Self-Management

• Focus on specific, observable behaviour
• Focusing on the specific, observable behaviour is
  the first step for systematically altering a
  students behaviour.

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Self-management

• Involves assisting a student in establishing a
  system for monitoring and recording his or her
  own behaviour.
• Creates an internal locus of control for student
  which will become generalised.

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Self-management

• E.g. Students who are consistently late, absent
  or uninvolved in activities, talking out of turn,
  making disruptive noises .
• Teachers role help student accurately describe
  behaviour, work out a plan.

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Getting Control Of My Behaviour

• What did I do?
• What were the circumstances? Where? Who was
  involved?
• Why did I do what I did?
• What did I think the payoff to me would be?
• What happened when I did what I did?

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Getting Control Of My Behaviour

• Was the outcome what I expected?
• Was the outcome positive or negative for others?
  In what way?
• If the outcome was negative, what can I do in
  future to avoid that outcome and produce a more
  positive outcome?
• Write some guidelines to guide your future
  actions.

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Social Skills Training

• A student who has persistent and serious
  behaviour problems is demonstrating a lack of
  certain social skills.
• Responses to these students means helping the
  students develop new behaviours to replace the
  old ones.

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Cognitive Skills Training

•  Challenge the way students think about problem
  solving.
• Violence in schools often erupts as impulsive or
  irrational reactions to immediate problems.
• Teach means-ends thinking, in which students
  learn how to reach a goal by step-by-step
  planning, identifying potential obstacles and
  accepting that problem solving often takes time.

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Cognitive Skills Training

•  Teach analytical thinking, in which students
  learn how to weight the appropriate pros and cons
  when deciding whether to carry out an act.
• Teach alternative solution thinking, in which
  students learn to find new solutions to a
  problem.

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Cognitive Skills Training

•  Teach consequential thinking, in which students
  learn to consider different outcomes that might
  result from a given action.

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Contracting

• Negotiating a behaviour contract with student.
• This is about finding a way to help the student
  follow the rules.

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Conflict Resolution Programme

• Central themes include cooperatioin,
  communicaton, affirmation and conflict resolution
• Skills effective communication, mediation
  negotiation, problem solving, active listening
  and critical thinking and competent social
  skills.

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Conflict Resolution Programmes

• Learning to Live Together Programmes.
• The CR skills are applied in the context of
  values and norms such as empathy caring about
  others cooperation respect for human dignity
  and diversity, life and health minimising
  violence and promoting peace

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Violence in Schools The Crisis

• Do you need a violence prevention and conflict
  resolution programme?
• Depends on how much of a problem already exists.

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Violence in Schools The Crisis

• The vision? Ensuring that basic safety needs are
  met.
• Providing a school environment conducive to
  learning and socialisation.

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Violence in Schools The Crisis

• Effective prevention is systematic and long term.
• Cannot be an add-on.
• Has to be an integral part of the curriculum.

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Violence in Schools The Crisis

• Teachers establish the first line of schools
  safety.
• They should be supported in creating safe
  classroom atmospheres.
• Schools should provide training and technical
  assistance to teachers and staff in the following
  areas

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Violence in Schools Training and Technical
Assistance

• Conflict prevention, management and resolution.
• Anger management.
• Victim support.
• Crisis/critical incident management.
• Bullying, harassment recognition, prevention and
  intervention

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Violence in Schools Training and Technical
Assistance

• Who should, how to, and where to refer students
  and families to social service agencies.
• Classroom management.
• How to identify and defuse potentially violent
  situations.

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Violence in Schools Training and Technical
Assistance

• How teachers and other staff members own
  behaviour may diffuse or escalate conflict.
• How to identify troubled students.
• How to communicate and work with
  parents/guardians in order to intervene in the
  behaviour of troubled students.

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Violence in Schools The Role of Students

• The majority of students recognise they share in
  the responsibility to prevent school violence.
  (?)
• They suffer the consequences.
• They provide an essential perspective on how to
  promote school safety.

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Violence in Schools The Role of Students

• Therefore, students should be included in al
  efforts to create safer schools.

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Violence in Schools The Role of Students

• They can participate in ongoing activities that
  promote school safety
• Conflict resolution
• Problem solving teams
• Mentoring programmes
• Student courts
• Community service
• Peer mediation

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Policies Promoting Positive Student Management

• It is the teachers responsibility to prevent and
  effectively deal with minor misbehaviour in the
  classroom.

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Policies Promoting Positive Student Management

• It is students responsibility to know that even
  though they have a right to express concern if
  they feel their personal learning needs are not
  being met, they will not be allowed to disrupt
  the learning process.

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Goals of School Discipline

• Two main goals
• To ensure the safety of staff and students.
• To create an environment conducive to learning.

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Characteristics Associated with Discipline
Problems

• Unclear rules
• Rules that are perceived to be unfair
• Rules that are not enforced consistently.
• Students do not believe in rules.
• Teachers and administrators do not agree on the
  proper responses to student misconduct.

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Characteristics Associated with Discipline
Problems

• Teacher-administration relationship is poor.
• Administration is inactive.
• Misconduct is ignored.
• Large school.
• School lacks adequate resources for teaching.

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Effective School Discipline

• Effective school discipline strategies seek to
• Discourage misconduct
• Encourage responsible behaviour
• Provide all students with a satisfying school
  experience.

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Effective Discipline Common Characteristics

• Discipline is developmental.
• High expectations for students a belief that
  students can succeed a commitment to expend high
  amounts of energy to achieve that goal.
• A student-centred orientation.

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Effective Discipline Common Characteristics

• A focus on the causes of discipline problems
  rather than on the symptoms.
• An emphasis on preventive measures rather than
  punitive measures.
• A total school environment conducive to school
  discipline.

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Effective Discipline Common Characteristics

• Clear and broad-based rules.
• Warm school climate.
• A visible, supportive principal.
• Delegation of discipline authority to teachers.
• Staff development on discipline philosophy and
  practice.

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Effective Discipline Common Characteristics

• Close ties with parents and communities.
• An openness to critical review.

128
What Makes a Discipline Policy Effective?

• There is no single solution to discipline
  problems.
• But, some broad-based considerations can be borne
  in mind when developing and reviewing discipline
  policies.

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Need To Be Innovative

• Even in orderly schools, discipline problems
  still arise.
• In schools that are fraught with disorder and
  danger, schools have to search for innovative
  measures to address the problems.

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What Makes a Discipline Policy Effective?

• Involvement.
• Statement of purposes and goals of discipline.
• Flexibility.
• Communication.
• Consistent enforcement.
• A feedback system.

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Some Considerations For Those Developing Policy

• Will policies work long term as well as solve the
  short-term problems?
• Do policies deal with symptoms or with root
  causes?
• Are policies developed through a deliberative
  process?

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Some Considerations For Those Developing Policy

• Will policies teach students to be responsible?
• Is character development the ultimate goal of
  discipline?
• Do policies dignify or humiliate staff and
  students?
• Do policies ensure that all students are treated
  with respect?

133
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• The instructional programme.
• The physical environment.
• The psychological climate.
• Guidance and counselling services.
• Extra-curricular and social activities.
• Home-school connections.
• Alternatives to punishment.
• Elimination of corporal punishment.
• Aggression replacement training.
• Dealing with violence.

134
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• The instructional programme
• When students are learning, they are likely to be
  orderly.
• Order by itself will not produce learning.
• Students come to school to learn.
• Curriculum goals must be achievable by students.

135
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• The instructional programme
• If students cannot achieve, they will direct
  their energies elsewhere.
• Often, this manifests itself in inappropriate
  behaviour.
• So, curriculum and instruction can actually be a
  cause of discipline problems.
• Trying to get order where there are instructional
  weaknesses is a losing proposition.

136
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• The Physical Environment
• Clean and comfortable is good.
• Schools should also be safe for students and
  staff.
• Every effort should be made to protect students
  and staff from violence.
• Criminal acts should not be tolerated and schools
  should develop policies for dealing with them.

137
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• The Psychological Environment
• Schools should provide a psychologically safe
  climate.
• Many discipline problems are faced by the way we
  treat students. S
• Some school policies and classroom practices also
  cause problems.
• These in turn make keeping order difficult.

138
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• The Psychological Environment
• When administration and staff are engaged in
  practising a way of life that promotes
  discipline, self-control and values, a much more
  positive psychological climate will prevail.
• Students are much more likely to behave if they
  feel valued, are encouraged to achieve and are
  given opportunities for participation in school
  activities.

139
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Guidance and Counselling Services
• Counselling provides help with personal
  problems, self-esteem development and social
  skills training.

140
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Extra-curricular and social activities
• Discipline in schools can be improved by
  involving students in extra-curricular activities
  and school-sponsored social events.

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Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Extra-curricular and social activities
• Many of the personal and general pro-social
  skills that students need for positive
  interpersonal relationships can be acquired
  through involvement in social activities with
  peers, teachers and parents.
• Students will have fun, develop friendships,
  achieve goals and improve their self-esteem.

142
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Home-school Connections
• Seek as much parental involvement as possible.
• Seek and promote innovative ways to increase the
  extent to which students and parents/guardians
  connect with the school.

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Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Home-school Connections
• School/class newsletters.
• Classroom activities.
• Opportunities for participating in clubs
• Use parents as mentors, guest speakers.
• Create a parent lounge
• Have parenting classes.

144
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Home-school Connections
• Parents, an essential plan of school violence
  prevention.
• They can help with the design of safety plans.
• Information and training sessions can be provided
  on school safety policies and programmes.

145
Variables Impacting on Developing a Schoolwide
Discipline Policy

• Remember, consideration will also have to be
  given to
• Alternatives to suspensions.
• Elimination of corporal punishment.
• Aggression replacement training.
• Dealing with violence.

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Remember- Variables Impacting on Developing a
Schoolwide Discipline Policy

• The instructional programme.
• The physical environment.
• The psychological climate.
• Guidance and counselling services.
• Extra-curricular and social activities.
• Home-school connections.
• Alternatives to punishment.
• Elimination of corporal punishment.
• Aggression replacement training.
• Dealing with violence.

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Organisational Development Approach

• School teams to carry out improvement projects.
• Curriculum and discipline policy review and
  revision.
• Academic innovations.
• Climate innovations.
• Career-oriented innovations.
• Special services.
• Strong/effective school board.

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Support of Schoolwide System

• Teachers need the support of a schoolwide system
  that provides interventions for students who
  continue to disrupt classes when teachers have
  instructed responsibly and managed the class.

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Summary. A Framework, Four core areas that can
make a Difference

• A classroom in which all students are accepted by
  the teacher and their peers.
• A classroom in which classroom rules and
  procedures have been carefully taught and
  consistently monitored.
• A classroom where students are involved in
  interesting work at which they can succeed.
• A classroom where problem solving is taught and
  used consistently.