Identifying and Dealing with Anger in the Classroom

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Identifying and Dealing with Anger in the
Classroom

• By
• Alicia Gail Bryant
• EMG 807
• July 2002

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Whos Angry?

• Anger is a normal human emotion. Everyone
  experiences anger at some time for various
  reasons.
• Anger is part of any human relationship, even (or
  maybe especially) student/teacher relationships.
• Anger is cumulative and transferable.
• in other words, anyone can be angry! However,
  some students are angrier than others.

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Types of Anger

• Explosive
• Visible, quick to appear
• Little planning or thought is involved
• Uncontrolled behavior
• Not deep-seated
• Little skill needed to help work through the anger

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• Passive
• Covert not easily noticed
• Planning involved
• Kid is in control of their behavior
• Anger is deep, and though kid may need to talk
  about it, he/she may have trouble doing so
• Moderate skill required to help kid work through
  the anger

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• Implosive
• Invisible to others
• Emotions are out of control and dictate behavior
• Often kid doesnt even know he/she is angry
• Anger is hidden inside, and may be very difficult
  to uncover
• Professional help is needed to deal with these
  situations
• This kind of anger can be caused by repeated
  abuse, either emotional or physical, often by
  peers. School shooters exhibit implosive anger.

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Phases of Escalation of Anger

• Calm
• Trigger
• Something that sets a person off
• Agitation
• Acceleration
• Peak
• De-escalation
• Recovery
• Hopefully, we can stop a crisis situation before
  it gets to the peak phase

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Characteristics of Stages of Escalation

• Calm
• Student is on task and following rules. He or
  she responds well to praise. The student will
  initiate good behavior. He or she is focused on
  the goal before them, and interacts appropriately
  with adults and peers.
• Trigger
• The student is denied something he needs or
  receives a negative consequence. The student may
  be provoked, be submitted to a change in routine,
  or experience a high pressure situation. They
  may also have suffered a series of problems that
  they have been unable to solve.

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• Agitation
• As the student becomes agitated, her eyes may
  dart back and forth. She may begin to use non
  conversational language, and move in and out of
  various groups, with the result being having no
  membership in any group. At the other end of the
  spectrum, students may withdraw, stare into
  space, stop working, and become still and silent.

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• Acceleration
• As momentum increases, students may begin arguing
  and pushing back verbally. They will stop
  working and become non-compliant and defiant.
  They will begin to provoke other students and
  adults as their anger escalates. Some kids will
  cry, others will also walk out to escape the
  situation altogether. They may threaten,
  intimidate, or verbally abuse others.

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• Peak
• Once students reach their peak, they may strike
  others or themselves, throw extreme tantrums, or
  hyperventilate. They may also scream and run, or
  resort to other types of violence. In extreme
  cases, the lives of those around the angered
  student become endangered.

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• De-escalation
• As the student begins to subside, they may
  become confused, withdraw from the situation and
  those around him or her, or go to sleep. They
  often deny what they have done, or blame others
  for the situation. They may go back to the task
  they previously abandoned, or respond well to new
  directions. They generally avoid any discussion
  of the situation that doesnt involve blaming
  others.

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• Recovery
• Students may become subdued as they recover from
  an escalated episode of demonstrated anger. At
  times, they may be defensive, but are often ready
  to begin work again on their own. As with
  de-escalation, they tend not to want to discuss
  the situation.

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Varying Experiences

• Since each student is different, no two students
  experience the phases of escalation in the same
  way or in the same time frame.
• However, the adults working with students prone
  to outbursts of anger must work to identify the
  stages in individual students, and stop the
  process at the earliest possible stage.

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How can teachers intervene to stop the escalation
process?

• Interventions at each of the stages of escalation
  are possible. The following strategies can often
  stop or prevent the escalation process
• Calm phase
• Provide a structured classroom with quality
  instruction and adequate attention for all
  students
• Trigger phase
• Provide students with formal methods for solving
  problems. In addition, many students also need
  an individual plan in the event of a problem.

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• Agitation phase
• Students who have reached the agitation phase
  often need personal space and time to relax. The
  teacher needs to remain close and provide
  independent or movement activities, depending on
  the individual. Students need to be involved in
  planning what is appropriate.

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• Acceleration phase
• Once students reach this phase, teachers need to
  carefully monitor voice tone, and remain calm,
  respectful, and detached. Students need a
  face-saving escape, and pre-planned strategies
  should be used.
• Peak phase
• Teachers need to consider physical safety needs
  of all present. Later teachers need to look at
  possible behavior patterns leading up to such an
  event.

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• De-escalation phase
• This is the time for isolation and cool-down
  time. Students can work independently, and the
  classroom can be physically restored, if
  necessary. Other students can resume regular
  activities, and the student(s) involved can be
  dispositioned at this time.

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• Recovery phase
• Focus on normal activities and routines. Some
  actions have serious consequences, and these
  should not be sugar-coated. Teachers should
  communicate expectations that the student can
  succeed and meet standards. The student should
  be involved in planning ways to avoid such
  episodes, and the episode should be closed at
  this time.

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Anger appears to be on the rise. Where is this
increase coming from?

• Changes in the American family structure and
  dynamics
• Increasing poverty in the U.S.
• Increase in instances of child abuse and neglect
• Increase in exposure to violence (media, etc.)

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When anger works in concert with violence and
fear, rage results. Fear is often the basis for
anger

• What are todays kids most fearful of?
• Losing a parent (to death, divorce, a
  step-parent, etc.)
• Losing face with peers
• Going blind
• Getting hurt (especially at school)
• Being poor or homeless

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If everyone feels anger, why dont all kids react
with violence?

• In the middle class, verbal responses are often
  used, and can even be an effective way to deal
  with situations.
• When kids are affected by poverty, effective
  verbal responses are often not known or
  respected. A physical response may be all that
  many kids feel they have access to, or all that
  is understood.

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How can you deal with anger in your classroom?

• Make sure your classroom is highly structured.
  Kids who are angry, especially those who
  experience implosive anger, do not deal well with
  inconsistency.
• Build positive relationships with students. Make
  sure the environment is safe, comfortable
  socially, and learning takes place.
• Validate anger. Acknowledgement is important if
  anger is not to be buried.
• Teach kids to work through and solve problems.
• Have a plan in place for dealing with out of
  control situations. What kinds of things will
  you do and say? Plan your responses and actions.
• Model and teach positive responses to anger.

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References

• Straughn, L. (2002, July 10). Understanding and
  working with angry students You must first seek
  to understand if you are to be understood.
  Educating Kentuckys At-Risk Kids Best
  Practices for Alternative and Non-Traditional
  Settings. Conference at Eastern Kentucky
  University, Richmond, KY.
• Whitaker, J. (2002, July 10). Positive
  behavioral support systems/Universal Tier Model.
  Educating Kentuckys At-Risk Kids Best
  Practices for Alternative and Non-Traditional
  Settings. Conference at Eastern Kentucky
  University, Richmond, KY.