By: David Moadel
Lee and Marlene Canter’s Assertive Discipline has withstood the test of time as one of the classic texts on classroom behavior management. After reading the book, I can easily see why it is still utilized by so many educators as a guiding force in their classroom management systems. This book provides teachers, both new and experienced, with ideas and principles that can be used in practically any classroom. It can make the difference between a well-run class in which students are on-task and learning, and a class in which the students are disruptive and the students feel distracted and unsafe. In a disruptive classroom environment, students will not learn much, if at all. Thus, effective behavior management is a necessary condition of student learning and achievement. Assertive Discipline makes this possible. It is not the only approach to classroom management, but it is one of the best approaches, in my opinion. Moreover, I feel that some of the “newer” approaches to behavior management are, in reality, modifications or updates of Assertive Discipline. Indeed, so-called “modern” approaches owe an enormous debt of gratitude to this book.
Assertive Discipline is not a lengthy book, but as Shakespeare once said, “Brevity is the soul of wit”; thus, much of the book’s appeal lies in its succinct, practical approach. Many education-related texts…
Children misbehave. It’s an indisputable fact. But, the behaviour levels in our schools and in society as a whole have deteriorated to extremely low levels. So what can we, as teachers, do about it? The challenge is to figure out how to keep children motivated and focused in the classroom.
It has become way too easy to blame misbehaving children on their parents. Even though inadequate parenting definitely plays a role, we cannot site it as the only cause. Children today are subject to more outside influences than ever before. Today’s media is a global and ever-present force which is a potentially destructive influence that…
When dealing with disruptions of any kind from your students, it is important that your response to the disruption is less intrusive for the rest of the class than the initial disruption. It doesn’t make much sense to react to a minor infraction with all guns blazing and create more of a disturbance than the student did in the first place. Therefore, I’ve assembled 6 steps for getting any student on task that will ensure problems are addressed before they escalate into large scale problems for the entire class.
When dealing with disruptions, it is always good to start small, and then work your way up if needed. So that is why step one for dealing with minor disruptions is to simply ignore it. Most attention-seeking behaviour…
Teachers with a well established and clearly defined classroom routines can make fantastic positive effects on their classroom’s behaviour. But, you may be wondering, how do you successfully implement them? Implementing successful routines into your classroom will take time and effort. It is well worth it, however, when you compare it to the alternative: being continually stressed out over having to tell students over and over again what to do.
You should aim to teach routines one at a time until they become habitual. Teaching routines…
If you would like some strategies to control your unruly classroom without resorting to yelling and intimidation, here are some quick tips that will help you regain control of your classroom without breaking a sweat.
1. Pack your lessons full – Make your lessons more interesting to your students, and thereby hold their attention better, by planning different activities throughout them. If you can involve your students actively in the lesson they will thank you by having an outlet for their energy.
2. Mix-up your lesson – You shouldn’t be lecturing for the whole period, especially with a rambunctious group of students. Actively involve your students in the lesson by planning…
Hopefully these will ensure that your teaching instructions are followed without arguments or confrontation.
The teaching instructions you give to your students are an essential part of any successful behaviour plan. However, you may have noticed that some teachers are listened to while others remain ignored. The key difference lies in the way the instructions are given. Here are three ways to ensure that your teaching instructions will be followed.
1. Instructions must be given in a calm, warm manner.
Kids need boundaries but those boundaries need to be calmly communicated and stated without hostile emotion. This is because shouting and ranting pretty much guarantees more conflict. Kids absolutely hate hostile teachers whose only strategy for dealing with problem behaviour is punishment and shouting. So even though you may be instilling fear, you will more likely be inciting hostility and resentment which can lead to acting out.
Your attitude must be supportive and fair because it is the foundation on which effective classroom management…
