Beyond Discipline

by Alfie KohnJason Sanger, Tovah Parsons, Patricia Kadel, Shawn Gabriel, Ahmed Alzahrani, & Amanda St. Pierre

Qualities of Successful Classroom Management

0The teacher is the control of behavior0Teachers who are successful:

0 Do not concentrate on discipline0 Prevent problems by keeping students engaged

Discipline

0 Discipline is driven by negative beliefs about children

0 The objective of many discipline programs is to get children to comply with adults.

0 How we manage our classrooms has everything to do with what we believe about people.

Hidden Premises“If the teacher isn’t in control of the classroom, the most likely

result is chaos.”“Children need to be told exactly what adults expect of them, as

well as what will happen if they don’t do what they’re told.”“You need to give positive reinforcement to a child who does

something nice if you want him to keep acting that way.”“At the heart of moral education is the need to help people

control their impulses.”

Basic Human Needs

0Autonomy – experiencing self-motivation, feeling empowered, not a victim of circumstance or environment

0Relatedness – the need to feel connected, loved and affirmed.

0Competence – learning new things and being able to apply them.

Questions to Drive our Discipline Policies

0What do children require in order to flourish?0How can we provide those things?Instead of:

How can we make them do what we want them to do?We need to guide our students toward developing

personal and social skills, just as we would teach them about any subject in school.

Chapter

2,3,4

2. Blaming the Kids3. Bribes and Threats4. Punishment Lite: “Consequences” & Pseudochoice

BLAMING THE KIDS0The problem always rests with the child who

doesn’t do what he is asked, never with what he has been asked to do.

0Is the adults request reasonable?0When students are “off task” our first response

should be to ask, “What’s the task?”0To focus on discipline is to ignore the real problem:

We will never be able to get students( or anyone else) to be in good order if, day after day, we try to force them to do what they do not find satisfying.

BRIBES AND THREATS0COERSION- Without regard to motive or context, past

events or future implications, the adult simply forces the child to act (or stop acting) in a certain way.

0PUNISHMENT- Deliberately chosen to be unpleasant, and must be intended to change the student’s future behavior.

0REWARDS- Do this, and you’ll get that. Do rewards work? Yes, for short term compliance.

0Why do we punish?- It’s quick and easy. Works to get temporary compliance. It’s familiar to us. It’s expected. Gives us control. If we don’t punish, students might think they “got away with it.”

PUNISHMENT LITE:“CONSEQUENCE” AND PSEUDOCHOICE0Punishment vs. Natural Consequences.0PSEUDOCHOICE-1. Obey or Suffer- Do what I tell you to do or I’m

going to punish you.2. You Punished Yourself- If a student acts out they

are also choosing the natural consequence.3. Choose… and Suffer- Students are encouraged to

make decisions so they will suffer from their poor choice.

SUMMARY0 It’s easier to blame the child for misbehaving or acting out.0Getting short term compliance will not solve the issue.0Punishment is easy to use and that’s why we use it.0Do we really give students a choice?

Chapter 5

How Not To Get Control of the Classroom

Effective...But at What?

"Withitness" Kounin 1970:The teacher not only was attentive to what

students were doing, but let them know she knew what was going on.

To be effective… to Kounin it meant..

Sit Down and Shut Up !!

0Why does everyone think that the teacher should be in control of the classroom?

0Why do we have to make students comply?

Be Seated and Refrain from Talking!

0 “The more voice and choice students have, the more cooperative and responsible they will act and feel”.

0The New Disciplines are just as much about getting compliance as is the more traditional approach.

0 "get the trains to run on time in the classroom, never mind whom they run over.”

The Problem with Compliance

0Teachers want students to be good people, not necessarily good learners

0Long-term goals 0 “Desirable outcomes are harder to achieve if we rely

on bribes and threat”. 0 "The more we 'manage' students' behavior and try to

make them do what we say, the more difficult it is for them to become morally sophisticated people who think for themselves and care about others."

Making Moral Meaning

0 The constructivist model of learning challenges the central metaphors that so often drive instruction

0 The only way to help students become ethical people is to have them construct moral meaning

0 Maximize the opportunity for students to make choices and to discover and learn for themselves

0 Create a caring community in the classrooms that students have the opportunity to do these things together

Behaviors v. People 0The developer of one New Discipline program has

described its goal as getting students to choose appropriate behaviors.

0Discipline Programs can change behavior, but they cannot help people to grow

Beyond Rules 0The problems with rules are that they:

Turn kids into lawyers that are just looking for loopholes.

Turn teachers into police officers, a role utterly at odds with being facilitators of learning.

Often include punishments for breaking them.0To avoid this:

Have the students create the rulesThink about how everyone should treat each

other

The Value of Conflict 0Kohn says that it is more important for students to

wrestle with dilemmas, clash with others ideas and take others needs into account than to follow sets of rules.

0Kohn says that conflict presents golden opportunities for learning and therefore should not be suppressed.

0Even hurtful conflicts need to be resolved rather than pushed aside.

Conclusion0Many teachers are afraid that they will lose control of

the class. 0Effective teachers use collaborative problem solving

instead of coercive control0Education must be reformed so that classrooms take

on the nature of communities.0Teachers who wish to move beyond discipline must

do three things: provide an engaging curriculum based on student interests, develop a sense of community and draw students into meaningful decision-making

Chapter 6

A Classroom of Their

Choosing

Why should students have a say in making real decisions?

How do we help students develop thinking beyond self-discipline?

What are structural guidelines when students are in control?

To meet needs, we need to meet: When, where, & how do we make meetings work?

REFLECTIONS ON DECISION MAKING: WHAT TO EXPECT IN TRANSITION

Why should students have a say in making real decisions?

Alfie Kohn tells a tale of two teachers.0Teacher #1 made all the rules insisting that students

obey without question.0Teacher #2 stopped commanding and started

LISTENING. She found that students learned to make good choices by creating the options for themselves, instead of following directions.

0 “The construction of meaning is an active process”

Why should students have a say in making real decisions?

0 “Choice promotes compliance and minimizes behavior” – p 81

0When teachers change their questions to begin with, “How do you think we can …” and “How many ways can we …”, this enables students to develop their problem-solving abilities and experience a sense of community

How do we help students develop thinking beyond self-discipline?0Self-discipline means setting your own intrinsic

expectations and meeting them0Beyond self-discipline is when children possess the

skills and the inclination to solve problems autonomously and together.

0 “Anyone who truly values democratic ideals would presumably want to maximize children’s experiences with choice and negotiation.” – p 85

What are the structural guidelines when students are in control?

When students are asked to invent a system that address everyone’s concerns, some criteria apply.0Purpose: What is reason for a restriction?0Restrictiveness: What is the need that it meets?0Flexibility: Time schedules and tasks must have room

to adapt to immediate needs of individuals and the group

0Developmental appropriateness: When students establish expectations for their community, they must consider if it applies to all ages or all individuals.

What are the structural guidelines when students are in control?

0Presentation style: When students negotiate for change, the way they introduce their ideas can make a difference on the response of others.

0Student Involvement: The input in community building conversations, interactions and tasks directly relates to their sense of control.

To Meet Needs, We Need to Meet: When, Where & How do we make Meetings

Work?0Take time CONSISTENTLY for meetings to make

academic time more efficient.0Clarify the purpose of meetings: to meet needs and

reflect on what is working and what is not working that needs changing

0Plan together any decision that influences the group, which may involve voting.

0Share successes that contribute to community.

Reflections on Decision Making: What to Expect in Transition

Children who have been tightly controlled may need time to rebuild trust in themselves and you.0They may exhibit disturbing, destructive, or damaging

behavior or refuse to participate.0They may parrot what they think you want or silently

nod approval without contributing.0They need to test the depth of freedom and how the

response will be to their behavior.

Reflections on Decision Making: What to Expect in Transition

Trust is built on several basic habits:0LISTEN to students’ needs and their ideas how to

meet them with affirmative responses.0Be CONSISTENT in giving students the option to

create their own solutions to problems.0Provide resources and support for their ideas.0Show appreciation for student models that build

student leadership and community.

It is not management techniques that make the difference, but rather a way of thinking

on the part of the teacher.

The perspective is that we are the caretakers of the learning environment that

nourishes students’ natural curiosity, helping them develop their problem-solving abilities and experience a positive sense of

community.

Chapter 7

The Classroom as Community

What is community?

A place where students feel: 0Valued0Respected0 cared for0Encouraged0Safe (physically and emotionally) 0They matter to everyone

There is a sense of unity and pride for all involved in the community.

Why community?

The Child Development Project found:0Promotes social, moral and intellectual development0Stronger community feeling = more students report liking

school and learning0Positive effects are greatest in students with a low

socioeconomic status

Overall-if you want kids to do well in school, you have to help them develop an environment that helps them feel good

about school and their classmates.

Community misconceptions

0Students lose their identity and conform0Building a community is simply about being nice0Students will become compliant0The teacher alone creates community for the students

Community Building Prerequisites

0Time0 It takes time for the students to get to know one another in a

community context0Group Size

0 The classroom is a good size, too large and you may need sub-communities

0Teacher0 Needs to be a part of the adult community at the school

Community Building Strategies

0Relationships with adults0 Important that students see the teacher as a human0 Show them that you genuinely care

0Be vulnerable0Admit when you are wrong0Remember details about their lives0Authentic responses to their questions

0 Model positive interactions for them

Community Building Strategies

0Connections between students0 Use activities to get them connected

0 Interviews and introductions0Give them the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings0Give them the opportunity to view things from the perspective of

others

These kinds of activities help them feel more connected to others and to feel more understood in the community.

Community Building Strategies

0Classwide and schoolwide activities0 Whole group collaboration activities

0Class mural, collage, quilt0 Class meetings to practice community together0 Sub-communities if necessary

Community Building Strategies

0Using academic instruction0 Relate community to what is going on in the classroom:

homework, projects, reports, etc.0 Build discussion time into your instruction as an opportunity

to practice community0 Cooperative learning so students can learn and grow from one

another0 Tie curriculum back to the classroom community

Final Thoughts On Community

0Powerful classroom community can help students make more positive associations about school.

0Community helps us move beyond discipline and nurture students more effectively.

0You must involve students in building the community-it is not effective if you impose it on them.

Chapter 8

Solving Problems Together

#1 – Build & Maintain Positive Relationships

0 It's important for students to trust their teacher, to know he/she respects them and to feel safe in speaking their minds with him/her.

0Nowhere is such a relationship more vital than in the case of a student who has done something wrong and feels angry or defensive.

0Students must feel accepted by adults.

#2 – Skill Set

0Teachers may need to help their students learn to listen carefully, calm themselves, generate suggestions, imagine someone else's point of view, and so on.

0Children should have the chance to work on these skills from the time they are very young. Like us, they need guidance and practice to get better.

#3 - Diagnosis

0The teacher’s role in dealing with an unpleasant situation begins with the need to diagnose what has happened and why.

0Teachers sometimes need to play detective and try to figure out what is going on, or how to interpret what the child is telling them.

0Punishments and rewards are unproductive in part because they ignore the underlying reasons for a given behavior.

#4 – Question Practices

0Must be willing to look beyond the concrete situation in front of us.

0 Is the student really the problem?0Does my teaching engage them?

#5 – Maximize Student Involvement

0Expand the role students have in making decisions about the classroom environment.

0 “Talk less, ask more.”0 Involve students in figuring out what to do when something

goes wrong, and give them responsibility for implementing a solution.

#6 – Construct an Authentic Solution

0Asking students to come up with solutions will not get us very far if they feel obliged to cough up explanations, suggestions, or apologies on demand.

0The questions teachers ask them must be open-ended, with students encouraged to explore possibilities and reflect on their own motives.

#7 – Assist Students In Making Restitutions

0A reasonable follow-up to a destructive action may be to try to restore, replace, repair, clean up, or apologize, as the situation may dictate.

#8 – Re-Evaluate Plans

0Determine if a plan worked, whether the problem got solved, whether additional or entirely new strategies may now be needed.

#9 - Flexibility

0 “Doing to” (punitive) responses can be scripted, but "working with" responses often have to be improvised.

0Example: Difficulty getting a student to talk openly about what is bothering him/her and it will make more sense to drop him/her a note and invite a written response.

#10 – Minimize Punitive Impacts

0Example: If a problem behavior is persistent and the teacher asks the student to leave the classroom, the teacher's tone should be warm and regretful, and he/she should express confidence that the two of them can eventually solve the problem together.

0Control is a last-resort strategy to be used reluctantly and rarely.

From a High School Teacher:

0 “If I just kick kids out of class, I "don't tolerate" their actions, but neither do I educate them or their classmates. And it works about as well as stamping out a few ants. I prepare them for repressive solutions where misbehavior is temporarily contained by an outside authority, not really addressed. Sometimes I am forced to that position, but I try not to be.”