Classroom Discipline: Theory vs. What Works

It is easy when you are out of a classroom for an extended time to imagine things are different than they are. Oft times the reality of the classroom clashes with popular media portrayals and images College Professors have of what really goes on.

What works?

This is the operative question in any endeavor, a classroom management plan not excepted.

Are you repeating a policy in the classroom which is ineffective? Time to step back and try something else. For instance, if you have a disruptive student, many educators will suggest pulling the student aside and informing them of why their behavior is inappropriate. I’m going to venture a guess that if you have done that, that the behavior has resurfaced shortly after and you end up pulling the student aside again or finally moving on to stronger measures.

The reason is that pulling a student aside assumes that they do not know what behavior is inappropriate, and that your informing them will give them this knowledge and enable them to correct it.

I operate from a different premise. That is, any secondary student already knows what appropriate behavior is in a classroom, and therefore you do not have to remind them–except the first day of class, when you make clear your classroom discipline and management procedures.

After that, it is a matter of enforcing them. A lot of teachers lose a lot of time in between with the counseling step, which usually only delays the inevitable.

In other words, when it comes to effective classroom discipline, intervention steps are unnecessary. I know, you will hear differently. So, as you work out your classroom discipline plan, keep in mind: What works? If it is working, great. If not, there is no reason to continue to try those particular classroom management techniques. It is time to move on to something different until you find something that works.

I have been refining my methods by that philosophy for twenty years in the classroom, and have outlined the action necessary for eliminating classroom behavior problems in any circumstance with my book Classroom Discipline 101. You can download it immediately and be privy to how I accomplish this at Classroom Discipline 101.

Otherwise, keep in mind that you need to use what works in the classroom and stop repeating what doesn’t.

Here’s to enjoying your teaching–

Craig Seganti