Author Archive
Principles vs. Techniques
Posted by: | CommentsTeachers often approach me to ask how I would handle a specific classroom discipline situation:
“What about if a student is rolling his skateboard wheels?”
“What if a student ignores you?”
“What if a student’s hair is on fire and they use it to light up everyone’s homework?”
There are specific things you can do, of course (in the last example you would pull your fireman’s hose out of the top drawer and turn it on the class), but the point is to get the principles behind the techniques you will use to apply in all situations.
These principles are rooted in classroom management philosophy, but let’s talk here about leverage and accountability.
The idea is that you must have a consequence for every unwanted action, or action that does not contribute positively to your classroom environment, to give you leverage over controlling the unwanted behavior. And that consequence must be something that matters to the student.
So the problem is not the rolling skateboard or the student ignoring you, but the idea that they are not complying with your rules–therefore, these two come up under the category of classroom disruption, and if there is a ready consequence for this that matters to the student, and he or she knows in advance what it is, they will not engage in the behavior to begin with.
I have written an ebook, Classroom Discipline 101, which covers these principles in more detail and every other aspect necessary to control any classroom. You can download it at ClassroomDiscipline101.com.
Until then, whenever you have a problem in class, solve it with these principles rather than some ‘anti-skateboard-rolling’ technique.
Here’s to enjoying your teaching–
Craig Seganti
Classroom Discipline Manipulation Scenario #1
Posted by: | CommentsTeacher: Move your seat to over here, Katrina.
Student: But why? I wasn’t even doing anything!
The teacher now has the option of addressing what the student said, which is a manipulation tactic to draw the teacher into their world and continue a useless argument, or to keep the student in the teacher’s frame, and bring the student into the reality of the classroom. Always choose the latter, and continue in this way:
Teacher: You have 10 seconds to be seated where I told you, or you will come to detention after school and/or face the prospect of suspension from my class for defiance.
Student: (continuing) But why? Why won’t you tell me what I was doing?
At this point the detention and or suspension should be given. There is no reason to engage students in these manipulative discussions–you must speak with actions.
It is a little difficult to explain how this can all be done without the overall context of classroom management, but the short of it is, never engage students in manipulative discussions–return them to the reality of the rules you have set and the classroom management plan YOU have devised.
Staying Out of Manipulation Land
Posted by: | CommentsI try to log individual manipulation tactics because they are so numerous and teachers can get stuck on how to handle them. Here’s one: a student is in class, doodling on their paper and not paying attention to the class discussion.
I require my students to be on task at all times. Some teachers may think this is minor, but things tend to compound, and later this same student wants to know what page we’re on or some other special request.
Teacher: Bob, put that pen down and listen to the discussion.
Bob: I’m listening. All I’m doing is drawing.
Here’s where I think things often go wrong–the teacher enters the student’s reality rather than the other way around, and says something like, ‘Well, it’s distracting and I want you to pay attention,’ and an ensuing argument evolves. I recommend, rather, to keep the student in the reality of the class and the teacher.
So:
Teacher: Bob, put that pen down and pay attention to the discussion.
Bob: I am paying attention. All I’m doing is drawing.
Teacher: Okay. Students are required to be on task at all times in my classroom, so put the pen down, or if you insist on defiance I will take it to the next level.
There should be no further discussion. What the next level is will have already been made clear, and Bob can now comply with your direction or face the consequence.
The thing to note in this paradigm of classroom discipline, which may not be obvious at first, is that in the second example Bob was referred back to the teacher’s ‘frame’ or reality, the teacher did not enter his.
Keep students within your frame always, do not enter theirs, and do not confuse sincere, informative questions with these basic manipulation tactics. Whether or not Bob can concentrate fully while doodling (that’s your judgement but in this case i see he wasn’t) is not the issue.
The shortest distance between two points is a straight line, so make a straight line back to your classroom discipline procedures and reality–don’t jump after the student into manipulation land.
In my book Classroom Discipline 101, I show you how to set up your year and career to end classroom disruption and disrespect entirely–you can download it at www.classroomdiscipline101.com.
Until then hope this tip helps out–happy teaching,
Craig Seganti
Classroom Management Strategies that Waste Time
Posted by: | CommentsGreetings Fellow Teachers–
Today I want to discuss some theories and techniques I see out there on classroom management. The thing I see the most that I concur with is to have something for the students always to do (be on task) combined with smooth transitions from activity to activity. Agreed, there should be something on the board for students to engage in immediately when the bell rings. A silent class at the bell goes a long way towards creating the right atmosphere all period.
Those are very important ideas. I categorize them as ‘The best defense is a good offense’.
So bell to bell structured activitiy is immensely helpful for minimizing discipline troubles.
But then I see things like ‘Wait until all eyes are on you and all ears before beginning instruction.’
That’s okay for teachers’ meetings or where you have a mature, respectful audience already. And it’s better than plowing through with the lesson with a bit of buzz going on. But what if students don’t quiet down? Or what if they begin talking again once you’ve started the lesson? Wait again? And again?
This leaves out the accountability side of classroom discipline which I talk about with my accountability and leverage approach. You can end up waiting several times a day, period, year, lifetime. It is also reactive–you are basically saying the students are in control and you are waiting on them.
My paradigm is that as soon as you are ready to speak, students are listening–why are they talking in the first place? Was there no lesson? ’Down’ time? Don’t have any.
Perhaps they were doing group work and discussion was necessary. Okay, of course you will then call their attention and wait for them to focus. But that is not a classroom discipline issue. Classroom discipline comes in when there is a problem with classroom disruption.
So, there must be a consequence in this case if their is any disruption or serious delay when ‘quieting down.’
In other words, you should never really have to quiet a class down (with the exception, as I said, of group work after a signal that it has ended.) Otherwise, the class is on task.
So this idea that you will spend a lot of class time waiting on students, putting them in control, is to me the wrong paradigm, another way you will lose a lot of valuable class time and ebb away your energy. Have the class be quiet at all times (unless of course you are involved in an activity that requires some noise or group work) and you won’t lose this time.
Here’s to enjoying your teaching day–
Craig Seganti
www.classroomdiscipline101.com
Classroom Discipline and The Smile/No Smile Debate
Posted by: | CommentsThe old ‘Don’t smile until Christmas’ rule has been ostracized a lot the last twenty or thirty years–you know, the same years during which American Education has gone spiraling downward.
I’m not here to tell you not to smile–just that it helps if you have a very disruptive class.
All of these ideas need a little context. If you smile because you want the class to like you, or are afraid to hurt someone’s feelings, then it is often perceived as weakness consciously or unconsciously by the students and won’t help your classroom management. If you don’t smile it is perceived as stronger because you are not anxious to get the students’ approval. So keep in mind that there is a difference between smiling because you choose to and smiling because you feel compelled to. The latter is weak.
If you have no discipline problems, smile away–why not?
I’m just going to recommend here that if you judge that a class is going to be rowdy, then a serious demeanor is going to be your ally–what is the rush to show what a good guy or gal you are? Many educators act as if not smiling will somehow create serious damage to the learning process. That’s why I say all must be in the context of what we are in schools to do: Teach. Remember that one?
Therefore, any issues which interfere with that should first be filtered through that lens–what helps create an atmosphere where learning best takes place? Your students can learn just fine if you don’t smile, but it may interfere with your control if you do–too soon.
In fact, for teachers with serious classroom disruption going on, the first thing I recommend is entering with a VERY serious demeanor–it sends a message of your being a solid person and not prone to reacting to others, and will calm disruptive students down.
Students suffer when they don’t learn year after year in disruptive classes, not because Ms. Meany didn’t smile until Christmas.
Not smiling won’t single-handedly get you a perfectly-behaved class–you’ll probably want to read my whole book Classroom Discipline 101 to do that (www.classroomdiscipline101.com), but it’s one more technique you can try–if not ’til Christmas, give it a couple of days.
Until then, here’s to enjoying your teaching–
Craig Seganti
