Some essential components of managing misbehavior (in school settings):
- Have a plan - always have a plan for the period/block/day/week/month/year, etc.
The more organized you are as a teacher and the more time you spend planning, the less time you will spend dealing with misbehavior. Students who are engaged and busy are much less likely to act out.
-Be consistent. Be fair. - Kids are very perceptive and have a strong sense of justice. If they feel that they are being treated unfairly in any way, they will react negatively. This may also lead to a power struggle, in which students begin acting out in a defiant/oppositional manner. (when you correct a student's behavior, make sure they know that's exactly what you are doing. Focus on the behavior and never make it personal. Never attack a student's character, under any circumstance).
- On the other hand, if you are up front with students about what is expected of them and what the consequences are for specific actions (and you hold them to it) they are much more likely to accept the consequences provided and will listen to feedback.
- Be an authority figure, while still maintaining rapport with students. If students know you mean business, they are much more likely to fall in line. This is especially true if they know you truly care about them and want the best for them . Respect is key here. If kids perceive you as a robot or as a dictator, they will not give you their best academically or maintaining appropriate behavior, no matter how authoritative you may be. We'll call this "striking the balance"
- Be yourself (this goes along with building rapport). Be genuine. Let students know you are human. Let them know you make mistakes.
*Note: these suggestions are by no means meant to be an exhaustive list of managing misbehavior. These are just several things I learned while working in an alternative school setting.
Sunday, December 5, 2010
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Managing Misbehavior - from the front lines
My job at the school was all about correcting unwanted behaviors and rewarding positive ones. This is what I did all day, every day. Nearly every behavior exhibited by students was taught to, by myself and my colleagues, one way or the other. This is why these children were at this treatment facility or at this school: because they lacked structure and discipline in their home lives and had been unable to be successful in a normal school setting. In addition to discipline problems, the vast majority of students had IEP's as well. Granted, many, many of these kids came from a background of trauma, abuse and neglect, but the bottom line was that they needed to be held accountable for their actions and they needed the support and structure of a contingency of appropriate, caring adults to change some of the things in their lives.
I'm not going to say that we were miracle workers, but I saw many students turn their lives around during my time at the school and it was a combination of the system set up by school and facility administrators and students' willingness and determination. The system that had been implemented into the school was a token economy. I have heard of different forms of token economies for different environments, but the system in place at the school seemed to work well for the majority of students. All students were on individual contracts and had their own individual goals for progress. Every time a student exhibited a pre-determined positive behavior, they were allowed to make a deposit (using a mock monetary system). This means that every time I saw a student behaving appropriately, according to their goals, I would teach to this behavior by praising them and providing rationale for why they were allowed to make a deposit. On the other hand, when students failed to behave appropriately, I would teach to them based on this behavior and they were asked to withdraw from their account. I would tell the student what they did wrong, why they needed to correct the behavior and how they might go about doing it differently in the future.
For example: if a particular student was interrupting the teacher during instruction by talking or being disruptive, I would walk over to the student and say "I'm sorry but I need you to withdraw for being disruptive". Talking while the teacher is against the rules and it distracts other students who are learning. Can you see how this might be disruptive to the learning environment"? "Next time, why don't you raise your hand and I will come see if there is something you may need help with". To which the student was expected to respond by looking at me and nodding or saying "yes, I understand". If a student failed to acknowledge his or her misbehavior or continued to argue, they would be in an intensive. An intensive meant that they were not being accountable and were unwilling to change their behavior. Sometimes this intensive escalated and I had to remove the student from the room or the situation. On some occasions the student would become unruly and aggressive (either physically or verbally). No matter what, my job was to remain calm and to de-escalate the situation using a stern, therapeutic approach.
My disposition as a person of a authority would prove to be the most important aspect of my job as an ETS. I learned to never get into a power struggle with a student, no matter what the situation. I learned to never attack a student's character, rather to always teach to the specific behavior. We employed the 3:1 ratio rule, where for every teaching to a negative behavior, we taught three times to a positive behavior, praising the student and encouraging them. This was the best part of my job. Building relationships with these kids and witnessing the growth and sense of accomplishment that they didn't even know was possible. I saw students grow in ways that touched me heart and told me no matter how stressful the job got, this is where I was supposed to be. I learned more about myself in this year than I had in perhaps my entire life. I learned patience, a genuine concern for my students, the character and what it takes to be a teacher and a mentor, and most importantly that every student deserves a second chance no matter what their history. I was inspired by my co-workers and administrators every time I went to work.
I felt fortunate to be a part of a place that truly helped to change the lives of young people and learned to have a profound respect for the profession of education. Every employee had a genuine love and concern for their students and every person went above and beyond to ensure that they were providing a therapeutic environment for the children. The students were the main focus of the school and perhaps that's what I enjoyed more than anything. I learned that managing misbehavior is about consistency and dedication and fairness and honesty. I learned that the system and structure of a classroom is of paramount importance. I learned that children will respond to honest feedback and that they really want someone to hold them accountable and push them to reach their full potential. I learned that more than anything, they wanted someone to care.
I'm not going to say that we were miracle workers, but I saw many students turn their lives around during my time at the school and it was a combination of the system set up by school and facility administrators and students' willingness and determination. The system that had been implemented into the school was a token economy. I have heard of different forms of token economies for different environments, but the system in place at the school seemed to work well for the majority of students. All students were on individual contracts and had their own individual goals for progress. Every time a student exhibited a pre-determined positive behavior, they were allowed to make a deposit (using a mock monetary system). This means that every time I saw a student behaving appropriately, according to their goals, I would teach to this behavior by praising them and providing rationale for why they were allowed to make a deposit. On the other hand, when students failed to behave appropriately, I would teach to them based on this behavior and they were asked to withdraw from their account. I would tell the student what they did wrong, why they needed to correct the behavior and how they might go about doing it differently in the future.
For example: if a particular student was interrupting the teacher during instruction by talking or being disruptive, I would walk over to the student and say "I'm sorry but I need you to withdraw for being disruptive". Talking while the teacher is against the rules and it distracts other students who are learning. Can you see how this might be disruptive to the learning environment"? "Next time, why don't you raise your hand and I will come see if there is something you may need help with". To which the student was expected to respond by looking at me and nodding or saying "yes, I understand". If a student failed to acknowledge his or her misbehavior or continued to argue, they would be in an intensive. An intensive meant that they were not being accountable and were unwilling to change their behavior. Sometimes this intensive escalated and I had to remove the student from the room or the situation. On some occasions the student would become unruly and aggressive (either physically or verbally). No matter what, my job was to remain calm and to de-escalate the situation using a stern, therapeutic approach.
My disposition as a person of a authority would prove to be the most important aspect of my job as an ETS. I learned to never get into a power struggle with a student, no matter what the situation. I learned to never attack a student's character, rather to always teach to the specific behavior. We employed the 3:1 ratio rule, where for every teaching to a negative behavior, we taught three times to a positive behavior, praising the student and encouraging them. This was the best part of my job. Building relationships with these kids and witnessing the growth and sense of accomplishment that they didn't even know was possible. I saw students grow in ways that touched me heart and told me no matter how stressful the job got, this is where I was supposed to be. I learned more about myself in this year than I had in perhaps my entire life. I learned patience, a genuine concern for my students, the character and what it takes to be a teacher and a mentor, and most importantly that every student deserves a second chance no matter what their history. I was inspired by my co-workers and administrators every time I went to work.
I felt fortunate to be a part of a place that truly helped to change the lives of young people and learned to have a profound respect for the profession of education. Every employee had a genuine love and concern for their students and every person went above and beyond to ensure that they were providing a therapeutic environment for the children. The students were the main focus of the school and perhaps that's what I enjoyed more than anything. I learned that managing misbehavior is about consistency and dedication and fairness and honesty. I learned that the system and structure of a classroom is of paramount importance. I learned that children will respond to honest feedback and that they really want someone to hold them accountable and push them to reach their full potential. I learned that more than anything, they wanted someone to care.
On Managing Misbehavior: My Experience
The majority of my experience managing misbehavior has come from spending 12 months working at an alternative school for youth with behavioral and mental health disorders. The school was located on the campus of a residential child care facility. Since then I have spent several years coaching high school soccer both at the varsity and junior varsity levels, however we will mainly focus on my experience as an "Educational Treatment Specialist" or ETS.
This was my job title at the school and my main responsibilities were to assist teachers and administrators with dealing with problem behaviors. As part of pre-service training, I was certified in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention or TCI. TCI includes physical restraint techniques, designed to control acute physical behavior on the part of a child. The goal of TCI is to help the child regain self-control and to teach the child better ways of coping with difficult situations and uncomfortable, painful feelings. This was perhaps the toughest part of the job for me emotionally. No one wants to have to lay hands on a child, especially when you know they are hurting. However, it was a necessary part of the job and it was done solely to ensure the safety of all students and staff at the facility.
The majority of students at the school were diagnosed with oppositional defiant or conduct disorders, while some had been diagnosed with ADHD or some mood disorder such as depression, bipolar, dysthmia and cyclothymia. This may all sound intimidating or frightening, which it was at the time. I had little experience working with youth and up to this point I was still considering going back to school to become a licensed counselor (my bachelor's is in psychology). But looking back, this would prove to be the most challenging and rewarding experience of my life. Since the day I walked into the school I have known that I wanted to work with youth and teach and mentor, and I have never looked back since.
This was my job title at the school and my main responsibilities were to assist teachers and administrators with dealing with problem behaviors. As part of pre-service training, I was certified in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention or TCI. TCI includes physical restraint techniques, designed to control acute physical behavior on the part of a child. The goal of TCI is to help the child regain self-control and to teach the child better ways of coping with difficult situations and uncomfortable, painful feelings. This was perhaps the toughest part of the job for me emotionally. No one wants to have to lay hands on a child, especially when you know they are hurting. However, it was a necessary part of the job and it was done solely to ensure the safety of all students and staff at the facility.
The majority of students at the school were diagnosed with oppositional defiant or conduct disorders, while some had been diagnosed with ADHD or some mood disorder such as depression, bipolar, dysthmia and cyclothymia. This may all sound intimidating or frightening, which it was at the time. I had little experience working with youth and up to this point I was still considering going back to school to become a licensed counselor (my bachelor's is in psychology). But looking back, this would prove to be the most challenging and rewarding experience of my life. Since the day I walked into the school I have known that I wanted to work with youth and teach and mentor, and I have never looked back since.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)