Classroom Management Research
Classroom Management Strategies and and Techniques
The Connection between Teacher Motives and Teacher Responses to Misbehavior
A child's mistaken goal for misbehavior results from undue attention, power, revenge or assumed inadequacy. The misbehaved child is a discouraged child and feels a lack of belonging and significance.
If a teacher responds to student misbehavior from the teachers' own concern of power and authority, students will feel they are not treated as persons. Most often, misbehavior is a rejection of authority.
According to Docking (1987) certain conditions must be met if students are to respond to teacher authority: The teacher must have a good reason for disciplining a student, must be fair in demands, and must have concern for the student as a person. Attempts by the teacher to exercise authority will be rejected unless the students believe that the teacher is exercising authority on suitable grounds. and in a suitable manner. (Docking, 1987)
Consider the following positive discipline strategies:
Positive Time Out - or a "cooling off" period. Students should know in advance the purpose of time outs, how and where their time will be spent and ways to resolve to issues. They should also know what the teacher is going to do under certain circumstances, and then follow through with what s/he has announced calmly without lectures.
There should be no punishment associated with a time-out. Instead, a new teacher should approach the student and offer a time out.
Other important reminders:
- Treat the child with dignity.
- Keep an attitude of respect.
- Have a friendly attitude instead of scolding or condescending the child.
In general, keep the welfare of the student in mind. When a teacher's reaction is based on the child's welfare, s/he is more likely to encourage long-term changes in the child's behavior.
Students feel the concern a teacher has for them. When a teacher shows anger or a personal dislike for the student, the student will usually react in a negative manner and feel threatened. In these types of classroom situations, the teacher does not have successful strategies for dealing with behavior problems. This provides even more of an incentive for new teachers starting out to begin building a positive discipline plan.
Always use professional resources like as the school psychologist and counselor as well as other teachers, in order to understand the child's goals.
- Over to You
Try to reflect on particiular lesson where a child misbehaved. Isolate the incident. How did heor she misbehaved? How did you react? Consider these motives for reactions. (Brophy, 1985)
- concerns about the student
- future life - teachers are concerned about the student's future learning or success.
- time on-task or instructional concern
- group safety or continuity - a teacher's primary concern for not letting anything interfere with the learning and the welfare of the groups or class.
- school rules - the student's misbehavior violates the school rules
- survival or personal authority
- anger or irritation
Where do your motives generally lie?
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