My Discipline Plan

Dana Seternus December 16, 2007 Mr. Chester MAS

Step 1: How I will present and conduct myself As a teacher it is important that I conduct myself in a professional manner. I will dress in a professional manner by adhering to all the guidelines provided to me by my school and the district. I will make sure that I follow the National Education Association standards that were established in 1975 (16). It states that a teacher should dress professionally, as an adult in a professional situation (17). I will also follow the NEA standards by using appropriate language in the classroom, such as never using slang or obscenities. I will treat all the students with respect and dignity, and by doing this I will set an example for my students on how they should treat others (17). I promise not to treat my students in a rude or demeaning way because it is not right to use insults to make a point. Because a professional teacher shall not intentionally expose students to embarrassment or disparagement (16), I will also not reveal any type of personal information about my students to anyone other than them and their guardians. It is also important to not only the student but also the teacher that I may need to disclose information if it pertains to the safety of the student or other people or if disclosure serves a compelling professional purpose or is required by law (16). Step 2: My behavioral goals for my students I will maintain a positive attitude in my classroom so it will create a safe learning environment, as well as striving to be a role model for my students. William Glasser was the first theorist who came up with the concept that students have basic needs that must be met in the classroom (73). One of the basic needs of all the students is keeping the school environment safe and free from personal threat (73). The best way to keep the classroom safe is by ensuring that the students know the importance of responsibility. I will stress how important it is to assume responsibility for ones own actions. Harry and Rosemary Wong were a team of educators who

explained that teachers and students need to take responsibility for themselves (132). The students will be taught about how they need to stand up and accept responsibility for their actions. It is important that as young adults my students will be able to act in a mature manner and accept consequences if they make poor decisions. Students should have logical consequences and not be punished if they make poor choices (64). The best way to do this will be by including the students in the creation of the classroom rules. If the students participate in the creation of the rules they will be more likely to adhere to the rules. This idea was one that Glasser also suggested -- that the teacher work with students to create the classroom rules together (76). Lee and Marlene Canter were advocates of assertive discipline which is taking charge in the classroom by interacting with students (65). I plan teach as I walk around the classroom and not just teach from behind my desk. By being an active teacher I will encourage a calm and orderly classroom without of interruptions in the classroom (65). As a teacher it is important to realize that I cannot force students to behave in a certain way (65). The Canters believe that students need and want limits and it will be my job to set and maintain the classroom rules set by my students and me (69). Step 3: The classroom conditions that I intend to provide for my students It is important that I create a safe environment for all my students. I can do this by treating my students with respect and dignity so they feel free to voice their opinions in the classroom. By assigning group projects such as cooperative learning and the jigsaw method, students will learn tolerance and how to work as a team. As a result of working together students will develop communications skills both with each other and with me.

Jacob Kounin suggested that teachers should know what is going on all around their classroom instead of just focusing on one section of the room at a time (58). Through multitasking the teacher can focus on all areas of the room at once (59). When teachers use cooperative learning and can float from group to group to check up on students, that is just one example of multitasking (59). Not only is cooperative learning useful to teachers. but it is also useful by maintaining student engagement (60). I will use cooperative learning as much as possible when teaching. I will ask students input as much as possible and give them choices for projects rather than just forcing them to write paper after paper. Students will be made aware of the expectations that I have for my class. Regardless of academic level, my expectations will be high for all of my classes. I will minimize the misbehaviors in my classroom by using physical proximity. By moving closer to the student I think it will help students to self-correct without my having to stop teaching the lesson. Students will be asked to play a role in classroom discipline by helping in creating the rules and consequences. Alfie Kohn believed that building relationships between students and teachers should be one of the primary objectives of teachers (85). Teachers should enhance connections among students (85). Teachers should also encourage students to get involved in class-wide and school-wide activities (85). Student involvement in the classroom is critical to create an accepting environment for students (87). Kohn also states how important it is that teachers not only express perfection but also imperfections (88). This is important because sometimes the effort might be worth more than the work itself. Students will learn that our classroom thrives on positive attention and not negative attention. Rudolf Dreikurs states that the best discipline occurs in a democratic classroom (61).

Students need a sense of belonging in order to feel comfortable in the classroom (61). Some students tend to seek bad attention just because they want attention (61). Students should have logical consequences and not be punished when they behave inappropriately (64). And once again this idea links to where the students helped establish the class rules. Step 4: How I will help my students conduct themselves appropriately Since students will be involved in the rule-making aspect of my classroom, they will already have some form of knowledge of the classroom rules from the first day of class. Then they will learn how to behave through modeling that will be conducted during the first few weeks of school. Harry and Rosemary Wong stressed the importance of establishing classroom procedure on the first day of school (132). Classroom cooperation goes hand in hand with classroom procedures (146). Starting on the first day of class I will establish classroom rules and procedures and teach them to my students. Students will learn how to behave, properly interact with each other, and learn how to act when we are doing activities. This includes how to conduct themselves during transitions, on a field trip, when a guest speaker comes in, etc. By teaching the students how to conduct themselves they will be learning how to self-correct. B.F. Skinner advocated the use of reinforcement to help children produce a desired behavior (57). Reinforcement can be used to address behavior and misbehavior; however, they dont think that food should be used as a motivator, and I agree (57). However, based on the age level of the students I teach, I will come up with some form of reward system if it is necessary to produce the desired behavior I would like from my students. The goal of behavior modifications should be used to encourage and strengthen learning rather than being used to enforce discipline (58). I will first and foremost teach students how to follow procedures. I will give as much personal attention to my students as possible while still not neglecting the other students in the

class or the lesson. I will strive to have a high-energy room where students want to come and want to learn. Students will choose to behave because they will want their classroom environment to be safe where all students feel comfortable learning. They will feel comfortable sharing their opinions during classroom discussion because they will be made aware that they do not always have to have the exact same opinion as someone else. They will be made to know that each person has a right to their own opinion and should be allowed to share it without criticism or judgment. My students will have multiple activities that are fun and engaging along with having choices of assignments or projects during different times of the year. It will be important for me to not only teach, but also to use I-messages when speaking to my students. By teaching students how to use I-messages I will be allowing them to have a basic knowledge of a technique of conflict resolution. Thomas Gordon uses I-messages because it tends to prevent both parties from being too defensive in an argument (80). If you influence rather than using control, your students are more likely to produce good student behavior (80). It is critical for students and teachers to develop listening skills (82). Haim Ginott also agrees with the use of I-messages when students talk to each other or when the teacher talks to the students (61). Along with good communication in the classroom it will be important for me as a teacher to have good communication with my students guardians. Though it is often difficult to find the same level of parental or guardian support at a high school level as in grade school, I will still encourage them to get involved with their students and my class. I will give the guardians contact information for me on the first day such as email and school phone number in case they need to contact me. I will also send home a copy of my classroom rules with my students that they need to have their parents sign. That way, if a parent or guardian ever has a question about

the rules or why their student was punished in a certain way for a misbehavior, I will simply refer them to the paper they signed in the beginning of the year. Step 5: How I will intervene when misbehaviors occur There are some basic tactics that I plan to use when I notice misbehavior in my classroom. First, I plan to use physical proximity. This is imperative because often students self-correct if they notice that the teacher is paying attention to them. I could also use eye contact, change the tone of my voice, or call on the student who is misbehaving to answer the next question. By doing any of these things, I am signaling to the student that I am paying attention and that they need to stop what they are doing and act appropriately. These methods are wonderful because they keep me from having to stop my lesson to reprimand a student. This prevents other students from going off task because if I went over and personally said something to each student that misbehaves in the slightest I would lose a significant amount of my teaching time. Spencer Kagan, Patricia Kyle and Sally Scott find it important that the classroom teacher has the ability to anticipate disruptive behavior (156). It is also important to prevent disengagement in the classroom as a form of preventative measures for misbehaviors (157). I will constantly move around so that I am more aware of what is gong on in my classroom. Fred Jones too stressed the importance of nonverbal communication to help the teacher manage the classroom (115). It is also important for a teacher to be able to reconstruct the lesson so it is better relayed to the students (116). Teachers can also utilize facial expressions and eye contact besides physical proximity (119). I will so maintain a professional attitude and manner when speaking with a student who is misbehaving. I will not yell at them or talk down to them. If it comes to the point where I

need to speak to the student I will bring the student into the hallway for a hallway conference where we can discuss their behavior and I can explain how I would like the student to modify their behavior. Haim Ginotts approach shows that students need to be treated on the individual level (60). Teachers do not need to impose guilt upon students because they are capable of making good decisions (61). I will also explain to them what the repercussion would be if they continue to keep making poor choices. The repercussions will be related to the classroom rules that the students will help me to establish during the first day of school. And since my students will also have already learned to how to speak with I-messages, I will be able to utilize them when speaking with a disruptive student. Ginott also agrees with the use of I-messages when students talk to each other or when the teacher talks to the students. If for any reason the behavior is not a minor one, or if the steps for self-correction do not work, I will follow the classroom procedures about how to deal with the students misbehavior. Depending upon the behavior, I might have to follow school policy if the behavior is constantly disruptive, disrespectful, harmful to that student or others, or repetitive. The student may be asked to leave the room, be written up, receive a detention, in- or out-of-school suspension, or expulsion in the worst case scenario. Fritz Redl and William Wattenberg stressed the importance of group dynamics when dealing with students (55). As a teacher I realize that a student may act differently in front of their peers than they might if I pull them aside to speak with them in private. This is why, if need be, I will pull a student into the hallway to talk if they do not correct their behavior. The thought behind group dynamics was that if teachers knew the dynamics of a group they would better understand why students act the way they do (55). They encourage positive long-term

relationships among students (56). By knowing the group, the teacher might also be able to determine the cause of the behavior (56). This goes hand in hand with the idea of having a classroom environment that is conducive to learning. For example, the set up of the desks could greatly impact the way misbehaviors are monitored. If the rows are so close together that the teacher cannot walk through them, then it makes it impossible for the use of physical proximity. Depending upon the number of students I have in my room I think I would like to have my students desks placed in a U-shape or in groups. If that is not possible and the desks have to be in rows perhaps because of spatial issues, then I will make sure there is at least enough room for me to move freely up and down the rows of desks. The physical arrangement is important because the best way to minimize misbehaviors is by allowing the teacher to get close to the students (117). Also, as a teacher I do not plan to teach by sitting behind my desk. I plan to move around the classroom as much as possible so my students always have to pay attention. I also plan on not only giving particularly easy work to my students. I will give them projects, reading materials, and questions that make them really think about controversial issues and decide where they stand on the issue. As a teacher I will always have a plan B ready in case the students are not retaining the information that I want them to retain. By being able to be flexible I will be effectively teaching my students by presenting material so I know they can understand it. Glasser also states that quality curriculum occurs in the classroom because it makes for useful and enjoyable topics for students (74). Along with quality curriculum comes quality teaching which is creating a supportive climate for the students (75). My main goal as a teacher will be to create a supportive climate where my students enjoy my class and actually want to attend because they feel safe and find the material engaging.

References Charles, C. M. (2008). Building Classroom Discipline (9th ed.). New York: Pearson Education, Inc.