Level 2 and Level 3
Classroom Management
Level 2: Recovery with Accountability
- Have consistent go-to cues for students who misbehave: stand near a student who is talking or off task, call student’s name out loud, give students direct eye contact (Wong, 2009), ask student if they need to move if the above do not work.
- Have consistent go-to plan for students who seek attention: Target student by name, remind student what task is expected at that moment, inform student of the behavior to be stopped, inform student of the effect of their behavior on the class environment (Albert, 1989).
- Use distraction strategies: Ask student who is off task a question, give the student a choice, give the student a task (Albert, 1989).
- Focus on Positive behavior of students, not negative: Let students know when they are doing well and what they are doing well instead of only focusing on negatives (Olsen, 2009). Spend more time sharing with students their positive behaviors and the things they do well in class and less on negatives
- Use Constructive Reminders: Point to the respect agreement on the wall, use eye contact, or walk around the room towards students who are misbehaving (Classen, 2008).
- Use humor and compassion: To redirect a misbehaving student, use humor and jokes to get them back on track or be compassionate and kind with reminders. This makes students more willing to cooperate as they do not feel attacked in the classroom (Wounded, Olsen).
Level 3 Life Skills - Long-Term Support
- Have a Responsibility Plan for students: The “Raise Responsibility Plan”(Wong, 2009), teachers both democracy and responsibility in the classroom. This plan has three stages. First, this plan is taught from the beginning of the year, not at the onset of behavior problems. Second, the plan involves asking students to recognize their own behavior. Third, the plan elicits that students redirect their inappropriate impulses.
- Have a Positive Discipline Plan: This plan requires that the teacher creates an environment that continuously has students practice taking responsibility and showing respect for everyone in the classroom. Part of this plan requires that the instructor teaches students these behaviors in the form of class meetings(Nelson, 1993); therefore, repetition is used to build positive habits in order to create a respectful learning environment.
- Teach/inform students
- See discipline as a transformation: Use conflict as a moment to transform students’ lives. Get to the root of the problem and help students grow from it (Conflict Transformation, Lederach).
- Use “I messages” and Active Listening: Remove the blame from the student by using an “I statement,” in which the teacher voices his/her concern for the student’s behavior. For example, I am concerned that you will not succeed in this class if you continue to behave in this way. Also, compassionately listen to the student’s side of the story (Classen, 2008).
- Use punishments that are constructive to the student: Do not give students punishments that have no benefit to their lives, (ex. writing something 100 times) instead use strategies that create solutions to the behavior problems (Kohn).
- Work with the student to find applicable solutions: Ask student what they think is the best approach to finding a solution. Giving the student a voice in creating solutions will become a productive learning experience for the student (Kohn).
- Become interpersonal with the students: Find out about students life and interests in order to better reach them and meet their needs (Kohn). When you know your students on a personal level, it will be easier to best meet their needs and find solutions for behavior issues.
- Give the student a small task: Ask the student to help you by reading a passage. Ask the student to pass out a sheet of paper to their classmates. Ask the student to write notes for you on the board.