reprimand
When you have to scold a student, do it in private if possible. If they’re in front of their peers, they don’t want to look bad so they can argue again. When you have said what you need to say, end the interaction.
Criticize their behavior, not them.
It’s better to say “what you did was immature,” rather than “you’re immature.”
When I was in school, we were taught how to thread a sewing machine during a Textiles lesson. The following week we had to do it ourselves and I remember having a hard time remembering how to do it. When the teacher saw my lousy attempt, she clucked her tongue and said in front of the class, “You’re not very smart, are you!” I’m still mad at that woman twenty years later!
That may be true, but commenting negatively on a student’s personality in this way will do nothing but harm.
By telling them “you’re immature,” you’re telling them that’s what you think of them. That’s the way they are, so there’s no point in trying to change.
By separating your behavior from your personality, you are telling them that they can choose to improve their behavior. It encourages them to take responsibility.
Strategies to Minimize Bad Behavior
Here are some practical strategies to use in the classroom to help prevent unwanted behavior from happening and to treat it when it does happen.
• Courteous: Set an example and be courteous to students.
• Work with the crowd: use the entire classroom. Move as you speak when you walk to class and when work is in progress, move around to check on students’ progress.
This shows that you are considering everyone and lets them know that you are likely to spot undesirable behavior while you are ‘on the go’.
It also confirms your authority and shows them that you are comfortable in your surroundings and in control.
• Behavior Graph – This is a very useful way to record the progress of student behavior throughout the lesson.
It is a visual reminder of how you are doing in the lesson and is often very effective. It can be adapted to the needs of the class/student.
Behavior charts work well with rewards and penalties. The behavior graph serves as an indication of how close they are to these.
• Rewards and penalties: Rewards work well as they provide the incentive. Even for students who would like to appear above all that.
Clear sanctions allow the teacher to emphasize where the limits are.
When things start to escalate…
• Ignore: If it’s low-level stuff, you can ignore it. At this stage, it is probably best to avoid confrontation, which can escalate if a student is offended.
• Body Block – A simple technique for when two students are waving across the room and it turns out to be a distraction. Just stand in the middle.
You don’t even have to acknowledge the bad behavior that was occurring.
• One on One: When it comes to misbehavior, it’s best to do it with as little fuss as possible.
Try to do it with as little confrontation as possible. When you need to ‘have words’, the effort to exchange is reduced to an argument and your status is compromised.
• Follow-up: This gets back to the point about consistency. If you say you will give them a detention the next time they commit another misdemeanor, then you must do so the next time they do.
If you don’t, students will rightly believe that your authority is suspect and will not trust you.
You will find it very difficult to control the class then.