T O P I C :

A Delicate Issue of Discipline

Laurie raises the issue: I'm having a very hard time deciding on the proper way to discipline my students for bad behavior. I know what my school rules call for, but my mentor teacher does not like to send students to detention and is proud of the fact that she can handle all of the discipline problems herself without sending a student to detention or writing them up. I have found that it works great for her, but when she is gone and I am in charge of the class, I have a very hard time getting the "trouble" students to respect me because they know that no action is going to be taken against them. How can I discipline my students in a way that will both reprimand them for their actions and not go against my mentor's opinion of how discipline should be handled?

Posted October 2, 2008

R E S P O N S E :

Rewards and Punishments

Katy Henry writes: It sounds like your mentor teacher handles the situation pretty well when she is in the room. In this case, you probably wouldn't have to do much by way of discipline. However, no one ever said that you couldn't set up your own system when she's gone.

I think we can both agree that students do respond well when they have some sort of rewards and punishments system in place, so why not work with that? You can start by rewarding good students before the bad ones ever get the chance to act up. For example, give the students some praise for coming in and working on their bellringers before the troublemakers have a chance to disrupt class. If they see these students getting rewarded for doing something right, then maybe they will want to do the same thing. Also, if they still have the chance to act up, then you can set up your own system of punishments that do not necessarily have to involve the principals. I hope everything works out!

Posted November 18, 2008

R E S P O N S E :

Set Your Boundaries

Julia Bachelor writes: I agree with Katy. Setting up your own discipline in the class when you are teaching seems only fitting and fair. I understand the complications this brings as an intern as well as the politics that are involved. Therefore, it may be difficult — and really awkward — for you to set up your own set of rules, especially when your teacher is present.

Has your mentor recognized that the discipline is shaky when you are at the helm? Is she/he supporting you in the classroom when you attempt to enforce some order? If the two of you have not had some conversations about how to be a team on this, I suggest you explore that option first.

If you have had a conversation and he/she is not actually providing the support you need, I would probably resort to instituting my own discipline. When you are in charge of the class, you are responsible for the students’ needs. From my experience, kids — people in general — push the boundaries until they KNOW where they must stop. These students already know you are new to teaching, and in general, you are just new to them. They are pushing boundaries waiting for you to set them, so set the boundaries, Laurie! You’ll feel a lot better, and I think the kids will appreciate it in the end. They’ll finally know their limits, and be able to settle down! Good luck.

Posted December 12, 2008

E-mail your suggestions and comments to fbowles@uark.edu