Last week, after observing Ms. R’s class, you asked me to consider pragmatic strategies on how I would handle the classroom. Honestly, seeing her class terrified me; I couldn’t parse all the variables that I would have to tackle, let alone come up with strategies that might help. However, after some thinking, there are a few things I would like to try.
First off, I think I’d have to reset the classroom culture – easier said than done though, right? The students were used to running the classroom at this point, and I would be the newcomer – students are bound to test me. With that in mind, I think I would spend my first day in class establishing a set of class rules. I would ask the students to collaborate on a simple list of rules – things that they expect from me, things that I expect from them, and things that they expect from each other. I would make it very explicit that I will treat them as adults and honor their ideas and contributions until proven otherwise. I would stress the idea that if I do become a police officer, it is because they need me to be. I would want them to know that I want to help them and that I’m in their corner, but in order for me to be successful, they must reciprocate and help me. I think I would allow them to choose their own seats and go to the bathroom as they please. I would explain to them that I adopt this policy because I trust that they are adult enough to not take advantage of it. I know that this is a risky tactic but I’m hoping that since they created the rules, they will follow them; if they do not, it would be fair for me to punish them and they should not be upset. I also hope that they’d realize how the punishment is EARNED, and that it’s not something I’m intentionally doing to make their lives miserable.
If this strategy falls apart and my class becomes chaotic, I would reiterate that I’ve given them the opportunity to be treated as adults, but they couldn’t act appropriately so now I must treat them like children. In a setting where I would not be able to send students out of the classroom, I would try to use the strategy you and Mr. Y suggested – to separate the troublemakers and enablers from each other. I would also try creating a point system between the periods to foster that competition that Mr. Y suggested. Each class would start out with five points each day and points would not roll over. Students could earn points for behaving and lose points for misbehaving. The rules for taking and giving points will be made clear to them. This way, they will have the opportunity to try again with a clean slate each day. I haven’t really thought about what the punishment would be for losing points… If I assign extra work, students might just blow it off, especially if they don’t care about their grades to begin with. If I make them stay after school, what if they don’t show up? Do I then assign additional detentions with me? Then send them to the principal? What are your thoughts?
Already, I’m noticing that I’m focusing on the punishments. I would HOPE that they’d be able to adopt the “adult behavior” strategy but I think deep down, I’m preparing for the worst. Are there any strategies that you might suggest?
I think you're absolutely right in your approach. It's a textbook attack, and you've pitched it exactly how all the development research suggests you should. So here's one question:
... how are you going to IMPLEMENT it?
Everybody knows what works. Treat them like adults. Make it clear that their choices dictate their consequences. Give THEM the power (at least explicitly). Challenge them to be mature. Hold the line. But the issue you're worried about has to do with escalation.
In conversation, you called it "picking your battles." You were worried that you might crack down at the wrong time and have a kid escalate instead of being able to set an example that would improve behavior in the room. In other words, you worried that you might pick the "wrong" battle, LOSE it, and, by extension have the opposite effect.
I extended the metaphor - I think part of your concern really has to do with knowing, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you WILL lose a few. That might be the hardest part of classroom management and relationship building: accepting that you will have days when kids will treat you, your room, and each other with a total lack of respect. They're teenagers, and they are, as we've been discussing in our brain research articles in-class, on "100," emotionally-speaking. They, in effect, are willing to fight to the death - the issue is not whether you lose some battles or fight some useless or pointless ones, but rather whether you can keep your own morale up over the long run so you can WIN THE WAR.
I've had lots of kids shirk my punishments. One kid spent the better part of two years refusing every consequence I designed. He'd actively work to ruin class every day, avoid every punishment, and had a parent who enabled his decisions. I had to keep at it. I still applied consequences. I recruited others - by the end of a few months, even other distracted kids had gotten to the point that they were tired of his behavior and would actively monitor how disruptive he became ("Give it a rest, dude!" "Omigod, Diego - will you just shut up?!"). Since his performance was ultimately about attention from the rest of the room, this did have some effect, but the real reason the other kids started getting frustrated with him is that I made EVERY encounter, no matter HOW trivial, an issue worth my time.
The hard part about classroom management is committing completely.
Now I should take time to mention that I don't "fight" every battle. There are different weapons and strategies necessary to fight a war. War also includes reconnaissance, information-gathering, spy work, and establishing local support. Over time, you develop a good instinct for this stuff (you start being able to rely on your insula instead of your pre-frontal cortex). Sometimes a kid's angry for reasons outside of school, and a moment of sympathy or kindness, though it may not lead to any immediate wins, will have a positive effect over time. Sometimes they just need time alone - give it to them. Sometimes they need a scathing public lecture (when they're clearly pushing the line for the umpteenth time, know what they're doing, and are cocky about avoiding consequences).
The key is to establish yourself as being consistent, firm but kind, and fierce but fair. It should COST kids things they honestly HATE to mess up in your class. Note: in mine, kids HATE having a lecture outside. I almost never assign after-school detention because kids don't mind having it. They HATE dealing with me, on the other hand, because they know I'm patient, I won't put up with crap, and there will be no way to get out of the consequence until they're willing to figure out the right approach to appease me.
They know I won't give up. They can't out-last me. It's not worth it to keep fighting, because eventually, they'll get exhausted - I won't.
In trench warfare, endurance wins the day.
So the key isn't just setting up the right systems, it's consistency of implementation. The struggle there is an emotional and mental one on YOUR part. Even if it's tough, even if it's ugly, can and WILL you, day in and day out, doggedly INSIST on your expectations being met? Can you keep yourself emotionally engaged enough to be caring, but emotionally removed enough to not let the bumps in the road destroy your morale?
I think that knowing how and when to shift tone is also crucial. You can't simply be on 100% all the time - the same way hollering your instructions all the time will just lead to kids talking over you, being upset all the time will just lead to emotionally charged reactions. In lecture, getting VEEEERY quiet can force kids to lean in and listen; in discipline, being warm, caring, and kind will reinforce the message that you're trying to help students learn how to behave, not to kick them around.
I think warm and caring won't be an issue for you. You will need time developing your "antenna" for student issues, and training yourself to instinctively recognize different student needs. The one thing I think you could productively focus on is how and when to zero in on actively resistant kids, how to make that misbehavior lead to consequences (potentially social ones) that matter, and then how to keep your own energy up and stay consistent.
To sum up, you need to:
... how are you going to IMPLEMENT it?
Everybody knows what works. Treat them like adults. Make it clear that their choices dictate their consequences. Give THEM the power (at least explicitly). Challenge them to be mature. Hold the line. But the issue you're worried about has to do with escalation.
In conversation, you called it "picking your battles." You were worried that you might crack down at the wrong time and have a kid escalate instead of being able to set an example that would improve behavior in the room. In other words, you worried that you might pick the "wrong" battle, LOSE it, and, by extension have the opposite effect.
I extended the metaphor - I think part of your concern really has to do with knowing, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you WILL lose a few. That might be the hardest part of classroom management and relationship building: accepting that you will have days when kids will treat you, your room, and each other with a total lack of respect. They're teenagers, and they are, as we've been discussing in our brain research articles in-class, on "100," emotionally-speaking. They, in effect, are willing to fight to the death - the issue is not whether you lose some battles or fight some useless or pointless ones, but rather whether you can keep your own morale up over the long run so you can WIN THE WAR.
I've had lots of kids shirk my punishments. One kid spent the better part of two years refusing every consequence I designed. He'd actively work to ruin class every day, avoid every punishment, and had a parent who enabled his decisions. I had to keep at it. I still applied consequences. I recruited others - by the end of a few months, even other distracted kids had gotten to the point that they were tired of his behavior and would actively monitor how disruptive he became ("Give it a rest, dude!" "Omigod, Diego - will you just shut up?!"). Since his performance was ultimately about attention from the rest of the room, this did have some effect, but the real reason the other kids started getting frustrated with him is that I made EVERY encounter, no matter HOW trivial, an issue worth my time.
The hard part about classroom management is committing completely.
Now I should take time to mention that I don't "fight" every battle. There are different weapons and strategies necessary to fight a war. War also includes reconnaissance, information-gathering, spy work, and establishing local support. Over time, you develop a good instinct for this stuff (you start being able to rely on your insula instead of your pre-frontal cortex). Sometimes a kid's angry for reasons outside of school, and a moment of sympathy or kindness, though it may not lead to any immediate wins, will have a positive effect over time. Sometimes they just need time alone - give it to them. Sometimes they need a scathing public lecture (when they're clearly pushing the line for the umpteenth time, know what they're doing, and are cocky about avoiding consequences).
The key is to establish yourself as being consistent, firm but kind, and fierce but fair. It should COST kids things they honestly HATE to mess up in your class. Note: in mine, kids HATE having a lecture outside. I almost never assign after-school detention because kids don't mind having it. They HATE dealing with me, on the other hand, because they know I'm patient, I won't put up with crap, and there will be no way to get out of the consequence until they're willing to figure out the right approach to appease me.
They know I won't give up. They can't out-last me. It's not worth it to keep fighting, because eventually, they'll get exhausted - I won't.
In trench warfare, endurance wins the day.
So the key isn't just setting up the right systems, it's consistency of implementation. The struggle there is an emotional and mental one on YOUR part. Even if it's tough, even if it's ugly, can and WILL you, day in and day out, doggedly INSIST on your expectations being met? Can you keep yourself emotionally engaged enough to be caring, but emotionally removed enough to not let the bumps in the road destroy your morale?
I think that knowing how and when to shift tone is also crucial. You can't simply be on 100% all the time - the same way hollering your instructions all the time will just lead to kids talking over you, being upset all the time will just lead to emotionally charged reactions. In lecture, getting VEEEERY quiet can force kids to lean in and listen; in discipline, being warm, caring, and kind will reinforce the message that you're trying to help students learn how to behave, not to kick them around.
I think warm and caring won't be an issue for you. You will need time developing your "antenna" for student issues, and training yourself to instinctively recognize different student needs. The one thing I think you could productively focus on is how and when to zero in on actively resistant kids, how to make that misbehavior lead to consequences (potentially social ones) that matter, and then how to keep your own energy up and stay consistent.
To sum up, you need to:
- Learn to identify different student needs when they misbehave;
- Use the right weapon for the right time (kindness and firmness);
- Stay consistent in your expectations;
- Keep your energy and endurance up.
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