Goal: Rethink Classroom Management

Part of Cycle 6 of The 30 Goals Challenge: Inspire Forward and Cycle 7 of The 30 Goals Challenge: Make it Meaningful

“I am the decisive element in the classroom … In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or de-humanized. – Dr. Haim Ginott

Goal: Rethink classroom management. Get your students to reflect on how different behavior choices impact others.

In chapter 19, Goal: Rethink Student Behavior, of The 30 Goals Challenge for Teachers, I share the following ideas for getting students to reflect on their behavior choices. Some include:

  • get students to create a class code of conducts, sign it, and commit to making better choices
  • as a class brainstorm more effective ways to deal with first offenses
  • get students to create a plan of action for when they feel tired, anxious, angry, rage, hungry, bored, etc.
  • set-up a system for students to communicate with you when they feel like their emotions are overwhelming and they need a break.  I recommend having learning stations, a maker station, or a rest area for learners to work by themselves for a few minutes.

Our current system punishes

Our students are developing and learn how to react and reflect from us. Writing up students, suspension, or ISS (In School Suspension) often does not get to the root of the problem and rarely works. Recently, the Science Friday podcast (July 2015) revealed research showing the ineffectuality of school suspension: “According to a 2007 report from the non-profit Texas Appleseed, for example, over 80 percent of the adults in Texas prisons had dropped out of school. A panel of child psychologists and educational policy experts joins guest host Manoush Zomorodi to discuss how rethinking discipline and punishment could prevent the alienation of students and break down this link between schools and prisons.” Listen to the rest of the podcast to listen to the research. As a teacher, you control what happens in your classroom. You have the ability to choose a better classroom management system that doesn’t punish, but instead helps students reflect on their behavior choices and manage their own emotions.

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Class ManagementNew to The 30 Goals Challenge? Each year, teachers worldwide aim to accomplish 1 to 30 goals that transform their teaching. Join the movement by accomplishing any goal from any of the cycles then letting us know through a blog reflection or status update on our Facebook community or on Twitter,@30GoalsEdu . At our official site, 30Goals.com, find all the goals, participant reflections, badges, and get your copy of The 30 Goals for Teachers: Small Steps to Transform Your Classroom workbook. ​

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