Planning ahead
I’ve been thinking about how behaviour management is at its best a preventative practice. We plan and organise things. We set up our students for a win. We create good expectations and get buy-in from the students on those. We have class values and we plan for success. This is necessary because students seek to serve their interests and do what is best for them. I think it is reasonable for students to want to do whatever is best for them, isn’t that what everybody does? In this case, it is our job to show them how our goals align, and how we want the best for them. Far from taking autonomy from them, we are trying to give it and make things good for them.
From day one
When we meet our students we make an impression and this is very important. Students will be trying to figure us out and they are generally open to a new teacher. We need to learn about students and show we are interested in them. Students are also trying to figure out if we are good teachers and whether we deserve their respect.
The way you present yourself
There are many aspects to consider, but standing tall, using eye contact, presenting yourself as competent, smiling, and being well-prepared are all part of it.
A framework for behaviour
Now we consider setting up how behaviour should be in the class and expectations for the students. Think about planning for this as you plan for English or Maths, it is just as important, maybe more. If students don’t behave you often can’t get anything done as efficiently, including English and Maths.
Outcomes
Just like in planning for subject areas, you can choose outcomes for behaviour and they might be different for each class. Respect could be an outcome and then you would focus on teaching your students behaviours that are exemplars of this outcome. When they do them you will encourage them. You need to be clear on the outcomes and the examples of behaviours that show them.
Defining how the teacher and students will work together
It is not always clear to students how to interact with the teacher or what is expected of them. It isn’t a good idea to assume that they know. What does it mean that you expect students in your class to behave? They may not know. You can build a framework for behaviour with values that state what is important in the class. You can also make rituals which are the things that you do in your class. Rituals make your class feel connected with a shared story and the things that we do.
Responsibilities and rights
Students have rights within the class and it is different for every class. For instance, students may have the right to speak in class but if they choose to speak over someone else they might lose that right. So their right comes with a responsibility. If they don’t act responsibly, they will lose their right.
Procedures
There are ways in class to make things more efficient and it is the teacher’s job to implement them. The way we line up, the way we hand out the mini whiteboards, and out books, clean the board and so on. Efficiency is valuable in the classroom but what students learn from enacting these procedures is more valuable than that.
Guidelines and rules
There need to be clear rules that students are aware of and know the consequences for breaking. In the book, they give different types of rules. A Mandatory Rule must be obeyed and is for the protection of the social group. A Discretionary Rule is one that adults set and they can change and be applied differently. An Optional Rule is optional in the minds of students because it is inconstantly applied, not checked or there are no consequences. Mandatory Rules sometimes become Optional Rules if teachers are not consistent with applying consequences or if students know they won’t be caught. Maybe it is a rule that students have to line up after recess as soon as the bell goes but they often keep playing after. If no one enforces the rule, they will keep doing it…and why shouldn’t they?
Consequences
Consequences can be used to help students understand what and what not to do. They are a kind of moral learning that prepares students for a world with more serious consequences for their actions. Students need to understand what actions will have consequences and what the consequences will be. The teacher needs to be sure they can and will enact the consequences or the rule will become an Optional Rule.
Conclusion
Of course, in the moment, we apply behaviour management but it works best if we have made a plan. If students know what is expected, we can remind them of what they are expected to be doing and this is reasonable. If it is unclear to students then it seems unfair to expect them to just know it. We are teaching them about behaviour and consequences generally, but also about how they will work in our class specifically. This takes time but will save time in the long run.
These ideas are drawn from the book, Coat of Many Pockets by Jenny Mackay.
