Assertive discipline

1
Assertive discipline
2
Assumptions

• Students must be forced to comply with rules
• Students cannot be expected to determine
  appropriate classroom rules and follow them
• Punishment will cause students to avoid bad
  behavior and engage in good classroom behavior

3
More assumptions

• Good behavior can also be encouraged by positive
  reinforcement
• For proper classroom management, parents and
  school administrators msut help to enforce rules.

4

• Lee Canter-
• Child guidance specialist
• Established an organization called Canter and
  Associates
• Provides training for teachers who want to become
  more assertive in their teaching
• http//www.canter.net

5
Assertive discipline

• Emphasizes punishing unacceptable behaviors
• Providing reinforcement for behaviors that are
  acceptable to teachers

6

• Canter believed that teachers generally ignored
  their own needs in the classroom in favor or
  satisfying the students needs.

7
Misconceptions according the Canter

• Teachers should be able to handle discipline
  problems without help
• Firm discipline will be harmful to children and
  cause psychological harm (or disrupt the student
  teacher rapport)

8
Misconceptions according the Canter

• Discipline problems do not persist when students
  are provided with activities that satisfy their
  needs
• Misbehavior has causes over which teachers have
  no influence

9

• Canter believes these misconceptions lead us to
  discipline students in wishy-washy ways
• This leads to other problems

10
To combat the problems

• Teachers need to change their indecisive
  approaches
• Insist that their own rights as a teacher are met

11
Teacher rights

• To establish classroom rules and procedures that
  produce optimum learning environments
• To insist on behavior from students that meets
  the teachers desires
• To insist on behavior that leads to positive
  social development

12
More teacher rights

• To insist on behavior that leads to the
  educational development of students
• The right to receive help from administrators
• The right to receive help from parents

13
Steps in the process

• Step 1. Create positive student teacher
  relationships
• Discipline procedures should be applied fairly to
  everyone
• Teacher must model what trust and respoct look
  like
• Teachers must instruct students in the procedures
  expected

14

• Step 2 Establish rules or expectations
• Usually 5 or 6 rules
• Teachers makes the rules
• Rules satisfy the teachers needs
• Communicate the rules
• Poster
• Names on the board with check marks to indicate
  the degree of the punishment

15

• Step 3. Tracking the misbehavior is important
• Tracking should be private
• Negative consequences should be predetermined and
  applied strictly according to plan.

16
Four methods to request compliance

• 1. Hints
• Everyone should be working.
• 2. Question
• Would you please get to work?
• 3. I message
• I want you to open your books and get to work.
• 4. Demand
• Get to work now.

17
Methods to make the requests work more efficiently

• Eye contact
• Use hand gestures
• Use student names when making requests
• Use physical touch if appropriate

18
Broken record technique

• Repeat the demands several times if the students
• ignore you or
• object to request or
• argue with it

19

• Step 4. Use negative consequences to enforce
  limits
• Time out
• Withdrawing a privilege
• Detention
• Send to principals office
• Call parents
• Send them to another class

20

• Do not issue threats
• Follow through with what ever you say you re
  going to do
• Some teachers have made recodings of the
  misbehaviors

21

• Step 5. Implement a system of positive
  consequences
• Less systematic than the negative consequences
• Can use
• Personal attention from the teacher
• Positive notes to calls to parents
• Awards
• Special privileges
• Group rewards