If you asked a group of teachers why they started in the profession you will hear a lot of variations of one answer; to make a difference. However, when we start to teach, we often learn and/or follow systems, either blindly or knowingly, that do not have the best interests of the pupils at heart. When it comes to behaviour management, we use systems which we think pupils deserve, not what they need. If we can use systems which pupils need, then we will be making that difference that we first set out to make.
After reading "When the adults change, everything changes" by Paul Dix, I realised I have been blindly following systems all my teaching career which do not help pupils. Here are 5 things I have learnt reading this book.
1. Pupils need restoration, not punishment systems.
When you think of the pupils with the highest rates of punishment in any school, has the system worked for them? Do they continue to be punished day after day, week after week, or does their behaviour improve due to the sanctions imposed upon them? In my experience, it seems to be the same pupils in detentions and with suspensions year after year. What would happen if we scrapped the punishment system and instead worked with pupils on the reasons why they misbehave? Implementing restoration meetings instead of detentions would allow staff to work with the pupils and discuss their behaviour. Only when pupils trust us, and we understand the reasons for their misbehaviour, can we work on improving their behaviour. Using detentions as punishment only increases the tensions and fails to address the issues for the misbehaviour, therefore increasing the likelihood of a repeat offence.
2. Positive recognition
Paul Dix is correct when he talks about the worst behaved pupils receiving the most attention. This needs to be turned on its head and the most attention should be placed on the pupils who are behaving well and trying their best. I am going to implement the idea of a recognition board to further develop the positive learning culture in my classroom. I will aim to set specific behavioural targets each week/month/half-term such as listening, following instructions, perseverance and questioning.
On a school trip to London this week, I set out my minimum expectations to my group of nine pupils and discussed 'above and beyond' types of behaviour. Whenever I saw above and beyond behaviours, I made sure I praised this and the smiles on the faces of the pupils meant more than a thousand merits. This method raises the minimum requirements and encourages pupils to aim for above and beyond and this is something I am definitely going to continue with.
3. Take away your own emotions
Until recently, I sometimes felt frustrated when dealing with behaviour issues. On occasions, I would even take it personally. But pupils behaviour is not personal and we should never write off a pupil due to our frustrations. It is our responsibility to be there and guide them when they do make mistakes. Children are children, they will fall and we need to pick them up and guide them on the correct path. We need to teach pupils to make the correct decisions and learn positive behaviours, not enforce it through fear.
To help with this, scripted interventions are something I am going to learn more about. This would entail having a set list of quotes to use, explaining to the pupil the behaviour you are seeing from them, what you are asking them to do and reminding them of a time when they have done it correctly before. This removes the possibility of improvisation and becoming emotionally involved.
4. Simple rules
I think Paul Dix's idea of a simple set of rules, such as RRS (Ready, Respect and Safe) would make discipline much easier. This would also help with the inconsistencies which occur in most schools. Most behaviours I am trying to instil in my pupils all fall under one of these three categories. Therefore, every time I need to talk about behaviour, I will use one of these three words. For example, "Well done pupil X, you have turned your screen off and you are showing me you are ready to learn". Constant reinforcement of the three words should help pupils learn how to behave and understand what we are trying to achieve.
5. Consistency
One frustration pupils have is the inconsistency of enforcement from staff. "Come on Sir, Mr X lets us do...." and "Mrs X doesn't do.....". The school rules can be misinterpreted and used in many different ways by staff, let alone the pupils. This makes it difficult to create a fair system for all and without consistency from all staff, whole-school progress is difficult. This can be solved with a simple set of rules (see point 4) and some basic INSET on how to use scripted interventions (see point 3), restoration systems (see point 1) and rewarding positive behaviours (see point 2). Although you can implement this in isolation in your own classroom, the long-term benefits come when you are working as a team.
Ultimately, the adults are responsible for creating the correct environment for the children to learn and behave in. I think every teacher and school leader should read "When adults change, everything changes". This book should be the blueprint for behaviour systems in all schools, and this is the type of school I would love to work in.
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