Philosophy of Discipline

            Developing a philosophy of discipline is important when trying to develop classroom responsibility.  Having a philosophy of discipline will help new teachers as well as teachers who have been teaching for a long time to develop a discipline plan that will help students develop responsibility and self-discipline.  Which are both important for creating a good learning environment and experience for all students.

            What is classroom misbehavior and why does it require attention?  Classroom misbehavior is any “behavior that, through intent or thoughtlessness, interferes with teaching or learning, threatens or intimidates others, or oversteps society’s standards of moral, ethical, or legal behavior.” (p. 267)  This type of behavior requires attention because it interferes with other students’ learning.  It also interferes with the teachers’ teaching.  Misbehavior also takes away from students learning self-discipline and responsibility.  That is another reason misbehavior needs to be addressed.  Misbehavior can come in many forms.  Some of these are talking back to the teacher, acting as the class clown, talking and disrupting class, and being defiant.  All of these types of misbehavior disrupt other students’ learning and need to be addressed.

            There are many purposes of discipline.  The main purpose of discipline is to help all students learn more easily and relate better with each other.  The students will be able to learn better with fewer disruptions from misbehavior.  They will also be able to relate better with each other because they will have all achieved self-discipline.  The students will also be able to work better with each other because they will know how to act when working with groups.  What we want to achieve for each student is self-discipline.  When students achieve self-discipline they will know what is the correct way to act and the incorrect way to act.  They will also be more responsible.  This will not only help when in school but it will help when the children get out of school and into the real world.

            Depending on your philosophy of discipline you may have different essential components.  In my philosophy I believe that discipline should help students get along with each other and that children mainly misbehave because certain needs are not being met.  I think that if all the needs of a child are met then that will decrease misbehavior.  I also believe that there are many identifiable causes of misbehavior and if the causes were removed then the misbehavior will decrease.  By believing this, my philosophy of discipline contains many essential components.  Some of these components are, taking students’ needs into consideration, understanding what “getting along well” and “sense of belonging” mean, taking steps to limit the causes of misbehavior, and using different interventions for dealing with misbehavior in helpful ways.  More components are, finding ways for gaining trust and ethical qualities in the class and among students in the class and between the students and myself, finding causes of misbehavior, creating behavior that is in the students’ best interest, and providing an environment that allows the students to feel like they belong.

            All of these components work together to create an environment where the students can learn and feel comfortable.  The components also help to teach students how they are expected to behave and teaches them self-discipline.  By trying to remove the causes of misbehavior the students are less likely to violate class expectations.  I think that one way to remove a lot of the causes of behavior is to create an environment where the students have a sense of belonging.  If the students do not feel like they are part of the class they will misbehave to get the attention they need, which goes along with meeting the needs of the students. 

            As mentioned in the text, “A balanced program of discipline gives attention to four important matters: (1) teaching students how to conduct themselves in a desirable manner, (2) preventing misbehavior by attending proactively to conditions that might foster it, (3) supporting students’ efforts to conduct themselves responsibly, and (4) intervening when students behave inappropriately — in a manner that helps them find success and positive personal relations.” (P. 268)  By focusing on these four important matters I will be able to prevent or limit the occurrence of misbehavior.  If the students are able to learn how to conduct themselves in a respectable manner then this will help to prevent or limit misbehavior.  Also by supporting the students this will give them a sense of belonging.  I also think that it is important to intervene when students are acting inappropriately because this will show them that you are concerned with they way they act and it will also show them how you expect them to act. 

As I mentioned before I think that one way of preventing or limiting misbehavior is to create a sense of belonging in the students.  One way to do this is to allow the students to make decisions when it comes to the class.  For example, allow the students to make the rules for the classroom and also the consequences for breaking the rules.  This will help the students feel like they were in control and part of the class.  I also think that body language helps to prevent or limit misbehavior.  Fred Jones mentions that teachers can set limits through body language.  Some of the different types of body language that can be used are, proper breathing, eye contact, physical proximity, body carriage, and facial expressions.  I also believe that keeping the students interested in the material being learned will help to prevent misbehavior.  One way to do this is to find out what the students are interested in and try making lessons revolved around what they find interesting.  Another way to prevent or decrease misbehavior is to keep the students actively participating in the lesson.  One way to do this is by the “Say, See, Do Teaching” technique mentioned by Fred Jones.  This technique calls for frequent student response during lessons to keep them focused.  Developing a good relationship with the students is also very important in preventing misbehavior.  This will show the students that they can trust you and that you only want what is best for them.  I also think that classroom arrangement is very important in preventing misbehavior.  The room needs to be set up in a way that the teacher can see everything and everyone at all times.  This will help the teacher to be able to catch misbehavior before it occurs.  I also think that, if needed, the teacher should be willing to change himself or herself to help meet the needs of the students.  By meeting the needs of the students this will prevent misbehavior.

There are many ways to react effectively when students misbehave, it all depends on the situation.  One way that I like is the “Do-over”, this is when the student misbehaves and is required to do the behavior over in a more respectful manner.  For example, if a student talks back to the teacher, the teacher will have the student say what they want to say but in a more respectful way.  The worst way to discipline a student is to use forceful discipline tactics.  When a child begins to misbehave it is best to try to figure out what the problem is and why they are misbehaving.  Also body language can be used such as eye contact, physical proximity, and attention.  The teacher can also remind the students of the class expectations that have been discussed and agreed to.  If a student or all the students begin to move about and fidget, the teacher could ask the students what would make the lesson better seeing as how the students are losing interest.  Another effective way of reacting to misbehavior is to call attention to the unwanted behavior rather than the student misbehaving.  Class meetings are also very effective.  During class meetings the teacher is able to discuss incidents and solutions to the incidents.  If the behavior is too serious I would get assistance from the principal.  I would want to try to solve most, if not all, of the problems that occur in my class on my own; this will show the students that I am capable of handling these situations.  If I am getting very irritated with a certain student I know it would be best if I took a time out.  This will give me a chance to calm down before dealing with the student.  It will also help because I will be less likely to scream or yell at the student or use forceful discipline with the student.

As I mentioned before it is very important to have a philosophy of discipline, it will help you to develop a discipline plan that works best for you and your students.  This will also help when trying to figure out how to teach the students to become self-disciplined and responsible.