Leading Theories

1. Classroom Management Leading Theories

2. Leaders in the field • Kounin • Jones • Ginott • Dreikers • Canter • Skinner • Glasser

3. Kounin • Conducted studies examining the influence of certain teacher behaviors on the tendencies of students to be on-task (K-college) • Withitness • Organization

4. Withitness • Teacher consistently takes action to suppress misbehaviors of exactly those students who instigated the problems • When 2 discipline problems arise concurrently, the teacher typically deals with the more serious one first. • Teacher decisively handles instances of off-task behaviors before the behaviors either get out of hand or are modeled by others

5. Response to misbehaviors • How does a teacher’s handling of one student’s behavior affect the behavior of other students? • When a teacher’s response to a student’s misbehavior includes anger, threats, physical handling or indications of stress, other students become anxious and nervous but the chances that they will exhibit the misbehavior themselves in the future are not reduced.

6. Organization/management • On-task behavior dependent upon • how smoothly teachers move from one learning activity to another • how efficient they are • how well momentum is maintained.

7. Reduce Boredom/Increase engagement in learning activities • Keeping students apprised about what they were accomplishing as lesson progresses • Interjecting challenges for students at different stages of the lesson • Using a variety of approaches in learning activities

8. Jones • 50% of allocated time is lost because of off-task behaviors • 99% of off-task behaviors take one of several forms

9. Students typically either talk out of turn, clown, daydream, or move about without permission • Antisocial, dangerous behaviors represent only minute proportion of the time that students spend off-task • Massive time wasting is epidemic in schools

10. Jones’ Suggestions • Body Language • Incentive systems for students • Efficient individual help for students

11. Body Language and proximity • Eye contact • Facial expressions • Gestures • Physical proximity to students • The way your carry yourself • Calm control • Plan activities that allow you to roam among the students

12. Incentives • Free time to watch video • Have free time to talk or play a game • Listen to music (with earphones)

13. Ginott • Cooperation Through Communication • Teachers should verbalize to students descriptions of situation and behaviors but never value judgments about individuals themselves • Avoid Labels • Praise students work and desirable behaviors, not individuals • Focus on the behavior to be changed

14. Dreikurs • Teachers who fail to establish and enforce rules for conduct leave their students confused and lacking in guidance for being on-task

15. Democratic Classrooms • Have a voice in the determination of rules • Suffer the logical consequences of their own misbehaviors rather than submit to arbitrary punishment • Are motivated to be on-task because of the intrinsic benefits derived from being on-task

16. Mistaken Beliefs about Social Acceptance • Students’ misbehaviors are attributable to mistaken beliefs about how to obtain the recognition they seek. • Attention getting • Power seeking • Revenge seeking • Displaying inadequacy

17. Attention-Seeking • Prefer being punished, admonished, or criticized to being ignored. • Give attention when they are on-task and cooperating.

18. Power Seeking • Refers to students’ mistaken belief that, if a teacher doesn’t let them do what they want, then the teacher does not approve of them. Power-seeking students attempt to provoke teachers into struggles of will.

19. Revenge Seeking • Power-seeking students are likely to develop resentment toward those to whom they have lost battles of will. They feel hurt by others who have displayed power over them. Consequently, they want to hurt others to display their own power and thus achieve status.

20. Displaying Inadequacy • Uses inadequacy as an excuse when they are discouraged.

21. Canter • Assertive Discipline • Use the assertive response • Recognize fallacies in reasons for excusing off-task behaviors • Specify exactly what types of behaviors will be required and what types will not be tolerated

22. Develop a plan for encouraging on-task behaviors and discouraging off-task behaviors • Persist in following through with the plan • Seek and expect support from parents, instructional supervisors, and school administrators

23. Canter emphasized the needs of teachers. Learned that they have trouble stating exactly what they mean -- or want.

24. Behaviorist • Based on B. F. Skinner • Behavior modification • Refers to the behaviorist approach by which students’ environments are manipulated to increase the chances of desired behaviors’ being rewarded while undesirable behaviors go unrecorded. We condition students to being on-task.

25. Glasser • Rational Choices • Inexcusable behavior • Understanding why a student exhibits undesirable behaviors is no reason to tolerate them. Students are rational beings and quite capable of choosing to cooperate and be on-task. Teacher should never compromise his/her standards.

26. Group Meetings • Concerning social conduct • Open-ended meetings for discussing important subjects • Discussing how well students are progressing • Held to solve problems

27. Rules • Rules should be established cooperatively by teachers and students • Rules should be strictly and consistently followed

28. A NOTE ABOUT RULES • ROUTINES • PROCEDURES • RULES • CONSEQUENCES