Throughout the history of education in Nigeria and Africa in general, the most common means of maintaining
discipline in schools was corporal punishment. While a child was in school, a teacher was expected to act as a
substitute parent, with many forms of parental discipline or rewards open to them. This often meant that students
were commonly chastised with the cane, paddle, strap or yardstick if they did something wrong. Corporal
punishment, often by canning, remains common place in many schools Nigeria and some African countries.
Great teachers first learn how to maintain classroom discipline in their academic preparation rather than dishing
out punishments.
Educators also learn how to maintain classroom discipline through experience and adapt their
basic techniques to the best practices for their current students who might differ substantially from the previous
groups. In addition, school teachers usually work in a collaborative environment so they can learn how to
maintain classroom discipline and best practices on the job. Disciplinary problems have been listed (Bello,
1981, Arum 2003) as the major concerns for most teachers. A disciplined classroom requires daily maintenance
and monthly reflection. This article provides some hints that teachers can use to maintain discipline to ensure
smooth and effective curriculum delivery in secondary schools in Nigeria.
Discipline Defined
It is not easy to define the word discipline because of the fact that the word can be used in a variety of ways. For
instance, Arum (2003) Glasser (2001) see discipline as conforming in totality to laid down norms and as
complete obedience to orders. Bello (1981), martella, Neslon and Marchand view discipline as a means of
imparting knowledge and skills. Latham (1997) and Saich (2003) see discipline as simply punishment and
control.
Classroom discipline is more than all of the above. It is more than the power the teacher exercises over his
students. It is more than the mere maintenance of law and order in the classroom or the right method of dealing
with offenders in schools. It means more than punishment and occasional praises and rewards. It is more than
mere stillness and quietness in the classroom.
Discipline according to this writer, is the application of all those
influences which secure or at least try to secure proper conduct in schools. Classroom discipline is the training
which produces in students self restraint, orderliness, good conduct, cooperation and the habit of getting the best
out of themselves. It involves intellectual and moral education as opposed to mere order and instruction.
Discipline is more than simply getting students to behave the way one expects them to or stopping them from
behaving the way one does not want on a specific occasion. Discipline according to this writer is the continuous
process of positive instruction and negative correction through which students are taught to act within specified
rules and values. Simply stated mathematically:
Discipline = Instruction + Correction. i.e Discipline = 90%
Instruction + 10% Correction.
A child’s behavior usually gets worse, not better if this ratio is reversed.
Excessive negative responses from parents or teachers tend to encourage more negative responses from the hurt and angry child. To discipline effectively, negative correction should be used sparingly and positive instruction
should be used most of the time.
The main purpose of school is to provide students with an educational foundation from which they can build
successful independent lives. However, disruptions in the classroom cause roadblocks to students’ achievement.
Maintaining discipline in schools is essential for effective curriculum delivery. The following are some best
practices that can help teachers to achieve this.
1. Increase Parental Involvement
Parents truly make a difference in student achievement and behaviour. Schools should institute a policy where teachers are required to contact parents periodically through the year. Half-term or end-of-term reports are often not enough. A parent cannot help solve an issue if they do not know one exists. While home calls take time, in the end they can help provide solutions to very difficult classroom problem. This is not to say that all parent involvement will be positive or have a measurable effect on student’s behaviour. Nevertheless, this is an area which many successful schools claim make a huge difference.
Parents truly make a difference in student achievement and behaviour. Schools should institute a policy where teachers are required to contact parents periodically through the year. Half-term or end-of-term reports are often not enough. A parent cannot help solve an issue if they do not know one exists. While home calls take time, in the end they can help provide solutions to very difficult classroom problem. This is not to say that all parent involvement will be positive or have a measurable effect on student’s behaviour. Nevertheless, this is an area which many successful schools claim make a huge difference.
2. Create and Enforce a School wide Discipline Plan
Discipline plans are a way to provide students with a consistent and fair plan of what will happen if they misbehave. While some schools have a discipline plan on books, many do not have disciplinary plans on conduct/behaviour. Having it posted in every classroom and in notice boards around the school compound is a good way to start.
Discipline plans are a way to provide students with a consistent and fair plan of what will happen if they misbehave. While some schools have a discipline plan on books, many do not have disciplinary plans on conduct/behaviour. Having it posted in every classroom and in notice boards around the school compound is a good way to start.
3. Practice Effective Follow Through
While posting the discipline plan is important so that all students are informed of the consequences for misbehaviour, followings through on the discipline plan is the key to truly fostering discipline in schools. In the classroom, if a teacher does not follow through and deal with misbehaviour, it will increase. School-wide, if administrators do not follow the discipline plan and support the teachers, it would easily lose control of the situation.
While posting the discipline plan is important so that all students are informed of the consequences for misbehaviour, followings through on the discipline plan is the key to truly fostering discipline in schools. In the classroom, if a teacher does not follow through and deal with misbehaviour, it will increase. School-wide, if administrators do not follow the discipline plan and support the teachers, it would easily lose control of the situation.
4. Foster Discipline in Schools Through Leadership
The principal and vice principal are of major importance in fostering an academically focused schoolwide environment. Their actions form a basis of the overall mood for the school. If they are consistent in supporting teachers, implementing the discipline plan, and following through on disciplinary actions, then teachers will follow their lead. On the other hand, if they are lax on discipline, this will become apparent over time and misbehaviour will increase.
5. Build a Reputation for Fairness
Hand in hand with effective leadership and school-wide consistent follow through is the belief by students that teachers and administrators are fair in their disciplinary actions. While there are sometimes extenuating circumstances that require administrator to make adjustments for individual students, overall students who misbehave should be treated similarly. Teachers must act fairly for all students if they expect to be respected. If teachers do not treat all students equitably, they will be labelled as unfair. Students will not be keen to follow their rules.
6. Maintain High Expectations
From administrators to guidance counsellors to teachers, schools must institute high expectations for both achievement and behaviour. These expectations must include messages of encouragement and means of support to help all children succeed.
According to Mclntyre (2005) Schools that foster highesteem and promote social and scholastic success reduce the likelihood of emotional and behavioural disturbance. Expect that students will behave, not that they will disrupt. Teachers should reinforce this with the way they speak to their students. Teachers should begin the day by telling students their expectations. For example, a teacher might say, “for the duration of this class period, I expect you to raise your hands and be recognized before you start speaking. I also expect you to respect each other’s opinions and listen to what each person has to say.”
7. Deal with Disruptions with as Little Interruption as Possible
When teachers have classroom disruptions, it is imperative that they deal with them immediately and with as little interruption of their class momentum as possible. If students are talking amongst themselves and the teacher is having a classroom discussion, ask one of them a question to try to get them back on track. If the teacher has to stop the flow of his/her lesson to deal with disruption, then he/she is robbing students who want to learn of their precious in-class time. Sometimes all it takes is for everyone to have a good laugh to get things back on track in a classroom. Many times, however, teachers confuse good humour with sarcasm. While humour can quickly diffuse a situation, sarcasm may harm a teacher’s relationship with his/her students. Teachers should use their best judgment but realize that what some people think as funny others find to be offensive.
8. Avoid Confrontations in Front of Students
Whenever there is a confrontation in class there is a winner and a loser. Obviously teachers need to keep order and discipline in their class. However, it is much better to deal with disciplinary issues privately than cause a student to ‘lose face’ in front of their friends. It is not a good idea to make an example out of a disciplinary issue. Even though other students might get the point, the teacher might have lost any chance of actually teaching that student anything in that specific period in class.
9. Overplan
Free time is something teachers should avoid. By allowing students time just to talk each day, teachers are setting a precedent about how they view academics and their subjects. To avoid this, teachers should overplan. Write additional activities into their lesson plans just in case main lesson runs short. When teachers have too much to cover, they will never run out of lessons and they will avoid free time. Teachers can also fill up any left over time with mini-lessons.
10. Be Consistent
One of the worst thing a teacher can do is not to enforce his/her rules consistently. If one day a teacher ignores misbehaviours and the next day he/she jumps on someone for the smallest offence, students will quickly lose respect for the teacher. Students have the right to expect teachers to be basically the same everyday. Moodiness is not allowed. Once a teacher loses students’ respect, he/she will also lose their attention and their desire to please him/her.
11. Make Rules Understandable
Teachers need to be selective in their class rules for instance no one can follow 180 rules consistently. Rules need to be clearly stated. Students should understand what is and what is not acceptable. Furthermore, teachers should make sure that the consequences for breaking rules are also clearly known before hand.
12. Keep an anecdotal record
Keep an anecdotal record of major issues that arise in your class. This might be necessary if one is asked for a history of classroom disruptions or other documentation.
13. Use humour
Try to use humour to diffuse situations before things get out of hand. Teachers should Know their students. The following example could be used with students for example, if a teacher tells his students open their books to page 51 and three students are busy talking, do not immediately yell at them. Instead, smile, say their names, and ask them kindly if they could please wait until later to finish their conversation because you would really like to hear how it ends and they have to get this class finished. This will probably get a few laughs but also get the points across.
14. Start Fresh Everyday
Teachers should start teaching their class each day with the expectation that students will behave. Don’t assume for instance, that because Adamu has disrupted your class everyday or for a week, he will disrupt it today. By doing this, one will not be treating Adamu any differently and thereby setting him up to disrupt again (like a self-fulfilling prophesy).
The principal and vice principal are of major importance in fostering an academically focused schoolwide environment. Their actions form a basis of the overall mood for the school. If they are consistent in supporting teachers, implementing the discipline plan, and following through on disciplinary actions, then teachers will follow their lead. On the other hand, if they are lax on discipline, this will become apparent over time and misbehaviour will increase.
5. Build a Reputation for Fairness
Hand in hand with effective leadership and school-wide consistent follow through is the belief by students that teachers and administrators are fair in their disciplinary actions. While there are sometimes extenuating circumstances that require administrator to make adjustments for individual students, overall students who misbehave should be treated similarly. Teachers must act fairly for all students if they expect to be respected. If teachers do not treat all students equitably, they will be labelled as unfair. Students will not be keen to follow their rules.
6. Maintain High Expectations
From administrators to guidance counsellors to teachers, schools must institute high expectations for both achievement and behaviour. These expectations must include messages of encouragement and means of support to help all children succeed.
According to Mclntyre (2005) Schools that foster highesteem and promote social and scholastic success reduce the likelihood of emotional and behavioural disturbance. Expect that students will behave, not that they will disrupt. Teachers should reinforce this with the way they speak to their students. Teachers should begin the day by telling students their expectations. For example, a teacher might say, “for the duration of this class period, I expect you to raise your hands and be recognized before you start speaking. I also expect you to respect each other’s opinions and listen to what each person has to say.”
7. Deal with Disruptions with as Little Interruption as Possible
When teachers have classroom disruptions, it is imperative that they deal with them immediately and with as little interruption of their class momentum as possible. If students are talking amongst themselves and the teacher is having a classroom discussion, ask one of them a question to try to get them back on track. If the teacher has to stop the flow of his/her lesson to deal with disruption, then he/she is robbing students who want to learn of their precious in-class time. Sometimes all it takes is for everyone to have a good laugh to get things back on track in a classroom. Many times, however, teachers confuse good humour with sarcasm. While humour can quickly diffuse a situation, sarcasm may harm a teacher’s relationship with his/her students. Teachers should use their best judgment but realize that what some people think as funny others find to be offensive.
8. Avoid Confrontations in Front of Students
Whenever there is a confrontation in class there is a winner and a loser. Obviously teachers need to keep order and discipline in their class. However, it is much better to deal with disciplinary issues privately than cause a student to ‘lose face’ in front of their friends. It is not a good idea to make an example out of a disciplinary issue. Even though other students might get the point, the teacher might have lost any chance of actually teaching that student anything in that specific period in class.
9. Overplan
Free time is something teachers should avoid. By allowing students time just to talk each day, teachers are setting a precedent about how they view academics and their subjects. To avoid this, teachers should overplan. Write additional activities into their lesson plans just in case main lesson runs short. When teachers have too much to cover, they will never run out of lessons and they will avoid free time. Teachers can also fill up any left over time with mini-lessons.
10. Be Consistent
One of the worst thing a teacher can do is not to enforce his/her rules consistently. If one day a teacher ignores misbehaviours and the next day he/she jumps on someone for the smallest offence, students will quickly lose respect for the teacher. Students have the right to expect teachers to be basically the same everyday. Moodiness is not allowed. Once a teacher loses students’ respect, he/she will also lose their attention and their desire to please him/her.
11. Make Rules Understandable
Teachers need to be selective in their class rules for instance no one can follow 180 rules consistently. Rules need to be clearly stated. Students should understand what is and what is not acceptable. Furthermore, teachers should make sure that the consequences for breaking rules are also clearly known before hand.
12. Keep an anecdotal record
Keep an anecdotal record of major issues that arise in your class. This might be necessary if one is asked for a history of classroom disruptions or other documentation.
13. Use humour
Try to use humour to diffuse situations before things get out of hand. Teachers should Know their students. The following example could be used with students for example, if a teacher tells his students open their books to page 51 and three students are busy talking, do not immediately yell at them. Instead, smile, say their names, and ask them kindly if they could please wait until later to finish their conversation because you would really like to hear how it ends and they have to get this class finished. This will probably get a few laughs but also get the points across.
14. Start Fresh Everyday
Teachers should start teaching their class each day with the expectation that students will behave. Don’t assume for instance, that because Adamu has disrupted your class everyday or for a week, he will disrupt it today. By doing this, one will not be treating Adamu any differently and thereby setting him up to disrupt again (like a self-fulfilling prophesy).
No comments:
Post a Comment