What's the best way to discipline students?

[Castor Troy]

My question is this: what's the best way to effectively discipline students without doing too much? What's the best option?

What should we do?

[Darth Wong]

My question is this: what's the best way to effectively discipline students without doing too much? What's the best option?

What should we do?

Give them bad grades and kick them out of school if they are abusive to the teachers. But by all means, feel free to try your "hit them with something" technique; sooner or later some parent is going to come and kick your ass, and you will deserve it.

[Patrick Degan]

My question is this: what's the best way to effectively discipline students without doing too much? What's the best option?

What should we do?

"Welcome to the penal colony of French Guiana."

[Darth Wong]

Public shame might also work, but of course, it would be useless on the shameless. Some kids might actually take pride in having their face on some kind of "biggest losers of the school" poster in the main foyer of the school.

[Castor Troy]

Sorry, Mike, for those posts on hitting kids. I honestly wasn't thinking things through on those.

My bad. You can insult me on it, I won't mind.

Anyways, the thing is that some just don't care if they get bad grades or if they fail. That's one of the problems. Is that just the best option we have?

[Darth Wong]

Anyways, the thing is that some just don't care if they get bad grades or if they fail. That's one of the problems. Is that just the best option we have?

That's why I say we should just kick them out of school. I seriously doubt that the sort of kid who doesn't give a damn whether he flunks school is going to ever amount to anything other than an exciting episode of "Cops".

[Castor Troy]

You bring a good point. If they don't care about getting kicked out and if they don't care about school in the first place, why send them through in the first place?

Now I see.

[Superman]

Public shame might also work, but of course, it would be useless on the shameless. Some kids might actually take pride in having their face on some kind of "biggest losers of the school" poster in the main foyer of the school.

Considering the way that students typically dress, I don't think "shaming" them will work...

[Asst. Asst. Lt. Cmdr. Smi]

I say not dumbing things down for the lazier students so they still pass would be helpful. For example, I had an English essay that's due date was pushed to Friday due to popular demand in the class. Despite not having it done myself, it should have stayed Wednesday and let the people who didn't take time off of the previous week to work on it suffer.

[Zero]

I really don't think that any school oriented method will have any real effect. The issue is that most parents don't try to raise their children at all, now. They leave that up to TV, and school, and kids end up fucked for it. Parents need to parent. Outside of that, I'm not sure that there's much to it.

[Guardsman Bass]

I agree with Mike generally on this issue. From what I've seen in my own high school, what would work would be some real enforcement of the grade. For example, if you whine that you have a D even though you didn't pay attention or take notes, the teacher does not give you grade-inflation; he simply says, "Too bad. Pay better attention next time."

[Il Saggiatore]

If my memory is still working, we used to have grades in conduct in middle school and high school (in Italy).
A bad grade (e.g., 7 out of 10) in conduct meant repeating the year.
If you did not finish school by 16, you could leave the school (but no piece of paper, like a diploma).

[Il Saggiatore]

If my memory is still working, we used to have grades in conduct in middle school and high school (in Italy).
A bad grade (e.g., 7 out of 10) in conduct meant repeating the year.
If you did not finish school by 16, you could leave the school (but no piece of paper, like a diploma).

I forgot to add this:
But now they dumbed down the system, making conduct irrelevant.

[Sir Sirius]

Don't know how this would work out legally, but fining the kids parents for their offsprings poor behaviour might work. For more serious offences (violence for example) just kick the kid out of school.

[Guardsman Bass]

Don't know how this would work out legally, but fining the kids parents for their offsprings poor behaviour might work. For more serious offences (violence for example) just kick the kid out of school.

It was debated over instituting small fines for certain behavior (such as unjustified absence) in my school. It would be pretty minor fare, and easy to enforce. Of course, for selfish reasons, I didn't like it, but as far as prevention of certain activities there's nothing quite like taking money out of someone's pocket as punishment.

[Durandal]

Public shame might also work, but of course, it would be useless on the shameless. Some kids might actually take pride in having their face on some kind of "biggest losers of the school" poster in the main foyer of the school.

Bring back the Dunce Cap.

[Jalinth]

What age are we talking about?

I remember in elementary school we had garbage pick-up duty at recess - hated it (I was apparently a scrappy kid in Grade 1 & 2). Seemed to be pretty effective. Unpleasant and tedious.

For high school, you'd need something else. I know for suspensions, they generally used "in school". Basically, you got stuffed beside the p or vps office for the few days with all your school work. And no one could talk to you.

In high school, these tools only go so far. Eventually, the "shape up or ship out" must come into play.

[aerius]

My grade 9 Science and grade 12 Math teachers had a pretty good system. Send the worthless troublemakers straight to the principle's office where they got a good verbal reaming and/or suspension,and they'd call up the parents and let them know exactly why their kid is in deep shit. And once the shit-disturbers missed enough classes they were flunked and kicked out of the class. Once the shit stirrers are gone the rest of the class is a lot easier to manage & teach.

[wolveraptor]

I agree that the parents need to punish. Ideally, a student should be praying that the school doesn't call his parents, but some adults just dont' give two fucks about how their child behaves. The teachers shouldn't be afraid to use harsh language (of course, there is a potential for abuse and serious esteem side-effects).

[Darth Wong]

One thing they also need to address somehow is whiny teachers. I know it's fashionable to put 100% of the blame on the students, but some of it has to fall on the teachers too. I've seen firsthand how a good teacher can successfully manage a class (without using violence) while a poor one can't maintain order over the exact same kids. A lot of it is just paying attention and accepting that part of your job is to nursemaid these kids. I'm sick of teachers whining that school is not a daycare; well guess what, you are supposed to watch the kids and supervise them during the day as part of your job; that means it is a fucking daycare, and you should goddamned well learn to deal with it.

[wolveraptor]

The underlying problem: you can have lots of bad teachers, or a few good teachers, but you can't have lots of good teachers, which is what we need.

[dworkin]

Method 1) Clear and transparent rules. One speaker at a time and how much noise when working are my general two. Once students recognise that you will seriously listen to them most cooperate.

Method 2) Make lessons interesting. Well duh. One of my favourite lessons had the students writing about the effects of a sulphuric acid plant being built in a wealthy suburb. Since I was at a low income school at the time they were positivly gleeful over the effects of acid fumes on Beemers, Art Galleries, coffee drinkers and clothing.

Method 3) Appeal to selfishness : This is where game theory works wonders since GT works by appealing directly to selfishness. Most trouble makers 'Don' wanna get in trouble'.

Method 4) Invite the parent in to watch their child. Oh the wonders.

Method 5) Yes, Johnny you have rights. Among these are the right to be suspended, the right to discuss these issues with the Principal and the right to be expelled.

[Stark]

I've always felt that intentionally repressive rules did more harm than good. My high school punished everyone involved in any violence, without investigation: this created an entire underground society of violence, where noone involved could do anything without being punished severely themselves, regardless of whether they were vicitims. Fine if you're on top: not so fine if you're getting knifed/beat up/robbed/etc.

I also agree with Mike's observation that good teachers make a difference. The difference is almost magic: in a single 45-minute period I've seen a good teacher get control of an unruly class and a bad teacher lose control over an otherwise quiet one.

[Master of Cards]

y school (Known to all to be very "PC" does not funk any one but nutures them in a loving envoiriment does not work bring out the paddle

[Darth Wong]

y school (Known to all to be very "PC" does not funk any one but nutures them in a loving envoiriment does not work bring out the paddle

Judging by your sentence structure and spelling, I'd say your school has problems that run deeper than unruly students.