by Audrey Hart

Created on: March 23, 2009   Last Updated: March 30, 2009

There is a high student to teacher ratio in today's schools. The budget for assistants is lower than ever in today's economy. This makes it hard to manage behavior and disciplinary problems. Many teachers don't receive the backing from staff and parents that is requires to create a disruptive free learning environment.

Many teachers are left to use their imagination to outwit their students. This is difficult with the large number of students in each class. Most discipline is carried out after school, sometimes not even on the same day as the misbehavior. Some students never show up. This is all so the class won't be disrupted, but it doesn't seem to work. The disruption has already taken place and other students need to see the consequence that their classmates receive. This way they know not to make those choices.

Their was an elementary school teacher who handled her classroom behavior with frogs and lily pads. There were three lily pads and if your frog crossed the pond by jumping all three lily pads you and the other students knew that there would be some consequences. Frogs won't work in middle or highs school, and you can't take away recess, but the overall concept is the same.

In your job, if you make a bad choice you get written up. Usually you receive a pink slip explaining what your choice was that caused you to receive your Punishment. That pink slip lets you know to change your behavior or you might have more severe consequences. You could find yourself looking for a new job.

We need to hold our students accountable. This is the best lesson we can teach them. Teachers need to start rewarding positive behavior. Homework passes, special privileges, allow them to run errands for you. Finding ways to free up teachers' time will allow for more one-on-one time with the students, which may cause less class disruptions. If we start allowing children who exemplify what they should be doing by giving them special privileges, it not only gives them an incentive to continue to act in a positive way, but may also give students making poorer choices more drive to try harder.

If a child does all the required things asked of him and can show good self discipline then they are responsible enough and deserve special treatment. If we don't acknowledge these students behavior and reward them they will eventually fall in with the others. Negative attention is better than no attention.

A simple homework pass for the kids who stand out for being model students would go a long way. Think back to when we stayed after school, or if you were really bad during school and had to scrub the bathrooms. Old fashioned elbow grease for the gum you swore had to have been under that desk for years.

What about sitting at the office desk writing the essay on why you made the choice you did and what you should have done instead. What if a parent or an responsible adult had to come hang out with you all day. I don't think we'd have as many disciplinary problems then. These are just a few tips to get our classroom behavior back on track.

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