DEALING WITH STUDENTS WITH DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR

CLAIRE D. MALONZO

There are both well-behaved and misbehaved children present in a classroom. The latter require special care to redirect them toward appropriate behavior. Here are few tactics when confronted with students with disruptive behavior.

1. Bring challenging pupils near you. Bring students who are misbehaving near to you. That was meant to be very literal. The noisy and intransigent students in a classroom setting frequently sit in the back, where they can be more anonymous and feel freer to act out. Such kids are easily distinguished and prevented from engaging in such behavior by being seated at the other end of the classroom, close to the teacher's desk.

2. Speak to them privately. It rarely works to call out kids in front of the class. It might lead to more indiscipline and resentment. Moreover, avoid criticizing or demeaning kids in front of their peers. Ask them to come visit you instead after the class so you can look at the underlying causes of the behavior. Acting out could be a sign of issues in the family back home. Children may also act out in an effort to impress their peers.

3. Separate good from bad. Sometimes, especially when working with younger pupils, it's possible for them to be unaware of what constitutes inappropriate classroom behavior. Make the distinction between right and wrong more obvious to them.

4. Set an example of the behavior you want to see. If you don't follow the rules yourself, it's difficult to enforce them in a classroom. You should lead by example in addition to having explicit regulations or guidelines in place. Otherwise, they'll be more likely to copy your actions than your instructions. For instance, if you discipline kids for arriving late, arrive early every day.

5. Put greater emphasis on rewards than on sanctions. Long-term, rewards are a more fruitful strategy. Offering rewards as a lure to students frequently gives them the motivation they need to not only abide by the rules but also put their best foot forward.

6. Attempt to comprehend. Investigate the situation's origins before categorizing any action as poor behavior out of the gate.

Never give up on a pupil who seems unyielding and appears determined to test your patience. Keep up the good fight until it is triumphant. It can take minutes, days, or even weeks to accomplish it. Never succumb to frustration; always exercise patience.

author is Teacher Guagua East

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III at San Juan Nepomuceno ES/