Spencer Kagan
Spencer Kagan is a psychologist who believes that discipline should not be used as a punishment, but rather as a lesson. He feels that discipline is not something you do to a student, but rather something you work on with together to best help them achieve. It is best used when teachers work on the same side as the student to establish mutual agreements and work collaboratively with them to create a structure that always the student to make good decisions in the future. He created the Win-Win Discipline model, which focuses on fostering a relationship between the student and teacher so they may work together to find a permanent solution to the undesirable behavior. This is a "win-win" solution to the problem because the student learns a valuable lesson in behaving appropriately and the teacher obtains a well-behaved classroom.
The Win-Win model has three main pillars: working on the same side as the student, finding collaborative solutions and learned responsibility. This means, when a student misbehaves, the teacher will go to the student and determine together why he or she was misbehaving. Instead of providing a punishment that does not explicitly correct the behavior, the teacher will work collaboratively with the student to determine a more appropriate course of action. This provides an opportunity for the teacher to work with the student to create a workable solution to the disciplinary problem. Once an agreed upon solution is created, the student now has a personal connection to the solution he or she helped create and has a desire to behave, because they were able to help create their own consequences. This connection helps foster personal responsibility as the students learn to self-manage their behavior.
I hope to use this model in my future classroom for several reasons. Kagan's model reminds me of the way my parents raised me. If I misbehaved as a child I was sat down by my parents and asked if I understood why my behavior was inappropriate. They would then ask me what behaviors were appropriate in the situation, and we would find a better solution to the problem. I was never yelled at and I rarely misbehaved more than once because I understood exactly what would happen the second time. When I have a classroom, I will never yell at my students. I want to work with them, not against them and find the most effective way to deal with each student's individual needs. While this model of classroom management takes more time to implement than others, I feel in the long run it is more effective and time-saving because you will have a decrease in negative behaviors sooner than other models.
The Win-Win model has three main pillars: working on the same side as the student, finding collaborative solutions and learned responsibility. This means, when a student misbehaves, the teacher will go to the student and determine together why he or she was misbehaving. Instead of providing a punishment that does not explicitly correct the behavior, the teacher will work collaboratively with the student to determine a more appropriate course of action. This provides an opportunity for the teacher to work with the student to create a workable solution to the disciplinary problem. Once an agreed upon solution is created, the student now has a personal connection to the solution he or she helped create and has a desire to behave, because they were able to help create their own consequences. This connection helps foster personal responsibility as the students learn to self-manage their behavior.
I hope to use this model in my future classroom for several reasons. Kagan's model reminds me of the way my parents raised me. If I misbehaved as a child I was sat down by my parents and asked if I understood why my behavior was inappropriate. They would then ask me what behaviors were appropriate in the situation, and we would find a better solution to the problem. I was never yelled at and I rarely misbehaved more than once because I understood exactly what would happen the second time. When I have a classroom, I will never yell at my students. I want to work with them, not against them and find the most effective way to deal with each student's individual needs. While this model of classroom management takes more time to implement than others, I feel in the long run it is more effective and time-saving because you will have a decrease in negative behaviors sooner than other models.
Fred Jones
Fred Jones is psychologist who has spent countless hours observing various classrooms to find the "ideal model" of behavior management. While there is no such thing as a perfect model that fits all classroom needs, Jones focuses on a set of effective teaching tools rather than a "bag of tricks". These tools cover all elements of teaching, from how you arrange the seats in your class to creating more engaging activities. Overall, he feels keeping students motivated to do their work is the most effective form of classroom management and these tools are designed to do so.
These tools include finding ways for teachers to conserve class time. Time is often wasted when students enter the classroom and transitioning between activities. Having students complete work immediately when they enter the room can focus their attention and reduce the amount of time wasted in a day. Using 30 second transitions, with incentives to ensure they remain 30 seconds, can also reduce the amount of time wasted in a day. Jones also identified tools he observed in "natural teachers" that were effective. Such tools include arranging the room and appropriate body language. The class should be arranged so the teacher can move around freely and interact with all students. The teacher should also use appropriate body langage such as good eye contact, positive posture, and watching their facial expressions.
I enjoy Jone's tools because he provides an effective outline that can be applied in any classroom setting. He identifies major problems experienced in most classrooms and the tools that may be used to address these problems. I hope to use his structure in my class by creating an structure before starting the school year. I will then gage my students and have them help be create a more detailed set of procedures and rules.
These tools include finding ways for teachers to conserve class time. Time is often wasted when students enter the classroom and transitioning between activities. Having students complete work immediately when they enter the room can focus their attention and reduce the amount of time wasted in a day. Using 30 second transitions, with incentives to ensure they remain 30 seconds, can also reduce the amount of time wasted in a day. Jones also identified tools he observed in "natural teachers" that were effective. Such tools include arranging the room and appropriate body language. The class should be arranged so the teacher can move around freely and interact with all students. The teacher should also use appropriate body langage such as good eye contact, positive posture, and watching their facial expressions.
I enjoy Jone's tools because he provides an effective outline that can be applied in any classroom setting. He identifies major problems experienced in most classrooms and the tools that may be used to address these problems. I hope to use his structure in my class by creating an structure before starting the school year. I will then gage my students and have them help be create a more detailed set of procedures and rules.