School discipline serves the important purpose of maintaining safe and orderly learning environments in our schools, but research shows that an emphasis on harsh, punitive practices, such as “zero tolerance” policies, does not improve school safety. Instead, student behavior and learning outcomes can be improved through the use of an evidence-based approach known as school-wide positive behavior support. Such an approach relies on teaching and reinforcing clear behavioral expectations, providing supports and interventions for students with challenging behaviors, and using alternatives to suspension or expulsion. Both students and society benefit when youth are not excluded from school, since such exclusion places students at greater risk of dropping out and engaging in crime and violence.
Disciplining students, particularly those with chronic or serious behavior problems, is a long-standing challenge for educators. They must balance the needs of the school community and those of the individual student. At the heart of this challenge is the use of punitive versus supportive disciplinary practices. Current research and legislation offer alternative ‘best practice’ strategies that support the safe education ofallstudents. Such effective discipline practices ensure the safety and dignity of students and staff, preserve the integrity of the learning environment, and address the causes of a student’s misbehavior in order to improve positive behavioral skills and long-term outcomes.
Research has proven thatpositive discipline strategies benefit all students. This strategies are research-based procedures that focus on increasing desirable behaviors instead of simply decreasing undesirable behaviors through punishment. They emphasize the importance of making positive changes in the child’s environment in order to improve the child’s behavior. Such changes may entail the use of positive reinforcement, modeling, supportive teacher-student relations, family support and assistance from a variety of educational and mental health specialists.
By: Mrs. Gina A. Torres | Teacher III | Sto. Niño Biaan Elementary School | Mariveles, Bataan
