Classroom Management That Works: Research-Based Strategies for Every Teacher

Up to this point we have been considering actions a teacher can and should take regarding classroom management. Surely, the teacher is the guiding force in the classroom. But there is another side to the coin of classroom management, and that is the responsibility of students to contribute to the good functioning of the classroom. In fact, it is not uncommon for some theorists to react somewhat negatively to suggestions like those in Chapters 2 through 5. For example, in an article entitled [Discipline: The Great False Hope,] Raymond Wlodkowski (1982) notes:

Because discipline is so often applied as
control, it comes across to the student as
a form of direct or implied threat. We
essentially say to the student, [If you
don't do what I think is best for you to
do, I am going to make life in this class-
room difficult for you.] (p. 8)

Jim Larson (1998) echoes this same sentiment, noting that [school disciplinary procedures … tend to rely more on reactive administrative interventions such as suspensions and expulsions. …] (p. 284). Larson offers a solution that involves students in the design and execution of management policies:

A code of discipline specifies what
would be considered appropriate school
conduct and alleviates controversies
associated with arbitrary rule enforce-
ment…. Unlike, the older, legalistic
code models with their heavy-handed
authoritarian emphasis on rules and
punishment, a modern code of disci-
pline should be developed [bottom up]
with collaborative input from students,
teachers, support staff, and parents, and
reviewed frequently for modification.
(p. 285)

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