Eliminating Disruptions
Communicate through your actions that students can rely on you to maintain a safe and orderly environment. Even if you are totally committed to having a democratic classroom where students are responsible for their own behavior, this is necessary in order to garner the respect and significance you will need to create any classroom climate you care about.
Establishing Authority and Safety Has Three Major Subtasks
p Subtask 1: Establish expectations for behavior with confidence and clarity and build a crystal-clear understanding of the rules and the social contract that will be the reference point for behavior. Involve the students to the de- gree possible in creating a social contract, and act out the boundaries of the rules so there is no ambiguity of what they mean. Later in this chapter, we describe strategies for involving students in developing these rules.
p Subtask 2: Set limits by reacting with speed and decisiveness when behav- ior is inappropriate or disruptive. One does this by noticing when student behavior needs a response and responding quickly with the body language of meaning business (Jones, 2013) and any other steps that are necessary to preserve order and safety, both physical and psychological. Linda Lan- tieri (2001) describes the relationship of classroom order and psychological safety as follows:
“Children do not always know what is safe for them or for others,” said Dorothy. “Discipline and limits are a way we create a circle of safety for those not yet ready to do this for themselves. Picture these limits as a big hug—our strong arms encircling the child with comfort and safety.”
Once we see discipline as an act of love and containment, we can be creative and responsive to the style and degree of discipline needed with a particular child or group. . . .When we distinguish respect from fear and provide limits to prevent children from harming each other, we are not defending our power as teachers; we are helping group members create the safety to be vulnerable and authentic with one another. (p. 121)
p Subtask 3: The final subtask is responding to student behavior when nec- essary with consequences that are clear, swift, fair, and certain. This means having an escalating scale of consequences in mind and the backup systems in place.