I noted that today’s “Google Doodle” is the 101st anniversary of the first electronic traffic signal. A bane to some, unless viewed as an “learning opportunity”. Allow me to explain
I’d venture to say that a large number of teachers leave the profession for reasons that have nothing to do with the scholastic achievements of their students; rather they leave because of the challenges of managing behavior in the classroom. Daily episodes happen in classrooms that make some teachers shudder, while outside entities remain blissfully unaware of the continuous demands they make on the teacher’s mental capacity and sense of normalcy. I’ve had the opportunity to speak to various school districts in the past. I’ve done sessions on classroom behavior management with a focus on the teacher’s, not student’s behavior. Most of the time, the participants in those workshops expect to learn about a new trick to get “Johnny” to remain in his seat, or stop tapping his foot or speaking out of turn. They are focused on Johnny and everything he does to interrupt the flow in their classroom. I wonder how much time they mentally spend preoccupied with Johnny. Do they measure a successful day by noting it’s 3:45 and Johnny hasn’t caused a problem today!! Yeah!! In the meantime, Mary has been sitting in her chair and quietly doing her work everyday and yet, her name is not mentioned out loud even once, all year. Invariably a day comes when, in the teacher’s lounge, someone says: “What ever happened to Mary. She used to be such a good student”. That’s when I have that nails-on-the-chalkboard feeling run down my spine. Did you ever TELL Mary she was doing a good job? Were you so focused on managing negative behavior that you forgot to reinforce all of the good that was happening in your classroom every day. Were you too preoccupied with Johnny? I’ve been asked point blank: “What would you do about Johnny?” My response: “I’d thank Johnny” (At which time, I’d get horrific stares and raised eyebrows). Absolutely. Every time Johnny taps his pencil it would remind me to thank the all of the Marys of the classroom for being such good students, staying focused and doing good work. Eventually, Johnny will figure it out: “Every time I tap my pencil, you say something to someone else. See if I tap my foot again!” and my response: “Oh well, have it your way, Johnny”. Would it play out exactly that way? Likely not but the point is that you probably have an arsenal of ideas about how to handle Johnny, but have you even considered what you’ll do when you see Mary demonstrating the behavior you are looking for? She deserves your attention too. Try this. On the way to work, at each red light, envision Mary doing something right and plan what you are going to do to acknowledge that. Be prepared to instantly acknowledge correct behavior. Besides increasing the frequency of that behavior, it also illustrates the fact that you believe in your students and assume as a matter of course that they will be doing things correctly. Showing belief and having faith in your students instills confidence and pride and will elicit even more good work on their part, increasing the behavior for which you are looking and continuing to build momentum. Use the University of Traffic Lights to remind yourself to notice what is going right and respond accordingly, instead of being ready at the drop of a hat to respond to everything that is going wrong. It’s a “degree” that will bring you great returns, even though you can’t frame it for your office wall.
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Dave ForceBehaviorist, teacher and researcher Dave Force offers 30 years of insights wrapped in an engaging and unforgettable presentation. Archives
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