Customer Reviews

Discipline with Dignity

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Curwin and Mendler do an exceptional job breaking down classroom management in an easy to read and codified form. The book provides valuable insight into problems and solutions in today's classrooms and also functions well as a quick reference for those topics you may need "on the fly"

I once attended a seminar by author Richard Curwin and found him to be an affable fellow with good insights to classroom management. This book contains many practical tips in this regard (review based on the 1989 edition). Curwin believes that classroom discipline is a social contract that should jointly be planned by teacher and students. This includes small details. For instance, teacher and students should come up with a consequence for dealing with an infraction in which the teacher doesn't know who did it, but not one that stigmatizes the entire class.

Curwin notes that the student population breaks down 80%/15%/5% in terms of near-complete compliance, varied compliance, and chronic non-compliance to rules. He summarizes the challenge facing teachers: "In many junior and senior high classes, 5 to 10 minutes of class time is wasted at the beginning of class trying to focus the attention of students. At least another 5 to 10 minutes is directed toward off-task behavior (students not paying attention, using put downs, arguing) during class time. This amounts to minimally 10 to 20 minutes of a 45- to 50-minute class period doing things other than what you are paid to do and want to do: teach!" (p. 53).

Punishment is centered on retribution, and can violate the dignity of the child. Consequences, in contrast, are corrective. The distinction between the two is not simply semantic. Let's illustrate. A child who didn't bring in homework can be punished by writing 100 times "I will do my homework". How much better to have the child have the consequence of writing out a plan for budgeting his/her time so that the homework gets done? For hitting another person, the child may be punished by having to stay after school. The offender should instead have the consequence of coming after school and writing out a plan for expressing his/her anger at others without hitting.

Lee Canter believes that the identical set of consequences should be imposed on anyone who violates a classroom rule. Curwin, in contrast, believes that the teacher should enjoy the flexibility of different consequences for the same infraction. This allows the teacher to avoid choosing between appearing to be rigid and being inconsistent. For instance, if a child didn't do homework owing to a home emergency, he/she can face the consequence of a parent-teacher conference. If he/she didn't do homework for any excusable reason, he/she can face the consequence of coming after school.

Power struggles can be avoided by not "taking the hook". If a child says: "You can't make me!", the teacher should ignore it, but then privately tell the child that he/she is expected to follow through.

Curwin includes many unconventional ideas for solving discipline problems. For instance, a teacher had a chronic problem with students throwing paper airplanes. She came up with the idea of a bloc of classroom time when students would build paper airplanes and launch them--provided that not a single paper airplane was made in the interim. It worked!

I used this book 10 years ago when I first began my career, and I still refer to it today. It demonstrates the ability to direct kids in the correct manner while they develop their self-esteem, and their independence. It gives you ways to deal with negative situtations that allows the child to walk away feeling like they can be a better person and they will be!
Kari Koffman

I just finished my first year of teaching and mentioned to a principal that I think my biggest struggle last year was with discipline. He lent me this book.

I wasn't sure about it at first; it took me a while to get into it, because I found the introduction too vague to be very useful. However, once I got into the "meat" of the book, I really got hooked. The chapters on consequences and enforcement were really enlightening. So many times as I was reading this book, I contrasted the techniques from the book with what I did last year and could see so clearly how ineffective I was.

I haven't gotten to try the techniques yet, but I definitely want to this year. I'm still torn on how long to spend actually making the social contract with the class, but I definitely will be using a short list of rules with multiple consequences, allowing me to always implement a consequence but vary depending on the situation.

The book came in a reasonable amount of time and there was no damage to the book. It was priced fairly and was in great shape.

Great book! Variations of strategy are used today in many school systems. For new teachers, it lays out step by step how to manage your classroom. Both students and teachers benefit from a well managed classroom!

The book povides suggestions and solutions for today's classrooms. It is also a good book to use as a quick reference for those disciplinary topics you may need. Very good!