Thursday, November 22, 2007

AboutDiscipline.com

Punishments and Rewards Failings

The following excerpt at the website above is from the book Discipline Without Stress, by Marvin Marshall.

"INTERNAL APPROACHES

If an approach is used where people are motivated to be responsible--where internal rather than external motivation is at work--then obedience becomes a natural by-product.

Accepting responsibility is the surest and quickest way to change behavior. Such was the case as described in a Newsweek story (January 21, 2002, pages 42-44).

A student had been constantly clowning around and misbehaving in an English class. He was sent to the office. The meted out consequence was to go back to the teacher after class and apologize. He approached Ms. Vines and said, "I'm sorry I disrupted your class." She accepted the apology. To Robert, the simple act of fessing up, standing accountable for his wrongs, struck a chord with him. He said it made him feel like a man. He started acting like one.

Robert's case is not uncommon. The key is to lead students to accept responsibility. This is accomplished by using a noncoercive approach to discipline.

That is the strategy used in The Raise Responsibility System--a powerful and exciting proactive program that raises individual and social responsibility and promotes motivation for learning. The program is used across the entire teaching spectrum--from small childcare centers to large high schools and from rural schools in Texas to urban schools in New York City. The strategy also can be used in any home or youth setting."

I've enjoyed what I have scanned quickly from the book, and quite agree with his takes on responsibility.

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