Teaching with Love and Logic continues to challenge me to work outside my comfort zone. Actually, it is the rut I call classroom management. Chapter 14, Implementing School Discipline (Systems vs. Principles) clearly reveals the differences and how one is all about the adult having control and the other is about making the student accountable for his actions. All classroom teachers ultimately want children to be accountable for their actions and behaviors. Most of us go about disciplining by way of our own experiences or our observations while in training. The "principles" approach requires me to rewire my thinking and knee-jerk reaction in situations that require discipline. The book offers scenarios and suggestions that are quite understandable. For me, it is not a matter of disbelief or disapproval of the techniques but rather taking what I have read and learned and actually applying it after 26 years of responding the same way to now changing my responses.In Chapter 15, we see a school actually implement Love and Logic. I would be interested to see how Blaney's teachers would take the Love and Logic principles and merge them with PBIS since PBIS is about tangible tokens and Love and Logic is about internal accountability and problem
solving.My philosophy about any "program" is and has always been that there is not one fix for everyone. As educators of a varied group of students that varies each year, we need to glean from each program and make it work for us. The pearl on page304, "Education is based on relationships, not a procedure" hits to the heart of the phrase "A child doesn't care what you know until they know how much you care." Relationships, regardless of your management/discipline system, is critical to changing a child's behavior.
6 comments:
I agree with your comment that we have to "rewire our thinking in situations that require discipline. I really have to stop and think when a situation arises to keep myself from using the same disciplining techniques that I have used for so many years. Throughout the time I have been reading this book, I have tried many of the techniques with several different students. While the approach did not work every time, I have seen some positive outcomes overall. The bottom line is that children know if you really care about them. You can say all the right words, but if the empathy is not there they know.
I think we could implement Love and Logic as another tool in our classroom management toolbox along with our PBIS program. As we have all said not one program works for all. Love and Logic could be used to assist in building the positive relationships with our students. I think we can merge the two by instilling internal accountability through conversations and the tangible tokens can still be used to reward the appropriate behaviors.
I agree with Crystal that this is something that could be implemented along with PBIS. I have already found that there are some students who don't really respond to PBIS as it is, so different approaches would be needed for those students. The problem is trying to get teachers to change the way they've been doing things for many many years. We would have to start with very simple approaches, such as the example on page 294 of "Better Ways to Say No" and try to expand from there.
While reading chapter 14, there was a statement that made me think of several "challenging" students I have this year and that I have had in the past. The sentence was, "Another problem in a system of reward and punishment is that it does not change the behavior of the kids whose behavior most needs changing." I guess I have always known this to be true, but to see it in black and white made it real. I have several children who have not responded at all to the PBIS "blue tickets". One child even told me, "I don't need a ticket. My mama will get me anything I want." As much as I try to give them blue tickets, they do as much as they can not to get them! I would love to find a way to reach these children. How do we "internalize" positive behaviors in these children? I think this is a challenge for PBIS.
Wow! The pearl from page 278 says it all. “You are either doing it the Love and Logic way, or you are doing it the reward and punishment way.” I must say that I totally agree, and this is a bit concerning with the implementation of PBIS district-wide. With the district mandating PBIS, it makes it tough for a school to be a Love and Logic school. However, the second half of Chapter 14 offers some great advice on implementing the Love and Logic way. I particularly like the idea of having all teachers watch the first part of the Love and Logic video to get a “taste” of it, and hopefully spark some interest.
The practical interventions discussed in Part 4 were excellent! I already use several in my classroom, and intend on using others as the need arises. Sharing these interventions with fellow staff members at any Love and Logic staff development, I believe, will be a critical component. They answered many of the questions I had, and helped paint a clearer picture of how I can realistically implement Love and Logic in my classroom.
I think that education is based on a relationship, not a procedure.
Without positive relationship with their teacher, the students perhaps may not meet their full potential. One intervention could be when two kids are being disruptive, maybe moving one of them to the other side of the classroom or just changing their location. Sometimes sending students to the Principals office could make them more difficult to handle when they get back to class I would call it revenge on a students mind. On page 328 it talks about as with any technique, there are cautions to consider when using "I Messages." It talks about how tough things can get even for the best teacher because you would have to make yourself vulnerable. How you might pour out your heart and soul and still be rejected.
I have enjoyed reading this book even though I'm not a teacher in a classroom but I am a parent, like I said before students look to see things in and around the classroom the way we all act showing by examples to a student. One of my quotes from this book is "When we get to the point where we fear the parent who sends responsible kids to school as much as we fear the parent who sends us irresponsible kids, we will turn this nation around.”
Most people have difficulty with change, especially when it comes to disciplinary actions of children. The discipline administered tends to be from past experiences. It worked for me attitude has really become a thing of the past. Children today, have a “what do I get if I do this thought process rather than an intrinsic motivational factor. Often times, children fail to think before they act as well as adults. Thus it causes teachers to get into power struggles with those difficult children. Words are exchanged and relationships are ruined. It takes time to change one’s disciplinary philosophy. Like others have stated, it takes patience and practice to implement the methods presented in the book.
Some three years ago, I heard about the PBIS program being implemented in Kershaw County. At the time I was totally against rewarding students for doing the right thing. I still have reservations about it. However, since our implementation of the blue tickets, I've personally seen a reduced number of office referrals. The book discussed student’s accountability and problem solving. As Dennis said, not all students are buying into the PBIS system. It would be worthwhile to explore methods presented from Love and Logic.
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