|
Special
Education
The following is quoted
from
Using Special Discipline Tactics to Help Students with Neurological-Based
Behavior
MARVIN MARSHALL ON THE VALUE OF
POSITIVE IMAGES
"One of the things Marshall emphasizes in working with students is making heavy
use of positive images as concerns personalities, capabilities, and behavior.
This practice is powerful and especially useful for teachers who work with
students with NBB (neurological-based behavior).
"Marshall maintains that body, mind, and emotions fully intermingle and that
each is understood in terms of the others. Feelings, learning, and physical
behavior all work in conjunction and are inseparable. A change in behavior is as
much emotion based as it is cognition based—that is, it has as much to do with
feelings as with knowledge. The human mind thinks not so much through the use of
simple language but through the heavy use of pictures, images, and visions. One
of the best ways to influence behavior for the better is to empower students
with positive images. In teaching students to conduct themselves appropriately,
we should make use of positive images of what responsible people do, as opposed
to images of punishment for irresponsible behavior."
—TODAY'S BEST CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES,
C.M.
Charles, Pearson, copyright 2008, p. 164
-------------------------------------------
The brain
thinks in pictures—not in letters, words, paragraphs or any text. Think of your
last dream to illustrate this fact. Therefore, always CREATE IMAGES of
what you WANT students to do—NOT what you do not want them to do.
-------------------------------------------
Although, an increasing numbers of students are
demonstrating learning disorders and neurological based behaviors, these
students can demonstrate responsible behavior. They can improve their
social and educational
skills when teachers and parents utilize all four parts of
The Discipline
Without StressTeaching
Model.
Part I:
It is absolutely essential to model, teach, practice, and
reinforce by practicing again procedures
for EVERYTHING.
Part II:
These students should (a) be talked to in positive and empowering ways,
(b) given choices (although limited) to limit coercion, and (c) asked to reflect on their chosen
behaviors and their their successes.
Part III:
(a) Be taught the hierarchy of four levels of social and personal development, (b) asked to
reflect on their chosen level when not operating on an acceptable level, and (c)
develop a procedure to bring them back to the task at hand.
Part IV:
Create for them a picture, image, or visual of the level they plan to
act on BEFORE an activity, and then have them take a moment to reflect on their
chosen level AFTER the activity.
-------------------------------------------
Following is
a case where tangibles only were used initially to prompt reflection:
An
Uncivilized Youth
A teacher posted a request at
DisciplineWithoutStress@yahoogroups.com. The teacher had a
very challenging youngster and requested others to share some
ideas working with this very difficult young students.
Following is one teacher’s
response. HER IDEA IS WELL WORTH YOUR READING IF YOU ARE A
TEACHER OR PARENT WORKING WITH A VERY CHALLENGING YOUNG PERSON.
“This is my second year
using DWS (Discipline without Stress). I have a first grader
this year who has exhibited many of the behaviors that you
listed. I have used behavior sheets, given out laps, writing
sentences, separated him from the group even using a science
fair display board and then ultimately had to suspend him for a
short time. NOTHING was working with him. He
was speaking or shouting out in the classroom and restroom,
singing loudly, constantly interrupting me during class with
another grade (I teach multi-grade 1-8), just generally
disrupting the entire class. I was at my wits’ end with him, and
we were nearly ready to expel him as
he was disturbing the other students and interfering with their
learning.
“This lad came to me as an
uncivilized young one.
“One evening I had an
inspiration to use tangible items to show him when he is
interrupting or disrupting people. I chose clothespins to
use, as these can easily be clipped together for ease of
distribution, name-identified, etc. So as not to single out this
one student, I give four clothespins to the lower grade students
(Grades 1-3) at the beginning of the school day. These
clothespins have the students’ names written on them and are
clipped together, making a square. Students put them on top
of their desks, where they are readily visible and accessible.
When a student interrupts me or disrupts the class or another
student, I quietly ask for a clothespin. At the end of the day,
I give a small token to those students who still have four
clothespins. The token may be a sticker, an eraser, etc. It has
worked miracles for this especially disruptive student.
“His mother and grandmother are
so happy with his new and improved behavior! Even his pastor
says that he can see a difference in him at church! Hallelujah!
“The clothespins
give him something tangible to attach to an undesirable
behavior, of which he was not even aware, and then make a better
choice. He is prompted to make the decision, ‘Is this worth
losing a clothespin over—do I really need to interrupt another
student or the teacher, or can I figure this out on my own?’
“It actually allows him to label his behavior, analyze it, and
then make a choice about his behavior. It has worked wonders for
him and I am still sane, as are the other students in our
classroom.
“I hope this may offer you
something to try. It may not be totally with DWS, but I AM
BEGINNING TO “WEAN” THE CLASS OFF THE CLOTHESPINS ALREADY, NOT
GIVING THEM OUT 2 DAYS LAST WEEK. STUDENTS WERE FINE WITHOUT
THEM!”
|
