Models Reflection

1. Discipline with Dignity
• This is my favorite model because of the three dimensions is encompasses: prevention, action, and resolution. The model starts with the prevention stage, and then moves to the action and resolution stages if the previous one(s) didn't work. The model also keeps the students' dignity in mind which is important especially in high school when students want to feel like adults.
2. COMP
• I like this model because it covers classroom management in a nutshell. The six different sections of COMP can be used cohesively in a classroom or can be used separately. This model is also backed by 30 years of research and over 5,000 hours of classroom observation.
3. Positive Classroom Discipline
• This model is good because of the four different aspects it has: classroom structure, limit setting, responsibility training, and backup systems. I particularly like the limit setting ideas, provided that students respond to them, and the backup systems.  I think it is important to have a backup system for when things in the classroom don't go as planned and students need to know the consequences for their actions.
4. Building Community in the Classroom
• This model is alright because it distinguishes  between appreciative and evaluative praise. There is also the use of behavior plans with an emphasis on what is actually happening and why. Lastly there is a constant interaction between students and teachers,
5. Assertive Discipline
• This model seems more applicable to an elementary school setting than to a high school setting. I specifically don't like the discipline hierarchy where parents are contacted by the 4th violation no matter what. There are some rules, such as arriving on time to class, that are less severe than others and wouldn't need parental contact at the 4th violation. Also, the idea of starting each day with a clean slate does not give students the incentive to behave from day to day, rather they know that what they did yesterday does not hold over to today so they essentially get to break more rules with less consequences.
6. Inner Discipline
• This is my least favorite model because time is taken away from teaching course material to have class meetings and teach students about life. I also don't think that many students will make the connections between choices and consequences. Especially as teenagers, they will tend to act before thinking and won't make the connection until after the fact, if at all.

What I would like to incorporate into my teaching:

From COMP: Make sure that the classroom layout is set up such that students can see the focal point of the classroom and I can see all students. Students also need to be able to get to all of the common areas of the room such as the trash-can, pencil sharpener, etc. I would also like to incorporate overplanning so that there is always something to do if the lesson goes faster than planned.

From Discipline with Dignity: Have consequences that are clear, specific, and have a range of alternatives. Also the consequences should be selected from an established list based on the needs of the student. It will be important for me to remember that different students have different reasons for misbehaving and the consequences need to be adapted to be effective.

From Building Community in the Classroom: I would like to incorporate appreciative praise into my classroom. This will be difficult for me because I tend to praise people easily for fear of coming off mean and unfriendly.

From Assertive Discipline: I like the severity plan offered by this model. I will implement one of these in my classroom, though hopefully it will never have to be executed. Also, there should be some school rule already in place to this effect.

From Inner Discipline: From this model I will use the RSVP method for consequences. It is necessary to make sure that consequences are reasonable, simple, valuable, and practical.

From Positive Classroom Discipline: From this model I would like to incorporate the limited number of classroom rules that can be enforced quickly and consistently. I also like the idea of group rewards and group accountability. This makes students accountable for one-another, and no student wants to be the one that "messed everything up" for the rest of the class.

Encouraging Positive Behaviors

My biggest motivation for doing well in school was earning good grades. My parents were influential in this, even though they told me that they would not be upset with my grades as long as I tried my best. So it would seem like I would have no motivation from my parents to do well in school. Well, I wasn't willing to risk being grounded or yelled at by bringing home poor report cards so I went with the good student route.

When I started high school I was in geometry class as the only freshman in a class of all sophomores. Now these weren't just random sophomores who didn't know me; I was in Algebra I with most of them when I was in 7th grade, and a couple I had known since elementary school.  The day after we took our first test we walked into classroom and noticed something was different: there was a sheet of paper on the front bulletin board behind the projector with the title Honor Board that listed the names of students who earned A's on the test and their numerical grades. At first I was excited to see my name on the sheet at the top of the list, but then I second guessed myself asking if I really wanted to be targeted as the "smart freshman" in the class. However, when I got to my seat my two friends who sat around me were highly encouraging of my success and so I wasn't afraid to flaunt my abilities thereafter. The other students in my class were also motivated to get their name written on the Honor Board after each test.

During my sophomore year my chemistry teacher would award the students in each of her classes who earned the top 3 grades on the test with $3 giftcards to Starbucks. Now while I wouldn't ever do anything like this to motivate my students, especially because it could get to be quite expensive, it worked in my class because we were all in the obsessed-with-Starbucks phase even though the vast majority of us did not drink coffee.

I believe that competition between students is a big motivator for students to do well in school, and it quite possibly is the biggest motivator. Thus, having something like an Honor Board in my classroom will (hopefully) motivate my students to want to do well in class.  I greatly dislike the use of negative reinforcement (punishment) to motivate students, because I think that often it will have the opposite effect and cause students to be even more withdrawn from classes.