students came to tattle, or were beginning an
altercation: “What have you tried so far?” a specific staff position.
Guideline No. 8 – Conduct regular
maintenance. Educators often lament the fact that we
are always pushing, always running to catch
up with the latest initiative, and very seldom
take time to celebrate. Be sure to celebrate
your improvements in school climate.
Consider inviting teachers to send stu-
dents who have shown improvement in be-
havior to the office for personal congratula-
tions from the principal. Perhaps they could
bring a special certificate for you to sign.
Consider recognizing classes that have had
no office referrals for a specified time.
Ms. Ruis asked the PTA to buy a colorful
windsock for each class, which flew in the
outdoor hallways outside the classrooms. If a
class member was sent to the office, the cel-
ebratory windsock had to be taken down for
a day; a flying windsock celebrated positive
behavior.
Your committee will be able to brainstorm
many ideas to augment or possibly even
replace your Student of the Month assem-
blies. Incentives create a much more positive
The best of any kind of system will simply
deteriorate and disappear without regular
maintenance. In addition to the PE lessons,
I asked teachers to devote time during the
first two weeks of every school year to take
their classes to various areas of the school –
cafeteria, library, bike rack, hallways, etc.
– and directly teach and provide practice in
behavior expectations in that physical area.
Then, if problems began to surface some-
where on campus, I asked teachers to revisit
that location. The return after long breaks,
like winter break, is an excellent opportu-
nity, and doubly useful since new students
may have moved in during the hiatus and
need orientation.
“We don’t have time for this kind of thing;
we have too much to teach!” may be a con-
cern. Think of it as an investment, saving
time in the long run. If I am a teacher, and
I have certain students who seem to be con-
stantly in trouble, am I saving my own time,
and their learning time, by skipping this?
“They should know how to behave by
now!” may be another objection. Right.
They should.
Celebrate improvement
learning environment than punishments.
Set guidelines and parameters for the
work of improving your school climate, then
trust your teacher leaders. Share leadership
with them in this vital aspect of your school
operation. Then be sure to thank them and
celebrate/recognize their leadership as well.
Resource
• Curwin, Richard L. and Mendler, Allen
N. (2008). “Discipline with Dignity: New
Challenges, New Solutions 3rd Edition.”
Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervi-
sion and Curriculum Development.
Terry Wilhelm is an ACSA Emeritus
Member and author of “Shared
Leadership: The Essential Ingredient
for Effective PLCs” (2016), published by
Corwin Press. She is a national consultant
and founder/owner of Educators 2000. Her
website is www.educators2000.com.
Serious misbehavior
Serious misbehavior requires serious con-
sequences. In my years as principal, a num-
ber of my students engaged in behavior that
was subject to expulsion. One was actually
expelled, others received suspended expul-
sions and were transferred to other schools.
In addition to handling fighters in a dif-
ferent way than had been past practice, I was
fortunate to eventually hire a staff member
– a community liaison – who was commit-
ted to helping fighters. He spent many hours
eating lunch with these students and teach-
ing them to play games or build things to-
gether.
We observed new friendships growing out
of fighting situations. Suspensions dropped
as a result of all of our efforts. Most schools
do not have a community liaison, but trust
your committee’s collective wisdom and re-
search. There are innovative options beyond
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