Lee and Marlene Canters Assertive Discipline

Assertive Discipline The Theory

Focuses on creating a classroom based on the rights and needs of both the students and the teacher in the classroom The climate of the classroom needs to be calm and caring Behavior must be humanely managed What are the rights and needs of both students and teachers according to the Assertive Discipline model!

"ights and #eeds

$tudents %& Warm supportive classroom'teacher (& Learning )& $afety *& Limits Teachers %& $upport from administration'parents (& Teaching )& "espect and trust *& +nforce limits

,rimary Teachings%& (& )& *& 0& 1& 2& 8. 3& .n order for teachers to teach and students to learn the rights and needs of all must be met& Teachers rights include a classroom free of disruption and support from administration and parents to establish this& Teachers must remember that their mission is to teach students and being in control of the classroom is key to accomplish this& Teachers must model the behavior that they /ant to see in their students& Teachers need to directly teach students appropriate behavior& Teachers need a discipline plan based on mutual respect and trust& The plan must include both positive and negative consequences Directives to students must be /orded in a positive manner& Teachers can be successful with all students even 4difficult5 ones&

Teachers and Assertive Discipline

According to the Canters ho/ do teachers interact /ith their students!
Hostile teachers see their students as 4adversaries5& They see their relationship as a po/er struggle needing to 4lay do/n the la/5 and use harsh loud commands to do this& With hostile teachers students will: Feel that they are not liked Feel un!ustly controlled"

6 6

#he opposite" behavior by a teacher is also possible$

Teachers and Assertive Discipline

Nonassertive teachers behave passively to/ards students& They are inconsistent in their discipline plan and apply rules and procedures in an arbitrary manner& With nonassertive teachers, students /ill7
6Feel that the teacher is wishy%washy" and will not take the teacher&s directives seriously' 6(ct confused about what is e)pected of them

The 4ideal5 teacher according to the Assertive Discipline Model is-

Teachers and Assertive Discipline

(ssertive' (ssertive teachers are clear consistent and confident& They are consistent in /ith discipline and apply rules and procedures in a manner that encourages students to behave in an acceptable manner&
With assertive teachers, students will: 6Have their needs meet. 6*now that they have rights and that they will be respected. 6Have trust in their teacher and their teacher&s words and actions.

A $tep9by9$tep Approach
According to the Canters good discipline is learned: 8ood discipline is the 4fruit5 of creating a classroom environment of mutual respect and trust& How to begin+
%& ,isten to students. 8et to ;no/ them as individuals& Ta;e an interest in them as people& This includes communication /ith their parents guardians or caregivers& (& #each them how to behave. Teachers must model the behavior that they e<pect their students to e<hibit& +stablish clear routines and procedures in the classroom& Ma;e sure that students understand /hat is e<pected& This may need to be reinforced and reevaluated often through positive repetition of rules and'or procedures&

8ood Discipline7

A $tep9by $tep Approach

-. Have a .lan' This plan needs to include rules that are stated clearly and positively& For e<ample say 4;eep your hands to yourself5 rather than 4sho/ respect to others&5 .t is very important that conse=uences are used consistently& 9 % $hould include both negative and positive consequences .ositive consequences are used /hen the teacher catches a student 4being good5 9 /egative consequences should be used /hen students misbehave or interfere /ith the rights of others to learn& $tudents should be a/are of conse=uences& >step (? They should never include physical or psychologically harmful forms of punishment:

A $tep9by9$tep Approach
0. #he .lan should have7 A discipline hierarchy" that establishes clear conse=uences that get increasingly harsher if infractions of rules or directions are repeated& The only effective /ay to ma;e this /or; is to keep track of student behavior. There are a variety of /ays that this can be accomplished& Clearly post rules and consequences'

Difficult $tudents
According to the Canters most students /ill respond /ell by using their techni=ues& @o/ever there /ill be some /ho may not for a variety of reasons& These difficult" students need more attention and guidance& @o/ can these students be included!
6 "each out to them& "espond to them dont Aust react& 6 Build a trusting relationship /ith them& 8et to ;no/ them& 6 $tudents may have special needs such as 4e<tra attention firmer limits motivation&5 6The teacher should determine which need is the primary need and fill that need first.

Difficult $tudents
$ome suggestions for /or;ing /ith difficult students7 6 6 Write reminders to praise students /ith positive remar;s that are genuine: Be a/are of 4nondisruptive5misbehaviors such as /ithdra/ing daydreaming doodling etc& 1se positive ways of redirecting such as eye contact physical pro<imity or calling on students& "eactive confrontations may /orsen relationships& The Canters suggest the follo/ing7
%& 2tay calm (& Depersonali3e the situation )& .s it an covert or overt confrontation! 4overt is /hen the student mumbles or sneers but doesnt verbally confront& 5vert is /hen the student dra/s other students into the situation /hile defying the teacher& *& 6ack%off hostile students: Deal /ith the /hole class first& Tal; /ith the student privately at a later time&

$trengths of Assertive Discipline

7t Works"
McCormac; >%3B3?

(ssertive Discipline can be a basis on which to build a more comprehensive model of discipline8 can raise and clarify teacher e)pectations for behavior."
McDaniel >%3B3?

.erhaps the most telling evidence of the strength of (ssertive Discipline is its continued widespread popularity8 which suggests that it provides educators skills that work well for their students and themselves."
Charles >(CC(?

Criticism of Assertive Discipline

$critici3ed for being unnecessarily harsh and too focused on suppressing unwanted behavior rather than on helping students learn to control their own behavior."
Charles >(CC(?

$we find no evidence that (ssertive Discipline is an effective approach deserving schoolwide or districtwide adoption."
"ender ,adilla D Eran; >%3B3?

$ome final thoughts7 could site other studies that support the effectiveness of (ssertive Discipline8 but the real test of any educational approach is its use by teachers8 in classrooms8 with students. (ssertive Discipline undergoes that testing in tens of thousands of classrooms every day."
Canter >%3BB?

#he 4anter&s continually modify their approach to ensure that it remains effective as social realities change. 9arlier they focused on teachers being strong leaders in the classroom8 while now they emphasi3ed the building of trusting8 helpful relationships between teachers and students."
Charles >(CC(?