“Well, I never have any problems with him!”

Situations like this are far from helpful in both the short and long term; they can really make you question not just your relationships with students, but also your own professionalism and abilities.
Perhaps a better definition for whom you consider to be a difficult student, would be:

The difficult student is the one who when they are away from school, I am happy!

Simply longing for the student to be away from school, or better still, moved to a different class/group, is not going to solve your problem about building positive relationships. After all, if you are not prepared to attempt change, you are most certainly going to have some difficult times in the classroom that will invariably affect your emotions outside. Building positive relationships with difficult students has a whole range of benefits:

The student begins to learn about building relationships and understands the importance of empathy
You have both short term (each lesson) and long term (you are working with this student for the whole year!) benefits
Other students and staff see you and see a very practical example of role modelling
There is less need to use “Behaviour Management” techniques and strategies!
You, the student and the classroom environment, remain calmer
There is far greater opportunity for the student to experience success in your lessons, thus in improving achievement and self-esteem.

Practical Tips

It is important to keep in mind the reasons for building positive relationships, and this is true for all students, not just the difficult ones! You should at all times be aiming to provide a teaching and learning environment which allows all involved to achieve their maximum potential. You should be able to teach and the students in your care should have the opportunity to learn.

Try to plan your style of approach with the “difficult” student, take into account the following:

What exactly are the issues that cause you concern? Try to specifically identify the behaviours.
When do these behaviours occur? All the time? When asked to “put pen to paper?” At the start of the lesson? When sitting with certain classmates?
What have your responses been to date? Are any more successful than others?
Talk over the problems with another member of staff. Listen to their techniques. Try to observe the student in another situation.
Raise your issues with all appropriate concerned parties, student, parent, form tutor, head of year etc

Once you have a clearer picture of the student this may throw some light onto the reasons for their behaviour, and why you should find him/her so difficult.

The next steps may well take some time to implement. The student will obviously now feel that you are “On their case!” Remember you are the role model do not be led down the road of confrontation and reluctance to communicate. This will only prolong the whole situation. It is worthwhile having a range of strategies to try. As in any good problem solving process, once you have identified the problem, come up with a range of solutions that should be considered and then tried.

Meet on a 1-1 basis with the student. This should be quite formal and away from an audience. State the relevant issues and try to come up with some solutions with the student
Make time to see the student in other situations. At change of lessons, in the dining room, break time etc
Practice some self calming techniques
Be supportive and look for opportunities to use praise (No matter how difficult this may seem, remember you are the role model in this situation)

Communication is vital. If you are only prepared to “deal” with the student during lesson time, then he/she will, in your eyes, remain difficult.

Managing situations “off the cuff” or waiting for the problem to occur and then dealing with it may be successful some of the time, but it is a risky technique and one which sooner or later will lead to you reacting personally and taking the comments made too personally. Your techniques and strategies must enable you to stand back, see the bigger picture and with your knowledge of the pupil or the situation, de-personalise the comments and respond in such a manner that the focus is on the behaviour chosen by the pupil rather than the emotional upset which may be intended.

Responses such as:

“What exactly do you mean by that?”

or

“What did you just say?”

Not only give the pupil the opportunity to repeat the unwanted comment, but will also lead you into a dialogue or argument that you most certainly do not want!

It does’nt even need to be a verbal response from you to show the pupil that they have indeed managed to hit the spot. Facial expression, passive or hostile behaviour patterns from you can highlight your vulnerability. Once the pupil has detected that you are being “sucked” into the scenario, they are likely to move up a gear, or even worse, involve other pupils in their plan. At this stage things can only deteriorate and you are left with a feeling of frustration, anger and worrying dent in your professional and personal moral.

Practical Tips

Remember that you are the role model in the teaching and learning environment. You are in the lead position in both teaching appropriate emotional responses, but also in practicing them.

If that overall reminder is sometimes forgotten in the heat of the moment and you feel yourself being pulled into a situation that really should not go any further,

Stand back either physically or emotionally. Try to see the situation from another point of view. What advice would you give a colleague in such a situation?
In the whole scheme of things is it really worth getting involved in something that really should be seen as trivial and not worth reacting to?

Once you have quickly thought through the two points above, what practical course of action do you have to avoid the personal involvement route?

When presented with a pupil who is arguing or making personal comments, don’t respond with a question:

“How dare you?” or “What have I told you about…..?”

Instead of the question response begin your response with a statement of understanding, such as:

“Yes, ok, but that is not the point.” or “I hear what your saying, but that is not the issue.”

Following such a response you must now focus on what you actually want the pupil to be doing . In other words, focus on appropriate behaviour, don’t get caught up in an argument about inappropriate and unwanted behaviour.

Another well used tip is to have a planned approach when managing a potentially personal situation.

Calm your self down before becoming involved. Use positive comments to pupils who are on task or not involved in the confrontation
Use calm verbal and non verbal signals. Think about facial expression and hand positions
Think about the situation/pupil using a risk assessment approach. What do you know about the pupil? What have previous confrontations led to? What worked/did not work previously?
Look at the potential challenge in “The big scheme of things.” Remember this is one pupil in one teaching situation in front of an audience who are all waiting to see what your response will be.

Without doubt, the controlled or planned approach enables you to become more proactive in your management style, gives you the time to think things through and finally gives you the opportunity to use and role model the social and emotional skills that your pupils and learn in a formal teaching situation, but can also “catch” from real life action.

When you are already feeling worked up or anxious about a situation and you decide to move closer to the difficult student, using that well known tactic of “proximity,” how do you then feel if the student looks you full in the face and grins broadly?  Or begins to mutter something which you can’t quite hear?Remember his or her muttering or grin may well be the audible or visible sign of his or her own anxiety and not intended to cause even more challenge to you!

Obviously the grin, brought on by the students own inability to manage his or her own feelings and emotions, is relatively low level when compared to the other extreme of open defiance, non compliance and verbal threats. The natural temptation is to either try to ignore the students behaviour and walk away, or to take issue with the student and confront, argue and escalate the situation. You are not now just dealing with the one student and how he or she is reacting to you, but you are also on show to the rest of the class group, all of them waiting to see, or hear, your reaction. The situation can be easily inflamed by peer pressure, with the students friends eager to see how far the “face off” will go.

Clearly it is not appropriate to respond in such a way as to inflame the situation, nor can you consistently ignore this type of behaviour. It is important to consistently give the clear and non negotiable message that you, as the adult in the room, are in charge and that you are not prepared to accept his or her attitude towards you/school/lesson/learning etc.

The key skill here is to avoid making a response which can be interpreted as either passive or hostile but to remain consistently calm and confident.

Practical Tips

In remaining calm and confident it is essential that you are in control of your own emotions. Use all the learnt strategies of:

Self Calming Tactics
Be aware of personal space
Verbal language
Non verbal (body language)
Your carefully planned and structured approach to the problem.

Use all of the above in trying to resolve the situation, giving the student plenty of opportunity to think about his or her attitude and thereby begin to make some better choices about their behaviour. In any verbal interaction try to adopt a no blame approach and avoid using statements that begin with “You!”

“You just can’t help yourself can you?”
“Why don’t you start behaving for a change?”

Instead try to engage the student with a more empathetic message of how his or her behaviour/attitude is affecting you/the rest of the group etc.

“When you look at me like that I feel that you just don’t care…….”

In the heat of the classroom when all eyes are on you it is often a good idea to speak with the student, ideally so that others cannot hear (see Voice Matching Ezine Tip) and to use the tactic of the one to one meeting.

One to one meetings: Used when a student continues with their unacceptable behaviour/attitude. These meetings must be on you terms ie when you are calm, away from an audience, (be aware of school policy when speaking one to one with students), and vitally when you are totally prepared, which should include a variety of possible resolutions

The meeting should be carefully structured allowing you to clearly state what the problem is exactly and why you cannot permit it to continue. Describe the problem as you see it and use specific examples of when the problems have occurred. Allow the student to make a contribution to the discussion. You are not trying to place blame, but rather problem solve.
Ensure that as in problem solving, conclude the one to one meeting with a clear and agreed plan which clearly states how the student might begin to make changes, and most importantly, how you will be helping him/her to succeed. Set a time frame and review the progress as agreed. End on a positive!

In many circumstances pupils with attitude have got themselves into the situation through peer pressure, anxiety or simply not knowing how to respond to you. Your proactive responses showing that you genuinely care about the student and your  consistency and calmness in the classroom together with the use of specific one to one problem solving meetings can often help the student to change their challenging behaviour into acceptable and their testing attitude into enthusiasm.

Late arrival to lesson
Persistent chattering or whispering
Daydreaming
Lack of correct equipment
Out of seat
Continuous questioning
Tapping
Fidgeting
Eating

As individual behaviours the above list certainly does not represent a list of high level challenges, however, if allowed to continue, the concentration and learning of other pupils will be badly affected.

One of the problems in responding to such low level disruptive behaviour is that it is very easy to over react. If you currently use a staged system of sanctions within your schools behaviour policy, you may well find yourself running through one, two or even three levels of response and finding that the original problem behaviour such as fidgeting or daydreaming is receiving a totally unrealistic sanction:

Teacher: “Mark, stop that noise and get on with your work.”
Mark: “It helps me to concentrate.”
Teacher: “Mark that’s your first warning, you will have to stay behind for two minutes at the end of the lesson.”
Mark: “That’s not fair, I’m getting my work done!”
Teacher: That’s a level two! Don’t keep answering back!”
Mark: “But George is wasting time too!”
Teacher: “Ok, that was your second warning, you now have a lunchtime detention!”

Sticking rigidly to your behaviour plan does demonstrate consistency and show that you are not prepared to negotiate, but the problem with the above example is you have now escalated a simple issue of fidgeting into answering back, involving other pupils and finally issued a lunchtime detention, probably involving your own time for supervision!

It is important to maintain your existing behaviour policy responses in terms of rewards and sanctions, but there is a clear need to have additional strategies and responses to manage the types of low level disruptions which occur on a daily basis.

Practical Tips

Like many practical tips offered to help manage difficult behaviour, the following may appear to be:

Well that’s just common sense!
I already know that!
That’s nothing new!
That won’t work, especially not with my pupils, they’re far too difficult for that!

All of the above may well be true however it is important not to dismiss suggestions which at first seem too simple or too obvious, which in fact if you take the time to try them, can have quite dramatic and positive effect on pupil behaviour. It is just a matter of remembering the tactic in the first place, and then using it with positive expectations. The temptation, if you have a structured behaviour system in place, is to immediately use the levels of that system with the end result as described above. Here is a list of suggested responses to low level disruption, as with all the best suggestions, they won’t work with all the pupils all of the time, however they will form a comprehensive addition to your “toolbox” of strategies and may help to prevent an escalation of behaviour, or an escalation of your responses to that behaviour:

Meet and greet: Be at the door of the classroom before pupils to set the scene, welcome and remind pupils about expectations

Positive language and use of praise: Catch pupils doing the right thing and verbally recognise this. You may also choose to use “secret” or predetermined signals for target pupils.

Proximity recognition: Name the pupil and their behaviour which is acceptable ensuring the target pupil hears and sees the appropriate behaviour.

Proximity: Simply being closer to the target pupil will change his or her behaviour. Don’t remain stationary behind your desk or rooted at the front of the class. Be aware of personal space.

Use first names: When giving instructions, praise or any verbal comments be prepared to use first names

Check for understanding: Ask questions of all pupils to ensure full understanding and to reinforce your expectations

Responsibility: Give pupils who are prone to low level disruption a post of responsibility within the classroom

Rewards: Include positive comments, signals (thumbs up etc) “The Look!” as part of your reward systems. It is not always necessary to formalise the rewards a per the school system.

Pre warned questions: Talk to the target pupils before the lesson/activity and warn them of the questions that are due to come up in discussion. Get them to work out answers prior to the discussion and they are then pre warned and ready. make sure you praise correct answers.

Avoid sarcasm: Whilst some comments may seem appropriate to you at the time and are intended to be taken in a lighthearted manner, they can be very damaging to your relationship with pupils

Avoid peer pressure: Comparing and judging behaviour between pupils will invariable lead to bad feelings and at worse confrontation

These are just a few examples of low level responses to low level disruption. Used appropriately and proactively they can reduce any escalation of difficult behaviour without the need to resort to more formal responses and consequences.

Known now as the “Marshmallow Test” more than 600 pre school age children were presented with a marshmallow and told that it was theirs and they could eat it when they liked. However, they were also told that the researcher was going to leave the room for several minutes and when he returned, if they had not eaten the first marshmallow, then they could have another.

Footage of these experiments, which were conducted over several years, is interesting, as the children struggled to delay gratification for just a little bit longer. Some covered their eyes with their hands or turned around so that they can’t see the treat. Others started kicking the desk, or stroked the marshmallow.

Walter Mischel, the Stanford Professor of Psychology in charge of the experiments, noticed that a few of the children ate the marshmallow straight away, others would give in and eat the marshmallow within one to three minutes, whilst about thirty percent of the children were able to wrestle with their inner temptation and did manage to delay their gratification being able to wait for the second marshmallow.

On going research has shown that children who gave way to their feelings quickly seemed more likely to have behavioral problems, both in school and at home. They got lower S.A.T. scores. They struggled in stressful situations, often had trouble paying attention, and found it difficult to maintain friendships.

Applying this information to the modern day classrooms of schools in 2011 clearly demonstrates the need to provide a teaching and learning environment that understands the skills and abilities of individual students in their management of their emotions and self control, together with giving them a view of the future and how to get there successfully. The intrinsic links between on task behaviour, appropriate tasks, rewards and motivation are key elements in developing a classroom which takes into account the individual differences of students and helps them to develop.

Practical Tips

With the information given by Walter Mischel’s findings relating to the links between self control and behaviour problems, attention and the ability to maintain friends, it is worth having a close look at the systems in place in your own classroom.

How effective are the rewards you are currently using? Are they linked to completing work  and set tasks or do they link closely to student behaviour? Are they designed to maintain motivation, stay on task and reinforce the overall behavioural expectations of the classroom?

When setting tasks do students fully understand:

What is the starting point of the task?
Where they will be (academically and emotionally) when the task is complete?
What skills and abilities will they need in order to complete the task?
What new skills they may have when they have completed the task?
How can they break the task down into small steps to increase understanding and motivation?
What rewards are available to them along the journey?
Does the teaching and learning environment accommodate the needs of individual students i.e. some students will be self motivated whilst others will require extensive motivational aids.

Current television programmes, students concept of success in the field of sport (wages and material wealth), pop music and unrealistic career choices seem to be fueling the concept of “Instant gratification” which in turn can lead to low self esteem when goals and expectations are not met, low morale and demotivation.
There is absolutely nothing wrong in having high expectations, but if students are to achieve those high expectations they must be given the opportunity to set themselves realistic steps in order to achieve their goals, maintain their motivation, sometimes over quite considerable periods of time and feel that they are receiving recognition and reward for their efforts.

A linked approach between goal/target setting and the discrete teaching of key skills, (recognising emotions, self control empathy and social skills) will enable students to manage or delay their own gratification, remain on task, reduce their behaviour problems and form longer lasting friendships.

And as a final note it is perhaps worth just checking our own ability to delay gratification. How many activities do you undertake your self which are aimed at strengthening your own resolve to succeed and what rewards do you offer yourself to maintain on task behaviour and motivation? Have you ever secretly said to yourself: “I’m not going to do ……until I’ve finished…….!”

To check your overall use of rewards and sanctions begin by noting down all the strategies and techniques you use relating to rewarding good and appropriate behaviour and all those strategies and techniques you use relating to sanctions or consequences of unwanted or inappropriate behaviour. It’s important to include all techniques, beginning with the simplest and lowest on your hierarchy. Begin both your lists with “The Look.” Now build up a comprehensive list of strategies, it may appear something like this:

Positives/Rewards:

The Look (positive facial expression)
Secret positive signal (thumbs up etc)
Positive verbal comment together with pupils name
Sticker
Point or credit if you are using a points system
Positive note/phone call home
Refer to another member of staff
Certificate
Special privileges (activity, use of play equipment, etc)
Raffle tickets for weekly/termly prizes

Sanctions/Consequences

The Look (negative facial expressions)
Secret negative signals (outstretched open palm indicating “stop.”)
Negative verbal comment
Verbal warning
Raised tone and volume of your voice
Invading personal space
Loss of credit or point from system
Negative note/phone call home
One to one meeting
On report
Send to another member of staff
Loss of privileges
Time out
Change seat
Detention
Fixed term exclusion
Permanent exclusion

Although the above lists are may not be entirely accurate, nor perhaps do they absolutely reflect the exact strategies you may be using, it is quite clear that even in a hypothetical list of techniques and strategies, there is a clear imbalance. Far more negative techniques relating to sanctions and consequences than positives relating to rewards.

Even if your own lists are totally balanced i.e. you have a similar number of both reward and sanction techniques, you may find that, in practice, you are overusing the sanction list.

Practical Tips

There are more considerations to take into account as well as having a balance between reward and consequence. For rewards to be be effective in encouraging appropriate behaviour they should be used with all pupils, (even the ones who behave well all the time) and be delivered in an appropriate manner. For example, if you are using Positive verbal praise, try to link this technique with a range of other positive strategies:

You have noticed that a particular pupil has followed your instructions and you decide to reward his/her behaviour with a positive verbal comment. Do you simply say “well done!” and continue teaching, or, do you take the opportunity to ensure the comment is used as an effective reward and a positive reinforcement to other pupils. The positive verbal comment should include the following:

First, consider how the pupil is likely to react to your comment.
Should your comment be public, for all to hear, or would it be more effective to move in closer to the pupil?
Use the pupils name, think about your style and speed of approach, tone of voice, intonation and body language, particularly your facial expression.
Consider physically touching the pupils desk/book when speaking to emphasis the comment
If you are prepared to let other pupils hear your comment, then don’t simply say “Good” or “Well done/thanks,” be prepared to add why you are saying the positive comment.

“Craig, that’s great, well done you’ve put your things down and you’re looking at me.”

This gives the positive comment to the pupil plus reinforcing your instructions of putting things down and paying attention.

Moving through your hierarchy of positive rewards, how effective are they in practice? Are the rewards offered valued by pupils? Do you have some individual rewards specifically designed to manage the individual needs of some pupils? Are any of your rewards directed toward the whole class group?

If, through your monitoring of pupil behaviour, you are aware that even though you are using the recognised rewards within the school/class environment, they are not having any effect on pupil behaviour, it’s time to review the rewards. There is no point continuing to use something that is not working. This particular issue is certainly true of not just rewards but also consequences and sanctions. Continually monitor the range and number of rewards you are using. Are they being used with all pupils or just those who demonstrate poor behaviour? Take time with your pupils to review rewards, techniques and strategies should and be prepared to consider suggestions which will increase effectiveness.

Finally, if positive rewards are to be truly effective they should be something that the pupil values and appreciates, something you are comfortable using and are “in line” with your school behaviour policy.

“A constant disruption to others,”
“Seems to waste such a lot of time with silly behaviour,”
“He/she is really getting to me,”

may begin to describe your thoughts about the pupil, but they give very little relevant information about the specific behaviour problems which are causing you concern.
When thinking about an individual pupil and the associated problems, try to be objective and accurate. Use your direct knowledge of the pupil and any tracking information you may have, or which other teachers have noted, to describe the specific problems you are experiencing. Your original phrase such as “A constant disruption to others,” may then become a much clearer description of the types of behaviour the pupil is exhibiting:

“Regularly out of his/her seat”
“Calls out answers”
“Talks over anyone else who is talking”
“Fidgets with equipment, tapping pencil/ruler on desk”

Once you have a clear description of the exact problems you can begin to address the issues and start to help the pupil make some positive changes and better choices about their behaviour.

Noting specific behaviour problems will enable you to move on the next step of this staged process:

Stage 1:        Identify specific behaviour problems
Stage 2:        Meet on a one to one basis with the pupil
Stage 3:        Agree a Specific Behaviour Target Plan, inform staff and parents
Stage 4:        What will you do and what can the pupil to do, to achieve success?
Stage 5:        Implement your plan
Stage 6:        Monitor and evaluate.

Practical Tips

Stage 2 of the process is to meet with the pupil and clearly state the problem as you see it.
This meeting should be conducted calmly using the facts you have collected from your observations and tracking information.
State quite clearly why you are meeting and what the problems are i.e.

“Tracy, we are meeting today because I cannot let you keep shouting out in my classroom. It’s stopping you from working and it’s disrupting everyone else.”

If the pupil attempts to deflect the problem with comments such as:

“It’s not my fault, Marie keeps talking to me/I don’t understand the work/You never listen to me etc.”

Use a refocussing technique firstly giving a statement of understanding such as”

“Yes, I understand that,” or “That’s not the point,” etc

and then refocus on the problem by repeating your original statement.

“Yes, ok, I understand why you think that, but I cannot let you keep on shouting out in the lesson.”

Establishing the specific problem with the pupil can be a difficult step to complete but it is essential that he/she clearly understands your concerns and that you are not

picking on them
constantly nagging for no reason
refusing to listen to their side of the story

and that you are genuinely keen to help the pupil make positive changes

Once the specific problems have been stated and agreed it’s now time to move on to the next stage, that of how changes can be made, and in particular, what both you and the pupil can do to achieve these changes.

A simple target sheet may be a solution for some pupils. This would be both a monitoring system and a reminder to the pupil about what is expected. Choose a maximum of 3 targets, (remember this has to be an achievable step for the pupil) and ask all teachers to complete a simple record of the pupil in their lessons using a “did achieve” or “did not achieve” record such as a tick box. There is no need to provide space for comment, although positive comments would be very helpful! This sheet would then be monitored on a daily/weekly basis and reviewed in your next one to one meeting. Obviously flaws may arise in such a system such as losing the sheet, failure of staff to complete sheet etc. But these issues can be worked around and “tweeked” until a workable system is agreed.

The target sheet may then look something like this:

Target 1: To remain seated during the lesson (Tick if achieved)
Target 2: Not to shout out answers unless directly asked (Tick if achieved)
Target 3: To hand when attracting teachers attention (Tick if achieved)

As progress is made and targets are achieved over a period of time you can then move on to other specific behaviour targets  and thereby help the pupil to make significant changes to their overall behaviour.

Always keep in mind that although it is the pupil who is hopefully going to make the changes, it is your help, and management of the situation, and that of other members of staff and parents, that are the key elements in effecting those changes.

Over the next few months, Dave is running a series of half day seminar courses at iron Environmental Innovation Centre as part of his Essential Behaviour Skills programme.

Please see details below, there are limited places. Book online for one session at £65 per delegate or book online for all 3 at £180 per delegate:

Interactive Behavioural Skills – 21st March 2012, 9.30am-12.30pm
Understanding the links between Emotions and Behaviour
Managing the Emotional Highjack
De escalation Strategies
Verbal and Non verbal Responses

Managing Chronic and Severe Behaviour Problems – 18th April 2012, 9.30am-12.30pm
Reduce Incidents of Chronic and Low Level Misbehaviour in the Classroom
Top Strategies to prevent Chronic Behaviour problems becoming Acute or Severe
Using Behaviour Plans
Achieve Consistency

Put an End to Lunchtime Troubles – 23rd May 2012, 9.30am-12.30pm
Effective Skills Training for all staff involved in Lunchtime Supervision
Audits and Action Planning
Structured

Book online or phone direct on 07899 992619 or 07798 853943 – schools may be invoiced or payment by cheque.

• Clarifying teachers’ rights and responsibilities under the Education Bill
• Understanding what constitutes ‘reasonable force’ to ensure teachers maximise the available freedoms without infringing safeguarding requirements
• Improving relationships with parents to ensure they are recognising their child’s disruptiveness, valuing education and creating a disciplined home environment that supports school policies and procedures
• Practical classroom strategies for tackling low-level disruption and creating engaging, well-pitched lessons that improves pupils concentration and limits poor behaviour
• Reinstating adult authority in the classroom

A behaviour policy must be applied consistently if it is to work. Dave Stott looks at the best ways to get staff working in cooperation. What opportunities do you have to share pupil information, techniques and skills with colleagues? For a ‘whole school’ behaviour policy to be effective it is important to have a consistent and co operative approach to teaching, learning and managing behaviour.

Scenario 1

Teacher arrives in the staffroom at morning break, obviously stressed and emotional and, whilst pouring a cup of coffee, declares that he/she has had a really difficult time with: class B/individual student/year group, etc.

Other members of staff are listening, some with sympathetic expressions, others making ‘I know exactly what you mean’ type comments.

On the other side of the staffroom another member of staff, who has been listening to the comments replies that he/she never has any problems with the class/individual/group!

The underlying messages of such an exchange are not only very interesting but can be potentially de motivating and divisive to the staff group.

a) How does such a comment make you feel after you have had the courage to admit your problem?

b) What message is the commenting teacher trying to make? He/she has excellent behaviour management skills? He/she doesn’t rate yours or other members of staff skills?

c)  Whatever whole school systems are in place it is obvious that the commenting teacher ‘does his/her own thing’.

d) Comments of this nature can introduce unhelpful grouping or cliques into the staff room.

Scenario 2

School has organised support to teaching groups using teaching assistants who are allocated to certain individual students and/or class/year groups. The timings of the lessons are such that there is little or no time at either the beginning or end of the lessons for class/subject teacher and classroom assistant to discuss any issues which may have arisen regarding individuals or teaching points.

In this situation it becomes very difficult to share styles of approach, skills or advice when time is so pressurised.

Scenario 3

The school operates a clear tracking and recording system for behaviour management (electronic or paper) which relies on clear, objective information being systematically recorded by all members of staff. There is also an agreed hierarchical process by which more difficult students can be referred on to senior staff.

Unfortunately there is clear evidence from the recorded information that:

a)  Not all staff are completing the required information
b)  Some members of staff appear to be ‘accelerating’ students through the referral system
c)  Information which is being recorded is subjective and therefore not entirely accurate.

Practical Tips

All of the above three scenarios directly undermine the concept of a consistent and cooperative approach to teaching, learning and behaviour management.

Staff groups can be unsettled and undermined by individuals who are only prepared to consider their own needs and techniques. They may indeed ‘have no problems’ with groups or individuals, but how are their approaches affecting the behaviour of students with other staff?

Classroom assistants who work with students in a variety of teaching situations often report that student behaviour is greatly affected, both positively and negatively, by the style and approach of individual teachers. Benefits can be developed by staff actively working together and sharing their knowledge, style and expertise.

Teachers and teaching assistants often feel pressurised by time during the school day. Often a bell will denote not just the end of a lesson, but also the start of the next. How then, can TAs and teachers be expected to share information and advice? Perhaps alterations can be made to the timing of the school day? Possibly time could be allocated at start of the day/lunch/end of the day for these discussions to take place?

If the only time teacher and TA see each other is during the lesson when up to 32 students are present, then little or no planning, sharing and evaluating can take place. In the worst case scenarios teacher perhaps only knows the TA as Mrs? or Mr? and is also  unsure of his or her role in their classroom. Then the inevitable will take place: the TA is ‘velcroed’ to the target student and makes no other impact in the classroom.

As schools become better and better at recording and tracking student behaviour (often using quite elaborate electronic systems) so there is even more emphasis on the need for all staff to complete or ‘input’ the information. Tracking systems can have a highly positive effect on individual behavior, monitoring problem areas of the school, highlighting difficult times of the day, communicating between staff, student and parents, and recording incidents and resolutions. However, these systems are only as good as the information that is being recorded on a daily basis. The information must be accurate and objective.

All three of the above scenarios are intended to reflect and remind staff of the need to work cooperatively within the staff group. That is not to say there is no room for the ‘individual’ – quite the opposite. The individual teacher who does possess skills, flair and knowledge can greatly enhance the effectiveness of other teacher if they are prepared to share their expertise and work as a partnership.

About the author: Dave Stott has 30 years’ teaching experience including seven years as a headteacher. He has worked in mainstream and special schools, and Local Authority behaviour support services. Dave is now a writer, consultant and trainer.