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.

Focusing only on learning or only on behaviour can lead to an imbalance in the teaching and learning environment. Dave Stott looks at how to create an integrated learning/behavior plan Student learning and student behaviour are inextricably linked. In other words, the two cannot be disentangled or untied.

A familiar approach to lesson planning is first to consider all the learning issues and plan, structure and deliver accordingly. Only then are the behavioural issues dealt with.

In fact, it is not unusual for school development plans or classroom planning to state: ‘Term one will focus on teaching and learning, whilst term two will move onto behaviour issues.’

This model inevitably leads to too many compromises. Achievement and learning expectations will be reduced because of inappropriate or unacceptable behaviour and a major focus on behaviour will significantly reduce the teaching and learning opportunities.

Addressing these two areas individually will create an imbalance. Students need their expectations to be presented as one very clear and consistent whole. Lesson planning should include not just lesson content, differentiation, materials and outcomes but should also consider learning styles, behaviour expectations, rewards and consequences. A simple overall plan for any lesson would include the following basic guidelines:

1. During this scheme of work/project/lesson, where do you want your students to go?
2. How will the students get there?
3. How will you/they know when they have arrived?

National Curriculum and school/faculty planning will give you clear advice and direction for sections one and three, but to achieve a satisfactory outcome for number two there will need to be significant planning for behaviour. In other words, a full and comprehensive lesson/teaching plan should, by definition, include a behaviour plan.

A reactive system where you apply your school/classroom behaviour policy only when problems arise will compound the imbalance between learning and behaviour. A proactive learning/behaviour plan will create the optimum teaching and learning environment.

Practical Tips

Select one of your current or old lesson plans and carefully check the content using the following guidelines:

1. Goals
These should determine the aim or purpose of the lesson or activity. Pay particular attention to the behavioural goals of the lesson.

a) What are the broad behavioural expectations of this lesson?
(Eg, students arrive on time, have the correct equipment, demonstrate appropriate listening skills, to be able to attract your attention appropriately, to remain seated, to know what to do when faced with a problem or when they have completed the tasks.)

b) What do you expect students will be able to do by the end of the session?
(Work quietly on their own? Work in a group? Work to a time schedule? Act as a peer mentor? Act as a group leader?)

2. Objectives
This should focus on how students should behave during the session.

a) Where will they be seated? Working in groups? How to ask questions? How to seek further info if required?

b) What are your expectations of student behaviour by the end of the session?

3. Current knowledge/abilities
In order for students to begin to meet your expectations they must
have a certain level of skill to cope with the learning situation presented to them.

a) How do you know what skills individual students possess? (IEPs, behaviour plans, tracking systems, etc.)

b) Do you need to teach new behavioural expectations or skills before starting the session? It is unwise to assume that all students are at a similar level of skill or understanding, even in terms of behaviour. Certainly some students will need to be taught a skill more than once!

c) How will you record and track student behaviour during the lesson, thereby avoiding subjective judgements?

4. Materials/differentiation
Students’ behavioural needs are similar to their learning needs. Your expectations/rules will need to be understood at all levels together with the need to provide effective rewards and sanctions.

a) Rewards/sanctions which work well with some students may need significant changes for others.

b) This is also true of your style of teaching. Behaviour is driven by feelings, emotions and beliefs. Students who believe they cannot do something or who feel threatened by the learning environment will behave significantly different from those students who are comfortable and confident.

5. Evaluation
a) Evaluation and recording of student behaviour is just as important as evaluation of attainment and achievement. How do you evaluate student behaviour during a lesson? Is your system as objective as your learning evaluation or do you rely on subjective feelings?

Once learning and behaviour become an integral and equal part of lesson planning, then clear and informed judgments can be made about student progress.

The inextricable link between the two will demonstrate that good behaviour produces excellent progress and engaged, motivated learning leaves no room for unacceptable and challenging behaviour.

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.

9 most powerful tools for Instant Classroom Control

Using How to End Lunchtime Troubles will enable you to objectively review your current lunchtime systems and activities. It will help you to identify concerns, which may include:

• Inappropriate and poorly maintained play areas
• ‘Hot spot’ times and locations both inside and outside the building
• Staff induction and development issues
• Respond to the views and needs of both staff and pupils
• Provide effective training for all staff involved in the lunchtime experience
• Link behaviour management systems used in the classroom to the lunch break
• Review child-led and adult-led activities during the lunch breakavailable, rules, routines and systems, the environments, incidents, activities, health and safety. All information is collated and analysed then used to decide the next step.

CD-Rom including the full PowerPoint presentation, questionnaires, activity sheets and other useful documents.

ISBN: 978-1-907370-26-7

How to End Lunchtime Troubles Ref: 035E18  £75.00+VAT

Loggerhead Publishing
PO Box 928, Northampton, NN7 9AP
Tel: 0845 605 0230
Fax: 0808 280 0937
Email: orders@loggerheadfilms.co.uk
Web: www.loggerheadpublishing.co.uk

If you expect poor behaviour you are likely to get it – but things don’t have to be that way. Dave Stott looks at a simple technique for channeling your expectations – and your students’ behaviour – in a positive direction. As the new term gets under way and students settle into routines and activities, you need to retain a positive and motivational attitude to promote positive and acceptable behavior.

The process of ‘accentuating the positive’ with regards to your current class or teaching groups should have begun back in the summer when you were given the class or tutor group lists for September. Admittedly, some schools may not complete lists as early as teachers would like, but in most cases you do have an idea of which students will be with you as the new term starts in September.

If you are not careful you can be so negative in your outlook that simply looking at the list of names can begin the negative spiral of low expectations and even dread. Thoughts such as ‘Oh no, I taught his brother and I remember how difficult that was!’ or ‘Her reputation follows her everywhere!’

Even before you have met the student face to face you are beginning to form a very negative view of them. And once you have formed an opinion of someone, it can be very difficult to change it.

You probably had those initial negative thoughts back in June or July, and certainly before the summer break. If that is the case you will have had time to establish them even further. And now, in September, only a few weeks into the new school year, the danger is you have allowed them to affect your behaviour and teaching style.

If you are expecting poor or challenging behaviour from a student, that is exactly what you will get. But it’s not too late to change your outlook and expectations. If you are feeling the need to alter the atmosphere in your classroom or to change your own thought processes and expectations, it is time to ‘accentuate the positive’.

Practical Tips
In any training book or advice about managing student behaviour, you will soon be presented with the concept of looking for the student who is getting it right and praising them.

Perfectly good advice, but if you are already in a negative frame of mind then the only students you are likely to see are the ones who are getting it wrong!

Try a self-check test on this simple theory. The next time you are approaching a classroom and the students, for whatever reason, are already in the room ahead of you, check your own emotions. How are you feeling? What do you expect to find when you walk into the room?

If you are feeling negative, with low expectations, then when you enter the room the students you will see first, and will no doubt comment on, are the ones who are getting it wrong. They are being too noisy, out of their seat, have the wrong equipment, etc. In fact, your very first connection or comment to the class will be negative – and that sets the scene for the rest of the lesson.

Obviously, you cannot ignore the problem behaviour or allow it to continue. But rather than focusing on what should not be happening, try to accentuate all the positive behaviour. The technique can be so powerful that students behaving badly will often modify their behaviour when they hear you giving positive recognition to those who are meeting your expectations.

On entering the room, try to spot students to whom you can offer a positive comment, such as ‘Good morning, well done Chris, you’ve got your work out and you’re ready to start’ or

‘Excellent this group, thanks for listening.’

It may seem an impossibly simple technique, and teachers who are stuck in a negative thought process will be even more sceptical of its likely success. The intention, however, is to change your frame of mind from negative to positive (change from the half empty approach to the half full) and use a powerful teaching strategy to improve and modify behaviour.

Managing challenging behaviour can be a very tiring process which has no quick fix. Accentuating the positive, looking for progress and avoiding negative thoughts, words and actions will have a beneficial effect on student behaviour and will make you feel better in the process!

This e-bulletin issue was first published in September 2011

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.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CESANOrNVY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wFFaia-ymg

The DVD’s feature real and acted scenarios, training sessions and practical demonstrations allowing viewers to take a front seat for a training session which they can refer to as part of their Professional Development, Induction or Whole School training.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLBajv4Ndko