Discipline in Education: Shaping Behavior and Fostering Growth

While the word "discipline" often evokes images of punishment and strict rule enforcement, its true meaning in education is far more nuanced and constructive. School discipline encompasses the strategies, rules, and support systems designed to manage student behavior, encourage self-discipline, and cultivate a safe, positive learning environment. This article explores the multifaceted nature of discipline in education, examining its evolution, various approaches, and its vital role in shaping students' academic, social, and emotional development.

Understanding School Discipline

School discipline is the system of rules, behavioral strategies, and consequences used to manage student behavior and encourage self-discipline. The goal is to create a safe and conducive learning environment. It is a broad concept that includes not only reactive measures to address misbehavior but also proactive strategies to prevent it. It is a system of rules for managing behavior and maintaining order.

Federal and state guidance on discipline focuses on the development of a positive school climate that is aimed at preventing behavioral challenges, teaching skills to support self-discipline for all students and providing targeted support for those students who need more support.

While many associate the word discipline with punitive measures, school discipline is the system of rules, behavioral strategies and punishments used to manage student behavior and encourage self discipline.

Evolution of Disciplinary Practices

Historically, discipline in schools often relied heavily on punitive measures, including corporal punishment. Discipline rooted in obedience centers on valuing hard work, diligence, adherence to authority, and self-discipline. An obedience-based model uses consequences and punishments as deterrents. This approach, influenced by Puritan beliefs, viewed disobedience and academic errors as signs of inherent wickedness that needed to be suppressed through physical and emotional correction. Fortunately, discipline in schools today looks very different from how it looked fifty or more years ago.

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Over time, understanding of child development and effective educational practices has evolved. Corporal punishment has now disappeared from most Western countries, including all European countries. Society's understanding of children's mental health has evolved. Many school districts and the Board of Education have moved away from these practices.

Today, there is a growing emphasis on positive and restorative approaches that prioritize prevention, skill-building, and repairing harm. These approaches recognize that discipline should be about teaching and guiding students, not simply punishing them.

Approaches to School Discipline

Approaches to school discipline range from positive (e.g., school climate improvements, use of restorative practices) to punitive (e.g., suspension, expulsion, corporal punishment). Several theoretical frameworks and practical models inform school discipline practices:

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS): A proactive, tiered framework that emphasizes teaching and reinforcing positive behaviors, creating a positive school climate, and providing targeted support for students who need it.
Restorative Justice: Focuses on repairing harm and building relationships rather than simply punishing offenders. It involves bringing together those who have been harmed and those who have caused harm to discuss the impact of the actions and develop a plan to make things right.
Assertive Discipline: Developed by Lee and Marlene Canter, this model blends obedience-based principles with responsibility. Teachers establish clear rules and consequences for misbehavior, while also acknowledging and reinforcing positive behavior.
Adlerian Approaches: Emphasize understanding the individual's reasons for maladaptive behavior and helping misbehaving students to alter their behavior, whilst at the same time finding ways to get their needs met.
Teacher Effectiveness Training: Differentiates between teacher-owned and student-owned problems, and proposes different strategies for dealing with each. Students are taught problem-solving and negotiation techniques.
Responsibility-Centered Discipline: A classroom-oriented technique that empowers students to find solutions to organizational issues. This approach involves fostering appreciation and warmth among students, embracing their interests, recognizing their efforts, encouraging feedback, achieving consensus on ground rules, and engaging them in rule-making and problem-solving, all while maintaining dignity and well-defined boundaries.

Alternatives to Suspension and Expulsion

Recognizing the limitations and potential negative consequences of suspension and expulsion, many schools are exploring alternative disciplinary measures. Suspension, including supervised suspension as described in Section 48911.1, shall be imposed only when other means of correction fail to bring about proper conduct. A school district may document the other means of correction used and place that documentation in the pupil’s record, which may be accessed pursuant to Section 49069.

California Compilation of School Discipline Laws and Regulations Page 17 EDC 48900.5 (a) Suspension, including supervised suspension as described in Section 48911.1, shall be imposed only when other means of correction fail to bring about proper conduct.

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These alternatives aim to address the root causes of misbehavior, teach students valuable skills, and keep them connected to the learning environment. Some common alternatives include:

Conferences: A conference between school personnel, the pupil’s parent or guardian, and the pupil.
Counseling: Referrals to the school counselor, psychologist, social worker, child welfare attendance personnel, or other school support service personnel for case management and counseling.
Study Teams & Intervention: Study teams, guidance teams, resource panel teams, or other intervention-related teams that assess the behavior, and develop and implement individualized plans to address the behavior in partnership with the pupil and his or her parents.
Prosocial Behavior Programs: Enrollment in a program for teaching prosocial behavior or anger management.
Restorative Justice Programs: Participation in a restorative justice program.
Positive Behavior Support: A positive behavior support approach with tiered interventions that occur during the schoolday on campus.
After-School Programs: After-school programs that address specific behavioral issues or expose pupils to positive activities and behaviors, including, but not limited to, those operated in collaboration with local parent and community groups.
Community Service: As part of or instead of disciplinary action prescribed by this article, the principal of a school, the principal’s designee, the superintendent of schools, or the governing board may require a pupil to perform community service on school grounds or, with written permission of the parent or guardian of the pupil, off school grounds, during the pupil’s nonschool hours.

Discipline and Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities or who are suspected of having a disability have additional safeguards to ensure educational access and protect against discrimination in relationship to disciplinary action. Both the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and Section 504 of the American Disabilities Act prohibit schools from removing students with disabilities from the school setting because of their disabilities.

Schools must consider whether a student's misbehavior is a manifestation of their disability before imposing disciplinary sanctions. They must also provide appropriate behavioral supports and accommodations to help students with disabilities succeed in school. Students with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) may require specific accommodations. Sanctions for these students are usually evaluated on a case-by-case basis. There may be a manifestation determination to find out if the misbehavior of an adaptive education student is a manifestation of their disability.

The Role of Restraint and Seclusion

The use of restraint and seclusion in schools is a controversial topic, with growing concerns about their potential for harm. Assembly Bill (AB) 2657, Statutes of 2018, Chapter 998, went into effect on January 1, 2019. The bill added sections 49005-49006.4 to California’s Education Code regarding the use of restraint and seclusion with students receiving both general education and special education.

California Education Code states that a pupil “has the right to be free from the use of seclusion and behavioral restraints of any form imposed as a means of coercion, discipline, convenience, or retaliation by staff” (Education Code Section 49005.2). Educational providers, as defined, must also adhere to new requirements. For example, they “shall keep constant, direct observation of a pupil who is in seclusion, which may be through observation of the pupil through a window, or another barrier, through which the educational provider is able to make direct eye contact with the pupil. The observation required pursuant to this subdivision shall not be through indirect means, including through a security camera or a closed-circuit television” (Education Code Section 49005.8[b]).

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The new law requires local educational agencies to collect and report annually to the California Department of Education data on the number of times and the number of students on which mechanical restraints, physical restraints, and seclusion are used. The data must be disaggregated for students who have Section 504 plans, students who have individualized education programs, and students who do not have either plan.

Proactive Measures for Effective Discipline

Effective classroom discipline involves not only responding to behaviors, but anticipating them. Proactive Measures: This is best done by establishing an environment in which students are most likely to display the behaviors you want! It means making sure students know exactly what it is they are expected to do at any given moment. This includes everything from how they engage in group discussions to procedures for going to the bathroom. When students don’t know exactly what’s expected of them, they’re a lot less likely to get it right.

Several proactive strategies can help create a positive and well-managed classroom:

Clear Expectations: Clearly communicate expectations for behavior in various settings and activities. Young children need guidance to learn which behaviors are appropriate or desired in certain activities, times, or places and which are not. What are positive discipline strategies that can be used to prevent challenging behavior and help young children learn when certain behaviors are expected and appropriate and when they are not? Parents, other caregivers, and practitioners need to decide what behaviors are appropriate or desired in certain activities, times, or places and help young children learn about which behaviors are appropriate or desired during these certain times and situations.
Positive Reinforcement: Most teachers who are up on current best practices in pedagogy and child development know the power of positive reinforcement. While offering praise for a job well done is not a new concept, positive reinforcement is a lot more complex. When used properly, it involves an entire mindset shift. Teachers “catch kids being good,” and point it out in a way that makes others want to follow. They focus on how many students are doing the right thing, and focus their attention on them. When children do an expected or appropriate behavior, provide descriptive praise, positive attention, or positive reinforcement like giving access to a preferred toy, food, or activity. Be immediate, positive, and consistent.
Building Relationships: Foster positive relationships with students by showing genuine care and interest in their lives.
Creating Engaging Lessons: Design lessons that are relevant, interactive, and cater to diverse learning styles to keep students engaged and motivated. Some scholars think students misbehave because of the lack of engagement and stimulation in typical school settings, a rigid definition of acceptable behaviors and a lack of attention and love in a student's personal life. Lack of engagement and stimulation - students are curious and constantly searching for meaning and stimulation in the school environment. A rigid definition of acceptable behavior - Most students, particularly older ones, are asked to sit at their desks for too long and listen, read, and take notes. Lack of attention and love - When students fail to receive the attention that they crave, they are likelier to find other ways to get it, even if it means drawing negative attention to themselves and even negative consequences.
Logical Consequences: Consequences for most misbehavior used to look pretty similar. Timeouts and loss of privilege are classic examples that have historically been used both in schools and at home. But in relatively recent years, psychologists have encouraged a more effective method of eliminating behaviors. That is to assign logical consequences that relate directly to the outcome of the student’s behavior. This is also called a “break it, fix it” philosophy of discipline. In a very straightforward situation, it’s easy to assign a logical consequence. If a student makes a mess, whether intentional or accidental, he should clean it up. There doesn’t need to be any verbal reprimand, as the act of cleaning up is a lesson enough in itself. When we make a choice, we must take responsibility for whatever effect that choice had.

Addressing Challenging Behavior

Young children sometimes engage in challenging behavior because they are still learning which behaviors are expected or appropriate and which behaviors are not. When challenging behavior occurs, it's important to respond in a way that is both supportive and instructive. Here are 3 positive discipline strategies for responding to challenging behavior when it occurs.

Redirection: Young children might not always remember behavior expectations, even for things they do often. When children’s behavior is not consistent with expectations in certain situations, use a calm voice to remind them what to do rather than what not to do. Descriptively Praise and Give Positive Attention: “I like when you talk using an inside voice. When challenging behavior occurs, try directing children’s attention away from the challenging behavior to a more appropriate behavior. This can be a direction that tells them what to do within the activity.
Ignoring: It is best to ignore challenging behavior if children are safe. When possible, wait until the challenging behavior is not happening and then give descriptive praise, positive attention, or positive reinforcement when you see positive behavior. This helps children learn they will gain your attention or get things they want when they are using appropriate behaviors.
Negative Consequences: When challenging behavior continues to occur even when the positive discipline strategies described above are used consistently, it may be appropriate to use negative consequences to decrease the challenging behavior. Using negative consequence strategies (what some call punishment) to respond to challenging behavior is often equated to discipline, but these are not good strategies for helping children learn positive behavior. Structure the situation so the behavior cannot occur by removing the child from the situation (e.g., take the child into the house if he or she is running into the street), blocking access (e.g., to a hot stove), or adding barriers (e.g., cover the corners of a table with soft padding if a child is jumping or running in the house). Observe and stop dangerous or threatening behavior immediately. When positive behavior occurs, use positive discipline strategies to teach expected replacement behaviors. If challenging behavior continues and significantly interferes with daily activities, learning, or the children’s interactions with others, ask for help.

Addressing Racial Disparities in Discipline

Racial disparities in suspension and expulsion vary across the United States, Atlanta, Georgia, Chicago, Illinois, Houston, Texas; and St. Paul. Schools across the country are making efforts to reform their disciplinary systems and practices to reduce racial disparities.

In the United States, African-American students, particularly boys, are disciplined significantly more often and more severely than any other demographic. When disparities occur within the classroom they are often covert and passive. This means that instead of outwardly discriminating against a student because of their color teachers discreetly give fewer advantages to students of color. Disciplinary methods also vary based on students' socioeconomic status. While high-income students are often reported to receive mild to moderate consequences (e.g. a teacher reprimand or seat reassignment), low-income students are reported to receive more severe consequences, sometimes delivered in a less-than-professional manner.

Resources for Educators

National Center on Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (NCSSLE) offers information and technical assistance to States, districts, schools, institutions of higher learning, and communities focused on improving school climate and conditions for learning. Fix School Discipline: A Toolkit for Educators is a comprehensive resource for school superintendents, principals, teachers, parents, students, community leaders, organizations, advocates, and anyone interested in learning how to eliminate harsh discipline practices that push students out of school, and instead enact solutions that work for all students.

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