Compassionate Discipline in Practice

By Maddy Pribanova, CEI Intern

Overcoming Resistance

Sometimes compassion and communication are not enough. The experience of child abuse, for example, has long-term implications for behavioral development and the trust and bonds children are able to form with adults (Odhayani, Watson, & Watson, 2013). Students with challenging and disruptive behaviors often come from backgrounds where there has been trauma or abuse (Odhayani et al., 2013). These children then struggle to take in and respond to directions and are often resistant to complying with others. Their behaviors can be particularly disruptive to not just the child’s learning, but also to the classroom setting. Bringing their disruptive behaviors under control, while challenging, is crucial.

Overcoming barriers to learning that are associated with abuse and trauma can be particularly difficult, but according to Grace Dearborn (2015), it is possible. In an article ‘˜Compassionate Discipline: Dealing with Difficult Students,’ published by the Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE), Dearborn (2015) writes about her own experiences as a teacher in Fairfax, California. She describes perseverance and a six-step technique. According to Dearborn, a children’s defiance and disrespect is usually a concealment of fear and anger. Therefore, it is important to try to be consistent in redirecting defiant behavior in a calm and safe environment. This process works both for homes and schools. The way Dearborn has done this is through taking six important steps:

Assume the Best

Seeing the best in children and accepting the resistance as normal allows parents and teachers to see it as a test rather than a threat.

Soft Eyes, Soft Voice

During confrontation, modeling safe and calm behavior encourages the child to do the same and be far more likely to listen and cooperate.

Offer a Choice

It is important to empower children by giving them choices. Discussing the consequences allows them to be in control and part of the disciplinary process.

Respect the Choice Made

This teaches children to be responsible for their actions and models the relationship of mutual respect. If a child chooses to resist, he/she is still at the stage of testing the boundaries.

Give the Consequence

It is important to be consistent and follow up with the consequences discussed. Many experts have discussed natural, logical consequences. If possible, incorporate such consequences into the child’s decision-making process. If a child chooses to comply, then it may be easier to avoid or terminate the confrontation and restore peace. Should the child continue to resist, then step 6 may be necessary.

Escalate the choice

Continue offering a new choice with a more uncomfortable consequence until the child complies. Should the child be unwilling to do this, teachers (and parents) might consider removing him/her from the room.

Courageous Conversations

Providing equity for every child is vital for each individual’s success in life. In the multicultural world that we live in today, teachers need to be sensitive to the differences in racial and cultural backgrounds. In the US, Blacks and Hispanics make up 40.9% of the public school population (National Center for Educational Statistics, 2014). Yet, Black students are three times more likely to be suspended or expelled than their White counterparts (Losen, Martinez, & Gillespie, 2012; Loveless, 2017). Ethnic minority students are sometimes set back due to the discrimination that occurs in the implementation of behavioral policies. This not only lowers their academic performance, but also has long lasting effects on self-esteem and life ambitions.

In the Irvington School, courageous conversations are part of an overall transformation and step forward toward compassionate discipline, whereby teachers are culturally responsive to their students and provide a far more nuanced and personalized approach to positive discipline. At Irvington, there is an overall focus on understanding students and supporting them in achieving both academic and behavioral excellence. The school’s success with these disciplinary tools is reflected in the results. In 2011-12, 24 students were suspended from the school, compared to 7 in 2013-14. The school reports that events leading to suspension and the number of students leaving the school have also decreased.

References

Dearborn, G. (2015). Compassionate Discipline: Dealing with difficult students. Association for Middle Level Education Magazine.

Losen, D.J., Martinez, T., & Gillespie, J., (2012) Suspended education in California. Los Angeles: UCLA The Civil Rights Projects.

Loveless, T. (2017, March 22) 2017 Brown Center report on American education: Race and school suspensions, v. 3, 6. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution.

National Center for Educational Statistic (2017). Mobile Digest of Education Statistics 2017. Institute for Educational Sciences.

Odhayani, A., Watson, W. J., & Watson, L. (2013). Behavioural consequences of child abuse. Canadian Family Physician, 59(8), 831’“836.

The Irvington School. (2014, June 1). Compassionate discipline: Moving away from exclusionary practices to culturally responsive PBIS. Irvington School Portland Public Schools, Presentation.