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Discipline in the classroomMany Discipline problems can be overcome by using skills from the classroom management section. One of the biggest problems in Korean elementary schools is the challenge. This is when the alpha male or female student defies the teacher in front of the class. What the teacher does next will set the mood for the rest of the school year. As stated in Classroom Manage (CM) the teacher has to be firm and take control. The teacher will have to vary the tone of his voice and his facial expressions. Eye contact is very important (the stare down). An elementary school student will always look away first. It is important to let the student know that there are no bad feels. As suggested in CM, it would be best to make this student your new assistant to pass out papers and watch over his section of the class. This will save face for him, and give him back some of the leadership role that he lost. One of the other problems you may have is the show off. This is the student or students that are trying to impress his friends. Physical discipline by Korean teachers has only been abolished in public schools for a few years, so some students are taking advantage of it. There is a popular commercial on Korean TV, The teacher raises hand to strike a student who is talking back to him, and all the students pullout their camera phones and the teacher freezes. It is humorous, but sadly true. The best way to deal with this kind of problem is by changing his seat. As stated in CM, the teacher controls the seating. The student?s desk is moved all the way in the back of the room. In Korean culture that is a seat of same. The important thing to remember is not to leave him there too long. After 5 to 10 minutes while the other students are doing their work, you go and talk to them. You get down so that you are at the same level as the student, and you talk to them in a warm understanding voice. You tell the student that he is better than that. You let him know that he is good, and you like him, but he cannot act out in class. You ask him, if he can be good. Then you send him back to his original seat. You have followed the responses in CM. You kept calm, you have given the student respect and gained respect, you addressed the behavior immediately, and you have established a good rapport with the student and with the class. You have shown that you care. For smaller problems you can just have the students stand next to their desk for five minutes. As CM states as the class goes on you can relax control. In time you will able to give the students a disapproving stare, and they will behave. Just do not go overboard. For more extreme problems you may need to involve the principal or other teachers. Many experts state bad behavior is symptom of a deeper problem. CM states ?focus on the behavior not the student.? I cannot agree with that all of the time. Some experts feel that the student may have many pent up feels. If the school has a counselor, I would refer her to him. If the school does not have one, I would enroll the student in an after school class to help them. (I was a counselor for 5 years) Many of the ideals in Classroom management will work well. When dealing with children the most import discipline skill you can have is to care. (Note: I do not have discipline problems. I request the worst schools.)
