Consequences AND understanding what’s behind the behaviour

Photo by Elena Mozhvilo on Unsplash  

🗣️”But focusing on relationships doesn’t discipline them”

🗣️”It will look like we’re rewarding for ‘bad’ behaviour”

🗣️”But they need to be quiet sometimes”

Variations of these statements are posed to me on an almost daily basis. And I understand why.

For some reason (Twitter, I’m looking at you) we seem to have got ourselves into an unhelpful Behaviour Binary –
The idea that you must do behaviour this way OR that way, and that one is right and one is wrong.

I find none of this any particular use when faced with 9F2 on double period Wednesday afternoon after wet break (the kids don’t really give a sh*t about our social media debates and theories, or as my brilliant PGCE tutor Dr Steve Roberts taught me – the kids don’t actually read the books on how to teach…).

What I do find helpful is knowing that the best thing for that class, pupil, school – will be what the best thing is for that class, pupil or school – at any particular time, in any particular context, and of course depending on the full moon and which way the wind is blowing…

Having a consequence to an inappropriate behaviour can be really useful.

Like the time in my year 8 textiles class when Paul Goodhead and Thomas Bailey thought it would be good for one of them to do the foot peddle, and the other to do the hand sewing – Paul ended up with a needle in his hand.

Consequences can keep us safe – physically and emotionally. 

For pupils with SEMH (Social, Emotional Mental Health needs) or who have experienced trauma, this is even more important – clear boundaries make us (humans) feel safe.

I was interested to read in The Secret Barrister that they began at the same point – every human community has a set of guidelines and consequences (whether official or not), and the level at which the majority of the people are able to influence these, will correlate with the level of crime.

There’s lots to unpick here – I have written a chapter for Square Peg’s  forthcoming book that discusses this in more detail – keep an eye out👀

🌟🌟🌟AND🌟🌟🌟

Finding out what’s behind the behaviour, understanding what is being communicated will give us the key to being able to improve and support a situation, child or class moving forwards.

A detention/suspension/lines can be a useful short consequence to inappropriate behaviour – but only when we also get to the why as well.

And we have clear evidence for this;

The kid who’s got more detentions that there are school days in the week?

Those detentions are not working on their own.

They are punishing but they are not improving anything – the pupil’s attitude, their likeliness to repeat the behaviour OR (here’s the biggy) their ability to access their learning.

We have to ask – what does both get to look like for this class or pupil in front of me?

How do I get to teach them about consequences (if I hurt someone else, steal their stuff, tell a lie there will be a consequence)

AND

Find out why they are doing it

Find out how I, as the educator, can remove a barrier or build a bridge or….

…maybe even TEACH them something that will help them to improve their behaviour.

In my book “Miss, I don’t give a sh*t” Engaging with Challenging Behaviour in Schools  I share an example where this was exactly the case – my pupils were getting in disputes because in reality they had no idea how to be or make friends.No one had taught them. It became my job.

When I work with schools, I get to support staff and pupils on what it looks like in their specific context to hold these two, sometimes seemingly opposing views, in a way to have the best impact on the pupils’ learning

I am currently enjoying doing some long term work with Treorchy Comprehensive School🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

I was welcomed joyously to the first session this week, where we were discussing exactly this.

Have a nose at the video to find out more. (Approx watching time 2 mins)