When students misbehave, they do so for only a couple reasons; both of which are personal. The first is that they are looking for attention—any attention. The second is that they are acting out due to some sort of internal conflict. In either case, the student is not bad; the behavior is. So, we have to ask ourselves: do we have to correct the person, or the behavior? Obviously, the answer is behavior.
Therefore, corrective measures should always encourage better behavior by TEACHING a misbehaving student that bad behavior is not acceptable. Once this process has begun, we should also do our best to determine why the student is exhibiting bad behavior and try to help the student find a solution for whatever he or she is facing so they can regain a positive focus on their studies.
Additionally, when approaching a misbehaving student, it is essential to remain calm, not exhibit anger, and demonstrate love, compassion, and caring so the student can understand that they are permanently valued as a person, though their behavior is temporarily unacceptable.
An example of a method we encourage is:
“Johnny, is that what you’re supposed to be doing? No? What are you supposed to be doing? — Good. Thank you.”
This corrects the behavior without calling out the student as ‘bad’. If the behavior continues, there is usually something deeper going on, and it’s time to investigate. There are two ways students seek attention; good behavior and bad behavior. Which are you subconsciously rewarding?