I have come across many interesting ways that teachers punish misbehaving students. For the lower grades, I do like the ‘stoplight’ or ‘turning cards’ methods. They really put a visual for the students and make them responsible for themselves. Now, in several classrooms I have come across an unusual punishment, making students stand. This ranges from minor infractions (talking and disrupting) to not getting behavior slips signed by a parent. For the minor event, the student is told to stand in front of their desk until the teacher says they may sit, for major infractions, the student will have to stand in front of his/her desk all day. Through every lesson, assignment, even center times! On a rare occasion I have even seen students have to stand still with their hands behind thier head.
Onto the parents…since I came to Chicago, I have never witnessed so many ‘beatings’ by these parents to their misbehaving kids. Now while 80% of the school staff agree with this method, I just don’t see the benefit. Most of the kids being hit are so used to it, it doesn’t work as a behaviour deterrent. My two most memorable moments were when I told a 3rd graders mother about the day before and his fighting and disruptions when I was subbing and she took him aside and I heard her smack him at least ten times, skin on skin contact. The next time I was in his classroom and he got in trouble again, when he was told his mom was coming to ‘whoop his butt’, he said he didn’t care. The second was a 2nd grade girl who was in the office for fighting when her mom came in, dragged her into her classroom, interrupted class, made her take off her belt, and then used it to beat her in front of the class and horrified teacher! Then to make matters worse, she told the other classmates to laugh at her daughter!! I can tell you that her daughter ( and a few of her other children) were right back in the office the next day.
