ACU

Masters of Teaching (Secondary)

S00236529
EDFD604 - Assessment 1








































Scenario of Challenging Behaviour:

Steven is a Year 9 student at a Catholic Melbourne secondary school called Kolbe
Catholic College. Steven enjoys drawing and mingles with students who have similar
interests as him. When Steven attends his classes he often produces high levels of
low-level disruption such as chatting excessively about off-topic matters. Steven has
a high level of non-attendance as he is frequently absent from school on the days he
doesn’t have drawing and design related subjects. It is important for his teachers to
recognise and develop Steven’s individual abilities. They are also responsible for
respecting Steven’s individual differences and catering for his capabilities (Victoria
Institute of Teaching, 2019). Furthermore, he is frequently disruptive during class
and doesn’t hesitate to tease students in subjects that he doesn’t particularly enjoy.
Steven often requires teacher support to gain an understanding of learning tasks and
to fill in gaps in classes that are not drawing or design related. When Steven is
behaving in these ways, he fails to listen to teacher instruction, which becomes
increasingly aggressive without any regard for who he is as a person. Steven also has
incidences where he continuously throws objects around the room and disrupts
other year 9 boys, who are prone to being distracted, in an effort to seek a sense of
power as he is not friends with these boys and he doesn’t possess the relationship
skills required to talk properly with them. Slee (2017) suggests that the absence of
these skills could lead one to not having any friends and this could lead to an
increased susceptibility of victimizing other students. In this instance the teacher
could be a responsible and positive role model in the educational setting by
modelling the relationship skills required by Steven (Victoria Institute of Teaching,
2019). It could be largely beneficial for Steven to develop friendships with some
students in his class and it would only require Steven to imitate others, observe and
practice behaviour and manage conflict successfully (Slee, 2017). When the throwing
of objects occurs, the teacher relocates Steven in the classroom but the behaviour
continues so he is sent to the vice-principal’s office. It is also the role of the teacher

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to ensure they protect other learners from intimidation, embarrassment, humiliation
and harm in addition to modelling and engaging respectful and impartial language
(Victoria Institute of Teaching, 2019). Although the parents have been involved on
some occasions, it is understood that there is some instability in the family home
due to financial hardships and this is a contributing factor to Steven’s problematic
behaviour.

In line with the Australian Student Wellbeing Framework, inclusion is crucial for the
development of values, diversity and the construction of positive relationships. This
could be fostered by involving all members of the school community to support
Steven and his family to overcome some of the difficulties he is experiencing.
Support may include having a series of scheduled meetings with Steven, a member
of the school house leadership team and his learning advisor in order to facilitate a
positive change. One of the suggestions by the Bullying No Way! (2019) Policy is to
make changes to class times for Steven in his timetable to help him avoid contact
with the children he is bullying most. Other strategies that can be used are
improving teacher supervision during lunchtime and recess to reduce the possibility
of the bullying occurring there. This action would come under the behaviour
management style of assertive discipline and could be a possible alternative
disciplinary strategy. A majority of the school behavioural policy is steeped in
restorative practice and they use it to treat Steven who continuously misbehaves.
Steven continuously defies the responsible student behaviour guidelines at the
school, some of these points include respecting the individuality and particular
needs of all of God’s people and acting in a responsible and courteous manner
(Kolbe Catholic College, 2019). As published by the Australian Student Wellbeing
Framework (2019), its important that teachers embed wellbeing and support for
positive behaviour strategies that are evidence informed, which can include Lee and
Marlene Canter’s assertive discipline (Canter, 2001). Staff must also show knowledge
of the college’s child safety code of conduct which include some salient points such
as the views of the child’s privacy must be respected and all children have a right to
be safe.

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Analysis of Student Misbehaviour:
Steven’s inappropriate behaviour, both in and outside of class has led him to
disengage from learning and engage in bullying. In the classroom, his behaviour has
manifested due to factors inadvertently caused by his teachers. These factors are
not individualising learning and not showing an awareness of his unique skills and
talents throughout the lesson (Lewis, 2008). His bullying behaviour most likely occurs
as a result of Steven not feeling connected to the people in his home and school
environments (McDonald, 2013). These are exacerbated by the punitive methods of
behavioural management used by his teachers, after the restorative practices fail
and Steven’s absenteeism further adds to his feeling of disconnectedness from his
teachers and fellow students. At home, the cause for Steven’s behaviour could be his
stressful environment that has often been linked to student disconnection from
schooling (McDonald, 2013). One way of involving Steven’s parents in the
management of his behaviour is to help them understand that he is a diverse learner
and his learning needs can be catered for in each of his classes, as legislated under
the School Wide Positive Behaviour Support Program (McDonald, 2013). Making it
known to the parents that Steven is having positive learning outcomes in his design
and art related subjects would also be crucial in developing this relationship with his
parents and this could become part of the feedback in the scheduled meetings
(McDonald, 2013). By defining clear classroom expectations and sharing these with
the parent it would be necessary in reinforcing these to Steven. Classroom
expectations may use assertive discipline strategies such as the classroom rules in
order to help Steven become more conditioned to this mode of discipline although
only if the situation permits and Steven and his parents agree to this. Another crucial
point is notifying parents when and under what circumstances they will be notified
of the problematic behaviour their child is displaying and by having all procedures
for reporting incidences of problematic behaviour clear for parents and staff (Family
School Partnerships Framework, 2018). In meetings with the parent and child, it
would be crucial to show care for the parents’ feelings and emotions and show
understanding for the family’s financial situation, potentially referring them to
another member of staff such as the business manager to discuss a possible
payment plan for school fees. Furthermore, the National Safe Schools Framework

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(2011) suggests working with community organisations to help provide a consistent
message about safety and wellbeing in addition to working with these organisations
to extend support as needed. This could include referring Steven and his parents to
websites such as au.reachout.com.



Critique of School Response to Steven’s Behaviour:

In this case the school restorative practice behaviour management plan is not
serving to correct Steven’s behaviour. His teacher’s resort to varied forms of
restorative justice by way of engaging in a restorative out of class chat after the
relocation of Steven within the classroom has failed (De Nobile, Lyons & Arthur-Kelly
2017). Although the school has taken steps to instruct Steven towards an
appropriately formed disciplinary consequence in some of his classes, they seem to
not have had much effect. Warning him when he is talking out of turn that it is
undesired behaviour and escalating that response to one that sees him relocated
within the classroom is necessary in showing him there is a hierarchy of
consequences when responding to his behaviour.

An alternative behaviour management strategy that can be explored is Assertive
Discipline. This behaviour management approach devised by Lee and Marlene
Canter, “places the teacher at the centre of classroom management with
responsibility on establishing expectations and desirable behaviour including both
positive and negative consequences for the student’s actions” (Canter, 2001).
Although this theory is helpful, it is not in this situation without the connectedness
of a whole school approach (McDonald, 2013). This is where the Positive Behaviour
Support (PBS) framework which is a school wide ethos that identifies roles of the
teachers, school leaders, parents and wider community as key environment changes
could be useful for Steven (McDonald, 2019). Although with the Assertive Discipline
approach the teachers may believe they are helping Steven stay on task by setting a
few clear instructions and expectations for his behaviour in class, they may not be

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assisting him like others could be instilling more student directed responsibility. One
theory, which asserts the need for students to be granted opportunities to take
positive charge of their lives based on the belief they will be responsible for making
good decisions, is Coloroso’s Inner Discipline Theory (McDonald, 2019). Arranging
the classroom environment to instil a sense of control among students is pertinent
to allowing for those opportunities of responsibility to occur. This suggests an
approach that would be very helpful to manage the situation of Steven’s
inappropriate behaviour in the classroom, granting him responsibility for his own
interests and talents rather than involving his thoughts and efforts as a solution. This
is more effective than the less effective punishment method outlined in the
behaviourist theory of Dreikurs (McDonald, 2013). Although Dreikurs’ theory targets
mistaken student goals that are pursued out of a false sense of inadequacy and
power, they can also foster a sense of autonomy for students and helps them
understand why they misbehave (McDonald, 2013). However, in this situation, it is
evident that the PBS framework is most relevant to correcting Steven’s misbehaviour
as it is obvious by the inconsistency in which Steven’s behaviour is dealt with that
the school does not have a well implemented approach to best manage him and
help him to enjoy school.



Theoretical Approaches & Strategies to Address Steven’s Behaviour:

As mentioned earlier, Canter’s assertive discipline adopted as a school wide effort in
order to correct the problematic behaviour would allow teachers to position
themselves at the centre of the classroom’s management and it would put them in
prime position as the goal and expectation creators for all students to follow by
focusing on using students’ social skills (McDonald, 2013). Setting expectations such
as these within the child safe values and principles would provide boundaries for
students and would influence and guide their behaviour accordingly using a
hierarchy of consequences that are both positive and negative (C.M Charles, 2005).
This means the welfare and best interest of the child are paramount, in addition to
the views of the child and their privacy being respected by all staff members. Steven

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and his fellow pupils who have a low sense of responsibility would be empowered
and guided by the parameters set by the teacher to behave in a certain way, as these
parameters can also be individualised and would help prevent Steven from engaging
in behaviour such as throwing objects across the room (C.M Charles, 2005). It is
important to note that assertive discipline is person and situation specific and that
discipline management represents the micro-side of the macro-problem of school
wide discipline management (Etheridge, 2010). Similarly, it would be necessary for
the teacher to take the steps to acknowledge Steven as a human being and ask him
for example, what T.V. shows or sport he is interested in. This would foster a greater
sense of self-efficacy and possibly help rebuild trust that was lost from the multiple
times he has been sent out of the classroom to go to the vice-principal’s office. This
approach could also help Steven think more positively about his gifts and talents,
increasing the possibility of him sharing those with his teacher and hence completing
the rebuilding of their trust (C.M Charles, 2005). Other classroom modifications that
could be made are the teacher standing at the door and greeting the students prior
to them walking into the classroom and even by giving them some one to one
attention by showing their appreciation when they are doing the right thing (C.M
Charles, 2005). Such an act could also reflect the teacher’s commitment to Personal
Conduct under Principle 2.1 where they must be positive role models in educational
settings (Victorian Institute Teaching, 2019). Furthermore, if this theoretical
approach is adopted school-wide, Steven would know what to expect from his
teachers and not display some of the more punishment evasive behaviours
mentioned earlier. He also should not have any problems deciding how to behave in
the newly established system, as it should guide him to think about how he relates
to the student code of conduct at Kolbe Catholic College.

Assertive discipline strategies do not always work as suggested by results of studies
conducted on the impact on school suspensions prior to the intervention of assertive
discipline than compared to after it was implemented (Etheridge, 2010). The studies
also suggest lower levels of abuse to school property and disruptive behaviour prior
to the implementation of assertive discipline with only a small increase in assertive
discipline violation (Etheridge, 2010). While the evidence suggests lower levels of

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problematic behaviour prior to the implementation of the assertive discipline it also
suggests there may be some undesirable views towards the rigidity of the way it
plans the classroom hierarchical rules without including the students in the rule
making process. The effectiveness of assertive discipline has been registered as
positively impactful in a series of other studies and one found that the average
number of disruptive incidents occurring in a lesson was reduced, with a 21%
increase of pupils on task (Swinson & Cording, 2002). This lies in stark contrast to the
results of the study mentioned previously, although it still maintains the fact that the
results of these studies for the effectiveness of assertive discipline are varied.
Perhaps if assertive discipline is modified to be applied in a more student centred
manner then it would be more beneficial to Steven rather than expecting him to fit a
mould of behaviour and learning.

Considering this point it is useful to acknowledge and explore Barbara Coloroso’s
Inner Discipline approach. As it is informed by a humanist view of behaviour it has a
profound impact on the behaviour of the student because it focuses on stimuli that
are available to them that are created by their needs and desires (De Noblie, Lyons,
& Arthur-Kelly, 2017). Unlike Canter’s strategy of giving students solutions to solve
problems of behaviour in classrooms, Coloroso believes the teacher should support
the student to take ownership of the problem and support them to find their own
solution (Albert, Coloroso, Nelsen & Lott, 2011). In contrast to assertive discipline, it
is necessary to eliminate the giving of excessive praise and rewards in order to help
Steven achieve a desired behaviour (Coloroso, 1995). Furthermore, not only is it by
eliminating excessive praise and rewards, a way to improve the behaviour modelling
that takes place for Coloroso’s approach, encouragement, feedback and discipline
are also important aspects (Coloroso, 1995). After all, Coloroso (1995) states that
excessive praise is detrimental to the confidence they have in their own answers,
and the self concept they have of their ability to attempt tasks because they believe
they can’t live up to what the teacher expects of them. Conversely the adult can give
encouragement and feedback to the child by reinstating things like they are
important to them, they believe in them and they are listened to in times when they

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are not misbehaving, rather than reimposing a set of programmed rules and
expectations (Coloroso, 1995).

Helping Steven to identify the cause of his distraction, his behaviour and its impact
on others would support and facilitate some autonomy for him (Coloroso, 1995).
This could work for Steven in regaining his self-esteem, therefore giving him a sense
of control over his thoughts, as he becomes more confident in his ability to make the
right solutions to problems for himself. Showing Steven the care and support his
teachers have for him through consistent support and relationship building could
also improve his attendance levels. As for Steven’s bullying behaviour it would be
necessary to utilise the three R’s of discipline which are set to address serious
problems of self discipline and they include: Restitution, which repairs damage
caused by the behaviour, resolution which involves figuring out ways to keep it from
happening again and reconciliation, the process of healing with the person who’s
being harmed (Coloroso, 1995). This approach would support Steven to assist him in
making good decisions, take accountability for his actions and to use consequences
to support the development of skills to make positive decisions in the future. Whilst
these tenets of Inner Discipline focus on the wrong doing of the individual they treat
both the perpetrator of the bullying and the bullied student with dignity and
facilitate change by getting students to think about equality. This comes in line with
Goal 1 of the Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australian’s
(Australian Education Minsters, 2008). As a result this is likely to have long-term
restorative results.

In order to foster positive behaviour for Steven it would be necessary to consider the
aforementioned behaviour theories in order for him to show improved behaviour. It
would also be appropriate to implement a school-wide approach to manage his
behaviour and this could be helped via the sharing of behaviour theories and
strategies between his teachers. It would also be recommended that teachers revise
the learning tasks they set for Steven and ensure they appeal to his individual
interests and capabilities.

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References

Australian Government Department of Education. Australian Student Wellbeing
Framework. (2019). Retrieved from
https://studentwellbeinghub.edu.au/educators/framework/

Australian Education Ministers. Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for
Young Australian’s. (2008). Melbourne.
Retrieved from
http://www.curriculum.edu.au/verve/_resources/National_Declaration_on_the_Edu
cational_Goals_for_Young_Australians.pdf

Australian Government Department of Education. (2011). National Safe Schools
Framework. Carlton South.

Bernard, B. (2004). Resilience: What We Have Learned, San Francisco: WestEd

Canter, L., & Canter, M. (2001). Assertive Discipline: Positive Behavior Management
for Today's Classroom (3rd ed.). Los Angeles: Canter & Associates.

Charles, C.M. (2005). Building Classroom Discipline. Emeritus , San Diego State
University: Pearson.

Coloroso, B. (1995). Kids Are Worth It: Giving Your Child The Gift of Inner Discipline.
Harper Collins.

De Nobile, J., Lyons, G., & Arthur-Kelly, M. (2017). Positive Learning Environments:
Creating and Maintaining Productive Classrooms. South Melbourne: Cenegage
Learning.

Department of Education and Training. (2018). Family School Partnerships
Framework. Melbourne

Etheridge, T. (2010). Assertive Discipline and It’s Impact on Disruptive Behaviour.
UMI Dissertation Publishing.

Freiberg, H. J. (1999). School Climate: Measuring, Improving and Sustaining Healthy
Learning Environments, New York: Falmer Press.

Kolbe Catholic College (2019). Our Values and Responsible Student Behaviour
Guidelines 2019. Melbourne
Retrieved from

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https://www.kolbecc.catholic.edu.au/web-portals/our-values-and-responsible-
student-behaviour/

Lewis, R. (2004). Helping Teachers Help Students Act Responsibly. Australian Council
for Educational Research.

Lewis, R. (2008). The Developmental Management Approach to Classroom Behaviour
- Responding to Individual Needs. Australian Council for Educational Research. ACER
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McDonald, T (2019). Classroom Management: Engaging Students in Learning.
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McDonald, T (2013). Classroom Management: Engaging Students in Learning. Oxford
University Press.

Rigoni, D. Walford, G. (2006). Questioning The Quick Fix: Assertive Discipline and The
1991 Education White Paper. Journal of Education Policy.

Robinson, G. & Maines, B. (1994) Assertive Discipline: Jumping on a Dated Wagon,
Educational Psychology in Practice, 9:4, 195-200. doi: 10.1080/0266736940090401

Slee, P (2017). School Bullying: Helping Students Cope. Oxon: Routledge.

Swinson, J. Cording M. (2002). Assertive Discipline In a School for Pupils With
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Conduct. Retrieved from
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