REFLECTION ON POSITIVE DISCIPLINE
Positive discipline is a method of education endorsed by Dr. Adler and Dr. Dreikurs who
understand the importance of treating everyone with respect and dignity, including children.
This method allows us to work with self-control and self-regulation not only with the students
but also with the teachers. We identify and work on our emotions, learn to project them properly
on the students and in return create a positive working environment within the classroom.
Hitting the palm of your hand with a foot rule or a bamboo stick, kneeling on a “bilao” of mongo
seeds, and spanking the bottom. These are the punishments I experienced whenever I got absent,
had no projects or assignment and when late in class. There were also times that I was punished
for not reading correctly or cannot solve math problems. The good thing is despite these
corporal punishments in school, I was able to learn. I learned to properly observe the rules in the
school. I learned to be independent and trust my abilities and God given talents. I also learned to
respect the rights of other people, and how to manage my time. Most students who experienced
corporal punishments in school before have been successful in their chosen careers nowadays.
But then again, what kind of discipline do we have in this so called 21st Century? If teachers
will apply corporal punishment nowadays, will there be a positive effect on the part of the
students?
The answer to this question is very evident in the day-to-day life of a classroom teacher. Not
mentioning the implementation of DepEd Order No.40, s. 2012 or the Policy and Guidelines on
Protecting Children from Abuse, Violence, Exploitations, Discrimination, Bullying and other
Forms of Abuse. This reminds me of my first day as a public secondary school teacher. When I
entered my first class, shock was written all over my face because of the scene inside that class.
Even though I was in front of the class, they did even mind me and kept on doing unnecessary
things until I called their attention to their unruly behaviors. Without me knowing it, the words I
uttered to them is actually verbal abuse.
REFLECTION ON HOW TO BE FAIR AND EHICAL INSIDE THE
CLASSROOM
Many aspects of the teaching assistant's role may create ethical dilemmas of one sort or
another. Your roles as adviser, evaluator, exam administrator, authority figure and peer have the
potential to become problematic at times, often because they present conflicting demands.
Because fairness is a perception based on interpretations of behavior, not intentions, many
instructors may inadvertently engage in what students perceive to be unfair behavior.
Although one might expect students to be most concerned with outcome or procedural fairness
because it affects their grades, Dr. Rita Rodabaugh has found that students consider violations of
interactional fairness to be the most severe. Interactional fairness refers to the nature of the
interaction between instructor and students and encompasses impartiality, respect, concern for
students, integrity and propriety.
Students expect an instructor to treat everyone in the class equally. Few professors intentionally
favor certain students over others, but it is probably impossible not to like some students more
than others. Differences in liking may foster differences in interactions, such as allowing certain
students to dominate discussions. Even subtle differences in how students are treated may lead to
perceptions of partiality where none exist. To avoid giving the impression of partiality, carefully
monitor your behavior and interactions with all students.
Respect involves treating students politely. Ridiculing a student or calling a student's comment
“stupid” is inappropriate in all circumstances. Students expect an instructor to listen to, carefully
consider, and give thoughtful replies to their ideas when they challenge the instructor’s views. An
instructor who is perceived as impatient or demeaning, either directly through comments or
indirectly through tone of voice, facial expressions, or posture, loses students' respect.
Patience is especially difficult when students actively misbehave in class. However, students also
expect instructors to be polite in those situations. Should you face disrespect, try to remain civil
and calm, thereby modeling the appropriate behavior for students. It is always appropriate to
meet privately with an offending student, during which you can be more direct in communicating
expectations for classroom deportment.
Concern for students. Students expect their instructors to care about them and their academic
performance. You can demonstrate such concern by learning and using students' names, talking
to them before and after class, carefully answering questions, and inviting students who appear to
be having problems with the course to discuss those problems and potential solutions. You also
can express concern by giving due consideration to student complaints, taking remedial action
when the complaints are valid, and carefully explaining your position when the complaints are
not valid.
Integrity. Integrity means being consistent and truthful, and explaining your policies, procedures
and decisions and why they are necessary, so that their fairness can be judged and understood.
For example, an attendance policy may be justifiable because attendance is correlated with
increased learning and better grades. Explaining the educational goals of various types of
assignments also can be effective. You also can demonstrate integrity by delivering promised
rewards and penalties, and admitting ignorance when appropriate.
Propriety. Propriety means acting in a socially acceptable manner that does not offend students'
sensibilities. Students expect you to follow the rules when interacting with them, even if you
believe there might be pedagogical value in breaking them. For example, research indicates that
most students find it inappropriate in most or all circumstances for an instructor to tell an off-
color story or joke. Likewise, showing an emotionally upsetting film without warning students in
advance was considered highly inappropriate.
Students also expect instructors to respect their privacy; most students find it inappropriate to
require them to reveal highly personal information in a class discussion. Finally, students expect
instructors to maintain an appropriate social distance: 54% of students surveyed in a 1993 study
by Patricia Keith Spiegel and colleagues thought it inappropriate for an instructor to date a
student and 70% believed it inappropriate for a professor to have a sexual relationship with a
student.
