1. The teacher
* Don't go to class unprepared: Students will identify teachers who are not sure what to do in the classroom. The teacher has to appear to be well prepared and knowledgeable about the subject.
* Don't be inconsistent: If you allow students to come to class late without taking action one week they cannot be reproached for doing the same thing the following week.
* Don't issue threats: Teachers who threaten students with consequences for unacceptable types of behaviour and then do not carry them out are doing both the class and themselves a disservice. Hopefully threats are not necessary, but it is fatal to say that some action is going to be taken if it is not.
* Don't raise your voice: This almost always has disastrous consequences leading to a general raising of noise in the classroom. Very often a calm but firm voice is far more effective.
* Don't give boring lessons! Perhaps the greatest single cause of indiscipline is boredom. Interested students do not intentionally misbehave in the classroom.
* Don't be unfair: Avoid having favourites and/or picking on particular students.
* Don't have a negative attitude to learning: A teacher who does not really care and who is insensitive to students will lose their respect- the first step to behaviour problems.
* Don't break the code: If the code is that students should arrive on time, then the teacher must too. If homework is to be handed in on time, then it must be corrected promptly.
2. The Student(s)
Action in the case of inappropriate behaviour
* Act immediately: When the code is broken, you should act at once. The longer a discipline problem is left unchecked, the more difficult it will be to take action.
* Stop the class: Tell the students who are behaving badly what is wrong. Many teachers refuse to re-start the class until the students have settled down: they simply stop the class, make it clear that the behavior is unsatisfactory and wait until things improve.
* Reseat misbehaving students: An effective way of controlling a student who is behaving badly is to make them sit in a different place immediately. Where troublesome students are sitting together they should be separated, often to the front of the class.
* Change the activity: When a majority of the class seems to be getting out of control, a change of activity will often restore order. A quick writing task will often quiet students down; the same effect can be achieved by a reading task or listening. Generally bad behavior can be cured if students are given something to do which will involve them.
* Meet after class: Where one student is continually causing trouble, the teacher should take that student to the side after class. Explain why the behavior is unacceptable, give them a chance to say why they behave in this way and spell out the consequences if it continues.
* Consult your school social personale: You should not have to suffer on your own!
