Love and Logic as a Discipline System
In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments; there are only consequences.
- Robert Green Ingersoll There is a rare change in the schedule. The students will be going directly to lunch after the next lesson. The next period, the one before lunch, will be in another room. The teacher instructs the students to bring their lunches. The instructions are repeated several times and the teacher even had three different students repeat the directions in an effort to ensure all understood. Upon arriving at the lunch room one student, who was completely off task while the schedule change was explained, informs the teacher that he has forgotten his lunch and asks if he can run back to the classroom to get it. What should be the teacher’s response? It’s one of those incidents that may not necessarily require a disciplinary action. Does the school’s discipline system have a scenario for this? A young boy sits in the back of the class. It’s the third place he has been moved this school year and it’s only October. He is not very disrespectful nor is he all that talkative, it’s more of a cumulative thing. Everyday it’s the same, small, yet disruptive behaviors. The teacher has made sure to have the red yellow and green cards in plain view and the rules leading up to card pulling clearly posted in two different spots in the room. The class even helped decide on the classroom rules and consequences at the beginning of the year. What can keep this boy on green instead of yellow and red? What can be done so that he sees what he’s doing and quickly learns to self-regulate? Love & Logic is not a discipline system. It’s a way to help kids see and take responsibility. It can be used alone or with other programs. If it were the only thing implemented in a classroom or even a home family environment, the need for a more affective approach would become unnecessary. And if a school has been switching discipline systems frequently in search of something more affective, they could
- Robert Green Ingersoll There is a rare change in the schedule. The students will be going directly to lunch after the next lesson. The next period, the one before lunch, will be in another room. The teacher instructs the students to bring their lunches. The instructions are repeated several times and the teacher even had three different students repeat the directions in an effort to ensure all understood. Upon arriving at the lunch room one student, who was completely off task while the schedule change was explained, informs the teacher that he has forgotten his lunch and asks if he can run back to the classroom to get it. What should be the teacher’s response? It’s one of those incidents that may not necessarily require a disciplinary action. Does the school’s discipline system have a scenario for this? A young boy sits in the back of the class. It’s the third place he has been moved this school year and it’s only October. He is not very disrespectful nor is he all that talkative, it’s more of a cumulative thing. Everyday it’s the same, small, yet disruptive behaviors. The teacher has made sure to have the red yellow and green cards in plain view and the rules leading up to card pulling clearly posted in two different spots in the room. The class even helped decide on the classroom rules and consequences at the beginning of the year. What can keep this boy on green instead of yellow and red? What can be done so that he sees what he’s doing and quickly learns to self-regulate? Love & Logic is not a discipline system. It’s a way to help kids see and take responsibility. It can be used alone or with other programs. If it were the only thing implemented in a classroom or even a home family environment, the need for a more affective approach would become unnecessary. And if a school has been switching discipline systems frequently in search of something more affective, they could
References: Fay, J., & Funk, D. (1995). Teaching with love & logic: Taking control of the classroom. Golden, Co: The Love and Logic Press. Jones, F. (2000). Tools for teaching. Santa Cruz: Fredric H. Jones & Associates. Wong, H. K., & Wong, R. T. (2001). The first days of teaching: How to be an affective teacher. Mountain View CA: Harry K. Wong Publications. Lemov, D. (2010). Teach like a champion: The 49 techniques that put students on the path to college. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Ford, E., E. (1997). Discipline for home and school. Scottsdale, AZ: Brandt Publishing. Brady, K., Forton, M., B., Porter, D., Wood, C., (2003). Rules in School. Greenfield MA: Northeast Foundation for Children. Northeast Foundation for Children (2007). Responsive Classroom: Level 1 Resource Book. Turners Falls, MA: Northeast Foundation for Children.