A brief history of behaviour in schools

In 1986, corporal punishment was banned in state schools in the UK. From that point onwards, if you wanted your children physically disciplined by professionals, you had to send them to private school. (The ban was extended to independent schools in 1999.)

So what strategies has the teaching profession used to manage behaviour since then?

Popular strategies that don't work

1. Shouting. Still massively popular with some teachers. Everyone feels better after a good raised-voice rant — apart from the children, and sometimes not even the teacher.
2. Having a chat with them. A pupil does something wrong — the teacher has a chat. The pupil does something more serious — a longer chat. Then if the pupil does something really serious, instead of an even longer chat, they get sent to the highest-paid person in the building, who will (you guessed it) have a chat. This is repeated until the child leaves the school.
3. Using incredibly dull, exercise-book-based work that minimises the chance of poor behaviour. Great for nervous teachers. Terrible for learners.
4. Ignoring poor behaviour. More prevalent than you would imagine. This is where teachers simply pretend that everything is fine.

Popular strategies that work but need updating

1. Warning systems. The problem with warning systems is that they work even when implemented badly. But it does not take much to make them significantly more effective and consistent. The first step is making sure pupils know what is expected of them. When they know this, you can be much fairer when moving them through your chosen system.
2. Rewards. Rewards are the bluntest behaviour management instrument in use in schools today. The policy of stickers, stamps, and countable rewards is so endemic it is beyond question in many schools. But we really need to question it. The research is not kind to contingent reward systems.

That was the history. Teachers, just like you, will shape the future.