Difficult students 101

Several incidents of students attacking teachers have been reported in the media. Let's share some strategies to deal with difficult students. Teachers and parents will find this article useful.

1. Identify and refer problem students: Unfortunately, there are many students in the school system with multiple problems. They display acting-out behaviours, are oppositional, defiant, disruptive in class and may display attention-seeking behaviour.

2. Set clear consequences: Teachers should set clear rules and consequences in the classroom. If not, disruptive students will find loopholes in order to take control.

3. Show affection: Many of these students are crying out for love and attention. It is important to spot these students and show them love.

4. Identify positive behaviours and qualities: Every student has positive qualities. Look for them and give them encouragement and praise. It is often missing in their lives.

5. Be aware of students pushing your buttons: Buttons are the words or actions that students use to get teachers to lose control. Problem students will push buttons and, when they make the teacher lose her cool and become upset and angry, they are in charge.

6. Communicate using 'I Messages'; avoid 'You Messages'. Here is an example: A student comes to class late. The teacher is angry and says to the student. "You are late. You are a real failure." That is an example of a 'You Message', and this type of message humiliates and embarrasses. Often, 'You Messages' trigger 'lashing out' behaviour by students and they become disrespectful to the teacher. The better approach is to communicate using "I Message'. The teacher could have said instead, "I am very disappointed that you have come to my class late."

7. Avoid labelling and 'futurising'. Avoid labels such as 'no good', 'stupid', 'lazy', 'you always', as students often live up to the labels. Futurising statements include, "You will never pass the exam" and "You will never come to anything." Labels make students angry and resentful towards teachers. The teacher should label the behaviour without labelling or putting down the student.

8. Exit and Wait. When you are angry with a student or at a point of confrontation, it is better to exit and wait. When the teacher exits the situation calmly, she sends a strong signal and allows her to maintain calm and composure. The student will not feel that he has control of the situation. Exiting does not mean walking out of a classroom, although this may be necessary. It means exiting a potentially explosive situation or avoiding a confrontation. For example, a student is shouting, the teacher may respond like this, " What you are doing right now is not respectful, so I am going to leave it here and I will talk to you when you are calmer."

Dr Wendel Abel is a consultant psychiatrist and head, Section of Psychiatry, Dept. Of Community Health and Psychiatry, University of the West Indies; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.