[etni] fw: From the British Council
- From: "Ask" <ask@xxxxxxxx>
- To: <etni@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 7 Jan 2006 22:21:49 +0200
From: "Esther Lucas" - lucas@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: From the British Council
The following information appeared in this week's British Council
suggestions for EFL teachers. Can be found at
http://searchenglish.britishcoundil.org
Might be of interest to some of us.
Esther
Cure difficult pupils with praise, teachers told: (05/01/06)
PA News
Published: 05 January 2006
Teachers should tackle bad behaviour in class by praising their
pupils instead of telling them off, according to research published
today.
Positive feedback leads even the most difficult pupils to behave
better, according to academics at Liverpool John Moores University.
But disciplining an unruly child in front of the whole class is
the worst thing a teacher can do, the researchers said.
Research author Dr Jeremy Swinson said such a tactic only provokes
difficult pupils into the kind of "am I bovvered?" response coined by TV
comic Catherine Tate.
"If you want to motivate any group of people you don't do it by
telling them off," he said.
"You do it by accentuating the positives. That's what you need to
do in the classroom."
Dr Swinson and Professor Alex Harrop analysed the effects of a
short three-hour training scheme on teachers at six primary and
secondary schools in north-west England.
The training advised teachers not to draw attention to pupils who
were not working properly but instead praise children who were working
well nearby.
Teachers were told to give clear instructions, frequently
acknowledge pupils behaving well, and give more positive feedback for
good behaviour at the beginning of a lesson or new activity.
After the training, teachers cut the number of "tellings off" by
two-thirds and dramatically increased the amount of positive feedback
that they gave.
As a result, the proportion of pupils concentrating in class and
behaving well went up from an average of 78% before to 94% after the
training, Dr Swinson said.
Dr Swinson presented the findings at the British Psychological
Society's Division of Educational and Child Psychology annual conference
in Bournemouth.
"Many teachers were unaware of the skills needed to deal with
unruly classes and over-relied on telling pupils off, which in the long
run has very little effect on the pupils' behaviour," he said.
But teachers should be specific about their praise rather than
being a praise "automaton".
They should give positive feedback when children deserve it and
also describe the behaviour which they are praising, he said.
"If you say, well done Julie for sitting quietly, you are
repeating your direction to the class.
"It is that description that is heard by the rest of the class."
Dr Swinson insisted his approach was not "soft" on discipline.
Teachers must never ignore unruly behaviour and should use
sanctions available to them in more serious cases, he said.
But publicly telling off a difficult pupil was an "incredibly bad"
tactic.
"What every teacher wants is for children to do as they have been
told, in other words, to behave.
"The most effective strategy of getting anybody to do as they are
told is to be positive."
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