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The question whether teachers should punish students for bad behavior has been asked and discussed many times. And yet, there has never been an universal answer to that controversial question. I believe that there are different factors that need to be taken into consideration when looking at that issue. First of all, the word “punishment” has a bad connotation to it for some people and it can mean a variety of things, such as corporal punishment, the revoking of privileges, or the adding of chores. The term “bad behavior” can also mean different things in different contexts to different people. Some teachers might consider it bad behavior if a student gets up in the middle of the lesson to sharpen a pencil without asking for permission while other teachers will tolerate this scenario without any problems. I personally believe that there should be consequences for bad actions in a classroom. However, those consequences should be appropriate for the actions. But for consequences to have the desired effect there is the need for a foundation. Teachers have to be clear about their expectations in the classroom so students can understand where the consequences are coming from. If there is need for consequences they should be meaningful and help the students move forward and grow. They shouldn’t just be made up on the spot in the heat of an argument or chaos. For example, if a student repeatedly is disturbing the lesson the teacher could tell him or her to copy a sentence 50 times and double the amount if the student continues to interrupt. While this might be effective to get the student to be quiet, it won’t help him or her to really think about what to change. Another, and in my opinion better, approach could be to have that student write a paper on why their behavior isn’t appropriate and what they are going to change the next time. Not only does this give the student a chance to think, but also gives them a chance to explain why that behavior is happening. Or, if the students are younger and aren’t able to write yet, the teacher could have them walk laps during recess until they are ready to talk to the teacher about why they had gotten that consequence and what they will do better. I also believe that, if students get punished, the teacher needs to repeat expectations or alternative behavior to make sure that students really understand the reason for punishment. Another very important aspect is to be consistent and treat all students the same in order for the teacher not to lose credibility or respect. But I believe that the most important part of punishing bad actions is doing the opposite: praising and rewarding good behavior. If students only get punished for bad things and never get any recognition for the good things they do, they will get discouraged and will not be motivated to make wise choices. In conclusion, yes, I believe that students should have consequences for bad actions, but those consequences must be meaningful and give the students a chance to grow. However, I believe that specific praise and rewards for good behavior is even more important and definitely more motivational for the students and will result in a warm and trusted classroom environment.
