The Barbed Wire Model

I enjoyed this article very much. I think the analogy is perfect for the classroom, especially the middle school classroom. I really liked the section about letting the kids be their own judge & jury:

"Another strategy is to avoid the role of judge, jury, and executioner. Put that on the shoulders of the student, where it belongs. Students understand consequences, and if an infraction occurs, they need to take responsibility. It is a question of changing "I am going to punish you" to "Your actions are punishing you. What are you going to do about it?" The difference between these statements is that with the second one, when you are not there, your students will still monitor themselves"

I totally agree with this and do some of this already. I have always thought that when it comes to grades and consequences the teacher as the "giver" is doomed from the start. I have often told my students that I don't give grades, I record grades. If I have done my job then each and every one of them knows what they need to do to achieve the grade they desire. All that is left for me to do is record their level of achievement. I have always thought grades & consequences are often times too subjective. If kids know what will earn them an "A" and what will earn them a detention, then I am simply the facilitator, instead of the judge & jury. I like the language Ben Johnson used in his example and I think he is right that they will start to realize that their actions have consequences regardless of who is or isn't around. Maybe this is the key to self-discipline?

What I like about my classroom is that no one is afraid to be themselves, including the teacher. I have really tried to celebrate the the individual strengths of all students, but am quick to stamp out people trying to chop someone down for being different. I have a loose environment where humor, music, and fun is o.k. as long as it doesn't get in the way. I like a friendly classroom where the teacher isn't trying to be friends with the kids. They have plenty of friends, what they need are teachers, but that doesn't mean we can't be human and enjoy ourselves. A classroom should be somewhere students & teachers enjoy being, and I think I have that.