User:Cvolcteacher/Sandbox page DWS

Discipline without Stress (or DWS) is a discipline and learning approach developed by Dr. Marvin Marshall described in his 2001 and 2010 books, Discipline without Stress, Punishments or Rewards and Parenting without Stress: How to Raise Responsible Kids While Keeping a Life of Your Own. The approach is designed to educate young people about the value of internal motivation with the intention of prompting and developing within them a desire to become responsible and self-disciplined and to put forth effort to learn.

The most significant characteristics of DWS are that it is totally noncoercive (but not permissive) and takes the opposite approach to Skinnerian behaviorism that relies on external sources for reinforcement. Dr. Marshall suggests that "external controls are manipulators that set up students to be dependent upon external agents because they do not foster long-term intrinsic motivation or social responsibility. A major problem with these external attempts to control is that they teach obedience without fostering responsibility. Teaching obedience is not enough. The ultimate goal is that young people act responsibly because it pays off for them—rather than to please someone else." A four part Teaching Model guides educators in the implementation of this approach. Foundational is the teaching of four concepts referred to as The Hierarchy of Social Development which is used to develop an understanding of the characteristics of internal and external motivation. With eight Significant Teaching Points in mind, young people are taught that all behavior and motivation can be assigned to one of the four Hierarchy levels, and that all behavior choices can be made consciously. Students are taught to use the Hierarchy to guide self-reflection and self-evaluation, with the goal of making responsible choices and decisions in life. Students come to understand and experience that responsible behavior, motivated from the intention to "do the right thing simply because it is the right thing to do," is inherently satisfying.

Overview of The DWS Teaching Model

The DWS Teaching Model has 4 parts. Attention to every part of the model is considered essential for successful implementation of the approach.

Part One: Classroom Management vs. Discipline

In this approach a clear distinction is made between classroom management and discipline.

Classroom management deals with how things are done. The goal is to make teaching and learning efficient and effective. Classroom management is the teacher’s responsibility. It has to do with procedures, routines, and structure. When procedures are learned, routines are established. Routines give structure to instruction. Procedures should be taught before teaching content. A major mistake so often made is assuming that students know what to do without first teaching procedures. Process precedes product.

Classroom management is enhanced when procedures are:

1. Explained to students,

2. Modeled for students,

3. Practiced by students, and periodically (when necessary)

4. Reinforced by practicing again.

Discipline, on the other hand, has to do with how people behave. Discipline is the student's responsibility and relates to impulse management and self-control. When procedures are explained, practiced, and reinforced, discipline problems decrease.

Part Two: Three Principles to Practice

Positivity

Teachers are encouraged to practice changing communications that could be perceived as negative into ones that are not dictatorial and will be perceived more positively. Effective teachers communicate in a way that promotes what is desired, rather than what is not desired. For example, "No running" becomes "We walk in the hallways." "Stop talking" becomes "This is quiet time." In addition, teachers are encouraged to deal with all situations (including negative ones) from a mindset of helping the student. Inappropriate behavior is recognized as a student's attempt to fix a frustration. With this in mind, and focused on helping, the teacher chooses to avoid any communication that could prompt negative feelings. Stress is reduced and teacher effectiveness increases in an atmosphere of positivity.

Choice

Choice-response thinking is taught. Students are introduced to the concept that all human beings possess the ability to consciously choose a response to any particular situation, stimulus or urge. As well, impulse control is taught; students need not be victims of their own impulses. A visual is used to remind young people of a procedure that can be implemented to control impulses.

Choice thinking is the primary difference between an optimistic attitude and a pessimistic one. The critical difference between optimistic thinking and pessimistic thinking has to do with the power of choosing one's responses. In this approach, choice is the main vehicle for moving from external to internal control. "Offering choices in a noncoercive environment empowers people to change. People are not changed by other people. You may coerce someone into temporary compliance, but change comes from internal motivation. In all human relations and in fostering social responsibility with young people, lasting changes comes from within, not from without. With this thinking in mind, we can make real progress."

Reflection

Since a person can only control another person temporarily and because no one can actually change another person, teachers train themselves to ask reflective questions in order to actuate change in others. Reflection is an important practice for self-growth. Self-reflection ( in effect, "self-evaluation") engenders self-correction, an effective route to improvement and growth. DWS teachers are encouraged to ask students evaluative questions such as "What can you do to accomplish that?" or "Are you angry at me or at the situation?" to prompt deep and reflective thinking. Using these kinds of questions, teachers are able to direct the thinking of young people in a positive way. Marshall suggests, "In addition, these kinds of evaluative questions empower the young person because the ideas that people support most are ones they come up with themselves. The answers that are most important to people are their own. Ownership is a critical component for self-evaluation and change."

Part Three: The Raise Responsibility System (RRSystem)

Teaching the concepts; The Hierarchy of Social Development

A Hierarchy of four levels is taught to engender a desire in students to behave responsibly and a desire to put forth effort to learn. Students differentiate between internal and external motivation—and learn to rise above inappropriate peer influence.

Checking for Understanding (Asking reflective questions)

Students reflect on the level of their chosen behavior. This approach separates the person from the behavior, thereby negating the usual tendency to defend one’s actions. Dr. Marshall proposes that a prime reason why teachers and students so often react against each other is that the student has a natural tendency to self-defend when accused. By using the hierarchy, self-defense is eliminated because reference is never made to the behavior. Reference is always towards the benchmark of what has been taught: The Hierarchy of Social Development.

Guided Choices (Eliciting a consequence or procedure)

If disruptions continue, a consequence or procedure is elicited to redirect the inappropriate behavior. This approach is in contrast to the usual coercive approach of imposing consequences.

Part Four: Using the System to Increase Motivation and Learning

Using the hierarchy BEFORE a lesson or activity and reflecting AFTER a lesson or activity increases motivation, improves learning, and raises academic achievement.

The Hierarchy of Social Development

(As with any hierarchy, the most advanced or highest level is placed at the top.)

Level D - Democracy (highest level)

• Develops self-discipline
• Demonstrates initiative
• Displays responsibility
• Does good because it is the right thing to do
• The motivation is INTERNAL.
  

LEVEL C - Cooperation/Conformity

• Considerate
• Cooperates
• Complies
• Conforms
• This level is characterized by consideration and complying with requests, but the MOTIVATION is EXternal.
  

The two higher levels of MOTIVATION are BOTH acceptable.
___________________________________________________

The two lower levels of BEHAVIOR are NOT acceptable.

LEVEL B - Bullying/Bossing

• Bosses others
• Bothers others
• Bullies others
• Breaks laws and makes own standards
• Must be bossed to behave

Level A - Anarchy (lowest level)

• Absence of order
• Aimless and chaotic
• Absence of government
• Anarchy is the fundamental enemy of civilization.

Some Explanatory Notes:

• The concept of democracy is used to describe the highest level (D) because democracy and responsibility are inseparable. The goal is to aim at this level.

• Action at Level C is often prompted by MOTIVATION to please others, receive a reward, or to avoid a negative consequence. Most of us live our lives at this level. A danger exists at this level, however, when the young conform and comply to peer influence that may not be in society's or in the person's best interests.

• The difference between the two higher levels lies in the MOTIVATION, rather than in the behavior. For example, if an adult asks a child to pick up trash and dispose of it, and the child does, that demonstrates Level C. If, however, the child sees the trash and takes the initiative to dispose of it WITHOUT THE ADULT’s FIRST ASKING, that demonstrates Level D motivation. The BEHAVIOR at Level C and D is often the same. The difference is in the MOTIVATION.

• Level B is characterized by a lack of impulse control, a lack of consideration for others, and by displaying inappropriate behaviors. When behaving at this level the young are sending the message, "Control us because we are not capable of controlling ourselves."

• Level A is characterized by chaos, being out of control, unsafe.