I don't think that anyone can argue that behaviour and learning are inextricably linked, many schools including mine talk about learning behaviours for example Guy Claxton's Rs, whilst some suggest that paying attention and working hard are all that you need.
With reference to the above links, I think the @informededu comment best captures where I stand. I think the patterns of causality are more complex than laying the "blame" solely at either the teacher or the students. In either case it is very easy to fall into a vicious circle where no one wins and therefore no one learns (including the teacher).
As an NQT you will get a lot of advice, I have been told both "Treat every class as if they are your favourites" and "Be an arsehole until Christmas". Whilst it is easy to understand the sentiment and reasoning behind both of these exhortations, actually neither are particularly helpful, especially as you find yourself with a class in front of you in September and suddenly things can feel a little bit lonely.
I work in a school where students are on the whole very well behaved and support is good, but have spent time in other schools where this was certainly not the case. I have worked alongside and been taught by "arseholes" who clearly did not like kids, and spewers of praise that remind me of Zane Lowe (who probably says awesome each time he takes a dump). Neither instil any kind of discipline.
I remember clearly our Art GCSE as we had a completely adorable teacher for Year 10 whose favourite phrase was "love it to death", sadly though she left us in Year 11 due to stress (telling) and was replaced with a frankly murderous sod who began by reading a passage from Ezekiel 21:22 about being at the gates (the work we did with the previous teacher did not meet the criteria for the spec!)
You know what, I learned more with the latter, with the former we would see what we could get away with in the spirit of modern art; Me: "Look Miss I put my mates head in place of the band members of East 17 for my T shirt design, it's post-modern", Teacher: "Love it to death". Oh dear.
That said the latter, convinced me jobs in art were crap and I shouldn't follow my passion at the time and be a graphic designer. Oh dear.
Advice for NQTs
The idea that lesson planning and teacher attitude has an effect on behaviour is TRUE! However the impact of poor behaviour on learning is greater; as an NQT you are starting from scratch so you should focus on behaviour management in your first year or until you feel that things are comfortable.
DO NOT let your mentor or head of department tell you that poor behaviour in the first instance is your fault, it's not your fault, nor is it personal. Children will naturally test a new face, they will seek to determine where the boundary lies. Sadly there are instances where children literally do not care if they get into trouble, but for most this is an attempt to see how far they can go BEFORE they get into trouble.
Find someone who can support you in seeing things through, this should be your HOD or mentor but if this is not working, even office staff can be lifesavers if for example you have a compassionate receptionist like ours (actually I think she just gets sick of me asking for stuff and finds it easier to say yes) who photocopies my detention slips and will get them distributed.
This year I have found it incredibly tough to keep on top of behaviour in my department. My timetable has been pretty hectic and as head of Music and KS3 Performing Arts I have 750 kids to monitor. Next year sadly I have had to hand my home group over to another member of staff and I plan to use the gained time to get on top of department detentions. This year during my run of PPA-less days, I have had to wait often up to 4 days to confront kids after receiving reports of bad behaviour and this breaks my heart, mostly for the teachers in my department who deserve better support from me.
You head of department should be your rock and (as in the stages below) they are a crucial linchpin in the system, but sadly from what I read and have observed over my career this is not always the case. Find someone and use them, there are lots of good willed people out there. Why not share detentions with another NQT? DO cascade things upwards!
Save your praise for things that are really praise worthy. A class should be quite, they should take their bags off their desks, don't congratulate them for doing the simple things, it's their job. Will they thank you for preparing the lesson?
Respond to politeness in kind and model the kind of behaviour you expect.
High expectations is a term that is banded about left, right and centre but it really is as simple as that. The difficulty comes in having the time, support and conviction to keep these expectations and to see things through. Have high expectations, do not let them drop.
At our school we have a clear set of steps for dealing with behaviour and they work when applied consistently within and between classrooms. These are not mine, but I use them.
Two things are crucial here, first is the language of choice (more on this in a bit) and the second is a bit of a get out of jail free card; the idea of a refusal to follow a reasonable request being regarded amongst the most serious of offences. Even if you don't come to work in our school, I think this is something that you can adopt and make clear as an NQT. Make it clear that you expect children to follow instructions, this might seem obvious or churlish to state, but if you an elevate it to have the same import as below, it can be used as a lever.
On the subject of levers, my experience tells me that children can be incredibly difficult, but they can also be manipulated. The language of choice I think is crucial. Here is an uncomfortable truth, there are times when certain children in certain states of mind will simply not do what you want them to do, not matter who you are, NQT or not. You just aren't going to win... for now.
Even in these cases I would suggest that you present choices to the students, but the key is to make it clear that there is a right and wrong choice and that there will be consequences too. Yes, the bullish child might take the wrong path, but you offered them a way out.
Actually, from my experience in the majority of cases when presented with a choice, students will back down, it's not NLP or any of that nonsense, it is just a case of giving them a way to not lose face, and tricking them into thinking its what they want to do as well.
Consequences of Misbehaviour
Each time you fail to meet the expectations of behaviour, you are making a choice. If you choose to behave in a way which is unacceptable then the following consequences will be applied:
STAGE 1
Verbal reprimand by the teacher.
STAGE 2
Verbal reprimand by the teacher and at this point you will also be:
● Instructed to move to another seat
● Asked to stay behind to talk to the teacher at a time of their choice
STAGE 3
If you have chosen not to improve your behaviour you will be put on a detention by your subject teacher and can also expect to be:
● Reported to the Head of Department and moved to a different room to work
● Spoken to by your Learning Manager or Pastoral Coordinator who will consider placing you on report and contacting your parents
STAGE 4
If you have chosen to continue your inappropriate behaviour the sanctions at Stage 3 will be applied and you will incur the following:
● 1 hour school detention
● Parents informed and where appropriate invited into school
If your inappropriate behaviour continues after Stages 1-4 you will be removed from the classroom, your parents contacted and you may be excluded.
Internal or external exclusions will be given for the following behaviours which are absolutely unacceptable:
● Fighting or violence
● Open defiance by refusing to follow a reasonable request from a member of staff
● Swearing at a member of staff
● Possession of drugs or alcohol
● Possession of an offensive weapon
REMEMBER The choice is yours—behave in an appropriate way and avoid the above consequences.
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