"Welcome to your first day of school, boys and girls. We have a few rules we must follow and they're all written on my poster. I also have consequences listed should my rules not be followed." Each year within the first hours of the first day at Washington-Franklin Elementary, students heard something similar to the declaration above. Teachers this year, however, are trying a different approach for establishing parameters of student misbehavior. With the guidance of their teacher, students now cooperatively set the rules of conduct and establish reasonable consequences if rules are broken.

A Different Approach

The Power of Class Meetings

Debbie Owen and Linda Escobar combined their talents to conduct a two-day process in developing a positive approach to classroom management. Their answers to difficult questions about student misbehavior and reasonable consequences came with confident, reasoned responses. Both Debbie and Linda skillfully managed our group, always with respect.

Here is how one teacher describes her class-meeting time. "The kids are learning to pay each other compliments and at times finding it hard to do_they are so accustomed to put downs." For many of our teachers, the class meeting is beginning to unfold as a powerful lesson in problem solving and consensus building.

Kids continue to misbehave and test the rules. Class meetings have not yet become the total answer. Teachers are starting to see, however, that class meetings offer positive action for dealing with difficult children and solving complex problems. Teachers find they do not have to be autocrats who must coerce children and struggle with them for power. As for students, today they can exercise their voice over class decisions affecting them and become shareholders in their classroom.

What Lies Ahead

Even today, we are beginning to focus on the future. Not all teachers were available for the two-day workshop on class meetings. Word spread quickly how beneficial the training was, and those who could not attend wanted more information and a second workshop. Next year we hope to bring back the class-meeting in-service and, further, arrange for follow up during the year. Our consultants could then become a part of our school day, making visits to classrooms, observing our class meetings and conducting their own meetings. In this way they can gain an appreciation for our children, and our school's culture. Such on-site participation will provide truly relevant feedback and even more innovative directions for our elementary school.