Many school districts are racing to remove student accountability. Time-out is being outlawed. Suspensions are becoming a no-no. And rules are now mere suggestions and open to wide interpretation.
The result, of course, is a worsening of behavior.
Remove accountability and bullying, rudeness, disrespect, and every other form of misbehavior will rise like an angry phoenix.
Oh, district leaders won’t tell you that.
They won’t even admit to themselves that they’re getting rid of accountability. “Accountability? Are you kidding? Never!” They’ll tell you that they’re just shifting it toward a more thoughtful, progressive approach.
They’ll talk about participatory decision making, continuums of restoration, and repairing social harm. They’ll wax about the stunning benefits and evidenced-based bona fides.
But they won’t tell you what the approach actually is. They won’t say what you are to do as a teacher to protect the rights of your students to learn without interference.
There are two reasons for this:
1. They don’t know.
2. It doesn’t exist.
Oh sure, there will be plenty of trainings on hash-out circles and the indignity of asking a victim of bullying to meet with their tormentor.
You’ll learn about redirecting off-task behavior, handing out more tokens and rewards, and asking what you can do for a student in response to their ruining your lesson or threatening to harm another student.
You’ll learn about (forced) reconciliation, communities of care, and the importance of querying students about why they misbehaved. You’ll hear about stakeholders and support groups, repair plans and contentedness, mediation and other nebulous terms.
You’ll be told that restorative practices have been shown to decrease suspension rates by 87%—a bogus claim given that one of its trademarks is to not suspend.
And they’ll couch the whole enchilada under the protective cover of accountability.
It’s a common tactic. You defend what you know parents, the public, and most teachers would be dead-set against by naming it precisely what they’re universally in favor of—that is, accountability.
But here’s the thing, and the point of this article: You can’t escape human nature. You can’t escape the fact that when enforcement is removed, the result is more misbehavior. Take away the consequences from your classroom and within a day things will start going south.
Yes, you can counsel your students. You can plead with them. You can have them meet in a circle to air their grievances instead of working on academics.
You can warn them until your blue in the face. You can have private confabs and group sessions and talking-tos. But you will lose control, learning will suffer, and the enjoyment of being in your class will die.
True accountability, wherein a misbehaving student misses out on something they want to be part of, is good. It teaches critical life lessons like responsibility, empathy, humility, respect, and the desire not to make the same mistake again.
Following a classroom management plan is also fair to every student.
It doesn’t play favorites. It knows no color or creed. As long as it’s followed to a tee, it doesn’t open the teacher up to bias, implicit or otherwise. Done right, and how we recommend here at SCM, it’s remarkably effective and results in a happy, respectful, and hardworking class.
It also protects students from being bullied and made fun of. It frees them to be themselves and grow socially and academically. It teaches them that certain behaviors will limit future success.
It’s the very definition of equality.
So, you may ask, why are they doing it? Why are district leaders getting rid of true forms of accountability? Why are they depriving students of fairness and the freedom to learn unimpeded?
Because they want to ensure equal outcomes for every student.
This is the goal—no matter how unsatisfactory the outcome is, even if it means an unsafe environment, classroom chaos, and less opportunity for students.
Gone is the demand for kindness and respect and striving for excellence. Gone is punctuality and politeness and pulling yourself up by the bootstaps. Gone is holding students to a standard required for success in school, career, and life.
In its place is the goal of cutting every student to the same size, like majestic redwoods with their tops loped off.
So go ahead, district leaders and smarter-than-you politicians. Show everyone how compassionate and forward thinking you are. Smile for the cameras. Get quoted in the papers.
Walk the halls in your fanciest suit, hold your chin up high, and look down your nose at those doing the noble work in the classrooms.
But do so knowing the cost to the teachers, parents, and students you purport to care so much about.
PS – By following the SCM approach school-wide, suspensions will be a rarity. However, they’re necessary for severe misbehavior in order to protect students and teachers alike and send the message that violence (or threats thereof) will not be tolerated.
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GREAT ARTICLE!!! Accountability is a must.
The left controls education and the bigotry of low expectations permeates EVERY decision they make. If you’re poor enough or are “of color” enough they don’t possibly expect you to behave or to be on time for class or meet assignment deadlines nor is that desirable because then you’d be just like us irredeemably evil white privileged people.
That’s not true. Just be a person of integrity as a grown up, and model that for your own children and students. Take responsibility for your actions, and respect yourself and others. Left and right doesn’t matter as both sides have been involved in education, depending on who’s in office. Taking sides and blaming others doesn’t work. The question is…how do we fix this trend that leaves teachers sometimes fending for themselves?
Agreed. “Accountability” just sounds like reluctance to acknowledge the success of restorative practices and how racial bias impacts suspensions.
I also agree. This article has made me decide not to follow this blog anymore. It’s clear that Michael is speaking from a place of privilege and protecting their brand. I’ve seen first-hand how incorporating restorative justice practices and PBIS has turned around the damage “zero-tolerance” policies had done to our Black and Brown students. Of course, anything new is met with resistance, and without proper implementation and ongoing support, does not work. For too long “accountability” has been used as an excuse to punish students for circumstances out of their control and that has to stop.
Don’t let the door hit your backside on the way out. Let me show you the way with my white male privilege light that has cut a path through all of life’s difficulties. Keep up the good work Michael.
Alicia, I may also decide to unsubscribe. As a school counselor, I value strong class management, logical consequences, AND responses like circles, meditation, and restorative practices. I send articles from this subscription to my teachers often, reassuring them that I support rules and expectations in the classroom. I think there are times for severe consequences, but they are often overused in schools/districts that don’t use alternative approaches. In the district I’m in, they more often are used for male students, particularly those with no family clout (due to money, sports, or local connections). I DON’T support consequence-free schools. There is nothing more frustrating as a counselor than seeing a student who needs boundaries continually get a pass to do what they want. My belief is that students who aren’t taught boundaries end up with very severe learning curves and consequences as adults and aren’t set up for success. But that doesn’t mean that gentler approaches aren’t effective. They are not the enemy. This particular article is worded in such a way that for the first time I find myself hovering over the unsubscribe button.
Exactly! The name calling between us adults has got to stop. Let’s just bring back good old fashioned discipline, including self discipline, for all!
Adam, Your comment makes no sense. It appears to be an opportunistic swipe at ideas that you don’t agree with on a blog that isn’t political. On the hallway where I teach, the teacher who is least likely to have high expectations for students voted for DT. The two teachers with the highest expectations (I am one of them) are “left” or what ever you want to call it. That said I agree with Michael’s observations here. I also know that most schools lack resources (enough humans) that really have the skills to counsel students who are having repeated self-control issues so it falls on teachers who don’t have time, lack the skills, or the will. This fact alone, drives the survival behaviors that administrators and teachers adapt to get through the day which focus on lower expectations.
Really? Not in Florida.
This has nothing to do with left vs right.
Also, you insinuate that poor people and people of color create problems in the classroom. I have far fewer problems with those kids than with some of my privileged students who think they don’t have to listen to me because they make more in their allowances than I do in my paycheck.
Wait, what???
Isn’t that racist, as well?!? These politicians believe that poor and/or colored people cannot perform well?
BS
My experience has been that the soft sell ‘oh the poor kid needs a break’ tends to go to the white kids. They are the ones tossing desks and ripping things off walls….running out of class and having half the admin following them…but doing nothing. My experience is in primary school. I’ve had it with all the children who do follow rules getting wagged by these children who need accountability.
Adam-
I have to say that my most difficult students are from white “privileged” families (and very conservative), and I am a teacher with high expectations. Their attitude of entitlement can dominate the tone of a classroom. I completely agree with this article—thanks Michael!
Bravo ! Bravo !!!!‼️‼️‼️‼️
Thank you.
Amen! This is all so true! It SHOULD be common sense, but that seems to be dying in our world…
Teacher for 27+ years
I’d like to hear how this extends to grade accountability. What happens when grades are raised to prevent discouraging students?
I work in a public elementary school in a small town (grades K-2). I feel so frustrated when students who have chair throwing, trash can-flipping, locker- kicking behavior can go “talk it out” with someone and return to class 30 minutes later (or less), and we are supposed to act like nothing happened. Right after my blood pressure and pulse have finally returned to normal, as have my students. In the name of making everything “fair,” we need to recognize that teachers and remaining students are being traumatized by these scenes in our classrooms!
I agree!
Wow! This is spot-on! I’m tempted to send to my principal, as we are living the truth in what you say.
Good luck with that one. Michael mentions that the administrators can’t really hear it. He’s suggesting that we all develop our own classroom management plan and stick to it. Fair for all. Protect the learning of all.
Restoration only works as an add on to accountability. Without it, students will feel they own the classroom, the teacher, the class, the student body, the principal, the school.
Hmmmm… I’ve been wondering about this. I visit a class where the discipline plan is to have a conversation. If it happens again, another conversation. A third time? Another conversation and also one with the parent. It doesn’t seem to work. Since I’m a specialist, I snag the offender at their recess time to have my “ conversation” and make them miss out on something they want. If they are having recess in class, then they can owe me classwork at recess. And there are other issues at the kindergarten level. Kids who are sent to the office for misbehavior are rewarded in various ways. They get to “take breaks”, special food treats, twirl in office chairs, say hi to everyone walking by, and get hugs. No wonder they are repeat offenders.
Sounds good to me.
This article speaks volumes to what is sadly occurring in our Nation’s schools, and Society in general.
Thank you, Michael, for speaking the truth. Its time for DO Leaders to face reality and not only hold students/ teachers accountable, but themselves , as well!
This is just so much common sense! Lots of initiatives look workable until you realize that you cannot remove that element of human nature referenced in the article.
Good day
I totally and full heartedly agree with you – there is NO SUPPORT for discipline in the classrooms and teachers are robbed of their right to enforce it.
I am in South Africa and can tell you horror stories of what we have to endure under the veil of previously disadvantaged kids. It starts with the parents who have no accountability themselves and leave it to the teacher to try and rectify. Teachers get blamed if the child does not advance – the situation is out of control and chaotic here.
Thank heavens for the voice of reason!!!
I LOVE THIS ARTICLE! It is happening everywhere when I thought it was just our school. It is a disservice to the students. Maybe this year should be scrapped and they can start over. IDK.
Word of the Day: Accountability
I love this article, thank you! I wish I could have used the word when I was discussing a student’s negative behavior with their parent.
There is no accountability. Give every student a passing grade or loose your job.
Teach social and emotional learning. Breathing exercises, yoga, music , chants…. What trash.
Call home- if the phone is connected. The parent tells you its your falt.
I just pray that I live to retire.
You made some saddening and valid points. Do read the findings from top medical research universities: yoga is not trash. The kids who are introduced to yogic exercises in school are so very lucky to get this for free. Fitness requires strength, aerobic and flexibility training. Yoga involves all three, especially the latter, along with balance (which helps prevent falls), calmness and beneficial breathing techniques. Unlike nearly all sports, yoga is a regimen one can practice well into one’s sunset years and it requires no purchase of racquets, balls, helmets, etc. or travel to an ice rink, sports field, or beach with good waves. (I have hatha yoga in mind for public schools, and not any religious forms of yoga that some people practice.) I’d spent a small fortune at yoga studios, but it’s made me more fit and also imparted a holistic outlook on fitness that includes a wholesome diet and maintaining mental hygiene. How I wish my elementary school taught me hatha yoga!
I grew up in Communist Czechoslovakia. We looked up to the US as heaven and a place where everything is the best in the world. Forty years later I am sadly witnessing your country is falling apart. The West is falling apart and the East has nothing much to offer. At least there is Michael Linsin who helped me enjoy my job as a teacher with so many tips for dealing with misbehavior.
Thank you for sharing your perspective. This nation used to the the “shining city on the hill”.
Well said, Roman. I am an American of Czech descent whose mother spoke only Czech until she went to school. I visited Czechoslovakia when it was still under Communism, and for the last few years, sadly, I have felt, in the U.S., many similarities to the feeling in Czechoslovakia at the time. I have been teaching for over 30 years, and agree that Michael’s common-sense approach is a great path to excellence in the classroom, with this post making some points that ring true to many who’ve been in the classroom for any amount of time. Thank you for sharing your experience, and for your dedication to your students.
Michael, once again you are spot on! I’m so fortunate to be in a district that has been mocked by so-called experts in the state department of education as “old fashioned.” Suggest we sit in a circle and talk it out?? Our high school principal would roll his eyes and tell you you’re crazy. I’ve never heard of a student throwing a chair or tipping over a table. They’d be permanently expelled, no questions asked, and they know it. What are the results of our old-fashioned accountability? Highest graduation rate in the state, highest test scores, highest percentage going on to college or vocational school. Yes, we have a psychiatrist and excellent counselors and we support families who need it. But we don’t tolerate misbehavior in the classroom and that starts in kindergarten. And yet, the state is pushing for all of the failed approaches Michael mentions above.
By the way, I’m a “liberal” and my state is reliably red, so left/right has no place in this discussion.
I have so been there! Such a dangerous nightmare. I went through 6 principals in 5 years, each sure they could make this work, each left.
Finally we got this mild mannered man, I seriously thought about leaving, but he just sent them home, sent them home, sent them home…if they missed too many days…well they were dropped. Now we are public school, so we have to take them back, but a parent has to come in, fill out a lot of paper work…and after the 3rd time, they took their kid somewhere else.
But the thing is, the whole school settled down, and things got better.
This is a nightmare, and sometimes a kid needs to leave the classroom, so learning can go on.
Great advice this time.
MK
Yes! I too am in a public school and we had an assistant principal who did discipline cases. That was her technique also: the teacher would give the kid warnings and consequences, then parents were alerted to his/her disruptions, but if it continued so that learning was disrupted or there was a fight, the parent was called and told to come and take his/her child home for the day. Parents hated this and sometimes were enraged, but was such a relief for the teacher and the students of the class to have a peaceful room. This technique returned to the parent his/her primary responsibility to make sure their children behave decently in society. Parents hated fetching their kids so much that somehow these kids started behaving. That AP was gutsy. The district made her a principal and now we’re back to trying to get kids to like us enough to never misbehave. Luckily we have a positive environment and we’re in a small town, but that isn’t enough for a handful of troubled or utterly narcissistic kids.
Absolutely, students must see the consequences of their misbehavior at the same time they are encouraged to interact with other in expected, caring and respectful ways.
Awesome! Thank you!
I have worked in a middle school where there was no detention, no suspension, and no retention. The only person who had to be responsible was the teacher. I was told by a student that if he came to class and did not give me any problems, that he was a C student. I left the system after one year. It was not worth the anger that I felt when students were not held accountible. When it impacted my mental health and my interaction with my own school age children, it was time to leave.
26 years of teaching in the public schools. Amen Michael!
Same here, John. Amen and Amen!
Yes, accountability is a must. And when restorative practices is done correctly, there is an accountability piece. That’s the piece where the student is required to repair the harm they have caused. I am fortunate to have worked in a district that stayed true to the philosophy – it was transformational. Unfortunately, restorative practices has been reduced to a performative buzz word and has lost a lot of credibility.
Yes yes yes! It doesn’t have to be either or, but schools have to do the hard work, not just follow the ‘trends’.
“You can’t escape the fact that when enforcement is removed, the result is more misbehavior. Take away the consequences from your classroom and within a day things will start going south.” Yes, and I’ve lived through the horrid stress that results for the teacher when consequences either aren’t permitted or enforced, both firsthand and secondhand.
Thank you for consistently standing for the truth rather than trendiness, Michael!
That is absolutely true. Take away the consequences and of course everything falls apart because neither students nor teachers know what to do in the absence. I have seen a shift to using more responsive approaches to discipline most effective when teachers add on the new to what they are already doing. Keep the consequences and rewards while working to build community, teach self regulation, teach healthy conflict resolution that is authentic and not forced. Add on the new stuff, work for transformative change, and eventually the culture will be able to let the old practices fall away because they know HOW to do it differently, not just why we should.
Having had plenty of these restorative conversations with students, I don’t know who is more uncomfortable, me or the students. It is always cringeworthy and the leader of the meeting thinks the student is really reflecting on what they have done. But anyone with a bit of sense that has been in the classroom recently knows that students will say what needs to be said to get it over and done with.
“Yes, I realised I hurt the other person and I apologise and I know it was wrong.” “Yes, my actions have affected those around me and fellow students and the teacher, and my parents and God and I want to let all my fans out there know that I will change.”
The leader tells staff of how the student realises their actions and is really great when having these small meetings. What they fail to recognise is that “everyone” is great in small meetings because there is no audience and they know how ridiculous it would look if they did in a small meeting the same thing they do in destroying a class. A criminal will say what they have to say to get a lesser sentence, regardless of whether they mean it or not. Students know how to play the game, unfortunately they have more street smarts than the executives who’ve not set foot in a classroom for years.
Thank you, Michael – I agree with what you say, and am glad to see it said.
I’m with that, Jessica. The accountability piece is a part of Restorative Practices. Many of the critical comments and the article itself appear to be written by colleagues who have not experienced Restorative Practices as they are meant to be implemented. I’m posting the Restorative Justice website as a reference for those who are interested in learning more, and interacting with people who are participating in Restorative Practices in their own schools—and coming up against, and negotiating, the challenges of doing so, some of which have been mentioned in the article and comments.
Michael’s feelings are not more important than facts. And he’s wrong here. You are the classic stuffy old (privileged) teacher unwilling to learn new ways. Retire. I’m done with SCM and unsubscribing.
Wow, Michael! Someone finally said it! The amount of traffic in the comments area of this post is evidence that you have definitely spoken truth – the truth that seems almost verboten to discuss.
This simple principle is Biblical. Proverbs 29:18: “Where there is no prophecy, the people cast off restraint… The “prophecy” refers to the Laws of God, i.e. Ten Commandments. But that is – in essence – accountability. So where there are no standards for behavior, where there are no expectations, of course the people will “cast off restraint”. Another translation says, the people will “run wild”. Another translation says, “where there is no vision, the people perish.”
Since we can’t control the whole school or the whole district, state or nation, at least we can hold to the expectations that you have so well outlined for each of us in our own respective classrooms. Design and adhere to our own classroom management plans. Fair and honoring to *all* students.
Yoga, meditation, or breathing exercises all sound eerily similar to prayer which can lead to equally beneficial results. Allowing the former but not the latter as a group practice is a leftist indoctrination scheme as is downplaying standing for the Pledge of Allegiance. Saying restorative justice is not political is like saying the NEA promotes conservative values. I am not “woke” if I stand for the Pledge? Adam’s assessment is correct in pinpointing the direction of eduacation.
Great article and great advice. Thank you for this!
I’m sadden by the labeling of white privilege. I am white. Let’s get that out front. I am a retired secondary science teacher. My experience has been that I have taught privileged students that are black, white, brown , Asian, Christian, Muslim, and Jewish. I have worked very hard at being inclusive and treating all students with respect. Accountability starts at home. I have experienced parents making excuses and pointing fingers at the teachers as though it is the teacher’s fault for their student’s behavior or poor decisions. This is followed by the administration supporting the parent rather than the teacher. When I was young, I graduated from high school in 1979, my parents supported the teacher. They did listen to me but I wouldn’t have blamed the teacher when I was in the wrong because the consequence would have been worse. As a parent I believe in restorative justice, but consequence has its place and deters inappropriate behavior. Restorative justice and consequence can work positively together.
The lack of detention, suspension, time out , scolding have left the teachers with limited tools to maintain an environment favorable for all students to learn. Just so you know I am not from privilege and we’re among the many Eastern Europeans who immigrated to the USA in the early 1900’s.
Very informative.Thank you!
I couldn’t agree more. Teaching is getting harder and harder in my opinion. I am just grateful that I can retire in a couple of more years.
I enjoy reading your no-nonsense articles. I believe in holding students accountable in my classroom. But I also believe in restorative justice. Can’t the two coexist?
This is the first time I have looked at SCM. I very pleased that there is someone saying it like it is. In Washington State that doesn’t happen very much, and consequences are few and far between. It all starts with the governor and superintendent of public instruction which makes it difficult for everyone else.
This was refreshing to read. I’m glad you wrote it. Thank you Mr. Linsin.
Agreeing with both Matt and Jessica – accountability and restoration need to be used together in order to change behaviors. The problem is often that the pendulum often swings too far one way or the other and people (even on here) say how the other side is completely wrong.
Accountability must be used so that students have acknowledgement that they did something wrong and a loss of privilege as a result. But if we rely solely on accountability then it is too easy to veer into punishment, and even punishment simply for punishment’s sake. That isn’t true accountability because that builds resentment, which removed all personal accountability.
Restoration is the teaching part of accountability. Students needs to understand and fix the harm they have created. And no, a simple apology or conversation won’t do. Students have learned to apologize too easily so that they can move on, and neither restoration or accountability happen. True restoration is the student having to do something to repair the damage so they are held accountability.
The problem isn’t restorative practices – it is that it is being implemented poorly and without any sense of accountability.