Managing students with challenging behaviours

Managing a classroom is, in part, like being in front of a mini-corporation. Students have dissimilar life trajectories. This also manifests itself in their behavior. Some won't be able to stop wanting to talk while others will want to almost disappear behind the walls. Some children will need to move, to do manual activities in which they feel comfortable, while others will find serenity in silence and individual work. For a teacher, the task is to take this batch of individuals and bring them to the right place. All in the same direction and, this, despite the differences.

The task is complex and it is not helped in any way by some little ones who arrive with substantial baggage. Those categorized as "behavioral problems" give the teaching staff white hairs with their aggressiveness and poor emotional management. These "nightmares" nevertheless possess as much potential as the others but need special supervision.

The effect of mental health on school success

Let's put our cards on the table: the issue of mental health is a delicate one. Among adults, both public and private institutions are hesitant about what to do. They all want to integrate them into civilian life and not rely solely on medication and therapy. Two essential elements but which do not offer the protection and support that these people need.

With children, the issue is as much if not more problematic. Regular schools don't know what to do with these students. Yet more and more professionals are finding character problems and poor anger management in early childhood. They even make recommendations to institutions. Yet the latter, as parents explain in this article in Le Devoir, take them in stride. To them, the little ones only have a big temper. Nothing that can't be fixed with a few conventional punishments.

More and more research is showing that it doesn't work. Raising the tone on kids who already can't quite figure out how they feel doesn't help. Besides, most teachers hate having to take such a posture to regain control of the classroom. Especially since often these children also have difficulty learning new things. They find themselves in a negative circle of failure that increases their pain and aggression. That's why coaching these students is critical: it has a direct effect on their academic progress and success. This means first hiring specialized staff to better mentor and integrate these young people. After that, we need to ensure that teachers are equipped in cases of crisis.

Learning to defuse crises

When a child yells, heckles and shoves, it is mostly not about defiance but about suffering. He is experiencing something but he has not learned to name it, to channel it and to live it in a healthy way. This is why the issue of self-regulation is so important. All teachers need to remember that the escalation of a crisis starts from a triggering event that is innocuous to the adult yet means everything to the student.

It may seem trivial to get upset because he can't find his textbook or because a classmate made a remark. Yet, the task is to understand what is really going on so that it doesn't go any further and so that he can quietly learn to deal with his frustrations, fears, disappointments, etc.

Various materials exist online to address the issue of crisis management and this one is good for students with special needs as well as those having a bad day. This video does a good job of summarizing the strategies that can be put in place to teach self-regulation to these youth. The implementation of emotion management programs for toddlers is increasingly emerging. The Strongest Families Institute, for example, has developed a program for ages 3-12 for parents to learn how to better manage more challenging behaviors.

Examples of these types of workshops can also be conducted in schools with decent results. However, they will never completely replace good teacher preparation and additional coaching for those with significant emotional and cognitive difficulties.

Illustration : Stephen Andrews on Pexels

References:

"4th Key Element: Understanding Individual Student Behavior - Strengthening Positive Behavior In Alberta Schools." LearnAlberta.ca. Accessed January 14, 2022. https://www.learnalberta.ca/content/inspb1f/html/4_understandingindividualB.html.

Fortier, Marco, and Marie-Ève Cousineau. "Des Enfants Aux Prises Avec Des Troubles Mentaux Sans Soutien." Le Devoir. Last updated June 1, 2021. https://www.ledevoir.com/societe/education/606342/suivis-en-cpe-des-enfants-aux-prises-avec-des-troubles-mentaux-arrivent-a-l-ecole-sans-soutien.

Gadbois, Andréanne. "Effective Teaching Practices Promoting a Classroom Climate Conducive to Learning in the Context of Integrating Students with Difficulties and Behavioral Disorders into the Ordinary Primary Classroom." Savoirs UdeS. Last updated in 2017. https://savoirs.usherbrooke.ca/handle/11143/18269.

Gauthier, Mélanie. "How To Screen Children Who Are Likely To Have Significant Behavioral Problems Starting In Kindergarten." LAUGHTER. Last updated September 1, 2021. https://rire.ctreq.qc.ca/2021/09/comment-depister-les-jeunes-de-maternelle-susceptibles-de-presenter-des-problemes-de-comportement-importants/.

"Tooling Up Our Children." Strongest Families Institute. Last updated June 7, 2021. https://famillessolides.com/outillons-nos-enfants-programme-contre-les-comportements-difficiles/.

"Resources To Better Support Students With Challenging Behavior." Inclusive School Service. Last updated February 27, 2021. https://ash-ain.circo.ac-lyon.fr/spip/spip.php?article320.

"Mental Health." TA@school. Last updated February 24, 2017. https://www.taalecole.ca/troubles-dapprentissage/sante-mentale/.

"VIDEO: Strategies And Interventions To Support The Development Of Self-Regulation." TA@school. Last updated: July 31, 2019. https://www.taalecole.ca/autoregulation/.