Tackling poor behaviour in schools

A press release from the DfE today.

Experts to help tackle poor behaviour in schools – GOV.UK
Schools with exemplary behaviour practices are being invited to lead the Government’s £10 million programme to improve discipline, as part of work to raise school standards across the country. Supported by renowned behaviour experts, these schools will work in partnership with those that need help to turn around their behaviour culture, equipping heads and senior leaders with the tools they need to tackle poor discipline.

Education Secretary: We’re going on a discipline drive in schools – GOV.UK
We plan to build partnerships between schools which are leading on this issue with those who want to turn their own cultures around, allowing institutions with poor behaviour to learn from those with the best. They’ll be led by former teacher and behaviour expert Tom Bennett, along with a team of current and former headteachers with broad experience of creating disciplined environments in their own schools

So who are these experts?

Revealed: The experts leading £10m behaviour programe – Tes News
The seven-strong team will work alongside headteachers and leaders from 20 outstanding schools in order to improve behaviour in around 500 schools which are struggling with poor behaviour. The group is being led by the DfE’s behaviour tsar Tom Bennett, who is the founder of ResearchED, an international conference of teachers that aims to boost knowledge of current research among the profession.

DfE reveals Tom Bennett’s new behaviour taskforce – Schools Week
Bennett, the DfE’s lead behaviour adviser, said: “There are some incredible schools out there making miracles happen every day, but many schools who, often through no fault of their own, face huge challenges getting there. Behaviour hubs will support these schools with the schools who know how to turn things around.”

Exclusive: DfE behaviour expert ran unlawful exclusions – Tes News
Mark Emmerson, chief executive of the City of London Academies Trust, was in charge of The City Academy in Hackney in 2016, when pupils were voluntarily “withdrawn” by parents – without these absences being recorded as fixed-term exclusions.

Let’s hope they succeed. It’s an emotive topic for sure, but only an idiot would imagine there are any simple fixes or easy answers here.

Ban phones and queue in silence for better GCSEs, says Gavin Williamson – The Telegraph
Gavin Williamson has urged schools to implement stringent discipline regimes, such as lining up in silence before lessons. He said that often “common-sense solutions” can be used to curb unruly behaviour as well as lead to outstanding academic results.

Point proven, then. Meanwhile, here’s an overview of some of the research on what might influence student behaviour.

Are parents to blame for bad behaviour? – Tes News
As hysteria mounts over knife crime, school exclusions and persistent bad behaviour, “I blame the parents” is once again a common refrain. But to what extent does parenting affect how a child behaves in school? Considering the number of parenting courses on offer through schools, and through government services, the perception is clearly that the impact is significant. But, as always, it’s a bit more complex than that.

Well said. Meanwhile.