Don't tell off bad behaviour, teachers told

Last updated at 08:19 06 January 2006


Teachers should tackle bad behaviour in class by praising their pupils instead of telling them off, according to research published today.

Positive feedback leads even the most difficult pupils to behave better, according to academics at Liverpool John Moores University.

But disciplining an unruly child in front of the whole class is the worst thing a teacher can do, the researchers said.

What do you think of this approach? Tell us using the reader comments link below...

Research author Dr Jeremy Swinson said such a tactic only provokes difficult pupils into the kind of "am I bovvered?" response coined by TV comic Catherine Tate.

"If you want to motivate any group of people you don't do it by telling them off," he said.

"You do it by accentuating the positives. That's what you need to do in the classroom."

Praise children working well

Dr Swinson and Professor Alex Harrop analysed the effects of a short three-hour training scheme on teachers at six primary and secondary schools in north-west England.

The training advised teachers not to draw attention to pupils who were not working properly but instead praise children who were working well nearby.

Teachers were told to give clear instructions, frequently acknowledge pupils behaving well, and give more positive feedback for good behaviour at the beginning of a lesson or new activity.

After the training, teachers cut the number of "tellings off" by two-thirds and dramatically increased the amount of positive feedback that they gave.

As a result, the proportion of pupils concentrating in class and behaving well went up from an average of 78 per cent before to 94 per cent after the training, Dr Swinson said.

Dr Swinson presented the findings at the British Psychological Society's Division of Educational and Child Psychology annual conference in Bournemouth.

"Many teachers were unaware of the skills needed to deal with unruly classes and over-relied on telling pupils off, which in the long run has very little effect on the pupils' behaviour," he said.

But teachers should be specific about their praise rather than being a praise "automaton". They should give positive feedback when children deserve it and also describe the behaviour which they are praising, he said.

"If you say, well done Julie for sitting quietly, you are repeating your direction to the class. It is that description that is heard by the rest of the class."

Dr Swinson insisted his approach was not "soft" on discipline.

Teachers must never ignore unruly behaviour and should use sanctions available to them in more serious cases, he said.

But publicly telling off a difficult pupil was an "incredibly bad" tactic.

"What every teacher wants is for children to do as they have been told, in other words, to behave. The most effective strategy of getting anybody to do as they are told is to be positive."

Most watched News videos