1. aggressive;
2. passive;
3. neutral (home position).

Aggressive response
An aggressive response might be to shout angrily at the pupil to get out and come back in properly.  This might have the desired effect. It might, however, precipitate a heightened conflict.

Meeting aggression with an aggressive response often leads to a greater confrontation which may be time-consuming. Before answering in such a way a teacher would be advised to be very confident of his or her ability to gain the psychological advantage and would preferably be absolutely sure that the pupil would do what he or she was asked. If not, there would need to be procedures in the school which could provide adequate support. When feeling tired, stressed or unconfident it is very easy to respond aggressively to an initial provocation without assessing the nature and possible vehemence of the struggle which might develop.

It is worth remembering that the teacher’s focus in such situations is split, since his or her main aim is to get on with the lesson and manage the rest of the class effectively. A pupil behaving in a disruptive way, however, is possibly more focused since he or she need pursue only one aim which may satisfy several needs. Supposing J, in the scenario above, wanted to provoke the teacher because he was angry from an incident in an earlier lesson. By such provocation he may also be avoiding work, creating a scene, impressing some peers and feeling powerful. Since the pupil is more focused he immediately has a psychological advantage. The teacher may, of course, have other advantages as, for example, the sense of being part of a team and of being supported by a clear discipline policy and sanctions within the school.

Here I would like to make the point that meeting aggression with aggression can lead to greater conflict at times. There is, of course, a wide range of possible responses. Usually in any group there are two people who have dealt with a similar situation in very different ways, and they have both been successful since, ultimately, it comes down to our own sense of conviction. There are, however, many choices, many subtle shades of relating, each with their own outcomes.

An aggressive response may be totally appropriate at times, as long as you are sure that you will ‘win’. It is perfectly possible to be commanding, maybe even angry, and yet remain respectful. Respect is of the essence. It is often useful to hold in view the overall, long-term relationship. What, in the long run, will improve the relationship between you and establish the pupil’s acceptance of your authority? How can you best gain his or hen cooperation and respect? The relationship with the whole class is also to be considered. Although pupils like teachers who can keep order, they do nod like injustice or disrespect shown by a teacher.

Passive response
Responding passively, the teacher might do nothing for fear of provoking trouble and might simply tell the pupil the work to be done. Although this might not invite an immediate escalation of conflict as is possible in the point above, neither would it make clear to the pupil, nor to the rest of the class, the kind of behaviour that is required. Seeking attention and a boundary, the pupil might continue with some other disruptive behaviour, redoubling his efforts in order to elicit a response, or might regularly enter the classroom in the same way. At times, ignoring unwanted behaviour can be effective, but it depends on the relationship already established between the teacher and pupil and the determination of the pupil to be noticed.

Neutral response
Making a neutral response the teacher might, for example, greet the pupil, approach him and explain the work to be done, acknowledging his anger and saying he can talk to him or her about it later. The focus would be the work the pupil needs to be doing, rather than the behaviour he should not be exhibiting. The aim would be to get J involved in the lesson and cooperating as quickly as possible so time would not be wasted.

When J had calmed down sufficiently, perhaps at the end of the lesson, or earlier if appropriate, the teacher would ask him to see him or her for a few moments at a specific time to discuss how they could work better together. It is important that this point is made so the rest of the class, and the pupil himself, know that this kind of behaviour has a clear consequence: seeing the teacher. The content of this discussion is best kept private, if possible, partly to save time during the lesson and partly to help the pupil save face.

At this brief meeting the teacher would say that he or she found the pupil’s entrance unacceptable and would ask him to come to class on time and quietly in future. Sanctions if the pupil were to behave in a similar way again would be made clear. The teacher might also mention that the pupil seemed angry and that if he was angry with him or her then they could sort it out. Perhaps the teacher had unwittingly done something the pupil resented during a previous lesson? The pupil, after all, has the right to be angry, but not the right to disrupt lessons.

This third approach disarms the pupil by redefining the situation, refusing his script and assigning him the role you, the teacher, have chosen. The teacher would be focusing on his or her main aim, teaching the whole class, and would not be waylaid by the red herring of disruptive behaviour. The possible anger behind the pupil’s aggressive stance would be acknowledged and the pupil offered a chance to air his or her grievances in private, the teacher again reaffirming the code of class behaviour at this time. The rest of the class would be aware that the behaviour was being tackled, but it would not take time from the lesson.

In a sense, the teacher is addressing those aspects of the pupil which remain calm and which can sit down quietly and take part in a lesson, confident that the pupil is capable of that. This can set a boundary and help the pupil feel safe. The more opportunity a pupil displaying disruptive behaviour has to save face, the more likely he or she will be to accept a way out Any further unwanted comments or behaviour can be met and passed over with the phrase that the lesson is not the place and that the question of how they can work better together can be dealt with properly later.

The pupil has gained the possibility of special time with the teacher and has been treated with respect. It will be pointed out during the meeting that, if the pupil has a grievance in future or wishes to talk with the teacher, the way to do so will be to ask directly for time together, not to misbehave in class. Having given the pupil an alternative strategy for seeking attention and expressing anger, the teacher will have added to the pupil’s overall communication skills. Rather than being diminished by the experience, the pupil can then grow in self-esteem while being told very firmly that the ‘acting out’ kind of behaviour is totally unacceptable and will be met with inevitable sanctions.

Faced with such neutral behaviour, a would-be aggressor cannot be aggressive in the same way. There is no one to fight, since the teacher will not do so and there is no one to intimidate, since the teacher is not open to intimidation. The situation is safe, since a boundary has been set, and the aggressor’s need for attention has been met with the agreement to meet in private. Potential conflict is defused. Many would-be aggressors will calm down with this approach and the relationship for the future can be built in a positive way.

Teachers have considerable power at their fingertips: the way in which they relate to pupils usually influences the result of an interaction, since most of the time most people respond differently, depending on how they are treated. Since some pupils are used to being treated in certain ways and are entrenched in their behaviour, a new approach can sometimes take a little time to take effect. However, it is nevertheless the case that there is much potential for teachers developing skills that can help manage conflict constructively.

3. Include your self-assessment- Other people may assess your work in any way, however you should be assessing your own work first. Practice self assessment such as to test yourself first, so that other exams and tests will be less daunting.

4. Decide on your targets- Set your own targets, instead to lead on working on other people’s targets. It will be helpful for making your targets higher than other people.

5. Work out on resources- Resources will involve your study materials, your co-students and your teachers. If you look to your teachers as study resources rather than a pressure source or torture on you, you can gain more from all those. Equally, if you consider your friends as resources and not a competitors, you can gain a great benefit too.

6. Get all the feedback and use them- Whenever you recoup marked exams or homework, do not forget your those mistakes and low grades. Treat the critical comments as a useful resources and convert them into an advantage.

7. Correct your plans regularly- Always, have a list of things to do – in the immediate future, with an appropriate priority. Check your list whenever you get free time.

8. Tell Yourself again and again that you are responsible. This has been proved that the powerful self-talk can drastically improve your results  by bounds and leaps.

2. An awareness of the internal response to the trigger: what the pupil feels, thinks, sees, and his or her body posture immediately before the unwanted behaviour. This is the warning signal indicating that such behaviour is imminent, unless the pupil chooses differently. As one pupil with specific learning difficulties described his experience: ‘When I look at all the questions on the page and think I have to write them all out and all the answers I feel all knotted inside. It’s just too; much. I don’t care what I do after that’ Typically he would create some pretext and storm from the room. His warning signal was, therefore, feeling knotted inside. Learning to recognise this, he could then begin to create moments of choice.

3. Skills for creating a moment of choice. This disrupts the automatic progression into the unwanted behaviour, the undesirable habit. Instead, a gap is created in which it may be possible to introduce an alternative behaviour.

Over time, the new behaviour will become habitual, with occasional lapses. For many people the most effective way of creating this moment of choice is to breathe, shift their body posture and relax. This is because the unwanted behaviour will be associated with and facilitated by a particular breathing pattern and body posture. By altering these it is easier to try out new behaviour which will be linked to and facilitated by a different way of breathing and posture.

For example, once the pupil above feels ‘all knotted inside’ he can learn to create a moment of choice by taking a breath deep within, shifting his position and relaxing. This can give him time to decide to carry on as before, becoming angry, causing some kind of scene, storming out of class and getting into trouble as a consequence or to try out a new strategy: for example, telling the teacher it is too much work, covering the page so he sees only one question at a time, writing the answers only and explaining to the teacher later, and so on. The point is he is no longer stuck in only one kind of behaviour feeling there is no way out He has a choice.

4. Alternative behaviours in response to the trigger situation: what he or she could do instead. Thinking back to a role model can be useful here: what might X do and say in such a situation? It is often useful to have two, three or more possible alternatives to the unwanted behaviour. This reinforces the fact that the current way of behaving is in no way inevitable. Many other responses are possible. Some pupils may need encouragement even to consider a different kind of behaviour as a possibility.

5. Practice outside the actual situation is helpful. What would it feel like to carry out these new behaviours? Which feels most comfortable? How would X stand, sit or walk in this situation? How would he or she look? How would he or she sound? Try it out.

6. Small, specific, attainable targets.

7. Definite acknowledgement for achieving a target, some kind of reward, if appropriate. Rewards tend to be more difficult to devise in secondary school. They may come simply in the form of a regular letter back to parents acknowledging the fact that the target has been reached, in the form of a visit to the head for praise rather than a reprimand, or in that of a commendation or good conduct mark if the school has such a reward system in place. Or it may be some kind of privilege. To be effective a reward must be desirable to the pupil. Sometimes this can be difficult to ascertain since the pupil apparently ‘doesn’t care’.

Rather than focusing on stopping poor behaviour, the emphasis may be more effectively placed on concentrating on developing the desired behaviour: on instilling a new habit. For example, rather than thinking about not talking in assembly, a pupil would be given specific things to listen out for or to notice during that time and a new body posture to practise.

Example A
One Year 8 boy, F, started to get into trouble with a number of subject teachers for calling out and making ‘clever1 comments to the teacher which, though often very humorous, were extremely disruptive to the smooth running of the lesson and led to frequent confrontations and conflict with his teachers. He had quickly gained himself the role of class clown. He had no undue difficulties with work. At times he had shown himself to be a very efficient organiser and leader.

The intervention was discussed and agreed between the pupil, year head and form tutor who informed subject teachers. If possible, a meeting with all subject teachers would have been called to discuss a strategy, but this was impractical in this case. The form tutor saw the pupil regularly and the year head reviewed progress weekly.

Conflict arose when F was reprimanded for calling out and, consequently, it was this behaviour which was targeted for change. In speaking to him it seemed that his role as clown fulfilled a need to make an impact on his peers. He did not like the consequences of his behaviour, detentions, letters home and meetings with the year head, but his need to exercise his wit and be noticed by his classmates was stronger. The question emerged: how could he develop his abilities and gain attention in a positive way, one which avoided conflict and other undesirable consequences? How could he change his role of class clown into something that would enhance, or at least not hinder, his own learning and that of his peers?

It was agreed that he would take a report card to those lessons in which he had created difficulties with three specific targets: 1) punctuality, 2) finishing his work and 3) listening quietly to the teacher and others, making only relevant contributions when invited to speak. The subject teachers needed merely to tick or cross the relevant boxes. The first two points he invariably achieved without difficulty. Some success was, therefore, assured. The third outlined the target behaviour. At first he was to achieve three ticks in a lesson at least twice a week, reporting briefly to his form tutor who was his main support at lunch-time for praise and encouragement, then building up to all targets met in one lesson a day. This was gradually increased over a term until four out of the five daily periods were to be incident free. The initial target was set so that he could easily achieve and even surpass it on occasion.

The trigger to his calling out was considered. There seemed nothing specific, but his unwanted behaviour occurred mostly at the beginning of the lesson before he settled down to a particular task. There were several strategies concerning this point discussed with his teachers: that pupils might at times be given an initial task as a focusing and settling down exercise; that the teacher might ensure individual contact with F, greeting him, making eye contact and having a brief, positive interchange at the start of a lesson (presenting the report card provided a natural opportunity for this); that F might sometimes be given a specific task to do, such as handing out books or going to fetch the video recorder.

Thinking more about the trigger situation, F reported to his form tutor that he felt at times what he described as ‘bored and restless’. This then was to, be his warning signal. Whenever he started to feel this he would need to breathe, relax, shift his position into the new posture mentioned below, look at the teacher and focus on what he or she was saying, or get on with his own work, as appropriate.

F’s body posture which accompanied his calling out was taken into account. He was not sure how he would be sitting at such times, although there would probably be a particular body posture which belonged to and, therefore, facilitated the calling out behaviour. (If it had been possible for another teacher to observe F in lessons this could have been of great value in noticing this.) F was able, however, to recreate how he might sit when listening to instructions and when writing. There was a notable difference, the former involving his sprawling back and twisting to the side with one arm hanging down over the back of the chair. In the latter he leant over the desk. It was suggested that he find a new listening posture that allowed him to be relaxed, attentive and ready to work, and he did so. In this he sat more upright and square to the desk in front.

F carried his own report card for his personal comments on progress made. The targets on this were: 1) to think of his intention for the lesson before entering the classroom; 2) to give in his teacher report card; and 3) to take up and maintain his new listening posture as much as possible at the beginning of a lesson. Whenever he remembered he was to check his posture and return to the listening position if he had moved out of it. If he chose he could show this card to his form tutor, but it was not obligatory since it was for his own satisfaction and for developing self-awareness.

The question of replacing his role as class clown was also addressed. F was given the responsibility of helping class members prepare for a talk they were to give on a subject of their choice. This meant that two pupils a week rehearsed their talk in front of F and the form tutor who gave useful feedback. F also compered the talk in tutor time, introducing the speaker and subject. It was hoped that, for a time, this would give him the experience of having peer attention and using his wit in a way which facilitated learning in the ciass9 thus helping him develop a new self-image. It was pointed out to him that, with this new role, he might no longer need to be a clown.

It was tempting at first to make this helping and compering role dependent upon F achieving his targets. This idea was rejected, however, since the aim of his taking on this role was to demonstrate that he could gain attention from the class and entertain without sabotaging lessons. It was important that he had the opportunity of using positively a skill he had previously used with negative results.

Fs parents were involved insofar as they were regularly informed of his progress and supported his efforts to change. They also helped him to find a drama club where he could further develop his performing skills. Attendance at this was dependent upon his meeting his targets.

The issue of F’s angry response to a reprimand was also addressed directly in the meeting with his form tutor and year head, since some incidents of this would probably occur during a period of change. His habitual response had been to argue back with the teacher in some way, endeavouring to point out that his comment had been relevant, had not been time-wasting and so on. In his attempt to get the last word he had sometimes been sent from the room, which he left angrily, slamming the door.

The report card system often helped prevent the situation developing into one of conflict. If F made some inappropriate comment, the teacher need only refer to the card, for example, ‘Remember your report card’, or I still have your report card, remember1, and F usually quietened down. Rather than being told off as such he was in these instances being given a choice: to continue with his comment and fail in meeting his target, or to back down. Usually he chose the latter.

This intervention with F was successful and his behaviour in class improved gradually over the term. However, even though he wanted to avoid detentions and saw the reason for change it still took time to replace one habit, one way of operating, with another.

It is all too easy to expect change to be immediate and total. This is unrealistic. The decision to change can be instantaneous, but the process of carrying it out inevitably takes time because of the inertia of habit. It is after the first few failures, the early lapses, that hope is often lost and determination and perseverence are most needed. Consequently early targets are best kept easily attainable, increasing demands gradually. Support and encouragement are usually essential.

Example B
In talking to one 14-year-old girl, H, it seemed that the major potential obstacle to change was her self-image as ‘tough’, someone who ‘stood up’ to teachers. She was frequently in trouble for confrontations with staff, swearing at them, answering rudely and sweeping angrily out of class. She appeared very proud of her reputation in dealing with teachers. After talking to her it seemed there were three main issues to address:

1. her anger towards teachers for what she considered to be past injustices;
2. her lack of non-confrontational communication skills;
3. her need to maintain her tough self-image and reputation as someone who Stood up to teachers.

H’s year head asked her to choose one teacher with whom she was prepared to build a more positive relationship. This teacher agreed to see H for ten minutes a day for the next month. During this time she would:

- talk with H about any confrontations she had had with teachers, listening attentively to her anger;

- work out with H what else she might have done and said, and what the consequences of each choice might have been;

- help H to think of how else she could use her toughness in more positive ways. How else could she be proud of herself?

Subject teachers were asked to give H the benefit of the doubt during this trial period, whilst still maintaining boundaries.

H was motivated to try to improve her behaviour. Since her friends went to the school she did not want permanent exclusion. Consequently, she attended most daily meetings. She did not reform overnight, but a month later was in trouble less frequently than before, having consistent difficulties in only two subjects. She was beginning to see that there was a correlation between how she behaved and how teachers treated her, that is to say, she began to take some responsibility for her actions and to acknowledge that she had more power to influence an interaction with a teacher than she had previously believed. She had started attending a karate class to maintain her tough image.

Online Education – A Vast Business

Even though it was conceived originally as a way for adults to earn a college degree or GED in life later than usual, now  “distance learning” or online education is spreading to the point that people of all ages are now getting involved. Children who are young enough like the fourth grade level can access online education program in several areas, and use it in place of traditional classes or as a supplement to it.

This is making sense to the business community and translating into dollars. As said in the November 2004 report on CNN’s website, it was predicted in 2001 that online education will be coming $23 billion industry at the end of 2004.

Nobody Loose With Online Education

The appeal to the online education playas role that its literally  useful for everyone. This is a new job market for the educators to enter and implement an online curriculum and can earn to supplement the income from classroom education.  Adults who have foregone on their college degrees high school diplomas can grab this opportunity, through online education, to complete or extend their studies with no scheduling problems which was making this impossible in the past. Online education gives the public benefits from saved tax dollars as each student participating in an online educational program is  representing a reduced burden on the taxpayer provided fund to public education system. Ultimately, online education gives businesses the option of educating their workforce at very low cost and the benefit of this compute lacerated generation and more high education  prospects to employees entering the market of job.

Online education saves money, time and gives opportunity to those who may never have had in past. It really may be the wave of future.

However there are few tips that will guide you how to find the best online education that suit your requirement.

1. Compare from different online universities

When you decide to go for the online education, you will get several different online education universities among all the available degree programs. When you search in the search engine for the online degree programs you will get hundred’s of result. Hence, comparing between the different online universities is very important for selecting the best one. Take the list of online degree colleges then compare and review the degree programs offered by the universities before taking any decision.

2. Cost for online degree program

Considering the overall cost for the online degree programs is very important when you have a tight budget. First you need to see the entire cost require for the online degree programs. Cost, not only related with the online degree portion but it also includes other expenses such as books and other necessary needs. There are some online universities that provide you some discounts on the studies or they may provide some financial support such as loan or scholarship for the students while other universities may provide you to pay the fees in installment this can help complete online education in affordable cost without much expenses.

3. How online classes are scheduled

when you decide for the online education there are many universities that offer you flexible schedule timing. Some online schools require the students to logon to the online classes for interaction at specific timing. Some other universities offer physical presentation for the classes at the campus. You should decide the way you want to study or attend the online education that will fit to your schedule that will be flexible for you.

4. Reputation of the online university

First inquire about online university you choose for learning degree programs that worth your money. Ensure that the university you choose is reputed and it should be widely accepted in the job market. For making sure the university is reputed try to research on the Internet and forums or by asking your friends, family or relatives about such online university or school who might know about such online university. Make a thorough study about such online universities from which you are looking to get the degree program and that will be usable from the market point of view.

5. Credits required for online degree

Make sure about the credits of the online degree programs. Most degree programs mainly charge on the duration of hours such as the more hours you study the more money they will charge while other universities will charge you less credit than others. Therefore it is important to look for the total credit charge by the universities. Search for the different online degree programs compare their credits they charge before selecting the exact one.

6. Benefits offer by online university

Many online universities offering online education has many different benefits for their students. Universities offer services like library access, study tutorials, reference links, technical links, discussion on the topics and other study features. Make your choice depending on the facilities you are getting from the universities and other advantages when you enroll for the online education.

Many different online education universities offer different qualities of studies and services that may vary. Compare between many university education programs and various other factors and choose the best one that worth the money you pay.