Kids and cars - no difference… ok, what’s this about?

The heading should have been longer but I didn’t have the room. I still stand by the heading but must add that it’s not the physical comparisons I’m talking about but the aspects of learning to drive a car and learning to manage children’s behaviour. The principals of learning the two skills are pretty much the same and if you’re not taught properly the results can be catastrophic.

If you want to be skillful in any area, you have to be taught what to do, go off and practise and then keep doing what you’ve learned. Place simply - learn about the skill, practise until it’s second nature and use the techniques consistently.

What would happen if you hadn’t practised your driving skills or didn’t follow the rules. If you didn’t steer you’d lose control and the car would crash. If you hadn’t been taught driving skills properly and you hadn’t practised you’d be a danger on the road. You have to follow the instructions consistently to be confident and competent. The same applies to managing children’s behaviour in classrooms.

So why are so many people struggling with managing classroom behaviour? The answer is simple - there isn’t sufficient behaviour management training of a excellent standard. Student teachers, support workers, dinner supervisors, through to those with years of experience and into management positions - none of them with enough knowledge and expertise in managing children’s problem behaviour.

Another problem is that often the people offering advice haven’t got the skills themselves. Who would you want to teach you to drive? Would it be someone who drives every day and has a excellent record of getting people through their driving test? Or would you prefer someone who rarely (or never) drives, who couldn’t show you how to drive, and could only tell you what you already know?

I know, it sounds crazy. But, so many reports I see are full of inaccurate advice about managing children’s behaviour. So often I tell schools to ignore the advice they’ve been given. Incorrect advice is as damaging as having the non-driver teaching you driving skills. Car crashes are caused by lack of driving skills. Children’s and adults’ health is being hurt because the lack of behaviour management skills.

How am I different? Well, I manage children’s behaviour every day. Teachers and students come and watch me. I show them the techniques in their classes. People questioned me to write it all down, so Behaviour Bible is the result. People’s views on what I say and how I’ve helped them learn to manage behaviour is there to see.

I want to get the message out there that classrooms don’t have to be war zones - anyone can learn to manage behaviour effectively. Just like anyone can learn to drive a car….

Want to find out more aboutmanaging children’s behaviour, then visit Liz Marsden’s site to learn about effective behaviour management strategies.

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