Education Commons^™

Resisting Punitive School Discipline: Perspectives And Practices Of Exemplary Urban Elementary Teachers, Elyse Hambacher

Education

Drawing on the literature related to classroom management, and culturally relevant critical teacher care, and effective teaching for students of color, this paper uses interview and observation data to explore the perspectives and practices of two exemplary fifth-grade teachers who refuse to rely on punitive discipline with their students of color. Findings revealed that the teachers did not view students’ behavior as challenging-- they viewed behavior simply as one of the many areas they believed it was their responsibility to teach. Their instructional practices focused on coaching students to reach their potential and liberating them from barriers that limit their …