In School Suspension

QUESTION:

Do you have any advice on making in-school suspension more effective? The same kids keep coming back. Right now we keep the students working in isolation. They must sit down and be quiet.


ANSWER:

The rules you have in your in-school suspension are typical and generally work only for students who occasionally or rarely misbehave. Students who occasionally misbehave prefer spending their time someplace else doing something else, so using isolation as a deterrent for these students is often effective. Unfortunately, the same process is entirely ineffective for students who are frequently referred for in-school suspension. These students usually have significant problems in their lives, which fuel anger that leads to disruptive behavior and eventual referral. For them, even the threat of isolation is often not a powerful enough deterrent to keep their anger from erupting in inappropriate ways. A more effective approach suggested by Gootman (1998) is to borrow from the research on resilience, which finds that resilient students need three factors:

1. A relationship with an adult who thinks they are worthwhile
2. Sensitivity to their feelings.
3. A sense of power and control in their lives.
   

The in-school suspension should be enforced in a place where students reflect on what they did by discussing it with a caring adult. Since most students believe that they are being unfairly treated, it can help to defuse those feelings by simply using reflective listening (e.g., "It must be difficult to believe that you are trying hard and not getting noticed" or "It is hard to sit still in class when there are so many other things on your mind"). Once the student is calmer and has been understood, the student and adult can begin to solve the problem. The adult can help the student develop a workable plan that will help solve the problem within the student's real world. For example: "Let's figure out how you can stay in your seat when there are so many things on your mind." The major emphasis of in-school suspension should be on teaching students more appropriate, adaptive behavior rather than on hoping that their misery will make them see the error of their ways. The adult in charge must be able to firmly and clearly tell the student that his or her behavior had a negative impact on others, while at the same time showing the student dignity and respect.

Unfortunately, in-school suspension rooms are often staffed by teachers who have little experience with such problem-solving methods and/or have far too many students to supervise for them to personally interact with each student. Administrators should do whatever is possible to reduce the number of referrals so that the process has a chance for success. Teachers with the right match of skills can be assigned to supervise suspended students and should be given a reduction in their other responsibilities to compensate.

One alternative to in-school suspension rooms is to remove a student from one class and send him or her to another classroom for a temporary out-of-class timeout without requiring a formal referral. The new teacher has no responsibility for handling the problem. The teacher only needs to provide a space for the student. This strategy is very successful and can dramatically reduce the number of students in in-school suspension. If in-school suspension continues to be a holding tank, its results are predictable-failure.

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