Running Head: DISCIPLINARY TEAM PLANNING1

Disciplinary Team Plan

Katie Kralovic

Franciscan University of Steubenville

Rules and Expectations: B.E.A.R.

1. B​e Aware – Be aware with kindness of the people around you; you never know who is

having a bad day, who is feeling lonely, or who is being picked on. If you see something,

say something. Teachers and students alike should support each other and intervene when

necessary. The safety of the students and staff in this school is of utmost importance.

2. E​ffort – Give your best, even when you feel like your best is your worst. If you never try,

you will never know how to improve. Do your work, try even if it is hard, and focus on

the bigger picture. The school is here to help you be the best version of yourself,

academically, personally, and professionally.

3. A​ttitude – A positive attitude will get you through the toughest days of your life and has

the power to influence others in a positive way. Smiles are contagious, and this is a

condition we ​want​ to spread! Students and teachers should approach each day with a

positive and growth-mindset attitude, because every day has the potential to be the best

day yet.

4. R​espect – Whether to our peers, our teachers, our students, or the staff, everyone

deserves a degree of respect. Treat others as you would have them treat you. Students and

teachers are asked to be honest and respectful of everyone, practice active and empathetic

listening, and respond appropriately when addressed by others. Think before you say or

do something: Will it hurt anyone? Is it respectful? Does it degrade an individual’s

dignity? Does what I do allows others to be aware, put forth their best effort, exhibit a

positive attitude, and be respectful?

Consequences:

In an effort to correct misbehaviors in the school, a team approach has been designed so that the

students within each teaming group receives correction according to a joint effort of students and

teachers. The school wants to encourage students to make good choices, even when presented

with consequences to misbehaviors. As such, the consequences will gradually increase from a

mild “first offense” to an extreme “final offense”. This multiple-step process includes:

1. Verbal Warning – Teachers will be responsible for keeping track of students’

misbehaviors. Offending students will be given three verbal warnings, emphasizing the

rules and expectations of the school.

2. Community Service – If a student has exceeded the three verbal warnings, they will be

removed from certain privileges and presented with the choice of Teacher Duty ​or​ School

Community Service. It is the hope of the school that these disciplinary consequences will

help students recognize the importance of building up and respecting those in the

community.

a. Teacher Duty: Requires the student to stay in the school building during assigned

recess time and help with tasks in each teacher’s class, such as cleaning and

preparing for the next class.

b. School Community Service: Requires the student to stay in the school during

assigned recess time and help with tasks in different rooms, such as the cafeteria,
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library, bathrooms, offices, or outdoor recreational areas. Tasks may involve

cleaning, sorting, or organizing materials associated with the setting.

3. Service Extension – If the offending student continues to misbehave and disregard rules,

Service Work will be extended to half an hour after school has ended for the day. They

will again be given the choice to work with a teacher on the team in their classroom or

with a teacher doing services around the school building.

4. Team Conference – If after two weeks of Service Work the student has not improved

their behavior, the team will come together with the student and address the issue.

Teachers are asked to be open and empathetic while enforcing rules and expectations.

Students are expected to be respectful and honest, and be open to the concerns of the

teachers.

5. Principles office and Parent Conference – If after the Team Conference there is still no

improvement, a letter will be sent to the students’ parents and a meeting will be set up

between the student, parent, and principle. It is important that the principle take part in

consequential actions as they play an integral role in enforcing rules and expectations.

Team Encouragement Strategies:

1. Collaboration – To encourage a sense of teamwork between peers and between the

students and team teachers, collaboration will be emphasized throughout all processes.

Collaboration is an important attribute for all persons in every stage of life. As such,

students will help teachers determine classroom rules and consequences, assist each other

in different project-based assignments, help plan community-building activities that can

be used during advisor sessions, and explore how collaboration extends to the world

beyond school.

2. Growth-Mindset – A sense of failure or embarrassment must be avoided at all costs.

Students will be encouraged to see mistakes or failures as lessons in themselves, as

teachable moments that lead to self-improvement and a chance to explore different

avenues for problem solving. Teachers must exemplify this growth-mindset attitude in

the way they interact with students and their instructional practices.

3. Empathy – During early adolescence, students are going through many developmental

changes that can be overwhelming. Acknowledging this growth and development on the

teacher’s part is monumental for being able to relate to students on a more personal level

and gain their respect and trust. Practicing active listening and empathy is key to

promoting healthy development of students.

Team Procedures:

1. Grading Policies

a. Grades will be based off a letter-grade scale.

b. Every assignment must have an appropriate rubric or checklist to ensure students

know expectations for the work, whether it be a written essay, a presentation, or a

group project.

c. Teachers will accept work that is one day late, but will deduct points for every day

late after this free day.

d. Teachers will grade assignments based on adherence to rubric objectives, in-class

instruction, and effort based on individual student abilities.

e. Individual and cooperative work will be graded for group projects. If there is an issue

with cooperation, the teacher must fully investigate the situation before grading the

quality of the cooperation between members.

2. Extra Credit

a. Extra credit will be offered every other week to all students.

b. Extra credit must relate to content covered in class and serve to further enrich

knowledge and understanding of topics. It should not be disconnected from what

students are learning.

c. Extra credit must be turned in on the assigned due date: no work will be accepted

after this date.

d. Extra credit is to be turned in with regular assigned work. Students cannot turn in

extra credit to replace other assignments.

3. Standards for Neatness

a. In an effort to respect the school community, each classroom must follow a set of

“neatness” rules.

b. Students will help the teacher determine protocols for “neatness” according to the

individual classroom environments.

c. Students will be expected to dress appropriately and as neat as their circumstances

allow.

d. As a general rule, “put it back where you got it” will be enforced in all settings, from

classrooms and the library, to the cafeteria and outdoor activity areas.
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e. Students will be held responsible for keeping whatever area they are in neat and

orderly. Students will not be allowed to leave an area without putting items in proper

places and throwing trash away.

Format for Parent Conferences:

Parent conferences will be held twice during a school year, and on an “as needed” basis.

The first conference will be held two weeks into the year and used to get to know the family, find

out what the student’s needs are, and what the parents hope for their child. The parents will also

be encouraged to present any major questions or concerns they have about their child’s

education. The final meeting will be held at the end of the school year to reflect on progress and

determine what new goals the parents may have for their child for the following school year. In

between the two conferences, teams will offer additional parent conferences based on the needs

of both gifted and struggling students, as well as when misbehaviors demand more serious

attention. Two teachers will be present at each parent-teacher conference to represent the team.

Teachers are charged with being respectful, empathetic, practice active listening, take parents

seriously, and offer opportunities for cooperation between parents and the team. An agenda will

be prepared in advance of each conference and mailed to the family. This will ensure parents are

not surprised by anything discussed at the conference, and will allow them to prepare any

questions or concerns regarding the agenda.

School Community Plan:

One of the fundamental principles of this school is that there must be a strong sense of

community to support every teacher and student. We are social beings who crave identity and a

place to call our own. According to George and Alexander (2003), “students require this sense of
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community even more than faculty” (p. 250). During middle school, this need is heightened in

adolescents as they go through particular stages of development where identity, belonging, and

respect become the focus of every social interaction. It is the responsibility of the school and its

faculty members to create an environment that allows students to be proud and confident in their

school, and to know that they are safe to follow their dreams and improve skills. This said, the

role of teacher teams in helping to create this environment is incredibly important. They must

work closely and authentically with the students, allowing them to take part in large roles, such

as rule setting and special occasion planning. When teachers and students come together and get

to know each other authentically, the celebrations and rewards earned come to mean much more

to both teacher and student (George & Alexander, 2003). In an effort to increase this

collaboration between teachers and students, students will work with teams to decide on themed

dress-up days, field trips, cleanup days, and team names, colors, logos, and mottos for Spirit

Days. Finally, because parental involvement has been found to lead to improved behavior

management and productive relationships with students (George & Alexander, 2003),

involvement of parents throughout this community-building vision is highly encouraged. Parents

will be offered frequent opportunities to be part of the school community through volunteer

positions. By fostering a sense of community between students, teachers, and parents our goal is

not only to increase academic success, but also nurturing healthy relationships and teamwork.

Theorist – Bandura

Albert Bandura, developer of the Social Learning theory, believed that children learned

mainly through observation of the environment in social settings. Particularly, he believed that

through social modeling of self-efficacious behaviors and mastery experiences, students

improved self-management habits which can lead to improvements in cognitive functions

(Bandura, Caprara, Barbaranelli, Gerbino, & Pastorelli, 2003). Because of the developmental

stage of middle school students, it is our belief that building up confidence and self-efficacy in

the students is key to creating a positive sense of “smallness within bigness”. Bandura and

colleagues state that, “a strong sense of efficacy to manage one’s positive and negative emotional

life contributes to perceived self-efficacy to take charge of one’s academic activities, to ward off

peer pressures for transgressive behavior, and to feel empathy for the experiences of others” (p.

777). What this means for this disciplinary team plan is that we believe empowering our students

with confidence will help them avoid deviant behaviors that result from low self-esteem and low

self-efficacy, and feel pride for their accomplishments. Early adolescents can become easily

discouraged, especially if the environment around them tells them they are not good enough. In

this plan, students are presented with the support they need from team leaders to help them see

that their attitudes and efforts do make an important impact in the school community.
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References

Bandura, A., Caprara, G. V., Barbaranelli, C., Gerbino, M., and Pastorelli, C. (2003). Role of

affective self-regulatory efficacy in diverse spheres of psychosocial functioning. ​Child

Development, 74(​ 3), 769-782.

George, P. S., and Alexander, W. M. (2003). ​The exemplary middle school.​ Belmont, CA:

Wadsworth/Thomas Learning Inc.