Archive for March 20th, 2008

Understanding Behavior in the Classroom

Thursday, March 20th, 2008

People from poverty mindsets may demonstrate 1 to 3 characteristics to obtain status in their community. These characteristics may be:
A Lover
A Fighter
An Entertainer.

Students from a poverty mindset might exhibit one or all of those three characteristics. This may explain the “entertainer” student who acts up or is always goofing off and making the other kids laugh. And of course the other two characteristics are self-explanatory.

The best way to handle these students from poverty is to teach them to live by two sets of rules. First, they need their own set of rules at home to survive until the next day.

Second, they need to (BE TAUGHT) the school rules and that they must abide by them in order to be successful in school and to stay out of trouble. They must be told to use their HOME rules at HOME. And they need to be told they MUST use the school rules at school. If teachers or administrators will take the time to explain the school rules, I think the kids will do their best to comply.

It would be wonderful if every teacher understood where the poverty kids are coming from. But 10 to 15 percent of the teachers send 85% of the students to the principal. I am sure these are the poverty kids and the characteristics at the top of the page are the underlying factors in their behavior and that is why they are getting in trouble. Now that YOU understand the reason for the behavior, you can understand the student, and I know you will come up with some unique ideas on how to assist that student.

Do you find it hard to understand students in poverty? Poverty students seem to have no higher goals for jobs or education. Please understand that they do have goals. Those goals are to have food, shelter, and a few clothes for their back. They also may have a goal of trying to stay alive. In very bad situations, they may rightly believe they may not be alive tomorrow, so why should they plan anything further than right now, today.

Source: A framework for Understanding Poverty Ruby Payne, Ph.D The leading U.S. expert on the mindsets of Poverty, Middle Class, and Wealth.

Posted in 01. Poverty: Knowledge and Awareness, 02. Poverty: Skills and Mobilizing, 03. Poverty: Action, 05. Leadership: Knowledge and Awareness, 07. Leadership: Action, 09. Community: Knowledge and Awareness, Poverty | 5 Comments »