Red light / green light behavior charts in Kindergarten - common?

[Anonymous]

These charts are really bad for children and are a very lazy way to manage a classroom. It absolutely is public shaming. I'm a teacher and would absolutely never use one.

Many individual children won't be (or seem to be) bothered by the charts, but that's understandable, because it's the few kids who are always on red or being threatened with red that are most impacted. That becomes the day's focus--am I green or red?--which completely misses the point, even if it gets them to behave. It's not worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These charts are really bad for children and are a very lazy way to manage a classroom. It absolutely is public shaming. I'm a teacher and would absolutely never use one.

Many individual children won't be (or seem to be) bothered by the charts, but that's understandable, because it's the few kids who are always on red or being threatened with red that are most impacted. That becomes the day's focus--am I green or red?--which completely misses the point, even if it gets them to behave. It's not worth it.

I absolutely agree!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:These charts are really bad for children and are a very lazy way to manage a classroom. It absolutely is public shaming. I'm a teacher and would absolutely never use one.

Many individual children won't be (or seem to be) bothered by the charts, but that's understandable, because it's the few kids who are always on red or being threatened with red that are most impacted. That becomes the day's focus--am I green or red?--which completely misses the point, even if it gets them to behave. It's not worth it.

oh ..gimmeee a breakkkkkkkkkkkkkkk

[Anonymous]

If you google these sorts of things, there is a lot written about it being public shaming. Whether or not the kids perceive it as such, that is what it is.

www.beyondthestoplight.com

[Anonymous]

Apologies to the OP for hijacking this thread, but I'm wondering about another tactic I'm seeing in my daughter's classroom:

The kids sit at assigned tables, and the teacher has a system where tables can earn or lose tickets depending on their behavior. (If one individual acts up, the whole table can lose tickets.) There's a reward for earning a certain number of tickers, and one kid at each table is the table captain and is supposed to remind the other kids about their behavior.

Now, I feel for this teacher -- she has 26 1st-graders to manage, and no paraprofessional to help her -- but I have mixed feelings about this arrangement.

(Also, when I see situations where the whole group is held accountable for one person's behavior, it always makes me think of the blanket party in Full Metal Jacket. Obviously, 1st grade is not Vietnam, but I worry that it doesn't bring out the best in kids -- that it can lead to bullying.)

[Anonymous]

Just curious:
You don't like public shaming. I don't either. However, what would you have the teacher do? I prefer positive reinforcement, but with 26 kids that is very difficult.

[Anonymous]

Also, if you think the kids aren't aware of who is being shamed--reward tickets or not--you are very naïve.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Also, if you think the kids aren't aware of who is being shamed--reward tickets or not--you are very naïve.

I'm the reward ticket poster, but not the public shaming poster -- we're two separate people.

For the record, I know my own daughter is VERY aware of who behaves and who doesn't, but I think she would be regardless of the disciplinary system in place. She's a bit of a teacher's pet -- which is another reason I'm not too keen on the table captain business, I think it reinforces some traits that maybe don't need reinforcing.

[Anonymous]

For the record, I know my own daughter is VERY aware of who behaves and who doesn't, but I think she would be regardless of the disciplinary system in place. She's a bit of a teacher's pet -- which is another reason I'm not too keen on the table captain business, I think it reinforces some traits that maybe don't need reinforcing.

Sometime a teacher has to do what they have to do. Some kids do respond to peer pressure.

[Anonymous]

I think it's pretty common in one form or another but I don't like it. I think it is a form of public shaming and likely to be detrimental to kids who struggle. My ADHDer does worse when his misbehavior is highlighted and he loses self esteem--he is not motivated to do better. He thinks he is Bad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

For the record, I know my own daughter is VERY aware of who behaves and who doesn't, but I think she would be regardless of the disciplinary system in place. She's a bit of a teacher's pet -- which is another reason I'm not too keen on the table captain business, I think it reinforces some traits that maybe don't need reinforcing.

Sometime a teacher has to do what they have to do. Some kids do respond to peer pressure.

Yeah, I get that (like I said, she's got to deal with 26 kids on her own) -- I'm not like "OMG can you believe what DD's teacher is doing!!?!!?!", more just wondering what opinions are on DCUM as far as the pros and cons of that approach.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Apologies to the OP for hijacking this thread, but I'm wondering about another tactic I'm seeing in my daughter's classroom:

The kids sit at assigned tables, and the teacher has a system where tables can earn or lose tickets depending on their behavior. (If one individual acts up, the whole table can lose tickets.) There's a reward for earning a certain number of tickers, and one kid at each table is the table captain and is supposed to remind the other kids about their behavior.

Now, I feel for this teacher -- she has 26 1st-graders to manage, and no paraprofessional to help her -- but I have mixed feelings about this arrangement.

(Also, when I see situations where the whole group is held accountable for one person's behavior, it always makes me think of the blanket party in Full Metal Jacket. Obviously, 1st grade is not Vietnam, but I worry that it doesn't bring out the best in kids -- that it can lead to bullying.)

I understand if you don't want to say, but is this Hunt Valley? My 1st grader reported the same thing.

[Anonymous]

I hate these charts. They don't work and research shows they are harmful. I don't understand why teachers use them. Good, experienced teachers rarely do, but younger teachers usually try it for a year or two, or sometimes get pressured into it by other teachers at the school. Behavior management is pathetic in public school - procedures are pretty much invented and passed on orally like so many urban legends without anyone having any idea that there is actual research on these things (or, apparently, caring). I am really disappointed to see it come home this year, but I don't know what to do about it. It's just sad.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son figured out it did not matter if you went to red if you were on green at the end of the day so his goal was just to be good at the end of the day. Then he played a game with a friend to see how often he could go to red and back to green in a day.

Your son would make a great politician.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think it's pretty common in one form or another but I don't like it. I think it is a form of public shaming and likely to be detrimental to kids who struggle. My ADHDer does worse when his misbehavior is highlighted and he loses self esteem--he is not motivated to do better. He thinks he is Bad.

+1