I used to be a schoolteacher. No one wants to make a child miserable, they just want to get the kids to behave.

Very common.

The intent is not to shame, although I suppose it could be used that way by some schools/teachers.

In first grade I have one that is more involved - everyone starts on green and moves up for good choices/behavior and down for poor choices/behavior. Green is ready to learn - moving up to purple/blue/etc is for good behavior. Yellow is a warning, orange is a consequence, red is parent contact. I don't use it to shame, and students have the opportunity to move up or down throughout the day.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They used it in our school. It worked and was not used to shame kids. Just a reminder about how to behave in the classroom. There are so many other things to worry about......

Whether or not it is is used to shame kids, it does. Anything that publicly compares and ranks kids will shame kids who do not come out on top. That is the nature of competition. Whether competition should be used in this context is another issue.

...same with those stupid charts that show where kids are on being able to write down the answers to fast facts fast enough. Real helpful to kids with fine motor delays.

Anonymous wrote:They used it in our school. It worked and was not used to shame kids. Just a reminder about how to behave in the classroom. There are so many other things to worry about......

Whether or not it is is used to shame kids, it does. Anything that publicly compares and ranks kids will shame kids who do not come out on top. That is the nature of competition. Whether competition should be used in this context is another issue.

You will have a hard time finding anyone in the counseling department that thinks this is a good idea.

So true. You will also have a hard time finding anyone in the counseling department who is willing to teach in a classroom all day.

My children have always been on green and I have a big problem with the system. There are much better classroom management techniques than a system that shames children. Some teachers are just too lazy to use it. You will have a hard time finding anyone in the counseling department that thinks this is a good idea.

If a parent has trouble with this system, then your kid has problems far beyond redlight/greenlight.

+10000

The teacher has to have some tools to use to keep peace in the classroom.

Anonymous wrote:My kindergartener hates it and so do I. He goes on yellow and orange frequently for not completing class work fast enough. The work often includes words that he struggles to sound out which slows him down. He is reading above the common core level reuirement for his grade but many kids in his class are better readers. He is ashamed, embarrassed, and hates school. He is getting a bad reputation among his peers because of it. The kids do know who trends on which colors and do judge one another accordingly. They begin on green with nowhere to go but down. I would abolish the practice if I could.

At our school it is a behavior chart and has nothing to do with classwork.

DS often brings home incomplete work and is still on green.

I don't mind this system at all.

Are we really to the point where parents are going into the school and demanding the teachers stop... telling kids when their behavior has been unacceptable?

Really?

Some variant of this system has been in use for at least the last ~25 years. Children survived under the system, most learned to adapt their behavior to suit what was required in school, and our children will be fine with it too.

If my kid is on yellow for two or more days in a week, or on red at all, there are serious consequences at home. My kid is usually on green. I'm sure she learns better when she is meeting classroom expectations, and I'm sure her teacher and classmates are relieved not to have to deal with disruptive behavior from her. That's really what's important, right? Teaching the students to behave? Or do we consider it more important for them never to have to face blunt correction?

Cards or no cards, the kids know everyone's behavior anyway. Ask your little one who doesnt behave in school and they'll tell you.

My kindergartener hates it and so do I. He goes on yellow and orange frequently for not completing class work fast enough. The work often includes words that he struggles to sound out which slows him down. He is reading above the common core level reuirement for his grade but many kids in his class are better readers. He is ashamed, embarrassed, and hates school. He is getting a bad reputation among his peers because of it. The kids do know who trends on which colors and do judge one another accordingly. They begin on green with nowhere to go but down. I would abolish the practice if I could.

They did it at my son's daycare when he was 3 and I felt it was inappropriate for that age. Now that he is in K, I'm ok with it. He's the type of kid that I am sure will get occasional reds and yellows, because he is extremely argumentative and headstrong at times, but he's also not one to internalize it and feel bad about it. So far he has all greens. But I can see how it would be a system that would not work for every kid.

If a parent has trouble with this system, then your kid has problems far beyond redlight/greenlight.

Anonymous wrote:Interesting that the people who dislike this system have kids that can't behave themselves. I have 3 kids ranging from 12 - 9 who all had this system and never had a yellow. They were all proud of staying on green all day and all week. If this system keeps some peace so my kids can learn more then I am all for it.

Ha! I guess your kids fooled you.

Anonymous wrote:I'd also appreciate links to the research mentioned above. If I'm going to go to the school to question this practice, I'd like to have the cites and a workable alternative to suggest to them.

Please land your helicopter NOW!