Teaching Kids to Give Themselves a Timeout

In schools across the country, teachers are beginning to reward well-behaved students rather than point out the misbehaved ones. Utilizing techniques such as "active ignoring" is part of a treatment known as teacher-child interaction therapy" (TCIT). The goal is to improve the instructor's capability to reduce disruptive classroom behaviors in order to focus on teaching.

In schools across the country, teachers are beginning to reward well-behaved students rather than point out the misbehaved ones. Utilizing techniques such as "active ignoring" is part of a treatment known as teacher-child interaction therapy" (TCIT). The goal is to improve the instructor's capability to reduce disruptive classroom behaviors in order to focus on teaching. At the League School, a 130-student school and day-treatment program for children who have a psychiatric diagnosis and a demonstrated history of disruptive or aggressive behaviors, the Child Mind Institute has been training teachers in TCIT. First-grade teacher Tara Irizarry claims ignoring bad behavior is the hardest part of applying the new techniques. In some cases, unruly students are brought to a quiet place where they calm down and have a moment to contemplate their actions. Since the implementation of TCIT in some League classrooms, disruptive incidents have dropped 32% to 1,500 over the last school year.

The Wall Street Journal, 1/15/2013

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