Models of Discipline: Dreikurs

Models and Theories
Dreikur’s Confronting Mistaken Goals

Kounin’s Withitness & Organization
Gordon’s Discipline as Self-Control
Key Ideas
1. Discipline is not punishment. It is teaching students to

impose limits on themselves, to develop inner control.
Discipline should not be imposed from the outside
2. Learning occurs best in democratic classrooms that

promote a sense of belonging and the acquisition of
self-discipline.
3. Democratic teachers provide firm guidance and

leadership. They allow students to have a say in
establishing rules and consequences.
Key Ideas
4. All students have an innate need for belonging. They

want status and recognition. Most of their behavior is
directed by their desire to belong.
5. When students are unable to satisfy this prime need

they turn by default to certain mistaken goals they think
might help them satisfy this need
Dreikur’s Confronting Mistaken Goals Get back at teacher
Students talk out, show off,
Drag their heels, make
and other students by
Key Ideas comments
interrupt others, demand under their
lying, subverting class
breath, try to show
teacher attention teacher cannot makeactivities, disrupting
5. Misbehavior is associatedthem with the class maliciously
four mistaken goals:
do anything
seeking attention, gaining power, taking revenge, and
displaying inadequacy. The goal in each case is to elicit
certain responses
Withdraw from class
teachers.
activities
6. Teachers should quickly identify the mistaken goals
and act to avoid their reinforcement.
7. Teachers should encourage student's efforts while

avoiding praise of either their work or character.
8. Teachers should teach students that unpleasant

consequences always follow inappropriate behavior.
Rudolf Dreikur’s Democratic Teaching Model
There are three categories of teachers:
(a) Autocratic
• force their will on students in order to control the class

• motivate students with outside pressures
(b) Permissive.
• no explicit rules and consequences
• students fail to learn that successful living in general

society requires them to follow rules (practise
acceptable behaviour) and have self-discipline
• Students are confused because they believe that they

are free from restraint and can do whatever they want.
However, they discover that things do not go smoothly
for them.
(c) Democratic
• neither permissive nor autocratic

• firm guidance and leadership by establishing rules and
consequences
• Freedom grows from discipline.
• Students understand that consequences follow
behavior
• students free to choose behavior that will attain their
legitimate needs
• Discipline involves teaching students how to establish
an inner control that permits them to choose correct
behavior
8 Conditions for a Democratic Classroom
(a) The establishment of order.
(b) The setting of limits. Use of logical consequnces
(c) The use of firmness and kindness: Firmness from

teachers shows that they respect themselves.
Kindness shows their respect for others.
(d) Involving students when establishing and maintaining

rules.
8 Conditions for a Democratic Classroom
(e) Leadership from the teacher.
(f) Inviting cooperation and eliminating destructive

competition.
(g) Promoting a sense of belonging within a group.
(h) Encouraging an atmosphere of freedom to explore,

discover, and choose acceptable behavior through
understanding the responsibilities and consequences
associated with it.
Dreikur’s Do’s and Don’t’s
Do’s
o Give clear-cut directions
o Establish a relationship with each individual based on

trust and mutual respect.
o Use logical consequences instead of traditional

punishment.
Don’ts
o Nag and scold as this is likely to strengthen a student's
regrettable concept on how to get attention.
o Work to obtain a promise from a student. Most

students will promise to change in order to free
themselves from an uncomfortable situation.
o Find fault with students. It may hurt their self-esteem

and discourage them.
Strengths
• potential to bring about genuine attitudinal changes in

students
• shared responsibility: teachers and students together

decide on rules and consequences.
• build in students an inner sense of responsibility and

respect for themselves and others.
Key Issues
• require steady and continual effort for results to

become evident.
• does not address the issue of hard-to-manage classes

or defiant students
• Too much emphasis on sense of belonging as cause
• Too much weightage given to “mistaken goals” as

misbehaviour
Suggestions for promoting democratic classrooms:
(a) Always speak in positive terms, never be negative
(b) Encourage students to strive for improvement, not

perfection
(c) Emphasize students’ strengths while minimizing their

weakness
(d) Help students learn from their mistakes, which are

valuable elements in the learning process
(e) Encourage independence and responsibility

Suggestions for promoting democratic classrooms:
(f) Show faith in students, offer them help to overcome

obstacles
(g) Encourage students to help each other
(h) Show pride in student work, display and share with

others
(i) Be optimistic and enthusiastic – a positive outlook is

contagious
(j) Use encourageing remarks such as “You have

improved”; What have you learned from that mistake?
Do’s
o Give clear-cut directions
o Establish a relationship with each individual based on

trust and mutual respect.
o Use logical consequences instead of traditional

punishment.
Do’s
o Let students assume greater responsibility for their
own behavior and learning.
o Treat students as your social equals.
o Combine kindness and firmness.
o At all times distinguish between the deed and the doer.

This allows you to retain respect for the student while
not accepting their behaviour.
Do’s
o Set limits from the beginning but work toward mutual
understanding
o Deal with incidents quickly and effectively Let students

know that mistakes are corrected, forgiven and then
forgotten.
Don’ts
o Nag and scold as this is likely to strengthen a student's
regrettable concept on how to get attention.
o Work to obtain a promise from a student. Most

students will promise to change in order to free
themselves from an uncomfortable situation.
o Find fault with students. It may hurt their self-esteem

and discourage them.
Don’ts
o Adopt double standards - we are all familiar with these.
o Use threats as a method to discipline students.

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Models and Theories

Dreikur’s Confronting Mistaken Goals

1. Discipline is not punishment. It is teaching students to

2. Learning occurs best in democratic classrooms that

3. Democratic teachers provide firm guidance and

4. All students have an innate need for belonging. They

5. When students are unable to satisfy this prime need

7. Teachers should encourage student's efforts while

8. Teachers should teach students that unpleasant

There are three categories of teachers:

• force their will on students in order to control the class

There are three categories of teachers:

• no explicit rules and consequences

• students fail to learn that successful living in general

• Students are confused because they believe that they

There are three categories of teachers:

• neither permissive nor autocratic

8 Conditions for a Democratic Classroom

(a) The establishment of order.

(b) The setting of limits. Use of logical consequnces

(c) The use of firmness and kindness: Firmness from

(d) Involving students when establishing and maintaining

8 Conditions for a Democratic Classroom

(e) Leadership from the teacher.

(f) Inviting cooperation and eliminating destructive

(g) Promoting a sense of belonging within a group.

(h) Encouraging an atmosphere of freedom to explore,

Dreikur’s Do’s and Don’t’s

o Establish a relationship with each individual based on

o Use logical consequences instead of traditional

Dreikur’s Do’s and Don’t’s

o Work to obtain a promise from a student. Most

o Find fault with students. It may hurt their self-esteem

• potential to bring about genuine attitudinal changes in

• shared responsibility: teachers and students together

• build in students an inner sense of responsibility and

• require steady and continual effort for results to

• does not address the issue of hard-to-manage classes

• Too much emphasis on sense of belonging as cause

• Too much weightage given to “mistaken goals” as

Suggestions for promoting democratic classrooms:

(a) Always speak in positive terms, never be negative

(b) Encourage students to strive for improvement, not

(c) Emphasize students’ strengths while minimizing their

(d) Help students learn from their mistakes, which are

(e) Encourage independence and responsibility

(f) Show faith in students, offer them help to overcome

(g) Encourage students to help each other

(h) Show pride in student work, display and share with

(i) Be optimistic and enthusiastic – a positive outlook is

(j) Use encourageing remarks such as “You have

Dreikur’s Do’s and Don’t’s

o Establish a relationship with each individual based on

o Use logical consequences instead of traditional

Dreikur’s Do’s and Don’t’s

o Treat students as your social equals.

o Combine kindness and firmness.

o At all times distinguish between the deed and the doer.

Dreikur’s Do’s and Don’t’s