What to read after Discipline and Democracy?

Most public school educators eventually meet up with "the class from hell"-the one that throws them off guard, defies all preconceptions about learning, and renders once-effective teaching methods wholly inadequate. Worse, as the simple truth emerges that good curriculums with democratic options don't always yield responsible learning communities, teachers may resign themselves to a preoccupation with the "D" word: Discipline.

Allen Koshewa knows from hard-won experience that one needn't abandon democratic ideals in the face of such a challenge, and he documents it all in this pivotal "year-in-the-life" of a turbulent fifth-grade class. Here, a total breakdown of order occurred when students subverted the efforts of their very capable teacher to foster a democratic learning environment-efforts she'd long been known and admired for. The crisis caused classroom observer Koshewa to abandon his research goals, and instead collaborate on devising effective, yet judicious discipline strategies.

The book describes various techniques for nurturing self-esteem in even the most resistant students-active listening, anger management, diversity education, and more. It shows how to prioritize issues in the heat of the moment. It provides many practical bulleted lists, handouts, and examples. And it candidly analyzes the successes and failures of this quest to restore harmony.

While discipline is a topic that weighs heavily in teachers' concerns, it weighs only scantily in the literature devoted to them. Important and long overdue, this book will not only provide reassurance and instruction for preservice teachers; it will gratify inservice teachers with a real story that resonates with their own experiences.