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losing instructional time, to maintain the dignity of the students, and to avoid fostering unnecessary
resentment. When teachers find that a minimally disruptive response does not work, they can move on to
slightly stronger responses. Each instance is unique, and it takes practice for teachers to learn the optimum
level at which to intervene in each instance.
I-messages. One especially useful verbal intervention is the I-message (Gordon, 1974; Elias &
Schwab, 2006; Brophy, 1996; Brophy & McCaslin, 1992). An I–message is a statement by a teacher or a
student in which the teacher or student describes an undesired behavior and explains how the behavior
affects him or her. An effective I–message has three parts. The first part is a nonjudgmental, non–blaming
description of the behavior that the speaker finds undesirable. The second part explains how this behavior
affects the speaker. The third part notes the feelings that the speaker has as a result of the behavior. Here
are examples of I-messages that a teacher may use in the classroom:
When I see a lot of students coming to class unprepared (non-judgmental description of the behavior), I
know you will not get the most out of the lesson today (tangible effect of the behavior), and this
worries me because I want all of you to have a good understanding of how to write persuasive
essays (feeling caused by behavior).
When I hear a lot of talking during my lessons (non-judgmental description of the behavior), it
frustrates me (feeling caused by the behavior) because I can’t present the lesson that I spent a lot of
time preparing for you (tangible effect of the behavior).
Teachers should take care to present their I-messages in a non judgmental way. It is especially important to
make sure that I-messages do not become diatribes in which teachers angrily denounce the students’
misbehavior.
I-messages are not only for teachers to use. In recent years, there has been a strong push to
encourage students to use I-messages with each other (Elias & Schwab, 2006; Brophy, 1996; Brophy &
McCaslin, 1992). In fact, I-messages are integral parts of many conflict resolution and peer mediation
programs used in many classrooms. Instead of responding to insults or taunts by fighting, students learn to
use I-messages such as: “When you insult my family, it upsets me because I know that what you’re saying
is not true.”
The effectiveness of teacher’s use of I-messages depends on the level of interpersonal relationships
that exist in the classroom. If students do not feel that their teacher cares about them, then they are unlikely
to care about how their teacher feels, and I-messages will not be effective. On the other hand, if teachers
foster caring relationships with students, then most students will care if their teacher is worried, upset, or
frustrated. Thus, I-messages work best when teachers promote good classroom relationships.
Problem 11.5 Evaluating Teaching: The Tally System
James Montgomery, a ninth grade science teacher, uses the following management system: whenever a
student commits a minor infraction of any kind (chewing gum, daydreaming, doodling, whispering or
talking, calling out answers, etc.), James writes the student’s name on the board, with a tally next to it. A
second infraction prompts a second tally. If there is a third tally, the student must come to the teacher’s
room for after-school detention. Evaluate this teacher’s system.
Response: A main difficulty with James’s system is that his system gives him no way option to handle
minor misbehaviors in a private way that minimizes class disruptions. His system involves making every
misbehavior, no matter how minor, public. He also must frequently pause the class while he writes
names and/or tally marks on the board. This could lead to serious fragmentation of the lesson. Because
James does not opt to use I-messages or to provide explanations for the reasons behind the rules, he
may fall short of encouraging students to regulate their own behavior.
Students may also learn that it is all right to engage in misbehavior in this class up to getting
caught two times, because it is only the third time that will result in any consequences.