A 3-Step Process for Addressing Disruptive Behavior

One of the hardest things for a new teacher to master is managing student behavior, which can significantly impact learning. According to an EAB education technology services and research survey, student behavior disrupts the classroom for about 144 minutes per week.

For many students, this happens because they are dysregulated. Something is going on that limits their ability to control their emotions and behaviors. These disruptive behaviors can be challenging for all teachers, especially new teachers. Not only are they learning how to put their pedagogy into practice, but now they have to balance how to address these students without making the situation worse or letting the behavior impact the learning of the other students.

Teachers new to the field might need help knowing where to start when these behaviors occur, and the basic premise of this begins with just three simple steps:  distract, debrief, and resolution. Our goal is to get these students regulated again quickly, in a way that saves their dignity and minimizes disruptions to student learning. This strategy can be beneficial for all students but especially helpful for our elementary students, who are still learning how to regulate themselves emotionally.  

Distract 

The first step in addressing these behaviors is to distract the student from what might be causing or escalating the behavior: the other students in the class—the “audience”—or something else. The student is dysregulated and needs help to regulate themselves. They need to be emotionally regulated before they can get back to learning. First, when it’s appropriate, you’ll want to remove that student from the audience to minimize embarrassment from the outburst. This sometimes means they just need to leave the room.

A habit that new teachers want to avoid is constantly calling for someone to come and get a student who is showing minor behaviors. The teacher could direct the student to a common cool-down space in the classroom or, when possible, have another teacher or other appropriate staff member walk with them in the hallway. The idea is not to have someone just remove the student but to get the student to walk and exercise. Having them walk to a water fountain in a different part of the building is great because they will get some movement, and getting water can help the body naturally de-escalate.

During this time, it is best not to ask questions about what was going on in the classroom but to ask them different questions about the bulletin boards in the hallway, what they did over the weekend, or their interests. When students are not emotionally regulated, they are not ready to discuss what was occurring in the classroom.  

As a rule of thumb, it is best for the teacher de-escalating the student not to set a timer but to allow them the time they need to regulate themselves before moving to the next step. The time students need to regulate themselves is different for every student and could be different daily; if we rush them through this part of the process, it turns into a cycle of disruptive behaviors. 

Debrief 

The next step is debriefing when the student is regulated and can talk to the teacher about what was occurring. This can be done in the classroom, as you walk the hall, or sitting next to them in another room. One minor but important step is to sit next to the student, facing the same direction. No student wants to sit on the opposite side of a table to explain what happened as if they’re in a police interrogation room. This small nonverbal step projects that you and the student are on the same team and you are their advocate, not their critic.

Next, let the student explain through their perspective what they thought the situation was; it’s OK to ask clarifying questions about the problem, but it is best to let them talk about what happened; even if you are already aware of the situation, the goal is to let them talk through it. As they get their perspective out, asking questions like “How do you think your friends in the room felt?” and “What could we have done to stop this before we got to where we are?” help the student to reflect and create a resolution plan. 

Resolution 

The last step in this process is resolution. Resolution is where the student plans to make amends with those negatively impacted by the behavior and move forward so that this episode doesn’t affect the rest of their day. This step will look different for all situations and students. The critical part is that the student comes up with the following steps and takes ownership of the behavior. They should be the one to explain to the teacher what happened, how they felt about it, and possible strategies to use next time they are aware they are becoming dysregulated.

It is not the job of the teacher who was working to regulate the student to complete this step for the student, but it is beneficial to check with the student or teacher whose class the student disrupted later in the day to see how successful this process was. If you are the teacher of the class that the student disrupted and are not the teacher who was working to regulate the student, this is a good time for the student to explain how they plan to fix things. You can use this time to solidify your relationship with that student as their advocate.

Take note of how the student said they would fix it. You can use this as a reminder if you see them becoming dysregulated later in the day or as a reinforcer if they used the strategy they told you they would, and it worked. This is a great way to solidify the emotional regulation strategy for that student. 

There is no magical fix for students who struggle to stay regulated in the classroom. Still, this strategy can be a vital scaffold for behavioral regulation techniques. As with any behavior support, the key is to get to know your students first so you can help identify when they are becoming dysregulated and be consistent with implementing any behavior management strategy.

The most important thing is to get our students regulated again, create plans to amend the situation, and bring them back to the classroom to minimize learning loss.