Positive Pupil Management and Motivation

Book excerpt: First Published in 2000. In 1988 a major inquiry into the difficulties in managing adolescent behaviour was instigated by the Government under the chairmanship of Lord Elton. The report, known as the Elton Report on Discipline in Schools was published in 1989. At dissemination conferences the view was put forward that to aim to totally eliminate problematic pupils was unrealistic - a more realistic aim was to 'marginalise' the problem(s) i.e. to have effective school systems in place to respond to pupil misbehaviour so that problems of pupil discipline could be handled comfortably and not dominate the school's agenda. Starting with the findings of the Elton Report this book explores the identified causes of problem behaviour: emotional disturbance, home background, classroom factors and school system factors and then offers practical advice on how to manage them.