Category Archives: Classroom Management & Discipline

As Bible teachers we may have sessions that seem to go extremely well but occasionally those that don’t go very well. Of course, we might have a range in-between those extremes. While there could be a number of causes, it could be because of who’s there, or not there, in a given session. Students with certain tendencies can negatively, or positively, impact the teaching-learning process and affect how the group relates with one another. Group dynamic can change based on a variety of factors like …

personalities of students present.
learning styles of those in the class.

Different combinations of people can make for some very interesting or very dull learning sessions. Even one person’s absence or attendance can change the way the group interacts. The more we’re aware of this potential, and prepare for different scenarios, the more likely we’ll be to steer the group toward a more positive experience by the way we handle different issues.

What Group Dynamic Can Affect

Group dynamic can affect class discussions.

Sometimes class discussion goes exceptionally well and other times it’s like pulling teeth. Sometimes it can break out into heated debates and other times remain calm and very diplomatic. The way people engage in discussion could vary depending on who’s there.

Within a group we will have all sorts of people — monopolizers, passive students, those who consistently get off on tangents, etc.

How safe people feel to open up could depend on who’s there. If you have students present who tend to belittle or pass judgment on what others say, some class members will guard how transparent they are in their remarks while others retreat completely, rarely adding to the discussion.

For help thinking through what to do to improve the group dynamic by helping individuals who tend to have negative effects on the class, order the In Facilitating a Discussion, Everyone’s Contribution is Valuable Worksheet.

Group dynamic can affect class deportment.

This effect tends to be more obvious in children and youth classes but can also manifest itself in adult groups as well. The dynamic changes when students in a clique show up. When bullies or more aggressive students attend, the atmosphere tends to change. Even one hyperactive student can affect the rest of the class.

It’s important for teachers to be prepared to deal with various issues to improve group dynamic. The Discipline Issues: What to Do About Specific Challenges resource can help you think about how to work through these challenges.

Group dynamic can affect any class activity. If we want our Bible classes to be places students want to be, then we must be aware and be prepared to adapt as needed.

Discipline, often cited as the number one frustration by teachers, can so discourage teachers that they want to quit teaching. Staying the course will take the right perspective and purposes.

3 Tips for Dealing with Classroom Discipline

1. Seek to emulate the heart and purposes of God in disciplining.

“… God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Heb. 12:4-11) — When we view discipline as an opportunity to work in cooperation with God to help students become who they can be in Him, our perspective changes. Discipline takes on a bigger, eternal dimension rather than merely managing problems in the here and now. When we use God as our standard, we tend to have a proper view of our own role in the process.

Teacher Training Tools:

• Effectively Handling Classroom Discipline Workbook
• Biblical Authority versus the Authoritarian and Permissive Teachers Worksheet

2. Seek to get to the underlying cause of misbehavior.

If real change is our goal in disciplining, we must address the root cause. We must remember that outward behavior is motivated by something internal. — “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” (Lk. 6:45) — When we acknowledge the underlying cause, the solution tends to become more obvious. If we only deal with the symptoms, the problem will likely resurface.

Teacher Training Tool: Discipline Issues: What to Do About Specific Challenges

3. Seek to be proactive, not waiting for problems to arise.

If we work through some basic strategies of classroom management for both correcting and preventing problems, we’ll at least have a starting place. The more we work through how we might deal with various situations, the better prepared we will be. We will not be able to prepare ourselves for every issue that may arise but will tend to be more alert for what could happen and put preventive measures in place.

Teacher Training Tool: Handbook on the Basics of Classroom Discipline

Let’s promote what really matters in relationship building so what we say about caring for one another gets underscored and begins to sink in. Teaching goes beyond our words to what we exemplify and promote, or fail to promote, in our Bible classes.

We can say God designed the Church to be devoted to one another in love (Rom. 12:10), to love as He loves (Jn. 13:34). The classroom environment, however, may teach otherwise.

Acrostic of What Bible Teachers Need to Promote as Important for Relationship Building

Relationship building in the Bible classroom is about helping students learn to care for one another that leads to being “devoted to one another in love” (Rom. 12:10) as God intends. This acrostic will help us remember what’s important to promote if this is going to happen.

R – Reaching Out matters

Help the class be other-centered. Cliquishness leads to dysfunctional relationships and divisiveness which is not the kind of devotion God desires (1 Cor. 1:10-13; 3:3-7; Gal. 3:28). — How can we encourage inclusion of those who attend but are on the fringes? What kind of projects can we do as a class to reach out to those not in our group?

E – Example of Jesus matters

Point to Jesus as the standard. We’re to love as He loves us (Jn. 13:34-35; 1 Jn. 4:19). As teachers we too must exemplify a caring attitude but even that’s about being able to say, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.” (1 Cor. 11:1) — Are we communicating how “wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ” (Eph. 3:18)?

L – Listening matters

We need to be “quick to listen” and “slow to speak” (James 1:19-20) to prevent misunderstandings in our relationships with one another. Also, it’s hard to be concerned when others suffer or rejoice with them in good times (1 Cor. 12:25-26) if we don’t listen. — Have we established criteria for sharing and discussion that keeps some from monopolizing and encourages all to listen as others speak?

A – Attitudes matter

Self-righteous or superior attitudes put us above others and cause us to respond in ways that are for our own benefit rather than others. Since “even Christ did not please himself” we need “the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had” (Rom. 15:1-6). — In our teaching, do we get beyond outward conformity to examining the heart?

T – Truth matters

Authenticity builds devotion to one another (Eph. 4:15; Col. 3:9; 1 Jn. 3:18). — Are we building a safe environment in which people feel they can be real, one in which love accompanies truth that must be spoken?

I – Interest matters

Reciprocity in relationships requires “not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others” (Phil. 2:4). — Do we provide time for students to get to know each other better, to become more aware of the concerns and needs of others?

O – Openness matters

Being judgmental or showing favoritism fails to extend God’s love, grace, and mercy (James 2:1-13) so critical to relational health. If we don’t accept one another (Rom. 15:7), we probably won’t care about each other or even want to build a relationship. — What can we do to show that each person has value and belongs no matter what?

N – Nurturing matters

We need to keep sowing good into relationships for them to grow (Gal. 6:7-10). Neglect leads to weakened relationships, not devoted ones. — What are ways to keep efforts to build relationships fresh and important?

S – Serving matters

Ministering to one another results from the realization that life isn’t all about “me” and “my” rights and needs (Gal. 5:13-14). We each have a part in helping one another grow (Eph. 4:16). — What kind of emphasis are we putting on students applying what they’re learning by serving one another?

H – Humility matters

Until we learn to “in humility value others above” ourselves, we’ll be too into ourselves to truly care about others (Phil. 2:3). — What are we doing to communicate that in Christ we’re all equal and each person matters as much as the other?

I – Interaction matters

Because of our fellowship with Christ, we can enjoy fellowship with one another (1 Jn. 1:7). By definition, fellowship (koinonia) is about sharing with one another. — Does our methodology and even seating arrangement promote or stifle interaction?

P – Practicality matters

We love by actions, not just words (1 Jn. 3:18). It isn’t enough to just say we care. — How are we encouraging students to act on their love for one another?

S – Sacrifice matters

Relationships sometimes cost us time, effort, and/or resources to be there for one another (Jn. 15:12-13; Acts 4:32-37). — Are we setting a good example by making ourselves available? 

For more, go to: Relationship Building in the Classroom – Teacher Training Resources

Every Bible teacher of children or youth classes will at some point have to deal with discipline issues. And, they’ll inevitably have questions about what to do.

Frequently Asked Question about Classroom Discipline

How do I deal with ______ ?

Questions frequently get asked about how to deal with specific discipline issues but it’s difficult to give a pointed response because of the variables. Two children can engage in the same misbehavior but for different reasons. So, the first thing we need to do is to try to discern the cause. When we identify the “why”, the “what” often becomes obvious. If we don’t identify the cause, we may simply apply a temporary bandage to the situation which may later re-fester. Knowing the reason for why a student acts as he/she does, doesn’t excuse the child from responsibility but rather helps us work toward the best and most appropriate solution that could prevent future misconduct.

Also keep in mind that what works with the one child might not with the other. Their responses could be tempered by their background, personality, learning style, along with other factors. A cookie cutter approach to the same problem with different children may not work. We must consider individual needs.

Then, no matter what the issue may be, look at it through the lens of the big picture. How can this problem be used as an extension of the teaching process, as an opportunity for discipleship? The ultimate goal in dealing with any particular issue should be to help that student become more and more Christ-like.

For help working through causes for different behaviors, check out: Discipline Issues: What to Do About Specific Challenges

Get answers to the following questions about classroom discipline in the Bible Teacher’s Handbook of Frequently Asked Questions:

• What’s the best approach for disciplining?
• What kind of consequences should be used for misbehavior?
• I’ve tried everything and nothing works, so now what do I do?

The handbook responds to questions covering 48 other issues in teaching with a total of 153 questions.

Also be sure to check out Classroom Discipline Bundle intended to provide a more comprehensive view to disciplining. Each of the resources in the bundle can also be purchased separately.