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Motivating Cooperative Behavior
by Jane Bluestein, Ph.D.
Win-Lose approaches that can compromise the emotional safety of the classroom:
Powering: Teacher Wins, Students Lose
Strategies:
Humiliation, loss of dignity, violation of self-esteem; criticism, shaming,
verbal/emotional violence
Threat to physical safety, physical violence
Conditional approval or love; threat of emotional abandonment
Deprivation of meaningful privilege or activity (ex: recess, eligibility,
graduation)
Dynamic/Outcomes:
Depends on your reaction, power, anger and student’s fear of your
reaction
May generate superficial compliance. Reinforces people-pleasing, dependence
on approval or at least minimal cooperation to avoid being hurt in some
way. Passive learning.
Can inspire rebelliousness, particularly in students who aren’t
motivated by the need for your approval or those who need to “save
face.”
Boundary Issues: Does not respect students’ boundaries or need for power; violates students’ boundaries.
Effectiveness: Can be effective in getting short-term cooperation from compliant students. Cost to emotional environment and quality of relationship between teacher and student is HIGH.
Permissiveness:
Teacher Loses, Students Win (sort of...)
Strategies:
Allowing students to behave in ways that can create problems for you
or others
Letting kids have their way to avoid other conflicts
Letting kids do something they want in order to obligate them to cooperate;
attempt to motivate cooperation through guilt, by being “nice”
Giving up; perception of having less influence or control than is true
Dynamic/Outcomes:
Chaos, manipulation, lack of student self-management
Tremendous insecurity when students’ needs for limits are not met
Teacher frustration, often ending up in reactive “blow-up”
when you reach the end of your rope; encourages kids to really push
the limits.
Boundary Issues: General lack of boundaries, unclear boundaries based on differences between teacher’s understanding and students’ understanding (“Be good.” “Clean this area.”), ambiguous boundaries, or boundaries with built in loop-holes (using warnings, asking for excuses, etc.)
Effectiveness: Minimal; usually kids know that they don’t have to listen until you start screaming, for example. Lack of limits and predictability makes cost to emotional environment and quality of teacher-student relationship HIGH.
Win-Win approach that does not compromise the emotional safety of the classroom:
Win-Win/Cooperation:
Teacher Wins, Students Win
Strategies:
May include meaningful activities such as going to a center, self-selection,
use of certain equipment, games, extra free time, time with adult, working
with a friend, drawing, running an errand, a chance to help in another
classroom; good grades (motivating for students who find grades meaningful)
or a “good” note home; a “night off” from homework;
etc. What’s worked for you??
May offer students a chance to choose between two or more activities,
the sequence in which they do assignments, or choices about where, when,
how, or with whom to do particular activities
Dynamic/Outcome:
NOT based on teacher’s reaction, fear of teacher’s power,
or need for approval
Proactive approach that considers and attempts to accommodate the students’
needs for both limits and power within those limits
Clearly-communicated contingencies, boundaries, guidelines, limits before
the students have a chance to mess up.
Student needs for limits and control are accommodated as much as possible
in an environment in which the teacher is still the authority
Reward-oriented; focuses on positive outcomes to student (not externally
based)
Predictable (so long as boundaries are maintained); mutually respectful
Boundary Issues: None. Boundaries are clearly communicated and upheld.
Effectiveness: Best possibility for success of all configurations of authority relationships. Actually builds and supports positive classroom relationships.
Excerpted and adapted from The Win-Win Classroom, by Jane Bluestein, Ph.D.,Corwin Publishing, Thousand Oaks, CA, © 2008,
Other handouts adapted from The Win-Win Classroom:
Guidelines for Offering Choices
Guidelines for Reinforcing Positive Behavior
Dealing Successfully with your Students’ Parents
Improve the School’s Social Culture
Behavior Management: Intervention Strategies
Other handouts by Dr. Jane Bluestein
Complete alphabetical listing of all handouts on this site.
Articles and excerpts by Dr. Jane Bluestein
Complete alphabetical listing of all articles on this site.
Complete listing of all articles and handouts in Spanish or French.
Books, Articles, Audio and Video Resources and other Resources by Dr. Jane Bluestein
Humor and Fun: Brighten your day with fun facts, short pieces about kids, pets and work, and hilarious things kids say, do and write. Includes items you can share with kids or use as a springboard for discussions and activities.
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