Classroom Management Strategies for Difficult Students: Promoting Change through Relationships, by Mary Ellen Beaty-O'Ferral, Alan Green & Fred Hanna.

This article looks into helping alleviating classroom issues through the development of relationships between students and teachers. There is some great ideas for redirecting students actions without making them feel that they are in trouble or that you, like most adults in their lives, are mad at them.

Some of the topics regarding empathy and admiring negative attitudes and behaviors I found quite helpful in the manner that I have found in many situations in dealing with students I have found myself reverting back to my military background and focusing on the behavior in a negative manner that is equally disruptive, rather than try to get to the root of the problem or redirecting the negative energy into something more positive.

I feel that for most teachers the most pertinent and important section is Leaving the ego at the door. It reminds us of the nature of the career that we have chosen and that we are there to help guide these students on their journey not to act or portray ourselves as somehow superior.

There is also a great section on working in a multicultural environment and ideas on how to build relationships especially where there is a language and cultural barrier.

Overall I found this article a great addition to a lot of the other techniques we have learned to deal with behavioral conditions in our classrooms.