Exclusion as a Way of Promoting Student Responsibility: Does the Kind of Misbehavior Matter?

Three types of student misbehavior, varying in severity, were measured in self-report surveys completed by excluded students: distracting others, resisting teachers’ attempts to ensure engagement with work, and aggressive behavior. Results show that excluded students exhibiting less severe misbehavior are more amenable to the logic of teacher explanations whereas students whose misbehavior is more severe appear to respond better to recognition of appropriate behavior before exclusion and follow-up discussions. The results indicate that teachers should be aware of the differential impact of classroom management techniques on students exhibiting different types of misbehavior.