Anger Management in Classrooms

A school teacher wrote me the other day, asking about anger management in the classroom.

I referred him to my previous blog entitled “Anger Management in Schools,” as an introduction. (See previous blog entry dated April 10, 2010.) That represented a starting point for anger management, for individual students, for immediate short-term solutions in the “foreground” of the problem so to speak.

Here I would like to explore longer-term “background” solutions.

Longer-term solutions for anger management

All teachers and school counselors (and school principals) and students
should have the opportunity to read  Dr. Merrill Harmin (2002),
Strategies to Inspire Active Learning: Complete Handbook.
When I was in the Kingdom of Tonga in the South Pacific islands
back at the start of the new millennium, nearly every teacher
and administrator had a copy of this vital handbook. Many
teachers had a copy on their desk for ready reference every
day in the classroom. It is for daily use, showing how to become
a better teacher right now, and tomorrow, not down the road
somewhere.
Many libraries had multiple copies as well.
In a future post, I’ll report on the effective learning-teaching
changes that came out of using Dr. Harmin in the classroom.
And the test scores on external examinations went up to boot.
The teachers would place on the walls of their classrooms
Dr. Harmin’s “TRUTH SIGNS” (from pages 49-51 in his book,
and practiced using them (not just let them hang on the wall).
More on these “TRUTH SIGNS” later.
Using Dr. Harmin’s suggestions lead to more dignity and mutual
respect in the classroom between teachers and students, and
between students, and less anger.
Dr.Harmin’s book (pages 5 and 6) shows a teacher what a 
DESCA classroom looks/feels like and the rest of the book
shows the teachers how to help the students more and
more to develop themselves into a DESCA group of students,
students who have developed:
Dignity and respect for students (and teachers).
Energy that is at a good level, not too low and not too high.
Self-management and self-control for students (and teachers).
Community, where all students (and their teacher) work together
to learn, not just listen to the teacher lecturing; students help each
other learn in small groups of two or three; helps them learn to get
along with each other.
Awareness of self and others; “How am I doing?” thinks the student.
The whole book will transform the whole school if its inspiring strategies
are learned and practiced by teachers and students alike. (And of course
taught and encouraged by school principals and other administrators.)
Needless to say, one of the foundations is inspiring lessons taught by
inspired teachers, and taught by inspiring and active-learning students
as well.
Inspired strategies for active learning,  practiced daily in the classroom
by teachers and students alike, reduces anger to almost zero.
The reason?
Everyone is actively engaged in the tasks at hand. Students feel more
worthwhile and more engaged in learning, more proactively involved
in their own present learning and their own future learning possibilities,
as opposed to simply reacting in anger to problems that present.
The students are even taught interpersonal and negotiation skills–
as an alternative to the use of violence–as a problem resolution pattern.
– Doc Meek, Inspired Learning Strategies Specialist
South Jordan, Utah, USA; and Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta, CANADA
P.S.
“Anger is the ultimate troublemaker. I feel you can express a strong disapproval or dislike of an object without losing your temper.”
– Dalai Lama

22 Responses to “Anger Management in Classrooms”

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  • Nice one, there is actually some worthwhile points on this post some of my friends may find this relevant, I will send a link, many thanks

  • […] Anger Management in Classrooms « THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE […]

  • VRy interesting to read it 😛

  • need help regarding my younger brother “Oliver”.

  • Dear “Angel,” Welcome to my blog! You are saying that you need help regarding your younger brother “Oliver.” If it is general help, you can pose your questions here, and I can answer for you and others who will benefit from such answers as well. If you need specific and private help, please email me directly: docmeek@gmail.com
    – Blessings, Doc

  • It’s the old “curse of knowledge” dilemma isn’t it? It’s easy to assume visitors know how to comment or even that commenting is encouraged. Excellent post.

  • My husband is a wonderful guy. However at times he needs space away (especially when we’re arguing over something). I try to finish off something and get frustrated when he walks off. When I try to say something later, he gets angry and then unfortunately pushes me away or shoves the door in my face.

  • Dear Glennis, Thank you for sharing your feelings about anger with us. Anger from a spouse is not the easiest thing to bear, I think. Try catching him when you are not arguing, and not just after you have argued. Try a time when you are both quiet. Mention to him how hurt you feel when you are in the middle of speaking and he walks off. Set a timer if he can’t handle long talks. And do you accuse him when you speak with him? Use “I” statements instead. “This is how I feel,” rather than “You hurt me when . . . ” Blessings, Doc

  • Have you ever considered adding more videos to your blog posts to keep the readers more entertained? I mean I just read through the entire article of yours and it was quite good but since I’m more of a visual learner, I have found [videos] to be more helpful. Well let me know how it turns out!

  • Dear Rodolfo or Olivea (I’m not sure who authored this excellent comment), I love your suggestion about adding videos to THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE blog. I have not yet been able to find suitable videos to explain my concepts, and cannot yet afford the high cost of producing my own videos. I am not very technically-oriented, so I am not clear how I would go about making videos on my own. I am now adding some photos, which does help some. If there are any video-makers out there who would love to contribute to the goal of helping kids overcome learning problems, you would be more than welcome to partner with me on a video project! – Doc Meek

  • my best friend has been in an Anger Management class for 2 months now, he improved a lot when dealing with anger.`'”

  • Dear Louie, Thank you for giving us the good word about your friend benefiting from Anger Management classes! Good to hear from you! Blessings, Doc

  • most of us would need some anger management therapy if we are on very stressful jobs,.-

  • Dear Jake, You are so right that most of us in high-stress jobs could benefit from anger management protocols. Even if our jobs are low stress, we can sometimes be too short-tempered in our personal lives. Thank you for commenting on THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE blog. – Blessings, Doc
    P.S. I am unable to open your website; are you having server problems?

  • for those of us who cannot control anger, i think that anger management should be a requirement to have a quality life *::

  • Dear Boedeker, Thank your for browsing THE LEARNING CLINIC WORLDWIDE blog. I agree that those who cannot yet control their anger would be well-advised to seek some sort of help or treatment. Often we can learn the “impossible” if we are humble/teachable enough to seek help beyond ourselves.” – Doc Meek

  • Delana Clovis:

    Anger management is really required if you are having a lot of issues with your friends and friends. ,*;`; Regards diseases pages

  • Perry Lelacheur:

    Anger management takes some time to cure. the patient should really be willing to undergo treatment. ”

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