ABSTRACT
There are multiple ways to respond to this challenging situation. A typical, and understandable, reaction to this kind of behavior is threatening John with punishment (detention, a referral to the office, phoning home) and then following through with the threat. There are obvious serious student transgressions that may call for this kind of punishment consequence (a physical altercation, sexual harassment, threat of physical violence, if the student is completely out of control). However, there are numerous occasions where
punishment may only work temporarily, may not work at all, or may only exacerbate the problem, and not solve it.
