it is the relationship between student and teacher that is paramount. Lewis says “years of sending a child off to the principal for discipline has done untold damage. It is just sending a child who is already struggling away”. Lewis says punishment, when necessary, needs to come from the teacher, within a trusting and mutually respectful relationship.
What about the child who continually disrupts and does not respond to the strategies mentioned? Lewis says “at risk” students are occupying a more central place in schooling than has historically been the case. These students have unmet needs and low self-concept and need to feel a sense of belonging, competence and usefulness. They behave this way in response to feelings of rejection and find it easier to believe the teacher does not like them. And some teachers do not.