Contents

1. Important news
2. Overseas Visitor for 2008
3. The Next ACT 1
4. The Website
5. Book Review by Don White: “Schoolwide Discipline Plan Without the Loopholes - Yeah, but a salamander is not a fish!” by Jim Fay
6. Two dingoes - something to ponder over

Important News

The newly constituted Committee has made some significant achievements. One of the goals we set for getting AACTA moving forward was to work for approval of the courses by training organizations. This has happened in two areas:

The Australian Institute of Kinesiology accepted Jenny McFadden’s application to have ACTs 1 and 2 recognised as counselling courses for Kinesiologists as follows:

The committee has reviewed your course and consider it a wonderful counselling course.

It still has to go before the National Committee and I will accelerate this process but you can safely advertise it as accepted by the AIK Ltd as a counselling course.

The course does not teach Kinesiology so it is not a Core Course. I would recommend it as part of the Health Science and for Continuing Professional Education.

To add to the excitement, the Institute of Teachers has approved the submissions sent in by Don White and Janet Van Der Wyk for AACTA to be a provider of Continuing Development for teachers, in categories 2, 4, 5 and 6, as below:

There are 7 elements in the Institute’s Framework of Professional Standards:

1. Teachers know their subject/content and how to teach that content to students
2. Teachers know their students and how students learn
3. Teachers plan, assess and report for effective learning
4. Teachers communicate effectively with their students
5. Teachers create and maintain safe and challenging learning environments through the use of classroom management skills
6. Teachers continually improve their knowledge and practice
7. Teachers are actively engaged members of their profession and wider community

Don and Janet are having a look at the elements not yet approved… Onya!!

Overseas Visitor for 2008

We have not yet managed to confirm a visit from an IAACT presenter for next year, but are negotiating with a very interesting person… Watch this space! And remember, whoever we invite will be asked to present an ACT 3 - so if you are interested in completing your training for Certification, think about completing your ACT 2 practicum before they come so that you will be ready!

The Next ACT 1

The open ACT 1 proposed for August was postponed, and now will definitely go ahead in January 2008 on two consecutive weekends, 12/13 and 19/20 at West Ryde. Please contact Jenny McFadden on dietnomore@optusnet.net.au if you are interested.

The Website

The Committee is convening in November led by Lily Cammaroto to prepare information for the new and lively AACTA website. If you have any ideas of what information you would like to see on it, please let us know. Here are a few things we have thought of so far:

• What is AACTA?
• What does AACTA do?
• What is Control Theory?
• How do I get accreditation - what prerequisites are there?
• Core course descriptions
• Applications
• Practitioners
• Newsletter (Perceptions)
• Books.

Schoolwide Discipline Plan without the Loopholes - “Yeah, but a salamander is not a fish!”

Jim Fay, Love and Logic Press, Golden Colorado, 2005. (available through Amazon.com or www.loveandlogic.com

If you are looking for a fresh approach to managing student behaviour this book of about 100 pages will not disappoint. With a provocative title it is bound to arouse some interest and starts off with an explanation of the “salamander” reference in the title. Jim Fay is a teacher, educational consultant and public speaker of some thirty years experience and a founding member of the Kline Fay Institute based in Colorado, USA.

The first few chapters describe the beliefs that underpin Jim Fay’s approach to discipline and support this with entertaining anecdotal descriptions of interactions between teacher and student. . He draws upon his experiences to explore some of the “chronically true facts about the chronically disruptive students”.
Jim Fay points to the two opposing approaches to discipline - one, a punitive systemic approach; the other an approach based on principles. In a previous book (Teaching with Love and Logic) Fay explores this element in some detail.

A significant chapter of the book is in Jim Fay’s description of what he calls the “Nine Essential Skills of a Classroom Teacher” which are:

• Neutralising student arguing
• Using delayed consequences
• Using empathy
• Using the recovery process
• Developing positive teacher-student relationships
• Setting limits with enforceable statements
• Using choices to prevent power struggles
• Using quick and easy classroom interventions
• Guiding students to solve their own problems

In this rather lengthy chapter Jim Fay gives many examples of how to develop these skills and how to adapt the procedures in any school.

Perhaps one of the most provocative pages is in his description of his rules for his “Love and Logic” classroom.

• I will treat you with respect so you will know how to treat me.
• Feel free to do anything that doesn’t cause a problem for anyone else.
• If you cause a problem I will ask you to solve it
• If you can’t solve the problem or choose not to, I will do something.
• What I do will depend on the special person and the special situation.
• If you feel something is unfair, whisper to me, “I’m not sure that’s fair,” and we will talk.

But a word of warning for anyone who finds these ‘rules’ seductive. Read the book first to get a sound grasp of the principles of love and logic. There are many, many useful ideas to promote Jim Fay’s approach but I think it is an approach for a teacher confident in his/her skills in behaviour management.

For me, Jim Fay’s ideas provide a refreshing approach to working with students in the school setting. It fits in well with the approach taken by Marvin Marshall’s “Raising Responsibility” model and Diane Gossen’s Restitution. All three approaches are aimed at promoting self-discipline. The onus is on the student to accept responsibility and resolve the issue. This is a book definitely worth reading.
Don White
October, 2007.

Two Dingoes - something to ponder over

Sally Berman sent me this little story. Think it over; it has a profound lesson in it.

The Two Dingoes

One evening an old man told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people.

He said, “My son, the battle is between two “dingoes” inside us all..

One is Evil.

It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is Good.

It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which dingo wins?”The old man simply replied, “The one you feed.”