ABSTRACT

This study set out to investigate the influence of school discipline on students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division. Specifically, the study sought: to examine the influence of preventive discipline on students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division, to investigate the influence of supportive discipline on  students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division and to find out how corrective discipline influence students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division.

Research questions alongside hypothesis derived from the objectives equally guided the study. The Operant conditioning theory of B. F. Skinner (1905), Choice theory of William Glasser (1961), Person-Centered theory of Carl Rogers (1959) and Canter and Canter’s Assertive Discipline Model (1992) guided this study.

The concurrent nested mixed method  research design was adopted in the sense that qualitative data  were used to buttress quantitative data obtained from questionnaires. Questionnaires  data were collected from a randomly selected sample of 300 form 4 and lower sixth students while interview data were conviniently  collected  from 20 teachers and 10 masters and mistresses in charge of discipline  respectively. Quantitative data were analysed using both descriptive statistics (percentages, mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics while qualitative data were analysed using content thematic analysis.

Findings revealed that  preventive, supportive and corrective discipline measures have a significant positive influence on students’ learning. Based on these findings, it was recommended amongst others that the government should pass policies on how schools should go about implementing preventive discipline making sure that the social and emotional environment of the school as well as the classroom is condusive for teaching learning process.

CHAPTER ONE

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

Student’s learning in recent times has been a cause for concern and it is believed that school discipline problems amongst other factors is responsible for poor student’s learning (Epstein and  Sheldon, 2002). Black et al. (2014) argue that student’s learning is reinforced through continuous administrator and teacher guidance and parental/guardian encouragement. Arum (2003) and Glasser (2001) see discipline as conforming in totality to laid down norms and as complete obedience to orders. Bello, Martella, Neslon and Marchand (1981) view discipline as a means of imparting knowledge and skills. Latham (1997) and Saich (2003) see discipline as simply punishment and control. Classroom discipline is more than all of the above. It is more than the power the teacher exercises over his students. It is more than the mere maintenance of law and order in the classroom or the right method of dealing with offenders in schools. It means more than punishment and occasional praises and rewards. It is more than mere stillness and quietness in the classroom. Discipline is the application of all those influences which secure or at least try to secure proper conduct in schools (Yusuf, 2015). One of such influences is the rate of school learning by learners.

School discipline is the training which produces in students self restraint, orderliness, good conduct, cooperation and the habit of getting the best out of themselves. It involves intellectual and moral education as opposed to mere order and instruction (Yusuf, 2015). Discipline is more than simply getting students to behave the way one expects them to or stopping them from behaving the way one does not want on a specific occasion. Discipline is the continuous process of positive instruction and negative correction through which students are taught to act within specified rules and values (Yusuf, 2015). Excessive negative responses from parents or teachers tend to encourage more negative responses from the hurt and angry child. To discipline effectively, negative correction should be used sparingly and positive instruction should be used most of the time.

According to Epstein & Sheldon (2002) and Ready (2010) better  learning  is  related to higher  academic achievement for students of  all backgrounds. Additionally, students who attend school regularly score  higher  in tests than their peers, who are frequently absent. Student’s learning therefore is an aspect of school discipline that need to be strictly enforced in schools. This chapter shall present the background to the study, statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions, research hypotheses, significance of the study, limitation of the study and operational definition of terms.

Background to the Study

The way students are disciplined has been an issue since the inception of public education. In 1770, William Blackstone applied the phrase in loco parentis, which literally means in place of the parents, to educators. In loco parentis gave teachers the ability to act in place of the parent in response to disciplinary actions (Conte, 2000).

The most common means of discipline in schools early on was corporal punishment (McCan, 2017). Teachers would use switches, birch, rulers, etc. for discipline and academic issues. Teachers were able to hit students when they were not paying attention in class, had discipline problems and for academic issues (Lambert, 2018). Later on, U.S educators began to study the European models and theories in the middle of the 19th century. (Phillipp Emanuel von Fellenberg, 1799), suggested that corporal punishment should not be used for academic errors and that students learn best with encouragement. This is still a practice used today in schools. Many students learn best with encouragement from the teacher. This is also in some student’ s IEP plans.

One major event that happened with discipline in education is when learning at a public school became mandatory in 1910. The role of the teacher shifted in a more parent direction. The teacher became the disciplinarian at school in place of the parent. Teachers had to shape their discipline and curriculum around stepping into a more parental role. Due to high enrollment and the fact that learning in public schools were made mandatory, schools had to hire a principal that oversaw them. This created a new hierarchy at the school. Teachers were no longer the source of the discipline and teachers could focus on their curriculum and their teaching practices more (Lambert, 2018).

In the 1970s and 1980s, a popular form of discipline was “time out” instead of using corporal punishment. The teacher would send students to time out whenever there were discipline problems. Students would be isolated to a corner instead of being with the class. Rodd(1996) said that “Time-out interrupts and prevents aggressive behaviour, protects the rights and safety of the other students and keeps them from turning into an admiring and encouraging audience”. This form of discipline is not as popular today as it was back then. It takes students out of the lesson and also humiliates them. It also allows the student to find a way out of class if they do not want to be there.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, zero tolerance policies developed in response to school shooting and school violence in the United States of America. Schools were able to use harsh punishment whenever a student broke a certain rule with the zero tolerance policy. The goal was to cut down crime to decrease behaviour issues (Gjelten, 2015). In 1994, the federal government passed the Gun-Free Schools act where schools could expel any student who brought a gun to school (Gjelten, 2015). Zero tolerance policies are still used today. Now-a-days zero tolerance includes bringing any type of weapon to school, having alcohol or drugs on campus, fighting and threatening students or teachers (Gjelten, 2015). Schools started using police officers to monitor halls during the school day. Zero tolerance policies were supported by key education stakeholders (Katz, 2016).

In the early 2000s, schools adapted a new discipline procedure by using referrals in the classroom. Schools decided their own type of procedure to writing a referral. Most teachers were expected to give warnings and call parents before a referral was given to the student. Teachers could refer students to the principal’s office and even to the counsellors. The goal is to get the child help so that they can come back to class later on and be successful (Meador, 2018). Current discipline and classroom management procedures include: preventative discipline where teachers establish expectations and rules for behaviour during the first few days of class, create a safe, non-confrontational classroom and use positive reinforcement by praising and rewarding students for positive behaviours(Roter, 2015). Research is starting to prove that not every form of discipline works on every single child. It is essential for the teacher to get to know their students and find out what works for them individually before deciding how to discipline a student.

Learning can be traced back to the times of the earliest human civilizations. The notion of learning was thought to have occurred first among the Ancient Egyptians and the Greeks. They were the first to assume that intelligence, senses and emotions were roles of the heart. Later philosophers such as Socrates and his disciple Plato believed that knowledge is an inborn ability and can grow as humans learn new things. Learning and the education system as we know began with the establishment of modern psychology in the late 1800s. In later times psychologists such as Thorndike, Freud, Piaget, Vygotsky, Watson, Pavlov and Skinner believed that learning is a psychological process that can be observed through one’s development and behaviours. Since the invention of the first computer back in the mid 1830s by Charles Babbage, the function of learning and development has changed drastically. Moreover, the internet and e-learning have created new pathways for learning and training.

Two distinct categories of definitions for school discipline can be found according  to the focus of understanding and meanings  given by specialists and scientists. In the first category of definitions, authors are focused on the “learning process”, which means that students should learn how to express their feelings according to some expected “right” behaviour. This category of definitions  is  based  on  the Latin origin of  the  word  discipline  which  means  “to  learn” (Morrison & Skiba, 2001). From this perspective, discipline is seen as the  development  of  self-control through the teaching of problem-solving skills and learning more productive ways to express feelings (Dupper, 2010). According to this  understanding, school discipline has positive meanings (Fontana, 1985, Gasic-Pavisic, 2005). Negative meanings of discipline are related with the second category of definitions. Discipline, according to this category means to control, to punish, to be submissive to rules and authority, to suspend and expel. These are often intervention practices in cases of school indiscipline and misbehaviour (Trnavac, 1996; Morrison & Skiba, 2001;  Gasic-Pavisic, 2005; Kohn, 2006; Lundau, 2009; Dupper, 2010; Nešić &Popović Ćitić, 2018).

Different authors have defined discipline in various terms. Adesina (1980), says that discipline is to  teach  the  students  manners  on  how to show  respect  to  school  authorities,  to  observe  the  school  laws  and regulations  and  to  maintain  an  established  standard of  behaviour.   From  this  definition  the  school  has a primordial role to play in instilling discipline into their students. Therefore school administrators  and teachers should enforce acceptable behaviour in their students. Egwunyenga (1994) defined discipline as the training that enables  an  individual  to  develop  an  orderly  conduct and  self-control  as  well  as  direction. Peretomode, (1995) maintains that discipline involves the ability to have self-control, restraint, respect for self and respect for others.

Discipline  according  to  Abubakar, (2000)  is  the  ability  and  willingness  to  do  what  one  ought  to  do  without external control. Hence one can say discipline is internally motivated within the individual and depends on the state  of  mind  of  an  individual.  It  is  voluntary  and an  individual  deliberately  makes  efforts  to  conform  to  an established  code  of  conduct.  However,  Aguba  (2009)  while  emphasizing  Douglas  McGregor’s  theory  x, maintained  that  discipline  is  externally  induced  in individuals  who  do  not  succumb  to  established  rules  and regulations out of personal volition but out of fear of punishment or sanction. Rosen (1997) sees discipline as a branch  of  knowledge,  training  that  develops  self-control,  character,  orderliness  or  efficiency,  strict control  to enforce obedience and treatment that controls or punishes and as a system of rules. According to Slee (1995), discipline involves teaching and self-control. The United States department of Education (1993, P.1) in Rosen (1997) acknowledges that maintaining a disciplined environment conducive for learning requires an ethics of caring that shapes staff student’s relations.

In addition, Thomdile and Barnhart (1979) see the term discipline as a trained condition of order and obedience, order kept among school learners, bringing to a condition of order and obedience or bringing under control. Treffry et al. (1997) holds that discipline is a practice of imposing strict rules of behaviour on other people and also as the ability to behave and work in a controlled manner. Not only is discipline behaviour which leads to better learning and a display of behaviour which the society has agreed upon as appropriate, but also as actions taken to prevent or handle behaviour problems in the classroom as well as the control of learners behaviour (Rice, 1987).

According to Tan, E. (2002), there are three other types of discipline: developmental, preventive and corrective. The developmental aspect includes training, adoption of values  and standards for acceptable behaviour that is, the overall organization of work on time and classroom management. The preventive aspect refers to setting the limits of behaviour and determining the basic rules of  behaviour, informing students about what is considered acceptable or unacceptable behaviour and the consequences for unacceptable behaviour. The corrective aspect involves the application of teaching strategies and intervention procedures, in order to maintain acceptable behaviour and change unacceptable  behaviour for example, use of corrective measures such as rewarding and punishing (Gasic-Pavisic, 2005).

Some authors, who agree that discipline should be part of the educational process and classroom management, discuss the types of discipline. These types are the different aspects of the discipline process. They are related with methods and actions that are used to discipline the students. The types of discipline are mostly divided into three groups: preventive, corrective and supportive. Preventive discipline measures are taken to prevent misbehaviour by keeping the students engaged. Supportive discipline measures are taken to assist students with self-control by helping them to get back on task while, corrective discipline measures are taken when students are not following classroom or school rules (Charles, 1999).

Learning is the process of acquiring new understanding, knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, attitudes, and preferences (Karban, 2015). Student’s learning is the daily or regular learner participation in school activities (Gottfried,  2010). Through regular student’s learning, learners get to access consistent educational support for their academic attainment  (Oghuvbu, 2010). Honneth  (1995)  observes  that when learners attain  academically,  they recognize their identities and intersubjective  awareness of  their social and individual capabilities. However, Epstein and Sheldon (2002) assert that  regular student’s learning is a commitment to classroom time and activities right from  enrolment to finalization of a full academic program. School learning is an important factor that influences the academic performance of pupils. Roby’s (2004) Student’s Learning Hypothesis  indicates that regular student’s learning could  help  students  to  achieve  academic excellence. Similarly, Fleming (2008) advises that pupils need  regular  student’s  learning  for  them  to  be  highly engaged  with  classroom  activities. Black  et  al. (2014) argue  that  student’s learning is reinforced through continuous teacher guidance and  parental/guardian encouragement.

Schools can be a  place  where  students  feel  safe  and  connected  though it cannot address all the issues and problems that some students bring along with them. Studies show that schools can play a major role in how students feel about attending. Some educators and researchers refer to this process as school connectedness. When students feel cared for by teachers and others and feel like they are part of the school, they are less likely to engage  in  risky behaviour, such as absenting from school, using drugs, engaging in violence or starting sexual activity at an early age (Mayer & Mitchell, 1993; Walsh, 1993; Lotz & Lee, 1999;  Komakech & Osuu, 2014). 

A  growing  body  of  literature  categorizes  student’s learning  into  school  attendees  and  absentees (Schoeneberger, 2011; Nichols, 2003; Rana et al., 2015). Similarly,  the United  States  Department  of  Education (2019)  categorized  school  attendees  into  irregular  and regular attendees. Nonetheless,  Zubrick (2019) proposes that school absentees can be further categorized into five dimensions: truancy, dropout, mobility, absenteeism and expulsion. Each of these dimensions of school absenteeism embeds varying  areas  of  focus. Nowadays teachers are forbidden from flogging children or admonishing them harshly for non learning at school because child protection laws prohibit any form of  torture  or  harassment  (McCluskey  et  al.,  2004; Maynard  et  al.,  2013).  Eventually,  children  keep on skipping  school  and  it  becomes  chronic  truancy (Richardson,  1994;  Weiner,  1991).  In many societies  in Africa,  compulsory  Student’s learning  is  not  yet  a  legal requirement which partly explains the increase in the rate of truancy in these primordial societies (Sekiwu, 2013).

The study was guided by four theories that is; Operant Conditioning Theory of B. F. Skinner (1905), Person-Centered Theory of Carl Rogers (1959), Reality Theory of William Glasser (1961) and Canter and Canter’S (1992) Assertive Discipline Model. Skinners’s behavioural theory of Operant Conditioning holds that behaviour that is rewarded tends to be repeated, while behaviour that receives no rewards tends to be eliminated. Skinner’s Behavioural theory is focused on reward and punishment, which implies that students who present appropriate or desirable behaviour are rewarded while those who present inappropriate or undesirable behaviour are negatively reinforced or punished. Skinner noted in many of his works that much, if not most of our voluntary behaviour is shaped as we receive reinforcement immediately after we perform an act (Charles & Senter, 2004). This theory led teachers to use constant reinforcement as a form of discipline in the classroom. This type of reinforcement allowed students to learn new desired ideas, rules and skills. This type of discipline must be done every time a student does something correct (Charles & Senter, 2004) .

Client-centered therapy is based on the belief that people will engage in activities leading to positive growth and development if given the opportunity (Krech, Crutchfield & Livson, 1969). Carl Rogers held the view that everyone has the capacity to recover, learn and grow. Client-centered therapy asserts that the opportunity for growth exists within relationships that offer empathy, positive regard and genuineness (Brammer, Shostrom& Abrego, 1989). Rogers’ ‘Personality Development’ theory is important when it comes to learning because if we create the idea of learner centred learning, the pupil is more likely to want to learn and retain the knowledge. The idea of ‘unconditional positive regard’ is another main link in Rogers theory to learning and education. When teaching children, teachers must be aware of how what they say can affect the child. By experiencing and expressing unconditional positive regard, it will encourage and help students to find out more and produce a more relaxed working environment characterized by discipline.

Developed by psychiatrist William  Glasser  in  the  1960s,  reality  therapy  is  used  to guide  students  in  becoming responsible individuals who are able to satisfy their own  needs  for  the  benefit of  themselves and others. This approach was developed with the idea that  students know their own needs and wants and will make changes to get closer to where they want to be. Teachers  are  supposed to help students with making  the right choices, while avoiding the wrong choices. Rational students should make the final decision  themselves. If  students  opt  for the  wrong  choice and  misbehave,  teachers  and  students  work  together  to  first evaluate the misconducts. They should then devise an applicable plan for students to make amends.

This theory is applicable to this study in that, as trust and responsibility are given to students, they become more cooperative and collaborative in their learning and this goes a long way to curb misbehaviour. Also, when students understand the necessity of discipline, they will develop self-discipline strategies because they know what they want and they are working hard to achieve their goals. Thus, they will regularly attend classes and also being more focused in learning since they are conscious of the adverse effects of misbehaviour in school.

Canter and Canter (1992) developed an approach which he terms “assertive discipline” that cannot be described as purely behaviourist in nature, but does contain certain elements of a behaviourist approach. These researchers assert that an educator who uses assertive discipline has a clear sense of how students should behave in order for him/her to accomplish his/her teaching objectives. Key ideas that form the core of assertive discipline include the fact that students have rights and that they need a caring educator who will provide warmth, attention and support. Educators also have rights; they must teach in an environment that is conducive to learning and enjoy support from both parents and learners. Educators must be assertive and communicate their needs freely; they should also provide a model of good behaviour. Learners have the right to an educator who will be firm, consistent, provide positive encouragement and motivate good behaviour (Canter and Canter, 1998).

The educator should be able to communicate to the learner what is wrong and provide a model of good behaviour. Assertive discipline is premised on the notion that the educator’s attitude influences his/her behaviour that in turn influences learners’ behaviour. In illustrating the effectiveness of their model, the Canters distinguish three types of educators: non-assertive, hostile and assertive educators. Non-assertive educators are those who allow themselves to be pushed around and manipulated by learners; hostile educators err by imposing control in an arbitrary manner. Assertive educators, on the other hand, believe in their abilities and their right to use them to foster learning (Duke and Meckel, 1980).

Contextually, welfare and rights of the child have become a global issue in recent  times. Several International and Regional Conventions and Declarations have been issued to protect the child from brutality, cruelty, inhuman and degrading treatments (Legal Resources Foundation, 2004). The United Nations Convention  on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (ACRWC) are key in  addressing the welfare of the child (Varadan, 2019). As far as  school discipline is concerned, corporal punishment is considered unlawful in schools under article 35 of the law of orientation of education in Cameroon, Law No. 98/004 of 14^th April 1998. Corporal punishment was abolished in Cameroon in 1998 (The African Child policy issues, 2010). Since then, corporal punishment which was a dominant mode of school discipline began to lose its grounds and eventually, schools started adopting other forms of discipline. For instance, preventive discipline which has to do with renforcement that is, rewarding good behaviour and negatively reinforcing bad behaviour. Eventually it is time to change from punitive discipline to preventive and supportive discipline respectively.

Students’ misbehaviour is a problem affecting schools across Cameroon and in Bamenda III Sub-division specifically. Students’ conduct in the classroom not only interferes with teaching and learning but is also thought to be a leading contributor to teachers’ stress and a precursor to later school dropouts. Many schools in Cameroon, especially in Bamenda III Sub-division have been searching and developing programs to remediate and reform problematic behaviours in students. However, to develop successful programs, it is important to understand first what constitutes a student’s misbehaviour and second why students behave the way they do. In this context, student misbehaviour has been greatly influencd by the Anglophone crisis whereby there have been days (ghost towns) when students stay at home without schooling. When its time to get back to school, many students either go late or unprepared and show lack of seriousness in school. This leads to an atmosphiere of indiscipline in schools. This also puts a lot of pressure on the teachers who are often forced to do remediation and they may finally end up not covering up the content of their syllabuses.

The government advises schools to focus on promoting positive behaviour, helping to build self-discipline and encouraging respect for others. But schools also need sanctions to deter students from misbehaving. Educational planners, school managers, school administrators, teachers and parents are seriously looking for such programs which will assist them in remedying students’ poor behaviour in schools which include the use of sanctions. This is because students who possess some threats of misbehaviour in schools call for sanctions upon them. The forms of indiscipline common in schools include fighting, stealing, absenteeism, dodging, late coming to school, students insulting other students or teachers as stipulated by (Armstrong, & Pearson, 2008).

To minimize students’ disruptive behavior in schools, school rules and regulations have been provided and made stronger and some sanctionary measures applied to defaulters. Besides school policies and practices, measures have been taken to increase students’ attachment to their teachers and their commitment to educational matters. Students who show positive behaviours to educational matters are rewarded (positive reinforcement) while students who show negative attitudes towards the educational enterprise are penalized (negative reinforcement). (John & Gabhainn, 2014) stipulates that, in order to minimize the disruptive behavior of students in schools, parents, guardians, etc., should be invited to participate in school matters that concern their children. Indiscipline in schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division usually leads to various forms of sanctions ranging from less severe to more severe ones. This ranges from verbal warning, student removed to another seat, punishment exercise, student removed to another class, exclusion from classes, student kneeling down, time-out, working on suspension, etc.

The percentage of students who drop out of school is on an increase (Mutia, 2013). These students cultivate and demonstrate deviant  behaviours  and  may never fulfill their potentials. They become burdens to the society. There is an outcry of Cameroon educators, administrators and parents about the increasing rate of  indiscipline  in Cameroon secondary schools. This observation unsettles the mind of patriotic Cameroonians since children are considered the future leaders of the country. As a result, any attempt to curb students’ indiscipline in school would be highly welcomed by the government, educators, parents, teachers and school administrators.

Statement of the Problem

It has been realised  that students’ learning in secondary schools in Cameroon and Bamenda III Sud-Dicision in particular has become a major cause of concern. Students in secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division portray different types of learning promblems among which include; paying attention, doing assignments, collaborating with others in learning tasks, coming late for lessons, participating in class, applying the necessary strategies to learn and setting learning goals for themselves. All these learning difficulties portrayed by students could be linked to disciplinary issues in schools. Most of the students in our schools are not disciplined enough. Our schools systems have not been able to apply necessary disciplinary measures to prevent misbehaviour before it happens. Most often, teachers and the school discipline masters and mistresses believe in punishing misbehaviour rather than preventing it. They do not take necessary measures to prevent misbehaviour, they are not also supportive to the students when misbehaviour happens and even in situations where there are misbehaviours, the corrective approach that school discipline masters and teachers used are often not appropiate. It was against this background that the researcher sought to investigate the influence of school discipline in students’ learning with specific attention to preventive discipline, supportive discipline and corrective discipline.

Objectives of the Study

The study was guided by one main research objective and three specific objectives.

Main Research Objective

The main research objective of the study was to find out how school discipline influences students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division.

Specific Research Objectives

Specifically, the study sought:

• To examine the influence of preventive discipline on students’ learning in selected secondary school students in Bamenda III Sub-Division.
• To investigate the influence of supportive discipline on students’ learning in selected secondary school students in Bamenda III Sub-Division
• To find out how corrective discipline influence students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division.

Research Questions

One main research question and three specific research questions were stated to guide the study.

Main Research Question

• How does school discipline influence students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division?

Specific Research Questions

• How does preventive discipline influence students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division?
• How does supportive discipline influence students’ learning in selected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division?
• What is the influence of corrective discipline on students’ learning in seleected secondary schools in Bamenda III Sub-Division?