To all those ESL teachers out there who are getting grumpy and angry about discipline problems in the class, read this carefully, it's from Clausewitz, "On War." Take this to heart. Since adopting these methods, my teaching time has become significantly more pleasant. Don't play games with discipline: 'three strikes,' 'candy charts' or 'English necklaces.' The teacher-student relationship is a test of wills, we are bending the will of the students to our own (that's from Clausewitz too, but I don't recall the exact wording).
"The first and most important rule to observe ... is to use our entire forces with the utmost energy. The second rule is to concentrate our power as much as possible against that section where the chief blows are to be delivered .... The third rule is never to waste time. ...it is necessary to set to work at once. By this speed a hundred enemy measures are nipped in the bud, and public opinion is won most rapidly. Finally, the fourth rule is to follow up our successes with the utmost energy. Only pursuit of the beaten enemy gives the fruits of victory."
And, from Machiavelli:"If the enemy is to be coerced, you must put him in a situation that is even more unpleasant than the sacrifice you call on him to make. The hardships of the situation must not be merely transient - at least not in appearance. Otherwise, the enemy would not give in, but would wait for things to improve."
My students call me "gangster" because they don't know "dictator" in English. Don't play stupid discipline games. My students flinch and beg and bow when I come close to them. We accomplish more in forty minutes than being soft can in six weeks.It Is Better To Be Feared Than Loved
. I think I like Sally's ideas a lot better. She keeps her students so busy doing things they enjoy, they have no time to be unruly!