Point of View: Addressing Student Behavior through TAB

Challenging student behavior is an area of concern for most teachers. Social media, a culture of instant gratification, and negativity in all forms of media are a few factors frequently labeled as reasons for poor behavior in school. I want to challenge these assumptions.

Middle-school students have always pushed boundaries despite what is happening in the world around them. Their brains are still rapidly developing, and they have a constant need for that dopamine rush. Above all, middle-school students want to know that you care and that their ideas matter.

A Possible Solution
At faculty meetings, I often hear teachers relate stories about students who are struggling academically. These same students aren’t struggling in art class, they are soaring. I don’t claim that all my students are perfect every day. I have struggles of my own. There are students who require extra care, redirection, and attention daily. There are students who challenge me frequently.

I’ve noticed a decrease in the amount of behavioral challenges I face with students after shifting my educational philosophy to be more student-directed and applying principles and practices of Teaching for Artistic Behavior (TAB).

Shifting to TAB
When adopting a TAB approach and structuring curriculum around the eight Studio Habits of Mind and the Artistic Thinking process, lines of communication between teacher and students start to open. My middle-school students have come to realize that their ideas and interests are valued. Shifting my focus away from creating projects to creating artists has changed my life dramatically. I know my students better than I ever did under my teacher-directed approach.

Students who used to challenge me now begin to find success and their own artistic voice. Students who were checked out from school find a space where they can truly and safely express themselves.

Personal Experiences
Through TAB, I’ve been able to reach a reluctant student who was placed in my art class because he had a sports injury and could no longer participate in PE. Art was the last place he wanted to be, and he let me know it frequently during the beginning of the semester. As the semester continued, he began to let his guard down as he was able to translate his interests into his art-making. His inner artist had awakened, and he requested a schedule change to take art again the second semester.

I’ve had students who were eagerly looking forward to dropping out of school develop a passion for art and see art school as a post-high-school option. This was made possible because of the shift in my teaching philosophy.

Relinquishing Control
Sometimes TAB teachers experience defensiveness from colleagues more accustomed to teacher-directed programs. I have fielded statements such as “My project has choice—students get to choose the color scheme,” and “My students can’t make positive choices when I tell them what to do, why would they make good choices on their own?”

I understand that relinquishing control can be scary; however, we need to trust our students. When we provide all the ideas and make all the important decisions, we are telling our students their ideas don’t matter. We need to show them their ideas are valid. True learning takes place in the decision making. If we are the ones making all the choices, we are robbing our students of their learning.

A Powerful Tool
Providing choices and giving students freedom does not mean creating a chaotic free-for-all environment. Teachers can provide structure while also providing choice. Understanding and reaching the hearts and minds of students in combination with a TAB approach can mitigate almost any behavioral issue. TAB doesn’t require special materials, a large budget, or small class size, but it does require research and a willingness to meet students at their level.