Eliminating In-School Disciplinary Study Halls: A Study of the Effects VS Teacher Perceptions of the Disciplinary Environment

This study reviewed and evaluated the effect that elimination of all-day, in-school disciplinary study halls had on one rural East Central Illinois high school of fewer than 400 students. Historical data of student discipline over a 3-year period were gathered and a staff perception survey of current conditions was administered. This study compared staff perceptions to historical data collected. Until 1995, Westville High School had experienced a sharp decline in overall student behavior. Students often left classes without permission, wore clothing that exhibited drug and alcohol slogans, and were belligerent toward the teaching staff. Additionally, IGAP test scores had declined to the point where the Illinois State Board of Education had threatened to put the district on an academic watch list if the Illinois Goals Assessment Program (IGAP) scores did not improve immediately. The administration and the board of education believed the falling test scores were a byproduct of the lax disciplinary atmosphere and concluded that quick action was required. In the fall of 1995, the district administration started taking positive steps toward regaining control of the small percentage of students who were most responsible for disrupting the educational process. Student disciplinary rules were reviewed and updated. Guidelines for the administration\u27s application of the rules were also enhanced. Although the disciplinary atmosphere improved slightly during the 1995-1996 school year, follow-up evaluation the following summer indicated a need for a deeper, systemic change. Throughout the 1996-1997 school year, several administrative and procedural changes were made. Before the year began, a new dean of students position was created to replace the assistant principal position and to focus the efforts of the office specifically on disruptive behavior. All administrative duties and activities of the assistant principal were reassigned to the building principal. During the year, several new rules were created to focus further on previously identified problems and on gang activity within the building. The district realized a measure of success with this approach during the year, but one of the disciplinary tools was becoming troublesome. The district in-house disciplinary study hall, considered to be the first major line of defense and the historic backbone of the disciplinary code, seemed to be failing. While researching this problem, the dean of students discovered that the in-school disciplinary study hall room was too full to control and the number of repeat offenders was extremely high. It appeared the students did not view an assignment to the in-school disciplinary study hall as a deterrent toward continued aberrant behaviors. During the 1996-1997 school year, the administration began to seriously research the situation and to look at alternatives to the in-school disciplinary study hall. After much debate, the administrative team elected to eliminate the in-school disciplinary study hall and to replace it with a series of progressive, 2-hour after-school detentions and 4-hour Saturday detentions. The new disciplinary motto became, \u27\u27If you misbehave on our time, you will suffer the consequences for it on yours. This new tactic was expected to be so distasteful to the students that it would become the deterrent that the in-school disciplinary study hall had failed to be. This study details the 2-year history of that change, its impact on our students, and the teachers\u27 perceptions of the new disciplinary environment