About Conflict Resolutions in the Classroom
Conflicts are inevitable in school; you can't have that many children in one room and not encounter differences of opinion that can get rather heated. Learning to resolve conflicts without going to battle is essential for children as well as adults.
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Figuring out What Happened
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Conflicts often happen at lunch, recess and on the playground and carry over into the classroom. Even though the teacher may not have observed the actual conflict, she can help the students to resolve the problem. Conflict resolution is a learning experience. Talk to each student individually and try to determine what transpired. At this point, the teacher uses her best judgment to make an assessment of what truly happened. Get the students together; ask each student why he behaved the way he did and how they might have handled the situation differently. Point out that the behavior was hurtful and ask why the child chose to act that way.
Apologizing
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Ideally, the guilty party will apologize to the other party; this is a big step in learning how to resolve conflict and even learn from it. A good exercise is to have the two disputing parties shake hands.
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Accountability
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When a child recognizes that he has behaved badly, this is a step towards owning up to what he has done; this is called accountability. Encourage all students to be accountable, considerate and to think before behaving in a fashion that will be hurtful to others.
Role Playing
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Another way to teach conflict resolution is to role playing. Set up a scenario, pick two students to play the roles of adversaries and see how they try to resolve the conflict without resorting to fists. Applaud them when they come up with alternative remedies.
Writing and Talking about It
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Have your students do a report on avoiding violence or how they have solved problems in the past without yelling, screaming and hitting. There are many ways that you can address conflict resolution in the classroom and make it fun as well as a learning experience. Talk about bullying and whether the students think that boys are meaner than girls (or vice versa) and why they believe this; this should lead to a very interesting conversation. Discuss the benefits of living in peace and harmony and getting along with their peers instead of waging battle.
Styles
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Discuss the three types of conflict styles including confrontation, avoidance and problem solving. Ask the students which style they tend to gravitate towards and why. Recommend that they use their brains, and brainstorm ways to come to a solution, agreement or compromise when necessary. Explain to them the importance of respecting the values and rights of others.
If It Doesn't Work
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When this type of conflict resolution does not work, then the teacher may then have to enact punishment of some sort.
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References
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