Students challenge authority in different ways. Some act rudely to test the teacher, some refuse to comply with the rules, some reject an assigned task, and some simply show off in front of their classmates. I believe it is safe to assume that every educator has had their authority questioned at least once at some point in their teaching career! And that’s ok! Authority is relational, according to Charles Bingham (2009), and should be understood “as a relation that happens between people, which gets enacted in circuits where each participant has a role to play.” In the classroom, the teacher is historically viewed as the authority figure and the majority of the students understand that their teacher has a plan for their academic future and is in charge of their learning path for a while. When students question their teachers’ authority, they question the status quo, and again, that’s alright. We want our students to become active thinkers and be able to analyze and critique the things that they are being told or asked to do as long as they do it in a respectful and responsible way. However, some students’ questioning does not stem from their innate need to analyze and understand things, but rather from more personal needs. As educators, we all know who those students are. They are the ones that are always complaining. They are the ones that are always arguing with the adult. They are the ones that are always avoiding tasks.
So what should an educator do when their authority and/ or directions are being questioned?
Seek to understand before you respond. What is your student gaining from the verbal interaction? If it’s attention from you, ignore the behavior. If it’s attention from peers, address the behavior in private after class, to help the student save face, and also avoid power struggles in front of the whole class. Power struggles will yield attention, and attention will enable the behavior.
Consider the image you are projecting when you are responding to your student. The way you speak, your body language, and your facial expression when you respond to a question like “Why do I have to do that?” will set the tone for the entire conversation. When you present yourself with professionalism and respect, you will send a message that you are in charge and your authority should not be questioned. That is not be confused with acting tough. Your answer should never be “because I said so”. That will upset the student and escalate tensions, or worse, in time, will create resentment and damage your relationship with the student. When your student asks why they have to do something or argues that things are not fair, state that you want them to continue to work on what you assigned. Avoid acting tough, giving a sarcastic answer, or engaging in verbal exchanges with the student. Instead, you can calmly say something like: “because this is the lesson that we are working on now”, “because this is what we need to finish by…”, “as soon as you finish your work, you can take your break”, “if you get through your next five sentences, you get to do your favorite activity”, “I am here if you need my help!”
Set expectations realistically. If your student is asking “Why do I have to do that?” way too often and is constantly refusing to do work, it might be because the work is too demanding for their academic or executive functioning level. You will need to readjust your expectations and make sure they are realistic. If avoidance is what drives the behavior, using a token economy system like a piggy bank or a star chart will help your student increase their work stamina and provide motivation for completing their assignments. At first, you may need to give the students breaks after short intervals, and eventually, increase the work period to longer intervals. It will pay off in the long run and the challenging behaviors along with the refusal should diminish considerably. Using a contingency map is another helpful way of showing the student what consequences their compliance or non compliance will bring for them. Completing work could mean more free time or a desired activity, while non compliance might mean the student gets to take the unfinished assignments as homework. Do not make up consequences you are not willing to pursue. Stick to your word even if it means more work for you or if it means losing some of your planning time to have the student make up their work or deal with behavior.
Model desired behavior. If you do not want students to be aggressive and argumentative, be sure not to model these behaviors yourself. In addition to avoiding behaviors you do not want students to emulate, model the behaviors you do want to see, for example, by voicing disagreement respectfully. Teach students to recognize when they raise their voice and express themselves inappropriately. Some students, like those on the spectrum, will need explicit instruction in how to recognize their own physical and emotional reactions when they are upset or frustrated, as well as how to address adults in such instances.
Consistency is key! Make sure you share your student’s token economy system and contingency map with all the teachers involved (general education, specialists, etc) as well as the student’s family. Eventually your student will learn that everybody adheres to the same rules and will have no choice but to comply.
I recently wrote this story for a teacher who asked me what to do with one of her second graders who is always questioning her authority and refusing to work. You can find it here.
