D4X
Demand for Excellence in the Urban Classroom
D4X is an urban classroom management framework consisting of four main directives for the urban educator:
Dignify, Discipline, Direct, Demand.
Following
all rules of the learning community must become, and remain, the top
concern of everyone in a diverse urban classroom. A disciplined
classroom dignifies the learning process.
Securing
a safe, orderly, respectful environment is the foundation which ensures
that all learners
in the multicultural classroom have a chance to succeed. To maximize
individual opportunities for success, the urban teacher is tasked with
establishing order and enforcing the classroom's code of appropriate
conduct. Order is maintained through a direct, no-nonsense approach,
consistent use of the commanding teacher voice (including
explicit behavior instruction, positive narration of on-task behavior,
and respectful redirection) and, more generally, through the building of
respectful relationships with learners and families.
- Dignify
Always preserve the dignity of the learner. Recognize and respond to personal, social and cultural learner diversity. Build positive relationships with students and families that nurture a respectful environment.
- Discipline
Establish
a clear policy of rules, expectations, consequences and rewards.
Provide consequences for disruptive behavior 100 percent of the time.
Respond immediately, but proportionately,
to minor infractions, indiscipline or off-task behavior.
- Direct
Provide
precise instructions -- including explicit behavior instruction.
Consistently communicate a no-nonsense attitude through word and action.
Provide each learner with timely feedback that communicates success and
clarifies pathways to individual improvement.
- Demand
Hold
all learners to high expectations. Provide rubrics and work samples
that concretely define excellence in meeting specific learning targets.
Use self-assessment and other methods to make students accountable for
completing assignments and reaching academic goals.
Demand 4 Explanation
Through
discussions and lessons, the urban educator should clearly establish
that the group's focus is on academic achievement -- not on a bunch of
rules. A shared code of conduct is necessary to prevent disruptions to
the shared goal of learning and growing as people. Without emphasizing
this connection to purpose, an instructor's demand for obedience may
simply be rejected as punitive, stifling or controlling.
To
buy into the spirit of the rules, learners need to understand the
rationale behind teacher expectations and demands. As the classroom time
manager, the teacher should always communicate a sense of urgency and
purpose, periodically re-clarifying: it's not that the rules themselves
are so important . . . it's that learning is important and there is no
time for disruption.
We are the grand total of our potential for success.
Stay in your assigned seat.
Sit up tall.
Listen and follow directions.
No side conversations.
Stay on task.
Raise your Hand to speak.
No profanity.
No Horseplay
