This paper is an exploration of the relationship between discipline and race in the classroom and the issue of discipline itself as part of the teacher's job. It examines the question of whether students are disciplined differently because of their ethnicity and looks at the role of discipline within the classroom. Educators agree that discipline is essential to the learning process, but debate rages about the extent and nature of discipline necessary to effective learning. In addition, since many educators would argue that students learn differently and that some of those differences can be attributed to their backgrounds, does it then follow that discipline must also be applied in different ways to different students, in part according to their backgrounds? This paper will argue that ethnicity is, in fact, a component of the contemporary classroom; therefore, teachers must take care not to be influenced negatively by their prejudices, especially regarding the administration of discipline.
Educational consultant JoAnn Miller argues, "Classroom management is essential to a successful educational environment" (Mathews, 2000, December 19, p. A19). Without control of the classroom, teachers cannot effectively control the learning process. Yet keeping the upper hand is a delicate process. Ann Gazin (1999, August) observes that teachers "must maintain control in the classroom yet still give children the freedom to explore, create, and experiment" (p. 28). In the ideal classroom, the teacher inspires and empowers the students, encouraging each to focus actively on the pursuit of knowledge, each according to his or her level of comprehension.
In the real world, however, students misbehave, get distracted, and fail to live up to the expectations of the learning environment. Just one individual in a class can turn the ideal into the real; Jeanne Wright (1997, May 19) notes, "A disrespectful student who constantly mouths off to...