Edpsy 399 OL - Spring 2000

Tom Anderson, Instructor

Leonard Fretzin

Forum 13 - Lesson 13

Date: Sun April 15 2001

Subject: Lesson 13 Required q2

Accept Responsibility

Glasser's ideas for the classroom are an extension of his theories regarding healthful psychology in the world at large. In his 1965 book, 'Reality Therapy' he expresses the cognitive theory that his unhappy patients are responsible for what they choose. This is a reinstatement of the venerable doctrine of freedom of choice, which lies in contradistinction to the philosophy of determinism.

Reality therapy considers rumination on past injuries, injustices, and traumas to be a waste of time. Although the past effects us and helps determine who and what we are, we are not the victim of our past experiences unless we choose to be.

In more recent years, Glasser has expanded 'Reality Therapy' with the development of a broader philosophy called 'Choice Theory'. His vision now becomes universal, utopian, and transcendent, as he preaches to the world that its ill are due to 'external control psychology' which destroys human relations by framing them in terms of a 'master-servant' paradigm.

According to 'Choice Theory' nearly all behavior is chosen to satisfy five basic physiological and psychological needs, viz. self preservation, the need for love and approval, the desire for empowerment, and the need for freedom and 'fun'.

External control psychology with implications of force and punishment destroys good relations, according to Glasser, and causes the 'disconnectedness' of people. According to Glasser, disconnectedness is the source of almost all human problems, such as what is called mental illness, drug addiction, violence, crime, school failure, spousal and child abuse. (Wm. Glasser Institute)

There are ten axioms which serve as the basis of 'Choice Therapy' These are:

1.The only person whose behavior we can control is our own.

2. All we can give another person is information.

3. All long-lasting psychological problems are relationship problems.

4. The problem relationship is always part of our present life.

5. What happened in the past has everything to do with what we are today, but we can

only satisfy our basic needs right now and plan to continue satisfying them in the

future.

6. We can only satisfy our needs by satisfying the pictures in our Quality World.

7. All we do is behave.

8. All behavior is Total Behavior and is made up of four components: acting, thinking,

feeling and physiology.

9. All Total Behavior is chosen, but we only have direct control over the acting and

thinking components. We can only control our feeling and physiology indirectly

through how we choose to act and think.

10. All Total Behavior is designated by verbs and named by the part that is the most

recognizable.

(Wm. Glasser Institute)

Since Glasser expects all people to choose their destiny, it is obvious that students are also required to accept responsibility for their thoughts and actions. As applied to an academic environment, Glasser insists that students choose to act in the manner that they do, and that they can make good choices or 'unwise' choices. The difference can be denoted by their outcomes. The 'good' choices obviously will have good outcomes, while the 'unwise' choices will have unfortunate outcomes.

Because all humans have freedom of choice, the student is responsible for his choices and their outcomes. It is up to 'caring' teachers to encourage and teach student how to make wise choices.

In order to teach students how to make wise choices Glasser advocates the development of 'quality schools' which would use class meetings, relevant curriculum materials, enlightened assessment procedures, and student participation in decision making to achieve this goal. (Schools Without Failure, Glasser -1969)

At a Glasser 'Quality School' students will help teachers organize the classroom to meet their needs for 'survival', belonging, power, fun, and freedom.

Students will formulate classroom rules and their associated consequences. The consequences, of course, should not be punitive or coercive, but offer opportunity for the offender to remedy the problem. Unless, I guess, the students decide they should be punitive or coercive.

The curriculum should consist of knowledge that students find enjoyable,

Useful, and relevant. An enjoyable curriculum is a fun curriculum. In order for students to choose a subject, that subject must be made amusing and pleasurable. Any requirement that students memorize facts must be minimized, as this is a fragment of external control psychology. It can only be selected by the teacher's well substantiated believe that it will be something required for college entrance examinations, which are, of course, part of the world's external control psychology.

The classroom must be made warm and fuzzy. Students should always find a supportive climate. The students' views must be sought and expressed by instituting class meetings for as many as two or three 45 minute periods a week. The rest of the time is spent by the students working in learning teams, which use cooperative learning methodologies.

Finally, of course, there will be no competitive grading. Instead students will receive a superior (S), a pass (P), or an asterisk (*) for being there. Of course, the students will be allowed to choose the procedures used in their own evaluations. Perhaps they will choose to author their own evaluation.

The teacher at one of these 'Quality Schools' is called a LEAD teacher and is a facilitator who values cooperative and caring relations with students. He consults students before making assignments and allows them to evaluate their own work quality. Students are empowered to take responsibility for their own actions so that they can become effective problem solvers who are involved in active learning.

If I sound 'tongue in cheek' or even sarcastic at times it is because so much of this messianic philosophy reminds me of other doctrines such as "Scientology". Despite good intentions, it is important to have sufficient cognition of reality, and, at the very least, be able to support a theory with objective empirical evidence.

"These are the things that dreams are made of…." (Wm. Shakespeare - The Tempest)

 TEACHERS FIRST!

Anderson, Tom - Glasser's Model -- Empowerment and problem solving

Charles, C.M., Senter, Gail W., Barr, Karen B. - Building Classroom Discipline Ch.9;

ISBN: 0801330041; Publisher: Addison-Wesley Longman, Incorporated 1998

Developing a Discipline Plan for You: The Glasser Model

The William Glasser Institute

Glasser, W., (1965). Reality therapy. New York: Harper and Row.

Glasser, W., (1969). Schools without failure. New York: Harper and Row.