Discipline Today

Discipline Today was created to provide a comprehensive resource for parents, teachers and individuals delivering resources and information covering the many facets of discipline... child discipline, student discipline, self discipline, and more.

A wealth of information has been published on a large variety of topics concerning discipline.  Discipline techniques in general can be a controversial subject especially when discussing the lack of discipline in today's children and especially teens.  Discipline can also be a very personal topic when speaking of self-discipline, from diet to addictions to fidelity self-discipline may be the key factor in an individual's success and happiness.

What do people think of when they hear the term discipline?    We provide a few definitions from reputable sources below and will be working to expand our offerings during the month of September 2011.  If there is a discipline subject you would like to see information on please use the contact us page and send us a quick request and we'll do the research for you.

In its most general sense, discipline refers to systematic instruction given to a disciple. To discipline thus means to instruct a person to follow a particular code of conduct "order." Usually, the phrase 'to discipline' carries a negative connotation. This is because enforcement of order - that is, ensuring instructions are carried out - is often regulated through punishment.

• School Discipline 
• Church Discipline
• Employment Discipline
• Self Discipline

Lots of discipline related forms for teachers to download and use to help them with their discipline strategy and implementation in the classroom.  Behavior journals, detention forms, discipline essay templates and more.

As of June 13th, 2011 the Teacher Tools .org site has been turned into an archive, read-only site with no new posts or updated content but is still open as the existing forms may still provide some value.

Pros: Lots of useful forms to leverage.

Cons: No real content other than the aforementioned downloadable discipline forms.

Positive Discipline Community Website.  Focusing on bringing parents and teachers who are implementing Positive Discipline strategies with their families and students.

Pros: Good place to connect with other people already practicing positive discipline.  Not a ton of members but a good amount.  Seems well run and well intentioned.  Several focus groups all practicing and discussing positive discipline.

Cons: Not a good resource for parents and teachers looking to learn more about positive discipline.  PositiveDiscipline.ning.com encourages you but also expects you to be familiar with the positive discipline tactics.

Their mission: The Parent Coach Plan is committed to helping parents master the art of child and teen discipline. Our goal is to empower parents and to improve the behavior of their children through the use of our website and our unique and proven discipline products.

Pros: Good if you have some discipline challenges at home.  Focuses on child discipline problems and parents that are looking for discipline alternatives.  Their mantra is practicing discipline for your child that is firm, fair, consistent, and predictable

Cons: May not be for the average parents looking for general discipline advice and incremental improvements.

Great practical resource providing 8 ways (with examples) of how parents 'blow it' when it comes to discipline tactics.  I strongly doubt there is one set of parents out there who can say they haven't blown one of these tactics.

Pros: Relevant examples really hit home.  Speaks to parent's self discipline (being consistent, not lying, keeping threats/promises) as much as it does their discipline of their children.  The undermining 'blow it', aka Mom and Dad not being on the same page is great if you want to give your spouse and objective reminder that you need to be on the same team or else.

Cons: It's really worth the read.  If you have issues with the contents please share them via our comments link.

This is a very high level article meant to address common discipline issues in children of all ages.  It is broken down into 5 age groups: 0-2 years, 3-5, 6-8, 9-12 and of course teenagers 13 and up.

Pros: Good for a quick read and confirmation of common sense strategies.  Good for parents with several children spanning multiple age groups.  Straight forward comments on 'spanking'.  The article is reviewed by a Phd.

Cons: By trying to provide discipline advice targeted to 5 different child age groups in a short article it may not be a worth while read for a parent struggling with discipline issues for a particular child.

This is an excellent non-age specific article that speaks more to a philosophy of child discipline and effective parenting

Pros: Very concise, covers how children learn and why certain tactics are effective.  Long established, reputable non-profit source providing the advice.

Cons: Brief article, does not address specific behavior problems or discipline challenges.

A very well written article by a professional writer.  The self-discipline conclusions were actually derived from researching happiness.

Sample article text from Penelope's blog... "Self-discipline is about small things paving the way for very big things.  My favorite piece of research from all the happiness research I’ve read is that self-discipline snowballs. That is, if you can work hard to have self-discipline in one, small area, you create self-discipline almost effortlessly in other areas."

Pros: Well written perspective combining one's success at developing self-discipline with their likelihood of personal happiness.

Cons: Article may be too philosophical in nature.

Please use the Read More button below to view the link to the full article and to add comments if so inclined.

Top tips for successful classroom discipline and management tactics to help teachers minimize interruptions and disruptions and focus on teaching.

Pros: May seem like common sense for some teachers but as a former engaged student I can comfortably say I had many teachers that did employ these common sense tactics. Melissa Kelly is a Secondary Educator with 13 years experience both in the traditional classroom and the online environment.  She has a Masters in Education from the University of Florida.

Cons: May be too basic and common sense for some teachers employing these or similar tactics and still finding themselves challenged to maintain a high level of order and discipline in the classroom.   For any teachers that have an opinion on these 10 tips please share your thoughts via the Comments link below.

A quick one pager on self discipline that focuses on routine, schedule and repeating tasks to develop self discipline as a habit.

Sample from Study Guides and Strategies website... "Self-discipline can be considered a type of selective training, creating new habits of thought, action, and speech toward improving yourself and reaching goals.  Self-discipline can also be task oriented and selective.
View self-discipline as positive effort, rather than one of denial."

Pros: A different approach for self discipline concentrating on self training and repetition vice will power.

Cons: This different approach may only be appropriate for a limited number of individuals.  Site doesn't support user comments so there is no feedback speaking to the effectiveness of this particular self-discipline strategy.

Please visit their site at http://www.studygs.net/discipline.htm to read the full article.

Good website covering a wide range of topics on self discipline and will power.  Site is maintained by a self discipline expert and author of several self help books.

Self discipline defintion from Ramez Sasson... Self-discipline is the companion of will power. It endows with the stamina to persevere in whatever one does. It bestows the ability to withstand hardships and difficulties, whether physical, emotional or mental. It grants the ability to reject immediate satisfaction, in order to gain something better, but which requires effort and time.

Pros: Vast amount of free information and resources on a broad range of self improvement and self growth topics... development of concentration, willpower, self discipline, positive thinking, motivation, visualization, meditation and spiritual growth.

Cons: Information may be slanted to the opinions and conclusions of the author.

Good article with strong opinions on building self discipline for a better life.  Focuses on aggressive tactics and techniques to develop self improvement, doesn't make the claim it's easy but rather that then end result is worth the sacrifice.

Self-discipline involves acting according to what you think instead of how you feel in the moment. Often it involves sacrificing the pleasure and thrill of the moment for what matters most in life.

Pros: Good alternative view points on self discipline strategies.  Lots of reader comments on the article.

Cons: May be too much too fast for a person looking to make an incremental improvement in their own self discipline development.