DCSL
Behaviour Management Policy (Senior School)
POLICY CODE
3.1.1b
POLICY NAME Behaviour Management Policy (Senior School)
UPDATE BY SSLT
REVIEWED ON June 2023
NEXT REVIEW June 2025 (Every 2 years)
DEVELOPED BY/ AUTHOR SSLT
Rationale
“Kindest School in the Universe”: All children have the right to be safe at school and to feel that they are part of a caring community, which has their best interests at heart. Children and young people need to be given the opportunity to learn from their errors, with the help of sensitive adults, so that they become more self-aware, responsible and principled people.
“Students Come First”: The Behaviour Policy and systems we have in place ensure our students understand what is expected of them and why. The systems promote good choices and help create a learning environment and relationships where all students feel secure and confident enough to perform to the best of their ability and take risks in their learning.
“Building Bridges to the World”: Dulwich College Seoul is committed to diversity in its student body and staff. DCSL does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, colour, disability, age, religion, sexual orientation, national or ethnic origin in the admission and future conduct towards its students or in the recruitment, employment, promotion and retirement of its staff.
The Behaviour Policy works in conjunction with various other policies, including the Anti-Bullying Policy and the Academic Honesty Policy
Our Aims
• To ensure Dulwich College us a happy, safe and purposeful environment, where all children feel secure and have respect for themselves and for others;
• To maintain a community that consciously develops positive character traits and helps students to act in a principled way;
• To reinforce good student choices and discourage poor choices which negatively impact the student, others and/or the school environment;
• To ensure all students are treated with equality regarding age, race, gender, sexual orientation, and/or disability when dealing with behaviour management issues.
• To establish a clear and transparent procedure, involving staff and parents as positive role models.
Community Responsibility
We believe that supporting our students’ learning so that they become responsible, principled and caring young people is a community-wide responsibility with staff, parents and children working together to ensure that Dulwich College Seoul is a happy, safe and productive place for all.
Students should:
• Strive to follow the DCSL values, Code of Conduct and dispositions within the IB Learner Profile;
• Try to learn from their mistakes to become more principled, caring and reflective;
• Support other children’s learning in following the IBLP;
• Treated everyone with equality regarding age, race, gender, sexual orientation, and/or disability;
• Report situations in which they feel they or another person has been poorly treated, or where the environment or campus has been harmed.
All Senior School staff should:
• Establish and maintain a cohesive and supportive classroom, year group and school community;
• Encourage and manage appropriate behaviour choices in line with the IB Learner Profile, positively and respectfully, using appropriate language;
• Recognise and celebrate children’s attempts and successes in following the IB Learner Profile, ATLs (Approaches to learning) and Global Citizenship values;
• Be exemplary role models for positive behaviours and lifelong learning;
• Apply appropriate sanctions carefully and in line with Dulwich College Seoul policy;
• Discuss behaviours with students, to help understand the reasons behind it and to nurture student self-awareness;
• Communicate frequently and sensitively with parents to help them to support their children appropriately.
Parents should:
• Be informed of their child’s behaviour through clear and sensitive communication with the subject teacher, Pastoral Lead or member of the Senior School Leadership Team (SSLT);
• Be made aware of our policies and practice in order to have a clear understanding of our expectations for behaviour and decision-making, and the procedures that we use to manage and support it in school;
• Support school and their child with the decisions we make regarding behaviour.
• Inform school of circumstances which may affect their child’s behaviour and/or wellbeing.
IB Learner Profile
The 10 dispositions that make up the IB Learner Profile (IBLP) aim to develop learners who are:
• Inquirers
• Knowledgeable
• Thinkers
• Communicators
• Principled
• Open-minded
• Caring
• Risk-takers
• Balanced
• Reflective
We use the IBLP across the school in all areas of school life to promote positive interactions, learning behaviours and to help students develop as well-rounded and responsible people.
A culture of respect, cooperation and positive choices
While not necessarily displayed as rules, we have the expectation that all community members will:
• Have a smart appearance
• Walk around the school building
• Use the right side of stairwells/corridors
• Hold doors open for others
• Greet all others politely
• Use a quiet voice indoors
• Wait their turn in queues and conversations
• Tidy up after themselves
• Care for our school environment
• Use resources sensibly (ie water, food, paper etc)
• Use ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ often
• Never hurt another person (with words or actions)
How to Avoid Behaviour Issues
Whilst there are procedures to ensure that negative behaviours are met with appropriate consequences and opportunities to learn are offered, teachers are encouraged to develop structures and systems in their classrooms that minimise the need for sanctions. These will include taking time to create, within the class
and year group, a sense of genuine belonging and community, so that all students wish to be part of the group and ‘buy into’ the community’s expectations. This can be achieved, in part, by:
• Getting to know all students as individuals, to understand their lives, interests and challenges;
• Giving all students opportunities to see you as a trustworthy adult who has children’s best interests at heart;
• Using student's names often;
• Creating a Class Charter based on the IBLP which all students sign and try to follow;
• Taking time to handle individuals’ worries and take a proactive approach to class wellbeing.
• Being consistent and fair in approach to dealing with all students;
• Being quick to identify, celebrate good choices and attempts to improve;
• Remembering to separate the behaviour from the child and give “fresh starts”;
• Celebrating good choices, effort and successes publicly, but discussing poor choices discreetly;
• Planning and delivering learning opportunities which provide the correct Stages of challenge for the differentiated groups and which suit their learning styles – help everyone feel successful as learners and classmates.
Recognising Students’ Positive Learning and Social Behaviours
We aim to celebrate students’ holistic efforts and achievements as they grow and learn based on our core principles; ATLs, global citizenship and IB learner profile. These help students to see their own progress and give positive reinforcement for hard work and commitment.
Ideal incentives are the intrinsic rewards offered by high self-esteem, relationships based on mutual respect and a stimulating curriculum. All individuals should receive regular verbal recognition and encouragement for their efforts and achievement. Students should be helped to recognise their own efforts and how hard work and reflection positively impacts their learning and development as people.
Positive instances of displaying the IBLP are recognized and rewarded in a number of ways:
• Teachers and tutors regularly congratulate students for achievement, good work and behavior.
• Success is celebrated in Assemblies and in the Senior School Newsletter.
• Merits, linked to the House system, lead to individual recognition, encourage positive behaviour, and contribute to overall House success.
• Merits are cumulative with tangible rewards at specific thresholds, including emails homes, certificates and in-school privileges which will be identified alongside the student council
• At the end of each term, merits are turned into House Points with an appropriate scaling factor.
• Individual instances of extraordinary good performance are rewarded with postcards home and “student of the month” boards
Consequences and Sanctions
Every effort will be made by staff to ensure children have opportunities to learn from their mistakes, are not judged by previous errors and are treated fairly. Group wide punishments may not be used when a minority have erred; individuals should be held accountable and given the chance to rectify their errors and learn from the experience.
Unacceptable Behaviour
At Dulwich College Seoul, we find the following behaviour unacceptable on campus, online, on trips or at any point when a child is representing the school or has targeted another DCSL community member:
• Bullying, including cyber-bullying – persistent/repeated unkindness in any form which targets an individual or group;
• Lying or another dishonest act;
• Physical abuse – including hitting, spitting, biting, pinching, throwing or pushing, inappropriate touching;
• Verbal abuse – including rudeness, swearing, name calling or sexual harassment etc in any language;
• Disrespectful behaviour including inappropriate touching, taking disrespectful images/audio, moving others’ belongings;
• Accessing and /or sharing inappropriate material (inc. violent or sexual images or words);
• Vandalism or theft of school or others’ property;
• Hurting an animal or other living thing;
• Consumption or sharing of alcohol, tobacco, drugs or indecent images of any sort;
• Encouraging other students to participate in any of the above activities.
• Involvement by association in any of the above activities, e.g. as a bystander or indirectly encouraging.
Behaviour Management Procedures
All staff have a responsibility to manage behaviour to ensure that our expectations are promoted, and inappropriate behaviour is dealt with promptly and appropriately, irrespective of where this behaviour takes place.
Staff should consider the consequences with the student’s best interested in mind, that which will positively affect learning and support the child in improving their decision making and future behaviour. Public shaming or ridicule of a student by staff for poor choices is not helpful or acceptable.
Students who have been the victims of another’s poor choices must be cared for and supported, with the parents informed promptly by phone/email as appropriate. Staff should be aware that for some parents in
the community, there is shame/loss of face for both perpetrating and being the recipient of certain choices or actions. Discrete handling of situations is essential, with clear prompt communications to give the families a voice and confident their child is being fully supported,
In cases of behaviour that fall below our accepted standards, staff should deal with the incident immediately, according to the following stages.
There are five main stages in the management of behaviour. Most incidents will be dealt with initially at Stage 1 of the procedure and will only move through the consequence ladder if the poor behaviour continues or is repeated. Some incidents may be considered serious enough to move straight to serious behaviour levels. Examples are outlined below.
Please note that the above list is neither prescriptive nor exhaustive and staff are expected to use their professional judgment in determining the appropriate course of action. If in doubt, they should ask the Pastoral Lead, Deputy Head Pastoral or Head of Senior School for advice.
Consequence Ladder
Stage Types of behaviour
Stage One Low level poor choices or disruptive behaviours. Incidences include:
- Thoughtlessness towards others
- Distracting themselves or others from learning
- incomplete classwork
- uniform non-compliance,
- missed homework
- rowdy corridor behaviour
- non-inclusive language
- bad language
- lateness to class
- breaking bus rules
Stage Two Escalated or r epeated incidences of Stage
1 behaviours or more serious behaviour
- Low level Peer on Peer abuse; excluding others, intentional disrespect or rudeness (peer, community member, etc) may cause emotional distress
- failure to follow safety instructions/rules game, in lessons, during duty especially ball sports, on bus or trips
- Attention-seeking behaviours
- Inappropriate behaviour (contextual) i.e. running in corridors, classroom rowdiness
- Misuse of devices e.g. playing game, use of social media
Consequences
Discrete verbal/non-verbal warning
Remove distraction
Restorative Conversation to discuss appropriate behaviours
An opportunity for the student to improve behavior and demonstrate learning
Consequences should directly link to the behaviour and contain monitoring i.e., demonstrate
Actions by whom?
Staff member has a restorative conversation
if the behaviours are repeated staff member logs on iSAMS Conduct manager as Stage 1 incident
Contact parents by email (cc Tutor) if issues persist.
Staff has a restorative conversation and discusses reparations.
Depending on incident this may require
Complete unfinished tasks
Timeout from activity e.g., 5 minutes with duty member watching football game
Apology to those affected
Loss of privileges e.g., breaktime
Community support
Staff memb er logs stage 2 incident iSAMS Conduct manager.
Staff member emails home , cc’ing tutor and HoD (class based) or HoY (pastoral)
Tutor completes restorative conversation
Stage Three Serious behaviour
Persistent continuation of Stage 2 behaviours, and/or escalated peer on peer abuse*;
- Bullying, including cyberbullying, prejudice-based and discriminatory bullying which causes emotional distress
- Verbal or online peer to peer abuse
- Physical abuse with the intent to cause harm.
- Upskirting
- Deliberate and directed swearing
- Defiance
- Theft of small items/using or accessing without permission
- Serious misuse of devices e.g., accessing inappropriate content
Stage Four Continuous Serious behaviour.
Persistent continuation of behaviours following Stage 3 intervention, repeated Stage 3 behaviour and/or Peer on Peer abuse*
- The use of racist, homophobic, sexist or other prejudiced language
- Repeated peer-on-peer abuse such as emotional, sexual or physical harassment, either online or in person
- Consensual and non-consensual sharing of indecent images/videos (online or in person), sexting or youth produced sexual imagery.
- Abuse in intimate relationships between peers
- Sexual violence and sexual harassment
- Physical abuse/aggression, this may be repeated.
- Damage to property/vandalism
- Theft with intent to keep others’ belongings
Student completes reflection pack , shared with parents, including letter of apology.
Restorative and reflective conversation with HoY.
Student attends a detention and or l oss of privileges (1-5 days depending on the issues).
Possible school counsellor visit to consider causes and strategies for not repeating action again.
Staff member informs Pastoral Lead (HoY)
Pastoral Lead logs on iSAMS as Level 3 Incident and informs DHP
Pastoral Lead
1. Contacts parents to inform
2. Shared reflection pack with student and parent
3. Arranges parent meeting
Parental meeting
Student Internal or external s uspension 0.5-5 days.
Student completes reflection pack with student and parents
DHP/HOSS Restorative session with student.
School counsellor visit (min of 3 sessions)
May result in a home - school agreement.
Staff member informs Deputy Head Pastoral
DHP refers to HoSS immediately. HoY may be involved.
Staff member and DH P log on CPOMS/iSAMS as Level 4 Incident.
DHP produces d ecision log , all communication notes shared with CPO, HOSS and HoC.
DHP/HoSS
1. Inform parents by phone asap
2. Official email/letter by end of day
3. Parent meeting within 24 hours (DHP&HOSS)
4. Share reflection pack with student and parent to be completed before return to school/lessons.
5. If suspended, Parent and child meet on return/reintegration.
Stage Five Gross Misconduct
- Accessing others’ property (devices, lockers, online platforms and accounts) without consent
Repetition of Stage 4 case, and/or
- Violent or threatening behaviour (physical, sexual or verbal, with/without a weapon) towards a peer or member of staff.
- Abuse in intimate relationships between peers
- Sexual violence and sexual harassment
- Causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent
- Spreading sexual/malicious rumours via any form with the intent to cause serious damage
- Arson, significant theft or vandalism or other malicious damage to another person/College property.
As stage 4
Student External Suspension 0.5-5 days.
HoSS and HOC Parental meeting at the start and end of the suspension period. Home - school agreement signed.
School counsellor visit (min of 3 sessions)
Possible permanent exclusion from DCSL in severe cases or if another incidence of this severity occurs
6. Monitoring
Referred directly to HoSS and HoC
HoSS/HoC logs on iSAMS as Level 5 incident. Incident and decision log produced by HoSS All communication notes shared with CPO and HoC.
Board of Trustees acts as appeals body for the exclusion of a student, parents to be made aware of this process.
EiM to be notified when a student is excluded (CEO)
HOC and DCSL to determine informing of SMOE, police assistance or external service.
* Peer on peer abuse defined as:
• Bullying (including cyberbullying, prejudice-based and discriminatory bullying)
• Physical abuse such as hitting, kicking, shaking, biting, hair pulling or otherwise causing physical harm (this may include an online element, which facilitates, threatens and/or encourages physical abuse)
• Abuse in intimate relationships between peers
• Sexual violence and sexual harassment
• Causing someone to engage in sexual activity without consent
• Upskirting, which typically involves taking a picture under a person’s clothing without their permission, to obtain sexual gratification or cause the victim humiliation, distress or alarm
• Consensual and non-consensual sharing of nude and semi-nude images and/or videos (also known as sexting or youth produced sexual imagery)
Reflection Time – time to learn and restore relationships
Following an incident of unacceptable behaviour, the student will meet with the appropriate staff member to discuss the issue/incident. They will be guided through the Reflection Sheet headings and asked to complete it (with adult support as needed).
A student who has impacted others with their actions will be asked to attend a Restorative session (see below) with those individuals to hear how it impacted them and what they need to feel better. The student(s) should be given the opportunity to apologise and be forgiven.
Reconciliation and Restorative Justice
We see relationships as central to a happy and healthy school community. We aim to use a simplified restorative approach with children after poor choices which result in significant emotional impact or any physical injury. Sanctions may also be put in place, but we believe the opportunity for learning comes from discussion and reflection followed by restorative action.
We:
• Talk through the issue with the student so that decision-making can be identified and analysed
• Help the student understand their own and others’ motivations and feelings
• Help the student see the impact of their decisions and actions
• Provide an opportunity for students to hear how each felt; and
• Encourage students to apologise and forgive others.
A restorative session is lead by the appropriate member of staff at the relevant stage of behaviour issues (See Appendix 1)
On the Buses
All DCSL school buses have CCTV installed for the safety and wellbeing for all passengers. Unacceptable behaviour on the bus will be reported to the relevant Assistant Head.
All students should know and follow these behaviour expectations for the buses (inc. daily journeys and school trips):
If a student makes poor behaviour choices on the daily school bus service, the incident will be dealt with at the appropriate stage on the consequence ladder, usually Stage One, with the tutor taking a lead.
Theft
Dulwich College Seoul does not tolerate theft and will investigate and act when it suspects that theft has taken place. The College has taken steps in order to ensure that theft is kept to a minimum.
• All Senior School students are provided with lockers in which their valuables can be stored;
• At appropriate times information is sent to parents advising them to discuss with their children the importance of looking after valuables and explaining the action that the school takes when theft or suspicion of theft occurs;
• Students are encouraged not to bring expensive items or large amount of cash to school;
• CCTV coverage is extensive.
Each case of theft is dealt with individually with consideration being given to the age of the students concerned, their previous conduct and the intention behind the act, with premeditated acts being dealt with more severely.
Recording of Incidents
All suspected thefts should be reported to the Head of Senior School who records name, class/tutor group, time and the date of theft, its location and details of the items taken. If the time of the theft and its location are immediate, a senior member of staff with another colleague will investigate immediately.
If bags or lockers are to be searched the following must take place:
• Two members of staff must be present
• The student should empty the bag or locker and any items inside themselves
• Bags should be searched and investigated in private.
• Only when the bag or locker is empty should the teacher look inside.
• If stolen items are found, parents will be called in.
Requests to examine CCTV footage must go via the Head of Senior School.
Student Interviews and Outcomes
Student interviews must be conducted thoroughly in suspected cases of theft.
• All statements must be in the student’s own handwriting.
• The student at the end of the process must sign a declaration
• The sequence of events should be checked with the student.
Sanctions for Theft
Are in accordance with the consequences ladder. The final decision falls with the Head of College, after reviewing all the evidence.
Drugs, Alcohol and Tobacco
Alcohol and Tobacco
Any member of staff or student who believes that a student is consuming or dealing with illegal substances, tobacco or alcohol, whilst on College premises or at any school-related event, should report the matter immediately to the Head of Senior School.
Parents will be informed by the school if their child is involved in any incident relating to tobacco and/or alcohol consumption. Any student reported to be smoking or drinking alcohol on school premises or at school functions, events or field trips will be dealt with using our behavior management policies.
Drugs
In Korea, obtaining controlled drugs by any method other than by a doctor’s prescription is illegal. Drug trafficking and consuming controlled drugs obtained through illegal means are criminal offences. Dulwich College Seoul respects the law and will encourage students and parents to do the same.
If a member of staff, student or parent suspects that a student is endangering themselves (legally or behaviourally) with the use of legal or illegal substances, they must report this to the College CPO or Head of College. We have a zero tolerance to the selling, trading or consumption of drugs on school premises or at school functions, and these actions will result in severe consequences for students, including the likely probability of immediate permanent exclusion.
Students or parents who voluntarily approach the College with difficulties involving legal or illegal substances will be treated pastorally.
Public Displays of Affection
Out of respect for other students and members of staff, and in keeping with maintaining the College as a place focused on excellence in work and play, it is expected that students do not engage in physical intimacy of any kind while on school premises or on school trips. This includes holding hands and putting arms around each other to more intimate signs of affection. Over-intimate signs of affection between friends should be avoided. Suspicions of coerced intimacy should be reported to the CPO immediately.
Appendix 1 Student Reflection Form
Plus accompanying reflection Microsoft Form on the Learner Profile (see SS Team > 05 Pastoral). Including a letter of apology of others were affected.
Appendix 2 Steps for a Restorative Session
Stage One: Introductions
Welcome everyone and remind them that:
• You (the adult) are impartial, what is discussed is confidential to the students, their parents and other staff who may need to know - your role is to facilitate not to offer solutions
• You need agreement from the people involved that they will speak respectfully, listen without interruption, focus on how they have been affected by the problem, not on blame.
S tage Two: What has happened?
Each person has uninterrupted time to talk about the problem from their own point of view. Ask about feelings if not forthcoming. Summarise what has been said
Stage Three: Acknowledging Feelings and Perspectives
Ask each person if they can acknowledge the feelings of the other person (even if they don’t agree) and then to communicate this to the other person
• Try: X has said that he is feeling …… about what has happened. I wonder if you can acknowledge that he is feeling ……
Stage Four: Creating Options
Ask each in turn to say what they would like to happen next. Ask for offers rather than requests at first.
Stage Five: Agreement
Get them to agree a course of action based in the possible solutions they have generated. What do they need to formalise the agreement? Do they need to meet again to discuss progress?
Stage Six: Recordkeeping
Other staff in school are likely to be updated after the session to some degree. Parents will likely be informed of the session and the reasons for it with outcomes. Communications related to the incident should be uploaded to SIMS.