The New Authority

Mechelen November 2013

Idan Amiel The New Authority center

Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel

Gezag en verbinding op school Over nieuwe autoriteit in een herstelgericht klimaat

Our team’s history Helping parents and more…

The beginning… (1997)

The Parents’ Counseling Clinic (2004)

Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel

The hospital is dedicated exclusively for children and adolescents from the middle east. The vision – to serves as a “bridge to peace”

by receiving patients from all around the region.

A unique focus on the parents - Meetings are held with parents only

Team work – A psychologist + a student (telephone supporter)

The Parents’ Counseling Clinic Two treatment guidelines

Outline & mission of my lecture

Our focus is on authority figures - parents, teachers, therapists & trainers.

Individual Presence – trying to minimize escalations

Moving from “I” to “We” attitude – acting together.

Reparation acts instead of punishments.

The New Authority concept

Drug Use Assaults

Number of cases at youth court over 15 years (Israel 1990-2004)

An increase of about 10-15 times in youth violent acts.

The cases presented to court are more severe.

The age of the children involved has decreased.

Presenting the problem in Israel

with 2 lines and 3 points

And in Belgium?

Juvenile crime statistics are produced differently in different

countries.

Criminal statistics are influenced by juridical and statistical factors.

Recorded statistics may not accurately reflect the level of violence

that is actually experienced.

“In België worden elke schooldag gemiddeld 16 gewelddelicten in onderwijsinstellingen

geregistreerd. In 14 van de 16 gewelddelicten gaat het om opzettelijke slagen en

verwondingen. Gemiddeld wordt per schooldag ook meer dan 1 seksueel misdrijf

gemeld. Van 2008 tot en met het eerste kwartaal van 2010 zijn 8 moorden en

doodslagen geregistreerd. In 2008 werden er in schoolverband 2916 gewelddelicten

genoteerd; in 2009 waren dat er 2994 en gedurende het eerste kwartaal van 2010

noteerde men 1032 geweldplegingen. In het merendeel van de gevallen ging het om

geweld tussen leerlingen onderling. In een veel kleiner aantal gevallen was er sprake

van fysiek of psychisch geweld tussen leerlingen en leerkrachten.”.

Commissievergadering v/h Vlaams Parlement nr. C200 (2010-2011) april 2011, p. 12-

13

What happened to our children? Try to imagine…

Violence was here, is here and will probably stay here…

The power of the “We” concept.

The importance of imagination, Myth and creating stories!

The story of the

“Old” authority (Autoriteit…)

Questioning a decision was an insult to the authority figure.

The source of authority was inherent in its formal status.

Demand for obedience justified punitive measures

The authority figure had immunity from criticism.

The authority figure was fearsome & distant.

The traditional authority lost its legitimate support and had to be changed

The Sixties - A complex of inter-related cultural and political trends across the globe, beginning around 1963 and ending around 1974.

The authority myth

Of “the Sixties”

Children are born pure and should have Freedom and Privacy

Discipline will inhibit and repress a child’s natural instincts.

Children need only Understanding, Encouragement & Praise

A free society without Authority will raise natural and sociable children.

Praise & Love will build the child’s Self-Esteem

Violence, school dropout, drug use & delinquency

We need to re-formulate

the concept of Authority

Led to a

collapse of authority

and created a vacuum…

Do we need a new concept of Authority?

Does the concept presented here fit with my ideals?

Can we act according to the ways suggested here?

The 3 Questions:

The New Authority concept (Gezag)

Basic Guidelines

Presence instead of distance or physical force.

Use an alternative to force but be powerful – NVR…!

Transparency empowers you – Don’t be afraid from criticism.

Create legitimacy to your stance through support networks.

Always Remember:

“It takes a whole village (school…)

to raise a child”…

The New Authority concept

A venture for a socio-cultural change

From individualism and loneliness towards community & support…

www.NewAuthority.Net

Enhancing Parents’ authority

School interventions – the P.E.N program

Enhancing professionals’ awareness and praxis

Community programs – Parent patrols & publicity

P.E.N. The New Authority program for schools

Our focus is on authority figures - parents, teachers, therapists & trainers.

Individual Presence – trying to minimize escalations

Moving from “I” to “We” attitude – thinking and acting as a team.

Reparation acts instead of punishments.

P.E.N. = Presence Empowerment & Net-support.

Individual Presence – Trying to minimize escalations Who will be the student that will start chatting first ?

The teacher David

Betty

Teachers’ presence in the classroom

The flashlight

The engine

The student

The radar

Rule no. 1 for teachers:

When you have to walk, walk don’t talk!

Teacher’s presence in the classroom Escalating process and the bookmark

The surrender reaction.

The battle reaction.

“We are both angry right now , we will stop that

now and we’ll talk at the end of the lesson

I ask you to sit down and continue working.

If you wish you can go outside, wash your face and

return when you’re calm.

Adjusting your expectations:

The 20-80 40-60 50-50 rule

P.E.N. The New Authority program for schools

Our focus is on authority figures - parents, teachers, therapists & trainers.

Individual Presence – trying to minimize escalations

Moving from “I” to “We” attitude – acting together.

Reparation acts instead of punishments.

P.E.N. = Presence Empowerment & Net-support.

"Yesterday … (describe the unaccepted behavior). We are not

willing to accept this kind of behavior in our school, so we are

here to find a way to resolve this problem. We will sit here and

wait for you to offer a suggestion as to how to stop this

behavior"

The participants remain in the room for 20 minutes and then

leave whilst saying:

“we haven't found any solution yet; we will finish at this stage".

After an unaccepted behavior or violence act happens, the student is

asked to enter a room …

The participants sit down and the Sit-In leader will say to the student:

The Sit-In: Version for school

The Sit-In is a powerful act – why?

Gezag instead of Autoriteit…

Understanding the “sit in”:

An example from school Using the Sit-In in front of a whole class

“We will sit here and wait for you to offer a

suggestion as to how to stop this behavior“

Moving from “I” to “we” Or – “I’m a representative of the school’s stance”

We work as team, We react as a team, We make

mistakes as a team, We think as a team…

and I, as an individual, am part of this team!

Even when I’m there alone in those difficult situations I

feel supported because I have a net of support.

I, as a new authority figure, am a representative of the

school’s stance to create a safe community for all of us.

A different state of mind

The Sit-In act help teachers to feel that way!

Suspension is a necessary disciplinary measure with

problematic aspects.

Interruption of teacher’s presence in the student’s

life.

Can be interpreted as: you are not welcome here.

Parents feel the school can’t handle their child.

Sometimes parents will have to skip work and some

of them will not do that.

The other students often don’t know about the

suspension.

Suspension The drawbacks

"present suspension” procedure & rational

The suspension day will be coordinated with the

parents as far as possible.

Morning - The teacher’s announcement and the

volunteers recruitment.

Morning – A plan with the parents.

Afternoon - the volunteers arrive…

Evening - The teacher calls the student’s home.

Teacher’s guidelines for the conversation.

The day after – a talk or a reparation act.

The teacher-parent alliance

Overcoming mutual suspicions and creating a

common attitude toward (New) Authority.

Teaching teachers to talk with parents – is it

possible? Maybe they can do it as a team?...!

Talking is not enough – we have to act together

The school Sit-In.

The parent-teacher contact team.

The ‘battle notebook’ and more...

Our focus is on authority figures - parents, teachers, therapists & trainers.

Individual Presence – trying to minimize escalations

Moving from “I” to “We” attitude – acting together.

Reparation acts instead of punishments.

P.E.N. The New Authority program for schools

P.E.N. = Presence Empowerment & Net-support

Reparation Acts

The authority figure’s stance:

Repairing the damage is my responsibility.

The message for the student: When you do harm you can fix it.

The reparation act join you back.

The class When there is damage the authority figure takes responsibility.

Informing the parents

parents are more willing to join-in .

Assimilation of different values

for the student and… the authority figure!

The New Authority

& the P.E.N. program

“The new authority is about empowerment.

Influential figures, like parents or teachers, need not

be defined by their ability to control children but

rather by their ability to initiate, whether it's initiating

care, initiating resistance or initiating support.”

The P.E.N. program defines tools and procedures for

teachers & parents to act that way, feel that way and

at the end make the best for our children.

They are the real reason why we are doing all that…

Three last questions

before we end…

Do we need a new concept of Authority ?

Does the concept presented here fit with my ideals ?

Can we act according to the ways suggested here ?

Mechelen November 2013

Three times Yes?...!

Join us at the website:

www.NewAuthority.net