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
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