Nice words don’t work without real consequences.
Don’t belive the bullshit that every behavioural issue can be fixed with a restorative conversation. That if you sit the kid down, let them talk, and get everyone to “reflect,” things will magically improve. Spoiler alert: they don’t. Restorative practice has been diluted to the point of uselessness. It’s become a ritual of empty scripts, soft tones, and zero fucking impact. You cannot ‘chat’ your way out of a discipline crisis.
No, students don’t get a vote.
Somewhere along the line, we started treating classrooms like town fucking halls. Rules became suggestions. Sanctions became “conversations.” Teachers were told to listen more, say less, and act like facilitators rather than leaders. And now we see the rusults: Total fucking chaos. Kids don’t need a peer, they need a boundary. A classroom is not a democracy. It’s a learning environment, and the adult is in charge. So step the fuck up and act like a fucking adult!
Reclaiming the Classroom
This is the final part of my series on student behaviour. In Part 1, I tackled the breakdown of basic civility: the rudeness, the refusal, the fucking cheek. In Part 2, I broke down the dopamine nightmare—the tech-fuelled, attention-sapping, overstimulated disaster we’re now expected to teach through.
Now it’s time to fight back. This post is about what we can do—because while we’re not responsible for fixing everything, we sure as shit don’t have to lie down and take it. Reclaiming the classroom isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being intentional. Strategic. Defiant.
The Erosion of Classroom Civility
The classroom, once a space of basic cooperation—however reluctant—has become loaded with hostility, apathy, and arrogance. The respect has gone. Kids walk in late, with no pen, no folder, no clue what day it is, and expect to be entertained. If you challenge it, you get attitude: “Why are you shouting at me?” or “What’s your problem?” The concept of effort is alien. The idea of consequence? Hilarious. School is no longer a space for learning; it’s an inconvenience in their dopamine-chasing day
Curriculum churn, course swaps, and top-down bullshit are driving talent out the door.
Change is supposed to be progress. But in schools, it’s a never-ending shitshow. A procession of poorly thought-out policies, new faces, new acronyms, and constant disruption. The ground never settles. Teachers are left picking up the pieces while trying to meet targets, keep kids learning, and cling to what’s left of their sanity: “no, no…. I’m fine…I SAID I’M FINE!!!”. The damage isn’t theoretical—it’s fucking everywhere. Burnout, confusion, high turnover, and a profession running on fumes.
