Posts Tagged levels of development

Why Everyone Should Know the Levels of Development

On July 23, 2020   /   Effectiveness, Responsibility  

For years I’ve focused the teachings of my Levels of Development on students and schools. But in reality, the Levels of Development is a tool appropriate for every person of every age from every walk of life. In fact, when people become aware of the levels, they become conscious of their own behaviors, their decisions, and their relationships with others.

Here are the 4 main ways the Levels of Development helps all people.

 

1. Serves as a means of communication

The Levels of Development offers everyone—adults and youth—the same conceptual vocabulary. This helps bring clarity of understanding and assists communications between all people, whether it’s between a teacher and student, parent and child, or even two co-workers.

2. Empowers
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Improve Your Life with the Levels of Development

On July 2, 2020   /   Effectiveness, Responsibility  
Improve Your Life

If you’re like most people, you probably want to improve your life in some way. Whether it’s improving your decision-making skills, your relationships, or your job situation, the desire for change and life improvement is an important human urge. No wonder there are so many books and websites dedicated to personal and professional growth.

In my own experience and in working with countless others, I have found that once you implement the Levels of Development into your life, change and growth are natural byproducts. That’s because the Levels of Development essentially gives you a rubric for making decisions and living your best life. It’s one of the simplest tools to use to improve your life

How is this possible? It’s … >>>

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The Levels of Development and Social Responsibility

On June 25, 2020   /   Effectiveness, Responsibility  
Social Responsibility

One thing we could definitely use more of these days is social responsibility—that is, people doing the right thing simply because it is the right thing to do. I’ve long been a proponent of fostering social responsibility in both children and adults. That’s one reason why I created the Levels of Development and have been sharing it with parents, teachers, and school administrators for decades.

But the Levels of Development isn’t just for children. The levels have great merit outside of the classroom and with adults. In fact, when people become aware of the Levels of Development, they become conscious of social responsibility in their own behaviors and in relationships with others.

Here are just a few of the main

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How the Levels of Development Help Us Understand Motivation

On June 18, 2020   /   Effectiveness, Responsibility  
Motivation

I created The Levels of Development to help people of all ages understand the difference between external motivation and internal motivation. While it’s true that technically all motivation is internal, often external factors prompt us to take action. This is the case for both adults and children. Knowing why you’re doing something is important for decision making, acting responsibly, and ultimately reducing stress.

So let’s quickly review The Levels of Development. As with any hierarchy of levels, the most advanced or highest level is placed at the top.

Levels Of Development

LEVEL D – Democracy (highest level)

  • Develops self-discipline
  • Demonstrates initiative
  • Displays responsibility
  • Does good because it is the right thing to do
  • The motivation is INTERNAL.

LEVEL C – … >>>

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How to Stop Bullying

On November 14, 2019   /   Discipline Help, Responsibility  

Here is a marvelously successful idea to stop bullying. You can use this approach to prevent bullying in classrooms, reduce bullying school-wide, and even stop bullying behaviors in homes. The key is to approach the motivation of bullying that prompts people to bully others.

Start with sharing the Levels of Development, which shows that choosing bullying behavior is operating on Level B—bothering/bullying.

Here is the procedure I used as a teacher. You can use this procedure in any circumstance to reduce bullying behavior or even completely stop bullying.

The Stop Bullying Procedure — Step One

Use a ruler or book and hold it flat so viewers see only the thin edge. Announce that it is like a teeter-totter or … >>>

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Do the Levels of Development Really Work?

On October 24, 2019   /   Classroom Management  

When something sounds too good to be true, it’s natural for people to be skeptical about it. This is true for everything from weight loss products to money making opportunities to even my very own Levels of Development.

People often wonder, “Can the Levels of Development and the Without Stress Methodology really change behavior and promote responsibility in youth?” After receiving countless testimonials and working with children and staff first hand, I can say without hesitation that it works.

Consider this email I received recently:

My name is Melissa Stuart. I was a teacher in California for 28 years and am now teaching in McKinney, TX. I used your program in CA. I loved it and believed in it. … >>>

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The Gift of Internal Motivation

On October 10, 2019   /   Discipline Help, Responsibility  

When people, especially the young, learn the difference between external and internal motivation, they become empowered to resist bullying and victimhood thinking, and to make responsible choices. The Levels of Development explains the difference between external motivation and internal motivation. Even young children can understand these concepts.

Although technically all motivation is internal, being able to articulate something outside of ourselves that prompts or motivates will help us make more responsible decisions. Keep in mind that it is the effect of the Levels of Development—how people grow—that makes learning the levels (concepts) so valuable. Think of the Levels of Development as rubric or reference for making decisions in life.

Internal Motivation Prompts Change

Additionally, when children learn both of the … >>>

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Impulse Control for Kids

On August 8, 2019   /   Discipline Help, Effectiveness, Responsibility  

Teaching impulse control for kids can be a challenge. If you want to become a more effective adult when working with young people, then give up the desire to control. Instead, hand over to the young the responsibility of learning to control themselves. This is important for every child but especially important for those young people who have repeated discipline and impulse control challenges.

The key to fostering impulse control for kids is to use the Levels of Development all the time so that it isn’t associated with corrective discipline. In fact, the more you use the hierarchy, the more young people will understand the difference between external and internal motivation. They will also become open to using the hierarchy … >>>

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Both Internal and External Motivation are Part of Life

On April 25, 2019   /   Levels of Development  
Image of street signs saying Internal and External

When it comes to motivation, many people believe that internal motivation is the only one that’s important. That’s not necessarily true. Both types help us live our life to the fullest.

The Levels of Development highlights both internal and external motivation. And it’s important to realize that we live our lives on all levels of the Levels of Development.

Rich Lowry, in his book “Lincoln Unbound” (2013), states that some people convinced Lincoln to run for the Illinois state legislature in 1832. He was just 23 at the time. This was certainly external motivation. I had similar experiences when a colleague suggested I become a high school principal. (At the time, I already had served as a high school assistant … >>>

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An Analogy for the Levels of Development

On December 27, 2018   /   Responsibility  
Image of a Butterfly which is an analogy for the Hierarchy of Social Development

The life cycle of a butterfly not only fascinates but the life cycle of a butterfly in real life can serve as an analogy to the Levels of Development. Once young people understand the basics of building a hierarchy, then their physical growth can be compared to a butterfly life cycle. With this understanding, they become empowered to act more responsibly. Additionally, they reduce their stress and the stress of others with whom young people interact.

The four stages of the life cycle of a butterfly can be related to the four physical states of human development and the Levels of Development.

Began by reminding young people of the life cycle of a butterfly. There are four stages … >>>

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Teaching the Levels of Development

On May 23, 2017   /   Blog, Discipline  
Hierarchy of Social Development

Rather than reacting after a behavior problem appears, you can use the Levels of Development to be proactive. As soon as your child can talk, you begin with the easy teaching of four (4) concepts of the Levels of Development. These four concepts are the foundation of the system that handles all behavior problems while promoting responsibility.

The first two concepts (Level A and Level B) refer to behavior and are both unacceptable. Level C and D refer to motivation and are both acceptable.

Note: Having young people learn the concepts is critical because reference is never made directly to a child’s behavior; reference is always referred to the level the youngster has chosen.

This understanding … >>>

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Promote Student Responsibility

On January 19, 2017   /   Blog, Responsibility  
student responsibility

When I returned to the classroom after 24 years in counseling and administration, the lack of responsibility on the part of some students glared out at me. That’s when I asked myself, “How can I promote responsible behavior?”

The outcome was the Raise Responsibility System, which you can find a plethora of information about on my website. In developing the program, I decided to be PROACTIVE, rather than always reacting after an inappropriate behavior. That’s when I developed the Levels of Development.

Terms that Promote Responsibility

Every so often someone writes me about the problems the person has with using the vocabulary with young people. Here is my response about two of the terms.

Regarding the term “democracy”:
I … >>>

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Discipline Questions Answered

On March 29, 2016   /   An Overview of The RRSystem, Discipline, Impulse Control, The Raise Responsibilty System  

More and more people who want to discipline without coercion are learning about the Discipline Without Stress methodology and the Raise Responsibility System every day.

Step 1: TEACHING – (Students learn four levels of development) Being proactive by TEACHING AT THE OUTSET is in contrast to the usual approach of just responding to inappropriate behavior.

Step 2: ASKING – (Checking for Understanding) When a disruption occurs, have the student identify the unacceptable level chosen. Note: A major reason for the success of the system is that by identifying something OUTSIDE of oneself, the deed is separated from the doer. The person is not prompted to self-defend, which is one’s natural and usual approach.

Step 3: ELICITING – (Guided … >>>

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Bullying in Schools

On July 24, 2015   /   Discipline  

A Pennsylvania teenager was convicted of disorderly conduct after using his iPad to film his alleged tormentors harassing him at school.

According to a transcript of the court hearing obtained by the The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, the teen said he made the seven-minute recording “because I always felt like it wasn’t me being heard.” He said classmates bullied him daily over a period of several months.

The bullied teen’s mother called the situation a “horrible nightmare,” questioning why officials at the high school went after her son for making the recording—but did not punish the bullies. At one point, the school authorities even considered pursuing a felony wiretapping charge against the student who was continually bullied.

It is … >>>

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Lord of the Flies and Levels of Development

On July 8, 2015   /   Discipline, Levels of Development  

My blog of June 2, 2015 was on “Restorative Justice,” a discipline program being used by many urban schools because of the federal mandate to reduce the number of minority students being disciplined and suspended. I quote from an article about Restorative Justice: “The administration welcomes this ‘Lord of the Flies’ scenario.”

Here is little background about the “Lord of the Flies,” the title of a book that the article refers to along with information about the author.

William Golding was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1983 for his novels that “illuminate the human condition in the world of today.” He will probably be remembered primarily for his first novel, “Lord of the Flies,” a dark and disturbing

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Bullying and Law Enforcement

On April 17, 2014   /   Levels of Development  

I recently read a news article about a Pennsylvania teenager who was convicted of disorderly conduct after using his iPad to film his tormentors who were bullying him at school. The boy claimed to have been bullied for several months by a certain group of kids. Each time he complained to the school about the many incidents, he felt no one was listening since nothing ever got done. So he took matters into his own hands by creating a 7-minute recording of the bullying events.

But when he showed the school his video, rather than go after the bullies, the school administrators went after him, even going so far as to suggest pursuing a felony wiretapping charge!

While this story … >>>

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Does Discipline Really Change Behavior?

On February 12, 2014   /   Parenting, Responsibility  

Many parents rely on outdated discipline techniques—such as imposed punishments and rewards—in an attempt to change their child’s behavior. But does discipline really change how a person acts?

The answer is “no.” Consider these two basic facts of life:

  • Any control of another person is temporary.
  • Attempting to control another person is really an attempt to change that person.
  • Although you can control others, you cannot change anyone but yourself.

As long as parents believe they can change their child, they’ll have a natural tendency to employ force or coercion, especially when the young person doesn’t do what the parent wants. But the fact is that you can’t change others. You can only change yourself.

Certainly, a parent can use … >>>

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Using Levels of Development with Kindergarten – High School Students

On August 19, 2013   /   Levels of Development  

The Levels of Development (the first part of the discipline program of the Discipline Without Stress Teaching Model) can be used with Kindergarten to high school students.

The following comments come from a kindergarten and a high school teacher, respectively.

I had a particularly challenging Kindergarten class and taught the hierarchy. I was surprised how quickly my youngsters were able to pick up the language and were able to label situations as ‘Anarchy’ and ‘Bullying.’

We used the ‘Happy Face’ poster and discussed how Level A and Level B usually result in tears. We talked about what Level C and Level D are like in the hallway, in the bathroom, etc.

It was very effective. Kindergarten students were certainly able … >>>

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