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Student Code of Conduct

Maria A Galindo

College of Education, Grand Canyon University

EAD-513: Shaping School Culture

Dr. Jarret Sharp

October 21, 2020

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Student Code of Conduct

Background

James P. Butler Elementary (JPB) is a combo campus located in a suburban area within

the Socorro Independent School District. We began serving our community on July of 2013. JPB

Serves about 1,017 students in grades Pre-Kinder through fifth. We have 48 teachers, 8

paraprofessionals, 2 counselors, 2 curriculum coaches, 2 assistant principals, and additional staff

to help our students succeed. We serve mainly middle-class working families, and military

families.

Code of Conduct Values Statement

Our mission at James P. Butler is to establish strong academic foundation skills that will

prepare our students to be college and career ready. We have strong relationships with our

stakeholders, sharing the responsibility in providing rigorous, relevant, and relationship building

experiences. The students at JPB follow the Scholarly Behaviors, preparing them for independent

study skills. We strive for building relationships by teaching the whole child incorporating Social

Emotional Learning (SEL) to support academic, social, and emotional wellbeing of every

student. “Students learn to self-regulate, be responsible, empathy, and discipline, among others,”

which are skills needed to advocate for themselves and others. (Tatter, 2019). Students will feel

loved, respected, valued and safe knowing their teachers care about every student and their

wellbeing. Effective educational leaders develop, advocate, and enact a shared mission, vision,

and core values of high-quality education and academic success and well-being of each student

(NPBEA, 2015). SEL encourages positive behavior, therefore lessens the likelihood of students

demonstrating unwanted behaviors. Students learn to work together and solve their problems,

and accept positive and negative consequences. Celebrate students when they exhibit good
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behaviors. If a student needs discipline, work on strengthening your relationship, stating the

choice they made was not a good one, and avoid telling them they are bad children. We will

continue to promote a positive behaviors and a school culture to support our vision and mission,

by being Responsible, Respectful, Safe, Kind, and Helpful to all.

Student Behavior Expectations

1. All students will be RESPONSIBLE by following directions quickly and bringing all

necessary tools to learn.

2. All students will be RESPECTFUL by not bullying others, and saying please and thank

you.

3. All students will be SAFE by staying with a friend, walking in the hallways, and asking

for permission to leave the classroom.

4. All students will be KIND by showing empathy, smiling, and being a friend.

5. All students will be HELPFUL by assisting students in need.

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Student Code of Conduct Topics

Students following the code of conduct will succeed academically, socially, and

emotionally. It strengthens the relationship between teachers and students, providing a culture

conducive of learning in a safe and positive atmosphere. The conduct topics I would include are:

Attendance

Students who are present daily will receive the best instruction. Daily attendance will

provide students opportunity to work collaboratively with their peers, learn expectations and

routines, to ensure they are being successful and prepared for college and/or career of their

choice.

Punctual

Being on time prepares students for success by being consistent with daily routines.

Students who are punctual become dependable, reliable, and trustworthy citizens.

Integrity

Students will work on their own work and collaborate with others when instructed.

Students will accept consequences for their own actions. Students who demonstrate integrity

develop values of trust and honesty.

Technology Use

Students will use campus technology in a safe and responsible manner. Laptops will be

handled with care and be fully charged every morning.

No Bullying

We help others become friends and advocate for those who cannot advocate for

themselves. We include every student to participate in our fun activities. Every student is cared

for and loved.

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Dining Area

We keep our dining table clean and free from trash. The dining table is a place for

dialogue and becoming a family.

Completed Work

Students will turn in completed work during the allotted time. Every student will take

pride in his or her work by turning in a neat clean finished assignment.

Campus Pride

Our campus is our home away from home. We will pick up after ourselves, keeping

hallways and walls clean from trash or stray marks. Our work will be showcased for our

community to see.
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Explanation
Creating and enforcing the student code of conducts is an essential piece to control, or

minimize misconduct on campus. Students following campus expectations will be successful

academically and emotionally. Wording in the code of conducts usually includes negative

vocabulary, such as will not, cannot, or no. I attempted to word the code of conduct with positive

vocabulary to encourage a culture that promotes academic and social success for every student,

teacher, staff member, and family member.

Academic Success

Positive school cultures focus on the entire student. All stakeholders form an integral part

of nurturing our students. Professional development will be given to ensure teachers implement

Social Emotional Learning during the daily routines. Parent classes will be offered to help

reinforce the academic and wellbeing of all students. Students will learn to accept each other and

help others by supporting their peers.

Positive behavior supports works because it focuses on essential behavior to support a

positive school culture. Some of these behaviors include showing pride in school, leadership,

collaboration, caring, kindness, organization, making good choices, and active listening (Hierck

and Peterson, 2018). Hierck and Peterson state that according to the National School Climate

Council, “shows that when school members feel safe, valued, cared for, engaged and respected,

learning measurably increases, and staff satisfaction and retention are enhanced." (2018). By

implementing and supporting my teachers in establishing relationships with their students, I will

have teachers who will be willing to support our students academically to succeed as students.

Students who are happy and feel they are safe will allow students to focus on learning.

Social Success
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As a society, we have learned how to demonstrate wanted behaviors when out in public.

Positive behavior supports, such as Social Emotional Learning, students learn to demonstrate

desirable behaviors that will help them receive something they want in return. We need to instill

these desirable behaviors instead of promoting bribery for wanted behaviors. SEL supports all

students, and provides a way to include our special education population, by reinforcing good

behavior. According to Synapse, positive reinforcement is an incentive given to a child who

complies with some request for behavior change (n.d.).

For teachers and parent of exceptional learners we provide supports to implement with

the students in exchange for good behavior. Students can begin using and “If/Then” chart to

focus on a behavior and complete academic work. Include positive reinforcement to support a

culture supporting the code of conduct. Students from our general population will collaborate

with our exceptional learners being role models and proving to be an inclusive culture.

My campus staff, parents, and students will work together to ensure students are

emotionally stable and know they are loved by everyone. The students will leave elementary

school prepared to problem solve and work well with others. They will be leaders and help those

who are struggling. We will accept everyone and strive to be a positive role model for our

community. The students will be specialists in kindness, helping others, and being responsible

citizens.
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References

Hierck, T. and Peterson, K. (2018). Focusing on the 19 Behaviors Most Essential to a Positive

School Culture. ASCD Express, 13(14). http://www.ascd.org/ascd-express/vol13/1314-

hierck.aspx

National Policy Board for Educational Administration (2015). Professional Standards for

Educational Leaders 2015. Reston, VA: Author.

Synapse Reconnecting Lives. (n.d.). Positive Reinforcement and Autism. http://www.autism-

help.org/behavior-positive-reinforcement-autism.htm

Tatter, G. (2019). Teaching Social and Emotional Skills All Day. Harvard Graduate School of

Education. https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/uk/19/01/teaching-social-and-emotional-

skills-all-day