Discipline at the school: Examination of school administrators' views about discipline and disciplinary problems

Abstract

This research is a phenomenology study which is one of the qualitative studies that examines the views of school administrators about discipline and disciplinary problems. 18 high school administrators participated to the research in Kozan district. Data collected by interview were analyzed by content analysis method. As a result of the study, school administrators defined the discipline as responsibility, system and order. A disciplined school must have the following features: everyone fulfills their duties, students should be academically successful, the educational materials are complete, and schools are clean and orderly. School administrators listed common disciplinary problems as: unfulfilled academic responsibilities at high school, the use of harmful substances, disobeying the dress code and violence. Administrators have associated discipline problems with student characteristics and the attitudes of their families. As a result of the research, it is seen that the school administrators prompt guidance service, classroom teacher and family cooperation in the process of managing the disciplinary problems, and they also take care to make interview and guidance work with the students. School administrators' expectations are that the parents should support the school's decisions and that the discipline regulation in the education system should be updated in accordance with the social conditions.