In an effort to encourage and celebrate positive behavior, Florida High has introduced positive behavior badges which are awarded to students by teachers through their Focus accounts. Some examples of these positive badges are Hard-Working Student, Awesome Behavior, Helping Others and Kindness.
“As the Dean of Discipline, most of the things I deal with are negative, and students kind of see me as a negative person. Like if I call your parents, their parents usually say, ‘oh, my goodness, what did they do now?’” Kevin Helms said.
At the end of the first semester, students who have earned ten or more positive behavior badges are rewarded with a field trip. Freshmen and sophomores will go to Governor’s Square Mall for lunch, while juniors and seniors will go to both a bowling alley and the mall.
Lunch at the mall is a valuable privilege for freshmen and sophomores who cannot go off campus for lunch. “I’m very excited to enjoy Chick-fil-A,” Villa said.
Helms is trying to encourage students to have better behavior, keeping count of the badges students receive over the semester.
“It should also help bring more positive behavior on our campus and bring that light to show students what they should be acting like, as opposed to always telling them what they’re doing wrong,” Helms said.
Students are finding ways to earn their badges in many different ways, such as helping out their classmates.
“They’re good for behavior, so I’m going to do good things such as helping teachers and students,” freshman Carolina Villa said.
Teachers are using the badges as a way to celebrate their students’ learning and achievements in class. This will hopefully motivate students to continue displaying those positive behaviors.
“If you, as a student, are supporting me and the classroom environment and what we’re doing in some way, I want to reward you for that support,” English teacher Morgan King said.
The implementation of positive behavior badges offers a positive avenue for fostering essential life skills in students. When students have empathy and responsibility, this leads them to succeed in their relationships, careers and community endeavors.
