Non-violent misbehaving students should be referred to a psychologist rather than be suspended, according to research undertaken at the Australian Catholic University.
The Herald Sun has reported that a PhD student from the university, Daniel Quin, found suspension could exacerbate problem behaviour, from his study of 304 high school students.
“We should instead be trying to understand from the students’ perspective why they are doing what they are doing and what they need so they can change their behaviour,” Quin told a conference last week.
“We could start by getting them referred to a psychologist.”
He said suspension, however, might be still necessary for violent students.
Mr Quin’s research found only a third of students sent home are supervised while suspended.