Abstract

MARQUES, Carolina Aragão Escher  and  CASTRO, Juliana Alvim Bites. Interpersonal Conflicts and School Rules. LTP [online]. 2013, vol.31, n.60, pp.105-117. ISSN 2317-0972.

Abstract In contact with educators, we have noticed that some of their major insecurities rest on how to manage the interpersonal conflicts that occur daily among children and how to make them comply with the school rules. What draws attention in frequent conversations is how often the conflicts have to be solved by adults: either in attempts to prevent problems from happening or in efforts to settle them quickly. These procedures, however, result from the concept that conflicts are unnatural, negative and harmful occurrences in a healthy development. We understand, however, that those situations of friction are, on the contrary, opportunities to work with values and rules, and they provide us with information about what children need in order to learn how to live among others. The theory also points to the relationship between the breach of the rules and the use of harsh measures and expiatory punishment, reminding us that indiscipline is often a response to an arbitrary and authoritarian style of an educator. Finally, if the goal is to promote the moral development of children, one must consider that fostering cooperation, initiative and interaction among peers, with appropriate intervention by educators, is an important tool to reach the long sought autonomy. This would be a constructivist approach to the problem.

Keywords : School Conflicts; Rules; Development and Autonomy of Students.

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