Verbal Discipline Procedures for Classroom Management: Teachers’ Perspectives 

Abstract Book of the 8th Global Conference on Education and Teaching

Year: 2026

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Verbal Discipline Procedures for Classroom Management: Teachers' Perspectives 

Charity Okeke, Thomas Akobi, Pinki Mohanoe

ABSTRACT:

Not knowing exactly what to tell learners and how to convey it effectively, as verbal discipline remains a classroom management challenge for teachers. Verbal discipline, as the most predominantly used disciplining strategy in South African schools, requires established guidelines to direct teachers on what to say and how to say it to evade verbal abuse. This study aims to establish effective verbal discipline procedures for promoting proper classroom management in primary schools. The mixed-methods research followed an explanatory sequential design, utilizing a non-concurrent questionnaire and semi-structured interviews to extract participant data. The non-concurrent process (collecting the quantitative questionnaire first before conducting the semi-structured interviews) aligns with the explanatory sequential design. A proportionate stratified sampling method was employed to select 250 respondents (20% of the study’s total population of 1,249) for quantitative data collection, while 25 participants (10% of the 250 respondents) were selected through purposive sampling for qualitative interviews. The participants were primary school teachers from the Motheo Education district in the Free State Province of South Africa. The questionnaires were coded and analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequencies, mean, and standard deviation) with the SPSS software package. The audio-recorded interviews, however, were transcribed, coded, and thematically analyzed to discover aligning patterns and themes. Data trustworthiness was ensured through credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability. Findings from the study revealed that in-service training for teachers, a community of learning among teachers, interactive classroom sessions involving school stakeholders, polite/private talk, and role modelling are verbal disciplining procedures for effective classroom management. The study suggests the need for established guidelines and training to inform effective classroom management practices.

Keywords: Classroom discipline; classroom management; mixed-methods research; primary teachers; verbal discipline