Does your school have any problemswith discipline？ What happens whenstudents step out of line？ Here are someexamples of bad behaviour：

1. Playing truant （missing school without permission from parents）.

2. Stealing， smoking， hitting， swearing.

3. Cheating in exams.

4. Calling a teacher or another pupil bad names.

5. Not doing homework.

6. Not listening or not paying attention in lessons.

7. Wearing unsuitable clothes.

Here are some of the ways that UK school children can be punished.

· Exclusion： a pupil is asked to leave the school and not come back.The pupil has to find a new school or a different method of education.

· Suspension： a pupil cannot enter the building or attend lessons untilthe school has a meeting about his situation. Suspension can last from 1to 45 days. The pupil is usually given work to do at home with a specialteacher.

· Detention： a pupil is asked to stay after school and work for 30 to 60minutes before they can leave.

· Lines： a pupil has to write a sentence many times （e.g.100 or more）on a sheet of paper， e.g. “I must not shout in class.”

Many UK schools now give parents a home/school contract， explainingtheir discipline and rules. Parents must sign this document to agree thatthey accept the school’s rules and discipline and that they are responsiblefor their child’s behaviour

Activity 1 Match the words from the text to their definitions.

1. discipline

2. step out of line

3. swear

4. unsuitable

a. act in an improper way

b. following rules and maintaining good behaviour

c. not acceptable or appropriate

d. use offensive or rude words

Activity 2 Decide if the following statements about the text are True （T）or False （F）.

1. Playing truant means using bad language.

2. You can wear anything you like to school in the UK.

3. If a child is suspended， they miss out on school work.

4. All schools in Britain now give parents a home/school contract to sign.

參考答案：

Activity 1

1. b; 2. a; 3. d; 4.

c Activity 2

1. F; 2. F; 3. F; 4. F