Coping with Seven Disruptive Personality Types in the Classroom

ConclusionFaculty members can expect to deal with increasing numbers of difficult students aseducational access widens and students who might not have attended college in decadespast now find their way to campus. This means that instructors will need to be betterinformed and prepared to respond to a wider array of challenges than they might have beenexpected to deal with previously.Clearly, the most important priorities in dealing with disruptive students have to bemaintaining safety and protecting the campus community from threats posed by potentiallydangerous, troubled students. These priorities require recognition of the warning signs oftrouble and preparedness to respond appropriately and decisively.Other priorities include maintaining a classroom atmosphere of respect and civility,avoiding being manipulated by students with unreasonable demands, respondingappropriately to unfounded allegations, and protecting oneself and one’s institution fromfrivolous lawsuits.By following due process, consulting with administrators, and delivering early warnings asindicated, instructors can guard against many of the hazards of dealing with the moredifficult students in the classroom.Understanding how the range of student misbehavior tends to cluster along certaindistinctive, recognizable styles is empowering and helpful to instructors. “Unusual”behaviors no longer seem random and unpredictable; instead, they are manifestations ofknown personality styles that exist not just in the college classroom but in the wider societyas well. As such, they become more manageable, familiar, and controllable.Many instructors report additional concerns or questions beyond the seven disruptivepersonality types already identified; these are addressed in the following section, “AdditionalIssues and Concerns.” This last section of this white paper deals with extenuatingcircumstances, nonverbal behaviors, and, perhaps most important, “red flags” that portendphysical risk when dealing with dangerous, threatening students.34