Intended for those who want to reduce disruptive behavior in elementary and secondary schools, this book argues that children must be held responsible for their actions and prefers self-discipline to imposed discipline that evaporates when authority is absent. Schools need to take greater initiative in teaching students responsibility and giving them opportunities to exercise it. Parents, teachers, principals, students, school board members, and others concerned all have a role in teaching as well as modelling responsible behavior. To guide these groups in their endeavors to improve student discipline, the book provides a discussion of the causes, expectations, and choices involved in discipline problems; reviews case studies of nontraditional approaches that have succeeded, at least in part, in secondary and elementary schools; and offers strategies for change and data collection techniques for local districts to use. A chronicle of the experiences of Richland School District #1, Columbia (South Carolina), in assessing the state of discipline in its schools serves as an example for a discipline improvement program and includes recommendations and instruments used for observation and analysis. The Discipline Policies Needs Assessment Instrument, The Discipline Context Inventory, and an annotated resource list offer further alternatives to readers. (WD)