In 2023, the Australian Principals' Occupational Health and Wellbeing Survey showed 72.1 per cent of principals reported threats of violence, while 65.1 per cent were involved in actual violence.

The ACT is the most privileged jurisdiction and yet we have the highest rates of violence. How could this be?

Principals say it's not uncommon for a child to lash out when they are not having a good day. According to some philosophies of child behaviour, they are communicating some kind of unmet need. Unfortunately, teachers and principals take a beating in the process.

The ACT cannot let this situation fester any longer. Year after year, data from the Australian Education Union and research such as this ACU survey show educators are exposed to unacceptable levels of violence in their workplace.

Suspensions and exclusions are not the answer. Students should not be excluded from their education, especially those with disabilities. Principals have noticed an increase in anxiety and other psychological conditions in younger students. More students are presenting with neurodiverse conditions.

However, poor behaviour cannot be tolerated in our classrooms and playgrounds.

ACT public schools are encouraged to enact the Positive Behaviours for Learning program. However, with little improvement in the statistics it could be time for an overhaul in the territory's approach to behaviour management.

Schools are crying out for more support from allied health professionals, including psychologists, speech pathologists and occupational therapists, to meet the growing complexity of student needs. They also need to be able to refer families to financial and social services where appropriate.

The ACU survey found that principals do worry about the mental health of their students so having integrated services would reduce that burden and guilt they carry.

Teachers also need support in how to effectively manage their classrooms to avoid escalating behaviours. The Australian Education Research Organisation has recently published a discussion paper bringing together evidence-based classroom management practices. It talks about teaching routines, establishing and maintaining classroom rules and how to respond to disengaged and disruptive behaviours.

This might sound like basic skills that all teachers would already have. However, the 2022 review into initial teacher education found many teacher felt their university studies did not adequately prepare them to deal with difficult behaviours.

The issue also dovetails into the discussion on effective teaching of core literacy and numeracy skills. Students who are engaged in their learning and not falling behind are less likely to act out in class.

The territory can look over the border at what NSW Department of Education did in developing its student behaviour strategy.

It might be necessary to find an expert in behaviour management to guide the strategy going forward.

The ACT doesn't need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to improving behaviour management. The research needs to be implemented through better training and resources for schools.