In Australia, and in education settings across the world, student behaviour and levels of student engagement are significant issues for teachers, school leaders, system administrators and the public. Student behaviour affects community perception, teacher efficacy and wellbeing, and the academic achievement of all students. When students are engaged, they learn more.

This paper uses the current attention on student disruptive behaviour in Australian classrooms to offer policy- makers, and educational jurisdiction and school leaders an insight into how to shift the paradigm, policy and practice towards student behaviour in Australian schools. Students need to be taught the norms, routines, and rules which model the high expectations in the classroom. Students cannot be left to intuit the behaviour expectations or to co-construct them in collaboration with other students. Behaviour needs to be taught in a way that matches how humans learn - explicitly.