REBTOZ

‘You can’t teach young students the ABC Theory of Emotional Disturbance and it should only be used by a trained psychologist in the counselling setting.’ Albert Ellis railed against this kind of misinformation put forth to preserve the status of the psychologist as ‘expert.’ Ellis of course wanted his ABC Theory of Emotional Disturbance to be accessible to all, especially to teachers and students. Far better that young children learn why they feel and act as they do and to develop insights and skills preventatively and educatively in the school setting. Jonas Salk who created the polio vaccine hypothesised that if we could ‘psychologically immunise’ students they would be less prone to mental health issues and would probably be physically better off too. Bat Fink, the cartoon character said to his enemies ‘your bullets cannot harm me, my wings are like shields of steel?’ He would wrap his wings around himself deflecting any harmful bullets from hitting him, thwarting ...

The purpose of his post is to compare and contrast the contradictory philosophies, which underpin the practices and processes used in schools to address student behaviour. Traditionally we have had a one-size fits all approach where student behaviour is managed and controlled by the adult characterized by language like ‘warnings, steps, detention, suspension and exclusion.’  Using our authority to punish might get students to comply and fear us but it doesn’t help them to gain insight into why they respond as they do emotionally and behaviourally to daily challenges in life. This approach contradicts constructivist theory on which all teachers’ work is based. Why do we base our teaching on constructivist theory for the subjects we teach and then use a system of behaviour management that ignores the developmental needs of the child? Why are we using two models for learning at the same time in the same context, one inclusive an the other not? Enter Rational Emotive Behavio...

REBE stands for Rational Emotive Behaviour Education. It is based on Dr. Albert Ellis' REBT, Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy. Ellis formulated his unique and revolutionary method of counselling/psychotherapy over his lifetime, using his own experiences of personal fears and anxieties to formulate a philosophy of counselling that has stood the test of time.  Ellis was regarded among his contemporaries to be the most significant psychologist of the 20th Century influencing the work of many like; William Glasser, Aaron Beck and Martin Seligman to name a few. Positive psychology is a relatively modern term but the original positive psychologist in my opinion was Albert Ellis who supported many other psychologists and writers with his time and intellect. Dr Ellis supported me and my work for many years and this has helped me to formulate a blueprint for implementing REBE in schools, across the curriculum. The REBE approach is whole school, school friendly and educative. It...

Australian Education Union (SA Branch) | Volume 44 - No. 3 Follow this link to read about the Grand Opening of The Albert Ellis Professional Learning Centre, pages 6 and 7. REBTOZ thanks the Australian Education Union for supporting our efforts at Stuart High School to teach students how to develop unconditional self acceptance through Rational Emotive Behaviour Education. Positive mental health promotion across all curriculum areas is our aim - behaviour education not behaviour management!

The Albert Ellis Professional Learning Centre was officially opened at Stuart High School, Whyalla SA on Monday 30/4/12. Ian May Assistant Regional Director, Lord Mayor Pollock, Anne Beinke (AEU) and other invited guests from the local and regional communities attended. Special guest Dr Debbie Joffe Ellis, wife of Dr Albert Ellis creator of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy, came from New York to open the Centre. Centre founder, Senior Leader/counsellor Giulio Bortolozzo had a long association with the late Dr Albert Ellis, the creator of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT). Acknowledged as the grandfather of cognitive behaviour therapy and a giant in the field of psychology, his ABC Theory of Emotional Disturbance has been used for decades around the world by mental health practitioners to help people with their behavioural and emotional disturbances. Dr Albert Ellis declared early in his illustrious career that: ‘I think the future of psychotherapy and psychology is ...