"Discipline, dogmatically imposed, and punishment create fear; and fearcreates hostility" (Neill, 1960). Neill believes that this createdhostility may not be conscious and overt, but it does function to freeze thefreedom to feeling and experiencing - two freedoms necessary for growth andlearning.
At Summerhill, a self-governing and democratic school, all aspects of living(including social, individual, group life, punishment, etc.) are settled by voteat the Saturday night General School Meeting (Neill, 1960). Each person, staffand student alike, has one vote and each vote was equally weighted. The primaryfunction of Summerhill self-government is not only to make laws but to alsodiscuss and debate the social features of the community.
The philosophies surrounding self-government and discipline strategies atSummerhill are summarized, as follows (Neill, 1960):
1. The students administrative ability is excellent. As education,self-government is of infinite value. The sense of justice that children havenever ceases to make me marvel (Neill, 1960).
2. Self-government works because...a) You cannot have freedom unlesschildren feel completely free to govern their own social life. When there is aboss there is no real freedom; b) Good self-government is possible only whenthere is a sprinkling of older pupils who like a quiet life and fight theindifference or opposition of the gangster age, and hence the younger childrenfollow their lead; c) If given the choice, as the children of Summerhill havebeen, the students would fight to death for their right to govern themselves. Ifshown the difference between right and wrong and good and bad, children willchoose the former in both cases (Neill, 1960).
3. Self-government, in accordance with Neill's beliefs, implies that no onecan have complete social freedom because the rights of others must always berespected. However, everyone is entitled to their own individual freedom. Thus,Neill's (1960) ideas on self-discipline are as follows:
"As for self-discipline, it is an indefinite thing. Toooften it means discipline of self that has been instilled by the moral ideas ofadults. True self-discipline does not involve repression or acceptance. Itconsiders the rights and happiness of others. It leads the individual todeliberately seek to live at peace with others by conceding something to theirpoint of view." -Summerhill (1960).
For more information on other practical applications of this self-disciplineapproach, see Is Character EducationGrounded in Humanism?