The author contends that the United States should adopt a "private model for education" in which students are effectively disciplined and educated, and he notes significant legal restrictions on public school discipline. Restrictions on suspension and expulsion are especially troublesome because of the damage caused by violent and disruptive students to the educational process. On the other hand, even unruly students have civil rights, and the due process system sometimes assumes bad faith on the part of teachers. The need to improve self-esteem among students and to discipline them appropriately is examined, and discipline in private schools is compared to discipline in public schools. The author believes private schools maintain better discipline based on strict and uniform regulations than public schools and that the private school approach to discipline should be adopted by public schools. 1 figure