CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT

Sunset Elementary

Good Teaching Instructional goals are clear Knowledgeable of content and

strategies for teaching it Student expectations are clearly

described Provide practice that enrich and clarify

content

Good Teaching Knowledgeable about student’s abilities,

adapt instruction according to their needs

Monitor student progress Provide feedback Accept responsibility for student

outcomes Are thoughtful and reflective about their

practice

Teacher Behaviors Provide frequent positive praise and

reinforcement Ignore minor misbehaviors Reward positive behaviors Avoid power struggles with students Do students like being in the

classroom? Students are achieving academic and

social gain Provide clear expectations

ABC’s to Behavior Management

Antecedent Behavior Consequences

Defining Behavior Describe behavior objectively and

precisely (not: “he irritates me”) Can you observe the behavior when it

begins and when it stops– can you count the number of occurrences

each day– can you measure the duration of the

behavior Can you observe what happens just

before and just after it occurs

Identifying Antecedents

What are the events or conditions that immediately precede the problem behavior?

Can you manipulate the antecedents to avoid the behavior? (e.g. providing choices for activities)

Reading Antecedents Facial Expressions: tight thin lips,

clenched teeth, widened eyes with nostrils flared

Body Posture: head down, slumped shoulders, clenched hands, sucking or chewing

Incidental Behavior: rapid shallow breathing, sighing, kicking, mumbling, tearing paper, breaking pencils

Identifying Consequences

What does the student “get” out of the behavior?

Are students getting attention, avoiding work, receiving stimulus, or enjoy seeing adults upset?

Changing Behavior Provide instruction with simple and

clear directions Gain student’s full attention before

giving instructions Provide one instruction at a time - do

not provide too many different instructions

Monitor compliance - provide time limits Provide appropriate consequences for

compliance

Behavior Management Techniques

Positive Reinforcement Negative Reinforcement Extinction Response Cost Punishment Proximity Control Decontamination

Positive Reinforcement The positive reinforcement must be

rewarding to the student The reinforcers must be contingent on

the behavior you want to increase The reinforcers should be delivered

immediately Provide appropriate units of rewards for

the expected unit of behavior

Negative Reinforcement Definition: reinforcing a behavior by

removing or preventing something unpleasant - allows the individual to escape or avoid a negative consequence

Not recommended as a prominent part of classroom management– negative reinforcement relies on the presence or threat of negative

consequences– deliberate negative reinforcement sets the stage for

coercion/intimidation

Proximity Control

Visual - visually monitor student activity from any position in the classroom

Physical - teacher positions her/himself close to each student to inhibit antecedent

Informal Interventions

Attention for compliance - verbal praise– Use social praise consistently– Provide praise only to students who earn it

Ignoring: only appropriate when:– the target behavior is temporarily tolerable– the target behavior is under the influence

of a reinforcer that you can control

Self Management Behavioral Definition: help the student

choose a behavior to monitor Teach the student to record behavior

– Event recording– Permanent Product recording

Teach the student how to plot the data Teach the student how to apply self-

reinforcement Use contracts to provide structure

Questions