Chapter 5 Reflection: Student Behavior

 Student behavior makes a huge impact on student learning. It affects our classroom, the outcome of learning for the majority of students, and it also affects the teachers. How can we create a positive learning environment for all students? 

I think the majority of students can be appeased with operant conditioning, where students are praised for following rules. Most students love to hear their teachers give them a compliment. However, these are the students who will follow rules and do their best in school the majority of the time. The rest of the students who would not do well, will not be appeased with operant conditioning. They may not care about a compliment or smile from the teacher. What do we do with these students?

Reinforcers can help strengthen or increase the desired behavior. What types of reinforcers are best? I have found in my experience that these can change from year to year and even class to class when I have taught multiple classes in a day. One class might be obsessed with jolly ranchers, while another group will do anything to take their shoes off in the classroom. Is it best to give students a variety of options? In the reading it said not to start off offering huge rewards. It stated to start small with a certificate, if that didn’t meet the need of the student then progress to a sticker, then a small toy, etc. I find this to be where I struggle the most. I know my students and their likes. I tend to start off big right away. For instance, students who make an A or B on their reading test can receive a desk pet home, the next assessment they can receive desk pet food, then they can receive the desk pet. This is only sustainable for a short while, I then add on accessories for these desk pets and theme them to holidays.  These are often quite expensive when you are buying for eighteen students. Some students work very hard for their desk pets and some students will show great interest, but once they receive the desk pet they don’t care about it as much. How can I keep these students motivated? 

Consequences in the classroom are very important for students. Some of the practices from the reading I have actively participated in. In my classroom currently, if a student is misbehaving they must sit out for 5 minutes during recess. I find this more effective than scolding my students. Most of the time, however, this is not an immediate punishment. It may happen first thing in the morning when my recess is at the very end of the day. A lot of times students can not remember what happened and why they are sitting out. I find having a conversation with the students and how they can fix the problem is also effective. Students take accountability and use problem solving skills. I have found scolding generally is not as effective. This is hard as a teacher sometimes. I treat my students as if they are my own children and I am definitely prone to scold my own children, so sometimes this is also reflected in the classroom.I must make more of a conscious effort to not scold my students. 

Self-regulated learning is such an important skill for students to learn. I feel like this is also a great life tool as well. Students must learn how to follow instructions and complete tasks independently. For younger children I think it is important to break down the assignment into smaller parts and use a checklist so they know what has been completed and what they still need to work on. At one time, I used a checklist for students so they knew which partner stations they needed to complete for the week and what their goal for i-ready minutes would be for the week. I found this to be especially helpful for the students and me at the beginning of the year. As the year progressed, the students were able to complete assignments without using the checklist at the same ability as before. Something I would like to try that was mentioned in the chapter is for students to create their own checklist, especially for students with ADHD. I think this tool could be very beneficial for students who are not organized.