03 February 2017

Behavior Management For Children with Behavioral Problems

Let me share with you this writing that I submitted (Feb. 25, 2016) to our UP SPED teacher in one of the many assignments (3-5 times per week) she gave us, not to mention the weekly discussions we had to participate in as part of our CCSN course requirement. 

What behavior management technique works for a child with behavior problems? 

There are several factors that may cause children to misbehave. Misbehaviors could be a result of the child’s emotional status, socio-economic standing, or could be from a medical condition or disability. The disability, however, may not always provide a reasonable excuse for improper behaviors. Whatever the behavior, it should be contained and managed for the best welfare of the child. Behavior management entails setting concrete boundaries to control the behavior, reduce the anxiety, prevent disruptions, provide a feeling of emotional security for the child, especially for behaviors that have a tendency to escalate into physical aggression — hurting others and self-injury. We (teachers, parents, caregivers) need to establish very clear and precise rules concerning what we expect and desire the child should do and how this child should act/behave when a stressful situation occurs. Remember though that rules have to be founded on what is doable and appropriate for the child, particularly those with disability or special needs.

First step towards effective behavior management would be to identify the reason for the misbehavior. And from there, we could try and fit a solution. It is also important that we first ask ourselves: Which came first? — the behavior or some frustrating or aversive circumstance that could have caused it? We have to understand why challenging behaviour happens and what purposes they serve. It could be to seek attention; could be from communication difficulties (inability to convey messages, needs or wants because of the child’s deficit in understanding or inability to use language); or could be from environmental factors that cause sensory issues to the child.

In the course material, Behavior Management of Children with Special Education Needs in the Regular Classroom, effective techniques used are buddy system, socialization opportunities, teaching appropriate social responses and behaviors, re-directing the child’s focus, establishing routines, clear and simple class rules, good class schedule, well-prepared lessons, learning contracts, motivating classrooms, and pull-outs for students with excessively disruptive and violent behaviors.

In this assignment, I would like to specifically tackle on CLASS RULES.
A clear and simple class rule could be: Good behaviour gets a reward (the use of positive reinforcement), and bad behaviour gets a consequence (the use of consequence).  

The Use of Reinforcements:
Reinforcement is an incentive which follows a behavior and is reliant upon such behavior. It increases or decreases the likelihood of repetition of a behavior.

First, catch the child being good. How is that possible? He is always misbehaving!
Observe the child carefully and maybe we will be surprised to find out that he is actually behaving most of the time but we just failed to notice because we expected negatively on him. Ignore inappropriate behaviour and pay attention to good behaviour. Praise or reward him for the behaviour.

Positive Reinforcement
Positive reinforcement can encourage the possibility of an agreeable or disagreeable behavior. For instance, if a student finds that whining could get attention, the attention provides positive reinforcement that raises the chance that the student will prolong the whining behavior.
Reinforcement could be positive or negative reinforcement.

Reinforce positive behavior through the use of social reinforcers or expressions of appreciation and praise. Remarks such as "Good job," "I can tell you are working really hard," "You're nice", written approval "Super", and approval expressions such as nodding one’s head, smiling, clapping, and a pat on the child’s back are all really helpful reinforcers.
Activity reinforcers are also very useful and constructive for students. Giving students the chance to take part in chosen activities, for example games or computer time, is especially influential, particularly if the reinforcement permits selecting a classmate to participate with in the activity. This is a social reinforcement from the partner.
Tangible reinforcers are effective too. These include food, toys, balloons, stickers, and awards. However, food and toys must be used sensibly. If a student has problems with weight, parents may disallow the use of food as reinforcement. Toys, on the other hand, might make classmates jealous. Rewards and awards may be in the form of certificates, an exhibition of work, and written commendations on the student’s progress to be sent home to parents.
Token reinforcement entails awarding points or tokens for appropriate behavior. In itself, this reinforcer may have only a slight worth, however this could be swapped for something valuable or important to the student.

Negative Reinforcement       
Negative reinforcement is frequently confused with punishment. Punishment is the use of aversive stimuli to decrease the probability of a behavior recurrence. Negative reinforcement is the taking away of aversive stimuli to increase the chance of a behavior recurrence. Negative reinforcement can be really powerful, particularly in creating an environment that feels secure to a student. This is often more expectedly experienced than tangible reinforcement. As with any reinforcement type, it is essential to partner negative reinforcement with social reinforcement.

Here is an example of negative reinforcement: The teacher tells the students that she will remove five story problems if the class time is maximized to do their math work properly. Eliminating the story problems from the math homework negatively strengthens appropriate behavior by taking away the unwanted stimuli of a lengthy homework assignment.
  
The Use of Consequences:
We must set expectations and explain what the consequences will be when these expectations are not met. A consequence needs to not better than what the misbehaving child is currently experiencing so he will be motivated to want to modify the behavior.
Example: A consequence may be presented to a child as a choice. A teacher might say: “I have asked you twice to work quietly. If you continue to talk, you will have to work at another table.” This is a way of holding the child responsible for his behavior. Consequences should be consistent, promptly applied, reasonable and related to the behaviour concerned.

However, before negative consequences are implemented, appropriate and rich incentives should first be developed to reinforce desired behavior. It is essential to give much encouragement, praise and nurturance as children can be easily discouraged. When negative consequences are administered, they should be given in a fashion that does not embarrass or put them down. In addition, it is important to keep in mind that the rewards used with these students lose their reinforcing power quickly and must be changed or rotated frequently.


Whatever reinforcement, reward, punishment or consequence is used with children, it should always be paired with a social reinforcement, such as praise and encouragement.

Reinforcers in the form of stickers have proved effective as incentive and behaviour modification tool for my son, Miggy. Below are pictures of him with his stickers which has actually developed into an obsession.
(Miggy, now 14 yrs. old, diagnosed with autism at age 2yrs/9mos in 2005)