Overview of Classroom Systems

Arranging for Effective Behavior and Instructional Management

Objectives• Understand the relationship between academic

success and classroom management

• Be familiar with various classroom design considerations

• Know the rationale and features of an instructional approach to classroom management

What are Students Doing in Effectively Managed Classrooms?

• Following predictable schedule

• High rates of academic engagement

• High rates of academic achievement

• High rates of compliance

• High rates of student managed behavior

• Using problem solving structures

• Smooth and efficient transitions

Where Did Students Get These Behaviors?

• Learned previously

• Taught directly

• Modeled by staff and students

• Acknowledge regularly by significant others

• Occasioned by the environment

Basic Rule

• Design the structure and functions of classrooms to increase predictability and to accommodate individual and collective need of students.

Guiding Principles

• Teach and manage social behaviors directly and proactively (positively and preventively)...like teaching reading, math, physics, music, etc.

• Integrate social and academic management strategies within and across curricula.

• Maximize academic success to increase social behavior success.

Prerequisites

• Appropriate and relevant curriculum

– Meets needs– Perceived as important

• Appropriate goals and curricula that are fair, functional, and meaningful

– Avoid frustration, dissatisfaction, confusion, rebellion, etc.

Conceptual Framework

Common Student-Teacher Interactions

Teacherpresentation

Correctresponse

Studentperforms:

Incorrectresponse

Non-compliance

Teacherpraise

Teachercorrection

Teacherreprimand

Current Research Findings e.g., Wehby, Symons, &Shores (1995)

• Less than half of student hand raises or correct academic responses were acknowledged by teachers

• About 26 “to do” statements per hour

• Less than 2 praise statements per hour

• 64% of “to do statements wer social in nature

• Most academic work consisted of independent seatwork.

• Inconsistent distribution of attention.

• Compliance to a command generally resulted in the delivery of another command

Common Mistakes

• Students know what is expected of them

– Absence of clear rules – Vaguely stated rules

• Punishing students for failure to exhibit a behavior that they do not know how to do

• Large increases in instructional minutes will not make up for effective instruction (Christenson et al, 1989; Rosenshine & Stevens, 1986)

So What Can We Do?

• Classroom Organization

– Environmentally mediated – Teacher mediated

• Instructional Management

• Behavior Management

Classroom Organization

Use of Space

Classroom Appearance

Physical Organization

Nonacademic

Academic

Classroom Routines

Respecting Differences

Classroom Climate

Use of Time

Monitoring

Classroom Rules

Classroom Organization

Classroom Design Considerations

• Physical environment

• Student routines

• Teacher routines

• Behavior management

• Curriculum and content

• Data evaluation and management

Considerations• How many students will you have in the room at one

time?

• What kinds of activities will be taking place in your classroom?

• Who should students be seated?

• How will you regulate movement/supervise/interact?

• What should my classroom look like?

– Wall space, storage, lighting, etc.

Physical Environment

• Seating/furniture arrangement

• Traffic patterns

• Materials/supplies

• Student areas (e.g., small group, break, time-out)

• Teacher areas (e.g., desk, materials)

• Problem features (e.g., unsupervisable areas, dangerous items/equipment)

Routines

• Increase predictability and consistency

• Both teacher and student routines

• Build into environment/prompts

– “Bear Stops”

• Consider “common” routines

– Lining up– Meeting personal needs

Student Routines

• Start/end of day

• Transitions

• Personal needs (e.g., bathroom, pencil)

• Working in groups and independently

• Special events

• Materials and equipment

• Homework and assignments

• Personal belongings

Teacher Routines

• Planning and implementing instruction

• Classroom movement (circulation)

• Working with assistants, volunteers, student teachers

• Communications

Efficient Transitions

• Teach signal & routine

• Practice in natural context

• Precorrect in problem situations

• Monitor continously

• Positively reinforce contingently

Attention-getting Cue/rule

• Select cue that is effective, efficient, and relevant

• Apply consistently

• Positively reinforce contingently

Classroom Climate

• Develop plan before school starts

• Determine expectations

• Teach expectations directly

• Use first weeks of school to establish:

– expectations and behavior/routines– “climate” (laugh, smile, accept student ideas)

Kame’enui & Simmons (1990)

• Determine expectations

– State positively– Limited to 3-5– Make public/posted

• Teach expectations directly

– Examples and non-examples– Involve students– Teach and re-teach

Instructional Management

Temporal Framework (Kame’enui & Darch)

• Before

– Design of instruction

• During

– Delivery of instruction

• After

– Evaluation of instruction

Before Instruction

• Student outcomes

• Materials/curriculum

– Control for acquisition of misrules– Detail of presentation of content– Maximum student engagement– Correction procedures– Practice activities– Cumulative review

• Task/lesson design

– History (new, familiar, mastered)– Response form (yes/no, choice, production)– Modality (oral, motor, written)– Complexity (easy, hard)– Schedule (long/short, frequent/infrequent)– Variation (uniform/varied)

• Measurement systems

• Follow-up

During Instruction

• Introduction/objective/precorrections

• Delivery of instruction

• Monitoring performance

• Delivering consequences/feedback

After Instruction• Follow-up activities

• Evaluation of student performance against objectives

• Evaluation of instruction

• Modification of instruction

• Preparation of next lesson

Generic Instructional Approach

• Teach

– Identify and explain rule– Model/demonstrate relevant examples– Arrange structured practice, role play,

behavioral rehearsal

• Remind

– Precorrect or prompt rule immediately prior to entering natural context

• Monitor

– Supervise independent application in natural context

– Provide feedback (positive reinforcement & corrections)

– Collect data

• Evaluate

– Examine effect of instruction (i.e., review data, make decisions, follow up)

Review of Proactive Basics

• Teach social behavior like academic skills

– teach through multiple examples– Teach the general case– teach in problem setting– give practice examples– test with new examples without assistance– provide positive feedback

Behavior Management Basics

• Use continuum of strategies to encourage expectations

– teach expected behavior– increase opportunities for academic and social

success– provide positive feedback more often than

corrections and reprimands (e.g., 4 to 1)– move from tangible to social reinforcement– move from external to self-managed reinforcement– individualize reinforcement

Characteristics of Effective Praise

• Good praise follows the “if-then” rule.

– Make sure the student is doing exactly what you want them to be doing.

– Praise them within 1 or 2 seconds after the behavior occurs.

– If it is an on-going behavior, praise during the behavior.

Characteristics of Effective Praise

• Good praise often includes student’s names.

• Good praise is descriptive.

– Simply describe what the student is doing at the time - focusing on actions.

• Good praise is convincing.

• Good praise is varied.

• Good praise in non-disruptive.

Infrequent Errors

• Respond Proactively to infrequent social behavior errors

– Signal– State rule and expected behavior– Ask student to state/show expected behavior– Give positive feedback

Chronic Errors

• Precorrect=prompt for desired behavior in problem context

– go to problem setting/situation– get attention of students– give reminder or opportunity to practice skills– watch child for demonstration of skill– acknowledge demonstration

• Provide positive feedback