Beware of the Color Coded Chart: Rethinking Consequences in the Classroom
Format
Poster Presentation
Location
Harborside Center
Strand #1
Social & Emotional Skills
Strand #2
Academic Achievement & School Leadership
Relevance
This proposal relates to the heart and hands strands. The primary focus of the proposal is behavior management- when teachers have a clear system for teaching behaviors, modeling expectations, and providing specific feedback to students they are creating a sense of community in the classroom and promoting communication, motivation, and positive identity development. Having strong classroom management in place provides more time for academic improvement.
Brief Program Description
In this session, we will discuss the problems associated with commonly used punitive consequences to address challenging behaviors in the classroom and provide an alternative approach that is more in line with PBIS frameworks. This entails the use of a hierarchy of supportive consequences.
Summary
Many educators across the country are implementing Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports (PBIS) in their schools and classrooms. While PBIS primarily focuses on proactive and preventative approaches to improve behavior, one of the essential elements of PBIS is the consistent use of consequences when students do not meet behavioral expectations. Most teachers view consequences as punitive reactions to misbehavior. However, there are ways to deliver consequences that are supportive in nature that result in positively redirecting students to engaging in desirable behavior, thereby eliminating the necessity of punitive responses. In this presentation, we will discuss the problems associated with commonly used punitive consequences to address challenging behaviors in classrooms and provide an alternative approach that is more in line with PBIS frameworks. This entails the use of a hierarchy of supportive consequences, which will be explained in detail allowing participants to immediately replicate or adapt this method in their classroom.
Evidence
More and more schools across the nation are using the Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework to guide the development of school-wide and classroom-based behavior management practices. PBIS focuses primarily on proactive and preventative approaches to dealing with misbehavior as opposed to using reactive and punitive measures to respond to behavioral challenges (Scheuermann & Hall, 2012). This is because punitive consequences typically are not effective in promoting positive changes in the behavior of students who have consistent difficulties with meeting behavioral expectations (Alexrod & Apsche, 1983; Fabelo et al., 2011; Newcomer & Lewis, 2004). Unfortunately, many teachers view consequences as punitive reactions to misbehavior. The purpose of this presentation is to provide participants with suggestions for using a hierarchy of supportive consequences. When using a hierarchy of supportive consequences, the focus shifts from delivering consequences to let the students know they are doing something wrong to delivering consequences to positively redirect students and help them meet classroom expectations.
Biographical Sketch
Shawnna Helf is an associate professor of literacy education at Winthrop University. Her areas of interest are students at-risk for failure in reading, early intervention and prevention efforts, and instructional efficiency.
Debra Leach is an associate professor of special education at Winthrop University. Her areas of interest are autism spectrum disorders, applied behavior analysis, positive behavioral interventions and supports, differentiated instruction, and inclusion from birth to adulthood.
Keyword Descriptors
PBIS, positive behavioral interventions and supports, challenging behavior, problem behavior, consequences, hierarchy of supportive consequences; behavior management
Presentation Year
2016
Start Date
3-8-2016 4:00 PM
End Date
3-8-2016 5:30 PM
Recommended Citation
Helf, Shawnna, "Beware of the Color Coded Chart: Rethinking Consequences in the Classroom" (2016). National Youth Advocacy and Resilience Conference. 191.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_savannah/2016/2016/191
Beware of the Color Coded Chart: Rethinking Consequences in the Classroom
Harborside Center
In this session, we will discuss the problems associated with commonly used punitive consequences to address challenging behaviors in the classroom and provide an alternative approach that is more in line with PBIS frameworks. This entails the use of a hierarchy of supportive consequences.
