Behavioural Science in Education Flashcards
What kind of approach is Positive Behaviour Support?
Positive and preventative
What is Positive Behaviour Support according to Horner
The assessment and reengineering of environments that brings about reductions in problem behaviours and subsequent increase in prosocial behaviours
What is school-wide PBS?
Implemented in >16k mainstream schools
What are the 6 guidelines to SW-PBS
- Uses scientifically based behaviour and academic interventions and support
- Data-based decision making
- Environmental manipulations
- Teach and encourage prosocial skills and behaviours
- Implement evidence-based practice with a high degree of fidelity
- Monitor student performance and progress continuously
What kind of environment does SW-PBS create?
Less reactive, aversive, dangerous and exclusionary
More engaging, responsive, preventative and productive
What does SW-PBS improve in schools?
- Classroom engagement and disceplenary issues
- Supports children with additional learning
- Academic engagement and achievement
- Staff satisfaction, self-efficacy and retention
What is the primary tier of the SW-PBS model?
Universal support based on behavioural science that can be implemented on all children and relevant to every staff member
- School-wide expectations; allow all teachers to celebrate progress of students
- Consistent, positive culture; teachers implement the same rules/strategies across the school
- Clear understanding of consequences of behaviour
What is the second tier of the SW-PBS?
Small group-focused work for individuals wtih at-risk behaviours
What is a technique used for those in the second tier of the SW-PBS?
Check-in/Check-out method; Set out a checklist of behavioural expectations for the day then give a checklist for the teacher to sign off or not. Teacher then gives appropriate reinforcing action
What is the third tier of the SW-PBS?
Specialised, individualised systems for individuals with high-risk behaviours.
Perform functional analysis to see functions of risky behaviour and perform proactive and consequence functions based on that
what is the main difference between the SW-PBS 3-tier model and other similar models?
It has behavioural science underpinnings
What are the 3 main features of primary prevention (teir 1) approach
- Teacher Matrix; consistent rules applied to all staff members
- Acknowledge behaviour; token/coins awarded to pupils frequently to recognise and reward positive behaviours, increase positive statements
- Consistent consequences; A clear warning system and reflection activities after any negative behaviour
What is the evidence for SW-PBS?
- At least 9 RCTs
- Shown to be effective in middle-school setting
- Long term benefits include reduced problems with addiction and crime
What is the token economy system?
Used to motivate students by making students earn tokens (e.g stickers) that can later be exchanged for a main reinforcer
What are the 3 steps for the token economy system?
- Specify target behaviour
- Tokens such as stickers rewarded upon behaviour = conditioned reinforcers (not inherently reinforcing but trained to be)
- Stickers are traded for a back-up reinforcer
When and how was token economy first used?
1960s - on chronically ill psychiatric patients
What is the Good Behaviour Game?
Similar to token economy but used in groups
played in short bursts
A class is divided into teams and whole group gets rewarded based on each individual’s behaviours
What is interdependent group contingency? what does it promote?
The whole group is rewarded for positive behaviour by its individual members
Prosocial behaviour
What were the long-term effects of the GBG according to Kellam et al?
Significantly lower drug and alcohol use, less smokers, fewer delinquency and those in prison, fewer suicidal ideation
What can precision teaching be used for?
Monitoring progress
How does precision teaching work?
- Identify problematic areas of learning
- Daily practice
What does daily practice involve for precision teaching?
Teaching, fluency (accuracy and speed), testing and monitoring
What chart is used in precision teaching?
Standard acceleration chart
What is systematic instruction used for?
Teach academic skills
What is Teaching Early Numeracy to children with Developmental Disabilities (TEN-DD)?
- Evidence-based numeracy curriculum for children with dev disabilities
- Based on Maths recovery
- Divided into 5 dev stages with progressive levels of sophistication
What are the key features of systematic instruction?
- DEFINING the skill and setting MASTERY CRITERIA
- Accurate and regular assessment
- TASK ANALYSIS
- Repetitive Teaching
- Consistent teaching
- Specific PROMPTING and ERROR CORRECTION procedures
- POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT
- Procedure explicitly and accurately documented
What does repetitive teaching involve?
10-12 learning opportunities per minute
What’s involved in the Headspout Early Reading online programme?
80 episodes
Start from non-readers up to year 3 (7-8 y/o)
Individualises and adapts according to progress
How does the Headsproud Early Reading programme adapt to the child’s progress?
If doing well; increases complexity of instructions = more discrimination and increased speed of responses
If not progressing; Increase level and intensity of prompts and simplify instructions
What four main components of reading comprehension does the Headsprout Early Learning programme teach?
- Literal comprehension
- Inferential comprehension
- Main idea (summative) comprehension
- Derived meaning (vocab) comprehension
How did Masden study the use of behavioural science in classroom management?
Looked at effects of;
- Rules
- Ignoring inappropriate behaviours
- Showing approval for appropriate behaviours
ABCD design
What were the results of Masden’s study on classroom management?
Rules had no effect on improving behaviour
Ignoring inappropriate and approving appropriate behaviour had most effect
Showing approval is key
What did Latham say about the current state of teaching programs?
They bear little resemblance to what actually happens in the classroom and new teachers are left to their own devices in knowing what to do. Are totally unprepared
Learn through trail and error
According to Letham two things make an effective learning environment?
Effective Methods of instruction and Management of student behaviours
What are the 8 skills teachers should have according to Letham?
- Teach expectations
- Get and keep students on task
- Maintain a high rate of teacher-to-student positive interactions
- Respond non-coercively to inappropriate behaviour that is consequential
- Maintain high rate of risk-free student response opportunities
- Serve problem-behaviour students in the primary learning environment (classroom)
- Avoid being trapped
- Manage behaviour scientifically
What are the features of teaching expectations?
- Reasonable
- Clearly understood
- What is expected
- Outline consequences for meeting or failing expectations
- Max 4-5
- Taught formally and situationally ( eg role-play)
- Framed instructively (positive) rather than prohibitively (negative)
What are the 5 steps to teaching expectations?
- Communicate expectations
- Ignore inconsequential behaviour
- Selective reinforce appropriate behaviour
- Stopping and redirecting inappropriate behaviour
- Applying consequences
What are 3 key points for getting and keeping students on task?
- Be quick (delay = distraction)
- Be active (Move around etc)
- Interact
According to Latham’s data what % of student’s behaviour went unrecognised?
90%
How much more likely were teachers to pay attention to inappropriate behaviour?
2-5x more
What ratio does latham suggest is best for negative to positive statements?
1:8
What ratio did Latham observe in one school district for negative to positive statements? What did it change to after training?
34:9
4: 167
What was the % reduction of students that were classified as developmentally delayed and in special education the following year in Latham’s study with positive statements?
from 80% to 11%
What are the 8 types of coercive traps teachers are found to do?
- Sarcasm
- Criticism
- Threat
- Questioning behaviour
- Logic
- Arguing
- Forcing
- Dispair
