(The Third of a Four Part Series on Behavior)
Since starting this series on behavior, I have done a lot of extra research recently to make sure I share with you the latest information out there on effective behavior strategies. I hope you find these posts informative and helpful in your own professional or personal lives!
Let’s briefly review the last two posts by taking a look at what behavior is:
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| Behavior is communication. http://elizabethkuhnke.files.wordpress.com |
- Behavior is COMMUNICATION.
- Behavior serves a FUNCTION (to gain or avoid).
- Once we understand the function, we can develop ways to change the mis-behavior to more APPROPRIATE behaviors.
Note we have to understand the function
FIRST before we can do anything about changing the behavior. We have to understand WHY a child is behaving
in a certain way before the interventions can be effective. If we can REMOVE the REASON for the behavior,
we can eliminate the problem.
Got it so far? Okay,
great! So lets move onto HOW we figure
out the WHY.
The term “Data-Driven Decision Making” is all the rage in
education today, as it should be.
Finally, we are on the path to making decisions for children based on
evidence. This evidence comes from data
that allows us to determine what we need to be teaching children, what they already know, and what they need to know. Schools are improving their practices so that every child is taught based on their individual needs, not based on the overall assumption of what an “average”
child needs. We are getting better and
better at making these data driven decisions in academics but the mainstream
community is still falling short on making such comprehensive decisions when behavior
problems occur.
Too often I see a teacher, who has a child presenting with certain behavioral issues, make a quick sticker chart or reward plan based on something she did before or saw on the internet. There is no “one size fits all” plan for behaviors. Each child has different reason for their actions and without data on that individual child’s function, antecedents and profile, all the pre-made pretty checklists in the world won’t amount to any change for the better.
Too often I see a teacher, who has a child presenting with certain behavioral issues, make a quick sticker chart or reward plan based on something she did before or saw on the internet. There is no “one size fits all” plan for behaviors. Each child has different reason for their actions and without data on that individual child’s function, antecedents and profile, all the pre-made pretty checklists in the world won’t amount to any change for the better.
Here is the first thing to wrap your head around BEFORE you make
a cute checklist. MOST OF YOUR TIME AT
FIRST IS SPENT ON ASSESSING THE BEHAVIOR.
You need to understand it before you can do anything about it. Assessment is a process of
investigation. We need to know the FACTS
surrounding the behavior such as environment, health, learning needs, triggers,
timing, consequences, motivators, etc.
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| No Quick Sticker Charts Yet! www.brainwaves.net |
Don’t have time for this, you say? You just need a “quick fix” to make the
problem go away and get back to teaching?
Actually, you don’t have time NOT do to this. There are no “quick fixes” and the mind-boggling responsibility you have to educate children ethically, respectfully and effectively requires you take the time
to do it and do it right.
But I am here to make it simpler for you. So here we go….
As teachers I know you want to help. As parents, you want to
make things better for your child. But
the key is NOT to try to fix anything right away.
You need to take the time to find out the answer to this key question:
What is the behavior saying?
In the last post, I had a link to an ABC Chart. Click here for a printable version of
it (taken from www.behavior-consultant.com). An ABC (Antecedent,
Behavior, Consequence) Chart documents a behavior in “real time” as many times
as it occurs. Once you have documented
several behaviors, you can use the data to look for patterns. You will likely find such patterns in the
antecedents (what “triggers” have led to the behavior), in the setting (environment) or the
consequences (what happens directly after the behavior occurs).
“The “A” is the Antecedent, and it refers to “what comes before.” It is the
picture of what happens before the behavior occurs. If you were to take a
30-second movie clip of what happens right before the behavior, what would it
show?
The “B” is the Behavior. Paint a clear, specific picture of the behavior.
The “C” or Consequence refers to what comes after the behavior. Imagine if
you had a movie clip of what happens right afterward.”
-Sparks-Hopkins,
T. “Functional Behavioral Assessment,
Online Intervention Manual” University
of Arizona, College of Education. http://www.tucsonlinks.org/elearning/pdf/fba.pdf
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| Sample ABC Entry http://www.tucsonlinks.org/elearning/pdf/fba.pdf |
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| Our responsibilities as teachers and parents are mind-boggling, aren't they? |
What next? Don’t run
for your pre-made sticker charts just because you did the assessment
piece! First of all, it is important to understand that this is a circular process that actually won't end once a plan is in place. It will be ongoing until a behavior is extinct and more appropriate, replacement behaviors are automatic.
Once you analyze your data (it helps to work with a team to make these determinations on the FUNCTION) you can start to implement some interventions. (Maybe even a cute sticker chart!)
Next post: General Rules of Intervention when designing INDIVIDUAL behavior plans….stay tuned.
Once you analyze your data (it helps to work with a team to make these determinations on the FUNCTION) you can start to implement some interventions. (Maybe even a cute sticker chart!)
Next post: General Rules of Intervention when designing INDIVIDUAL behavior plans….stay tuned.
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