LEARNERS BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT

BY: SHERLYN M. COLLANTES

For many schools, managing issues with disruptive conduct is a common

concern. In recent years, behavior issues in schools have escalated, posing a challenge
for students at all levels. Teachers appear unprepared to address this issue.
Apparently, C. E. C. P. (1998) "Difficult student misbehaviors, cited by teachers,
include breaking classroom rules, skipping school, blaming others for issues, reckless
behavior, and destruction of property. Given the severity of these behaviors, teachers
are devoting disproportionately more time to dealing with them, which interferes with
instruction and compromises learning for both the student who is having behavioral
issues and the other students in the classroom.
A person's behavior is defined as their way of acting or responding to internal or
external stimuli in a person or an animal. One of these behaviors is: "a hormone
known to directly regulate sex-specific reproductive and parental behaviors in a wide
range of vertebrates" (Thomas Maugh II). According to the American Heritage
dictionary, a problem is defined as "any question or matter involving doubt,
uncertainty, or difficulty or a query submitted for solution or discussion/difficult to
train.
In essence, behavior problems include aspects of both the problem and the
behavior. It is defined as a person's response to internal or external stimuli that
contains doubt, ambiguity, or difficulty. There are 11 main categories of behavioral
issues that educators may run into in classrooms. (KidsBehavior (UK). mht). They are:
1) aggressive outbursts; 2) biting peers or objects; 3) pulling peers' hair; 4) banging
their heads; 5) hitting their peers; 6) pinching their peers; 7) being consistently absent
from class; 8) using violence in the classroom; 9) lying to or blaming others; 10) usage
of vulgar or abusive words; and 11) stealing. Not only do these behavioral issues divert
attention in the classroom, but behavior disorders do as well.
Compared to behavior difficulties, behavior disorders are far more serious
issues. This is due to students' systems being hardwired with behavioral
abnormalities. There are many different kinds of behavioral problems, including post-
traumatic stress disorder, autism, and many others. Unfortunately, a teacher would
be unable to assist these kinds of kids since they require particular care. As a result, a
teacher should notify a child's parents as soon as possible if they exhibit any type of
behavioral abnormality.
There are numerous methods/strategies techniques that can be used to treat
behavioral issues. To help children with their behavioral issues and prevent discipline
issues at the school, teachers should be familiar with these ways. Behavior
modification is the term for these tactics, strategies, and methods.
Teachers in the school system place a high value on behavior management
abilities. Behavior management refers to any deliberate activities and inactions that
increase the likelihood that individuals and groups will choose to act in ways that are
personally rewarding, productive, and socially acceptable. An individual's behaviors
and responses to stimuli can be changed through positive and negative reinforcement
of adaptive behavior and/or the reduction of maladaptive behavior through positive
and negative punishment, according to the behavioral change theory of behavior
modification.
In order to achieve high rates of student work completion and reduce disruption
in the classroom, a classroom teacher uses behavior control at the group level.
"Modern approaches to behavior modification involve students more actively in the
planning and shaping of their own behavior through participation in the negotiation of
contracts with their teachers and through exposure to training designed to help them
monitor and evaluate their behavior more actively, learn techniques for self-control
and problem-solving, set goals and reinforce themselves for achieving these goals. "—
Brophy (1986)
The most widely used methods of this behavior management rely on applied
behavior analysis concepts like moderate punishment and positive reinforcement. This
idea adheres to BF. Skinner's Operant Conditioning framework which explains the
impact of a given behavior's consequences on its recurrence in the future. Positive
reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment, and extinction are the four forms
of operant conditioning. Both positive and negative reinforcement make a behavior
stronger, but extermination and punishment make a behavior weaker.
Examples of contexts in which a teacher would apply the two main schools of
operant conditioning. In an effort to make a behavior more likely to occur in the
future, positive reinforcement involves the introduction of an appetitive stimulus after
an operant response. An illustration of a classroom scenario where positive
reinforcement might be used . A teacher who employs positive reinforcement will
continuously and consistently compliment the pupils, overlook minor violations, and
be motivating regardless of the kids' responses. The teacher once told a student who
had completely missed the mark with his answer, "No, but you are thinking and that
is what I appreciate seeing Negative reinforcement, on the other hand, is when a
behavior is encouraged by the elimination of a stimulus. The word "negative" does not
indicate "unpleasant," but rather that a stimulus is "subtracted" from the
circumstance as a means of reinforcement. An example of this would be in a
classroom. Imagine your teacher told you that by studying an additional chapter and
passing a quiz on it, you might avoid taking the final exam. Because there won't be a
final exam, you might study an extra chapter (and do so more frequently) if you know
that unpleasant stimulus will be eliminated. Another illustration is when a student
disrupts class in an effort to be the focus of attention. In this case, the instructor can
employ the avoidance or punishment method as a form of negative reinforcement for
the student.
Even for seasoned educators, using behavioral and cognitive tactics in the
classroom effectively can seem intimidating. The most efficient and effective way to
improve all types of classroom behaviors, though, is frequently by altering your
conduct and techniques. The broadest and most varied range of issues that arise in
the classroom most likely stem from the fundamental components of emotions and
conduct. Emotional and behavioral issues in the classroom can be successfully
handled and transformed by first comprehending these issues and seeing the world
through your students' perspectives, followed by the development and regular use of a
set of relevant techniques.