Description
3 parts for the same project
1.1 PREASSESSMENT
Reflect on your current practices for monitoring student behavior.
In a well-developed paragraph of five to seven sentences, address the following:
On a scale of 1 – 5 (5 being the best), rate your current level of consistency when it comes to reinforcing behavioral expectations.
Share and explain one tool or strategy that you use to support student self-monitoring and other productive student behaviors.
What other preventative measures (verbal or nonverbal responses) do you use to foster an efficient and respectful classroom environment?
1.2 KNOWLEDGE CHECK
Review your pre-assessment reflection. In a two paragraph response, explain how your current practices align with the proficient teacher criteria in the 2d component. Ensure that your response describes the following:
What are some of the common causes of student misbehavior in your classroom? How do you normally respond?
What is the most common technique you use to get your students’ attention? Is it effective?
What additional strategies will you implement to enhance classroom management and student behavior monitoring?
1.3 FINAL ASSESSMENT
Write a well-developed two-paragraph response (5 to 7 sentences each) referencing content from the Investigative ebook, Examples, and Practice Scenarios identifying:
At least two ways to more consistently set, apply, and reinforce classroom expectations and standards for behavior.
At least three examples of tools or strategies for student self-monitoring that promote and support productive student behaviors.
Two preventative measures (verbal and nonverbal) that contribute to a more efficient and respectful classroom.
Unformatted Attachment Preview
Knowledge Check 1.2: Monitoring Student Behavior (Possible Points: 10)
Components
Distinguished
Proficient
Needs Improvement
Failing
7 points
5 points
3 points
0 points
Provides a clear and
Provides an explanation of
Provides a generalized
Missing or significantly
thoughtful explanation of
common causes of
explanation for student
underdeveloped
common causes of
misbehavior, typical
misbehavior, typical
explanation of how current
misbehavior, typical
responses, and specific
responses, and techniques
practices align with the
responses, and specific
techniques for getting
for getting students’
proficient teacher criteria in
techniques for getting
students’ attention. Includes attention. Includes some
the 2D component. Does
students’ attention. Includes a reflection on how current
reflection on how current
not include specific details
a thorough analysis of how
practices align with the
practices align with the
or includes inappropriate
Content and Critical
current practices align with
criteria for a proficient
criteria for a proficient
strategies for managing
Thinking
the criteria for a proficient
teacher in the 2D
teacher in the 2D
student behavior.
or distinguished teacher in
component. Describes
component, but may not
the 2D component.
general strategies that will
adequately reflect the
Describes at least two
be implemented to enhance criteria. Underdeveloped
specific and appropriate
classroom management
description of additional
strategies that will be
and student behavior
classroom management
implemented to enhance
monitoring.
strategies to be
classroom management
implemented.
and student behavior
monitoring.
© 2021 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
3 points
Grammar, Mechanics,
and Development
1 point
2 points
0 points
Well-written complete
Response needs some
Comprehensible sentences, Incomplete sentences;
paragraphs of at least five
additional development.
undeveloped paragraphs;
disorganized thoughts; poor
to seven sentences each;
Contains minor grammar
some grammar or spelling
grammar and spelling.
correct grammar and no
and spelling errors.
errors.
Does not adhere to length
spelling errors.
Adheres to all length and
formatting requirements.
Adheres to most length and Does not adhere to all
and formatting
formatting requirements.
requirements.
length and formatting
requirements.
© 2021 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
Final Assessment 1.3: Monitoring Student Behavior (Possible Points: 18)
Components
Distinguished
Proficient
Needs Improvement
Failing
15 points
10 points
6 points
0 points
Includes at least two ways
Includes two ways of
Includes only one
Missing or only one
of setting, applying, and
setting, applying, and
description of setting,
description of setting,
reinforcing classroom
reinforcing classroom
applying, and reinforcing
applying, and reinforcing
expectations and standards expectations and standards classroom expectations and classroom expectations and
Content and Critical
Thinking
for behavior.
for behavior.
standards for behavior.
standards for behavior.
Includes at least three
Includes three examples of
Underdeveloped
Missing or only two
examples of tools or
tools or strategies for
description of tools or
examples of tools or
strategies for student self-
student self-monitoring that
strategies for student self-
strategies for student self-
monitoring that support
support productive
monitoring that support
monitoring that support
productive behaviors.
behaviors.
productive behaviors.
productive behaviors.
Includes at least two
Includes two preventative
Vague or missing
Missing or only one
preventative measures
measures (verbal and
discussion of verbal and
preventative measure
(verbal and nonverbal) that
nonverbal) that contribute
nonverbal preventative
(verbal or nonverbal) that
contribute to a more
to a more efficient and
measures that contribute to contributes to a more
efficient and respectful
respectful classroom.
a more efficient and
efficient and respectful
respectful classroom.
classroom.
classroom.
© 2021 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
3 points
Grammar, Mechanics,
and Development
1 point
2 points
0 points
Well-written complete
Response needs some
Comprehensible sentences, Incomplete sentences;
paragraphs of at least five
additional development.
undeveloped paragraphs;
disorganized thoughts; poor
to seven sentences each;
Contains minor grammar
some grammar or spelling
grammar and spelling.
correct grammar and no
and spelling errors.
errors.
Does not adhere to length
spelling errors.
Adheres to all length and
formatting requirements.
Adheres to most length and Does not adhere to all
and formatting
formatting requirements.
requirements.
length and formatting
requirements.
© 2021 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
Preassessment 1.1: Monitoring Student Behavior (Possible Points: 5)
Components
Distinguished
Proficient
Needs Improvement
Failing
5 points
3 points
2 points
0 points
Thoroughly reflects on
Reflects on current
Provides a brief or overly
Reflection is significantly
current practices for
practices for monitoring
general reflection on
undeveloped or vague,
monitoring student
student behavior, providing
current practices for
providing little to no specific
behavior, rating and
a rating for the current level monitoring student
detail about current
explaining the current level
of consistency in reinforcing behavior. Includes a rating
practices for monitoring
of consistency in reinforcing behavioral expectations.
for the current level of
behavioral expectations.
Explains a strategy for
consistency in reinforcing
Content and Critical
Explains one specific
supporting student self-
behavioral expectations.
Thinking
strategy for supporting
monitoring and other
Explains the general
student self-monitoring and
productive behaviors.
approach to supporting an
other productive behaviors. Describes other
efficient and respectful
Describes several
preventative measures
classroom environment, but
additional and specific
used to foster an efficient
does not include specific or
preventative measures
and respectful classroom
appropriate strategies or
used to foster an efficient
environment.
tools.
and respectful classroom
environment.
© 2021 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
student behavior.
Grammar, Mechanics,
and Development
Well-written complete
Response needs some
Comprehensible sentences, Incomplete sentences;
paragraphs of at least five
additional development.
undeveloped paragraphs;
disorganized thoughts; poor
to seven sentences each;
Contains minor grammar
some grammar or spelling
grammar and spelling.
correct grammar and no
and spelling errors.
errors.
spelling errors.
Adheres to all length and
formatting requirements.
Does not adhere to length
Adheres to most length and Does not adhere to all
and formatting
length and formatting
requirements.
formatting requirements.
requirements.
© 2021 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
Monitoring Student Behavior
Pennsylvania Department of Education
Table of Contents
Introduction ………………………………………………………………………………………………… 3
Strategies for Reinforcing Expectations and Standards for Behavior …………………. 4
Maintaining Anecdotal Records on Student Behavior ………………………………………. 7
Behavior Management Strategies ……………………………………………………………….. 11
Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………………………….. 16
References ………………………………………………………………………………………………. 17
At time of publishing, all of the website information was accurate. Due to the nature
of the internet, some of the website information may have changed or become
unavailable. Please see the references section of the corresponding online module
for the most up-to-date information.
Introduction
According to Danielson (2011), “Experienced teachers seem to have eyes in the
back of their heads; they are attuned to what’s happening in the classroom and can
move subtly to help students, when necessary, re-engage with the content being
addressed in the lesson.”
To some degree, all schools function on the basis of routines and agreed-upon
codes of behavior. Even small, alternative “free” schools rely on routines to some
extent. Children and adults generally operate more productively as communities
when they are supported by clearly stated expectations, understood parameters
for behavior, and routines that reduce the constant need to make decisions.
Considering an extreme example, the mission of the progressive Summerhill school
includes the statement “Where you can play all day if you want to.” Even so, the
Summerhill school community chooses to operate with set times and codes of
behavior that are agreed upon by a democratic council of all students and teachers
(A.S. Neill’s Summerhill School, n.d.).
Effective teachers plan, practice, and refine classroom routines in order to establish
a positive code of behavior for all students. Properly applied and practiced routines
make schools safer, better organized, and promote an environment where students
and adults feel comfortable and secure in their pursuit of the organizational goal of
student learning. A firm stance is sometimes required from teachers when students
break the code of conduct and are in need of redirection. According to Charlotte
Danielson (2007),
Teachers who operate at the proficient and
distinguished levels in Domain 2 show genuine
concern for their students’ needs and abilities both
within and outside the classroom. Their students
consider these teachers to be adults who believe in
their learning potential, care about them personally,
and are reliable sources of support for their learning.
Many times, students are able to help each other to improve behavior. Peer review
systems promote positive classroom climates by training students to look for
praiseworthy behavioral aspects of students who may have previously exhibited
negative behavior. Positive behavior is encouraged when students are motivated
by a system of age-appropriate rewards. A teacher who is able to both earn respect
and excite students will create a sound platform upon which to promote learning.
Instances of challenging student behavior have root causes that effective teachers
will attempt to identify. Documentation of negative behavior may help to identify
specific triggers that initiate incidents. These documents can later be useful in
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3
devising specific behavioral plans to support the student’s improvement. Many
aspects of teaching are akin to performing on a stage. Teachers are able to learn
presentation skills, such as voice modulation and tone, gestures, congruence of
instructions, and body stance and location in the room. The inexperienced teacher
is able to grow and improve by learning and practicing a range of techniques to
manage student behavior and improve their own delivery. Teacher burnout is
closely related to teachers’ ability to manage student motivation and behavior in the
classroom (Shen et al., 2015), so it is essential for both novice and experienced
teachers to develop strategies to address issues related to student behavior in the
classroom appropriately.
Strategies for Reinforcing Expectations and
Standards for Behavior
Timely and age appropriate praise is a powerful tool for teachers to reinforce
positive behavior in students. Praise and positive feedback should focus on the
behavior, not on the person. For example, “It was mean of you to throw food at
another student” focuses on the person and could devalue the student’s self-worth.
Focusing on the behavior respects the student and doesn’t undermine his or her
dignity (Danielson, 2011). The example above could be reworded as follows, to
shift the focus from the person to the behavior: “Throwing food at another student is
disrespectful and works against our code of no-tolerance bullying.”
Clearly-stated expectations for behavior and learning provide a strong platform
upon which to encourage and reinforce positive behavior from students. Inevitably,
not all student behavior is positive. Effective teachers are ready with measured
responses, based upon a sound management plan, that includes codes of behavior
to which students are held accountable. Routines are helpful to establish positive,
time efficient methods of accomplishing small tasks that make the classroom
function most effectively.
Developing, Planning, and Refining Classroom Routines
Many teachers recognize that most students respond positively to a structured
environment. Daily routines may be packaged and presented in ways that
encourage acceptance by students. A lesson is already off to a good start when
students arrive to class prepared, having already visited the bathroom and
collected required materials from their student lockers, or the Zoom camera is on
and the student is attentive and ready to work. A savvy teacher uses any prompts
necessary to achieve this level of organization, including verbal reminders, visual
cues posted in the hallway or used online, pair buddy reminders, or another
technique to maximize learning time.
Konen (2017) and Roush (2021) promote the development of routines that reduce
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
4
minor frustrations, save time, remove distractions, and center attention on learning.
Teachers who invest time and effort in devising and implementing effective routines
are rewarded in the long term with saved time and a more controlled workload.
Student morale is boosted when transitions between activities or between
classrooms are achieved by responsible students, with minimal instructions from
the teacher and without interminable verbal instructions, raised voices, or possible
chaos.
Any repetitive, recurring, or predictable classroom actions or events may be
enhanced with the addition of specific routines. Different teachers may be
comfortable with more or less routines. All teachers should recognize that although
routines may be viewed as controlling mechanisms, they also promote a secure and
well-ordered environment in which the undemonstrative student is free to flourish
and succeed. A few samples of routines are listed in Table 1.
Administrative
Routines
Safety
Routines
• Storing coats
• Fire evacuation
drills
• Spelling
quizzes
• Lockdown drills
• Journal writing
time
• Attendance
checks
• Bathroom visits
• Making
announcements
• Earthquake
drills
• Hand washing
• Sending
messages
home
• Food storage
• Sharpening
pencils
• Science lab gas
burners
• Dismissal time
• Transitions
between
classrooms
• Scissors and
craft knives
• Athletic
field event
equipment
Instructional
Routines
• Gaining teacher
attention
• Distributing
books
• Collecting
assignments
Interactive
Routines
• Pairing students
• Forming small
groups
• Discussion
protocols
• Sharing
resources
• Listening and
responding to
questions
• Recording
homework
instructions
• Volunteering
contributions to
discussions
Table 1. Sample routines.
Some teachers develop creative routines that add an element of enjoyment for
students. Music may be one way to signify the start of a transition. For example,
familiar TV theme tunes can signify that materials need to be put away quickly and
students should be lined up before the music ends. Soon, students will recognize
the first few bars of music and spring into action without the need for an instruction.
Morning attendance may be accomplished by students sticking their own name card
on a wall chart or responding to a question in the Zoom chat.
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
5
Zimny (2021) shared several suggestions for creating and enforcing routines in
remote or online classrooms, such as posting daily or weekly routines in a place
that students and parents can access them, ensuring consistency, creating a
common area for questions to be posted, and fostering a caring community. Student
needs and behavioral expectations do not differ very much between traditional and
online classrooms, but approaches can.
Savvy teachers recognize the effectiveness of building positive student behavior
as a means to reduce the number of incidents of negative behavior. Teachers are
part of the teacher-student behavioral equation and must therefore be prepared to
change their own behavior in order to elicit the desired responses from students.
Practicing and Reinforcing Routines
The allocation of significant periods of time at the start of the school year, in order
to introduce and establish classroom routines, may be regarded as a sound
investment. Alstad (2016) advocates for the allocation of time when practicing
routines. Willing students may be chosen to model the desired routine for the rest
of the class. Patience should be shown for students who need extra practice, and
praise should be given when the routine is successfully established. HoffmanKaser (n.d.) details how classroom routines may be established, beginning with a
demonstration of the process by the teacher and volunteer students, and following
up with quizzes to check for understanding. Learning routines should be planned
systematically and enacted in authentic venues. The maintenance of routines
throughout the year requires review and reteaching in order to underscore their
importance.
Safety procedures deserve special attention. Telling or showing students the
preferred route to the fire assembly point is insufficient. Only real practice will
prepare them for a smooth and speedy evacuation when a crisis happens. Several
situational rehearsals are needed during which students become familiarized with
the route and behavior protocols of silence and orderly, purposeful movement.
The same conditioning is needed for students of all ages. Jones (n.d.) makes a
case for students to practice essential safety routines in science laboratories. For
example, emergency eye wash procedures require the immediate assistance of
peers if caustic liquids are to be washed out of the student’s eye in time to prevent
stem damage that could potentially cause permanent injury. Simply telling students
about their responsibility is insufficient. A practice scenario that imitates the accident
and response is needed if students are to become confident and react in a way
that will make a significant difference in an emergency situation. Understandably,
high school teachers may often feel pressured by time constraints as they struggle
to cover all of the syllabus content demanded by the standards. However, cutting
corners on important routines is not a responsible option.
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
6
Establishing Appropriate Consequences
Teachers should first determine the reasons behind a student’s negative behavior
before deciding upon a consequence. Taking the student aside for a conversation
about the behavior is a good way to begin. The student may need a little time
to check his or her emotions before a productive conversation can take place.
Teachers who model a calm demeanor and focus on the behavior (rather than the
student personally), may be able to find the root cause of the negative behavior and
address it more quickly.
Just as students may need an opportunity to check their emotions before
considering their behavior, teachers may need a moment to check emotions
before responding as well. Teachers may experience a natural, adrenalinefuelled temptation to respond to disrespectful behavior with anger or sarcasm.
Unfortunately, in the end such responses are likely to generate disrespect for the
teacher and encourage more disrespectful behavior from students. Successful
teachers realize that classroom effectiveness increases when they are first
respected and secondly liked by students. Lester (2018) urges teachers to respond
to disrespectful students by following a classroom management plan that includes
a rule to deal with disrespectful behavior. Planned rules and consequences
are much easier to administer than ad hoc responses. Teachers should avoid
spontaneous responses where follow-through is not practical. Some negative
behaviors are deserving of an immediate, unemotional response. Lester (2018)
lists five challenging behaviors – noise makers, power strugglers, arguers, sulkers,
and students who are over-dependent – as examples of unacceptable behavior that
may require immediate time-out and perhaps a letter, email, or call to the guardian.
Students observe how a teacher behaves in addition to what is said. Since teachers
are role models for the students, a teacher who behaves calmly and respectfully,
even in the face of a challenging situation, will encourage the same behavior in
students.
Maintaining Anecdotal Records on Student
Behavior
Anecdotal records provide a means to identify patterns in behavior and recognize
change. Templates, designed for recording specific aspects of a student’s behavior,
enable a teacher, or support colleagues, to document accurately and consistently.
Students may also be involved in the self-recording of data. Students who agree to
systematically monitor their own behavior are able to correct themselves. Support
strategies, once agreed upon, may be applied and evaluated, using appropriate
recording formats, over a period of time.
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
7
Recording Triggers
Negative triggers are stimuli that provoke inappropriate reactions in a student.
The stimulus may reside in their home life or events outside of school, or could be
something that is happening in the classroom. Some triggers incite an immediate
reaction from the student, while others may act slowly until the student reaches
a saturation point. Food intake, such as sugary drinks, artificial colorings, or
carbohydrate excesses may give rise to elevated activity levels or lethargy. It may
be possible to remove the stimulus for some triggers, such as name calling from
peers or extended writing assignments where the student lacks the necessary skill
development. Other triggers such as family problems originate from causes outside
the teacher’s control. Triggers may be divided into two categories, fast and slow. A
few examples are shown in Table 2.
Classroom-based Fast Triggers
Classroom-based Slow Triggers
• Teasing by peers
• Fine motor skills insufficient for the task
• Loud noise
• Organizational skills insufficient for a
complex assignment
• Receipt of disappointing grade
• High pressure timed testing
• Language skills don’t cope with abstract
text
• Difficulty in reading social interactions
Table 2. Classroom-based triggers.
The trigger itself may reveal an issue that can be dealt with directly, such as bullying
or inappropriate instructional tasks. In many cases it is the student’s inappropriate
response to the trigger that needs to be modified. The first step for the teacher is to
identify the trigger. Better still, the student may be guided to recognize the trigger.
Fader (2018) describes the use of ABC recording charts to document behavior.
ABC stands for antecedent, behavior, and consequence. A sample, with prompt
questions is shown in Figure 1.
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
8
Figure 1. Sample ABC recording chart.
Used repeatedly, ABC charts may identify a pattern and establish the link between
an antecedent and consequence event. Notes may be taken in a notebook or
written up as emails and shared with administrators or parents when appropriate.
Webster (2018) emphasizes that time invested by teachers to document incidents
in the ABC format may lead to a behavioral solution for the student in question.
Guiding students to a desired outcome, whether extinguishing the undesirable
behavior or encouraging good behavior, is the ultimate goal.
Recording Effective Supports
Teachers or counseling support staff need to monitor the effectiveness of support
interventions by periodically assessing student progress. Changes in circumstances
or personnel may alter the success levels of a plan. A number of recording
instruments are available. A behavior plan is often used as the starting point to
monitor the effect of supporting strategies. Periodic review of plans, based upon
recorded data, may result in modifications to interventional strategies. A sample
behavior support planning form designed to be used by a teacher and support team
is shown Figure 2.
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
9
Figure 2. Sample behavior support planning form.
Data collection tools provide evidence to check plans for their effectiveness at
achieving desired behavior modifications. Fox and Duda (n.d.) describe how
progress of behavior support plans may be periodically monitored and reviewed,
using tools such as rating scales and check sheets. There are myriad resources
available online with teacher-created charts and tools. Daily logs may provide an
estimate of the child’s performance, perhaps using a five-point scale to identify
good days for the student. An example of a daily log is shown in Figure 3.
Single examples of challenging behavior may be recorded using incident records.
For example, when a student is involved in a fight, has a temper tantrum, uses
profane language, or runs away. Incident records describe all the details of the
event: when it occurred, who was involved, and what the consequences were.
Incident reports do not record the context of the incident relative to a behavior plan.
Behavior may also be monitored using the products of a student’s work on school
assignments. Artwork, writing samples, or a portfolio of photographs showcasing
student work may provide data that may be used to review a behavior plan. Aware
teachers realize that written records provide benchmarks to identify progress or
deterioration in behavior. Trends in student behavior may be revealed by a review of
data that represents a time period of weeks and months.
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
10
Figure 3. Sample daily log.
Behavior Management Strategies
Some teaching techniques and effective approaches to behavior management
may come naturally to teachers or may be based upon their past experience. Even
experienced teachers understand that many additional strategies may be learned
and an array of tools and resources may be added to their classroom repertoire.
Reward Systems to Support Positive Behaviors
Reward systems are available for students to earn instant, daily, or weekly rewards
for behavior or good work. Many variations of rewards systems for younger
students are based upon the accumulation of credit by collecting, for example
stickers, tokens, or fake money, or filling in grids and charts. Sometimes there is
a small treat after the accumulation of enough credits. Younger middle student
students may respond to some of the same reward systems used for elementary
students. Generally, older students need to be rewarded with praise. Specific
feedback on assignments that might allow them time for a favored activity, such
as working on a computer, is especially good. Praise or positive feedback should
always be directed to the behavior itself. Many templates and ideas for appropriate
reward systems are freely available online. For example, Reward Ideas (n.d.)
offers an extensive range of examples appropriate for elementary-aged students.
An adept teacher recognizes that positive behavior is encouraged by rewards and
takes the initiative accordingly.
“Gamifying” classroom rules and providing rewards for “winners” of classroom
games is a strategy that can be both novel and engaging for students. One
approach which has stood the test of time is the Good Behavior Game, which
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
11
is built around the integration of classroom rules, team membership, monitoring
of behavior, and positive reinforcement to both individuals and groups. Nolan,
Houlihan, and Wanzek (2014) found that the use of the Good Behavior Game in
elementary school settings has “has proven to be a useful tool across cultural,
linguistic, socio-economic traditions, with long lasting positive longitudinal behavior
change.” The GBG and other game-based behavior maintenance strategies may be
very useful, especially when addressing the needs of a diverse classroom.
Redirecting Behavior Through Verbal and Non-verbal Prompts
The skillful use of non-verbal communication serves to avoid the potential
for escalation of small incidents. Disruption to the flow of instruction may be
minimized. Teacher energy may be preserved for core pedagogical interventions,
such as question and answer sessions or constructive feedback. Variations in
hand gestures, body postures, and voice tones can be threatening or affirming.
It is important to be cognizant of non-verbal communication in order to improve
instruction.
Teachers should be aware that the interpretation of meanings for gestures and
eye contacts are not universally understood between different cultures. For
example, people from some Southeast Asian cultures will avoid eye contact out of
respect, not avoidance. According to Schonberg (2011), in Vietnamese culture the
Vietnamese equivalent of the head shake to mean no is to rotate the outstretched
open hand, palm up.
Molseed (2018) states that establishing behaviors combining nonverbal with
positive behavior interventions helps to cut down on overall disciplinary incidents.
Molseed shares the importance for teachers to meet students on their level, which
sometimes literally means kneeling to a student’s height, and recommends that
teachers should be trained in non-verbal message skills.
Teachers often make the mistake of trying to talk over the class when noise
levels are elevated. A few seconds delay will usually result in a slight lull in sound
levels. That is the moment to gain attention—without getting frustrated and raising
your voice. Once attention is established the teacher is able to drop the voice
level considerably to a whispering volume. Typically, students are quiet in order
to hear the message. All people have a range of different voices they use in
appropriate circumstances. The tone, volume, and modulation of voice send their
own messages in addition to the meaning of the words they carry. Matsil (2015)
suggests using the “Pattern Interrupt” principle and explains the psychology behind
it for breaking someone’s pattern by interrupting them with unexpected stimulus.
The students are temporarily confused and open to a moment of clarity. Examples
include clapping and the ‘Give Me Five’ strategy, in which the teacher raises his/her
hand and the students repeat stating, “(1) Eyes – look (2) Ears – listen (3) Mouth closed (4) Hands – still (5) Feet – quiet” (Matsil, 2015).
Visual cues may be used to emphasize verbal instructions. For example, students
© 2019 Pennsylvania Department of Education. All rights reserved.
12
may be told to finish a task in five minutes and be given the visual cue of holding
up a hand with five digits. The teacher may both point to and look at the display
board while giving a verbal instruction to the same effect. Eye contact in response
to negative interactions such as unwanted interruptions is likely to escalate the
situation by inviting further response. A non-verbal visual instruction such as an
appropriate hand gesture may be more effective than words as an intervention to
make the lesson flow.
Exploring Self-monitoring Strategies for Behavior Management
Parrish (2018) stresses the importance for students to be able to focus, control
their emotions, and adjust to change. Self-monitoring of behaviorally-challenged
students is an effective strategy to both identify and realize positive social behavior.
Students of all ages, from kindergarten to adulthood, and from a wide variety
of levels of cognitive function, are able to gain independence from the use of
behavioral self-monitoring. Horner, R., Sugai, G., and Vincent, C. (2005) describe
a five-step process to implement a system of behavioral self-monitoring as seen in
Figure 4.
Figure 4. Behavioral self-monitoring process.
Often, a teacher identifies several aspects of behavior that could be flagged for
intervention. For example, a student may be known for disruptive comments and
excessive hand raising. Horner et al. (2005) recommend that the teacher prioritizes
j
