Reflective Journal Entry #2

Description

This week’s reading focused mainly on learning and behavioral methods. We were reminded of different strategies to help in teaching the expected behavior to our students and the actions we can take to make sure they follow these behaviors.

Analysis

            Ivan Pavlov and B.F. Skinner were two scientists who had a major impact on the research of learning behavior. Pavlov worked with dogs, experimenting to find that, if dogs were presented with food that was accompanied by a bell, the dog would associate the sound of the bell with food and start salivating whenever the bell would ring. Previously when the bell was ringing, the dog sat with no reaction because he had not been trained to associate the sound with the food. This is known as classical conditioning (Slavin, 2015).

            Skinner proposed operant behaviors because of the results of his experiments. He believed that an individual’s (or animal’s) environment affects its behaviors. He also believed that, if an individual is rewarded with “good consequences” after a certain behavior, then they are more than likely going to repeat the behavior. Also, if they are punished for a certain behavior, they may not repeat that behavior as much (Slavin, 2015).

            Another topic that Slavin (2015) discusses is the concept of a reinforcer, or “any consequence that strengthens (that is, increases the frequency of) a behavior” (p. 103). An example would be a teacher who says, “Good job!” to a child who presents a good behavior or a teacher who lets students have extra iPad or recess time if they complete their work correctly.  There are different types of reinforcers including positive and negative reinforcement. Positive reinforcement is the act of adding something pleasant to someone’s situation. For example, a teacher may positively reinforce a student’s strong willingness to work by giving them a piece of candy as a reward. Negative reinforcement, however, takes place when someone removes an unpleasant element of someone else’s situation. Slavin (2015) gives the example of a child no longer having to wash dishes for doing their homework; the child is released from washing dishes, an unpleasant task (p. 103).

            For misbehavior, children may be punished. Like reinforcement, punishment has both positive and negative versions, called presentation punishment and removal punishment. Presentation punishment occurs when an unpleasant consequence is given – for example, when a student is given a verbal reprimand for cussing in class. The scolding is an added punishment (Slavin, 2015). Removal punishment, however, is when a pleasant consequence is taken away due to misbehavior. Slavin (2015) writes that detention during recess is an example of removal punishment because a teacher has removed from the student the opportunity to go to recess. Reinforcement is generally seen as effective (or, at least, not harmful) while punishment is more controversial. Specifically, sometimes, punishment “produces aggression, and it causes individuals to avoid settings in which it is used” (Slavin, 2015, p. 107).

            Slavin (2015) notes that scheduling of reinforcement is important. The text mentions four types of reinforcement schedules used in the classroom: fixed-ratio schedules, variable-ratio schedules, fixed-interval schedules, and variable-interval schedules. A fixed-ratio schedule is when a reinforcer is given after a set number of actions. An example of this schedule is for a student to get to play a game after correctly answering fifteen problems assigned. Only after answering the fifteen problems may the child receive the reinforcer. The next type is the variable-ratio schedule, which occurs when a reinforcer is given after a random or unknown number of actions. Slavin (2015) states that a student raising their hand and waiting to be called to answer a question falls under this category because the student does not know how many times they will have to raise their hand before they are called to answer (p. 110). A fixed-interval schedule is when reinforcement is given after a set time period; Slavin (2015) notes that a final exam functions under a fixed-interval schedule because the timing of its administration is already established (p. 111). A variable-interval schedule allows events to happen sporadically. An example of this type of schedule is a random homework check; a student will receive a 100 for doing their work when the teacher checks it, but the student does not know when the teacher will check it, so they must do their work each time that it is assigned in case the teacher checks it the next day.

Reflection

            I see evidence of classical conditioning all of the time. Even on an everyday, non-educational scale, evidence of classical conditioning exists everywhere, from symbolism of facial expressions to small actions on television shows. If I see a character on TV receive a phone call, widen their eyes, gape their mouth, and drop the phone, I automatically think that they’ve received news that someone has died. I expect this because this trope exists in so many TV shows that I’ve already seen, so I’ve been classically conditioned to associate that series of actions with a revelation of another character’s death. More relevant to the classroom, every teacher has (or should have) a regular routine to their classroom, rituals that each student is expected to follow. For some teachers, the sound of two handclaps may signal students to stop talking. In this circumstance, the students have been classically conditioned to associate the handclaps with an expectation of silence. Conditioning students to behave a certain way under certain circumstances is essential to creating a classroom environment with flow, structure, and success.

            Operant conditioning is also visible on a day-to-day basis. Good consequences encourage repeated behavior, and bad consequences tend to hinder a student from doing it again. Reinforcers are a very important part of a school day. I teach at a Title I school, and most of my students are children of divorced parents. Given the unknown (to me) condition of their home lives, the positive reinforcement that I provide them with – even for the smallest of accomplishments – might mean the world to them. While giving students tangible rewards such as candy or toys is an obvious pleaser, even something as simple as a compliment can keep morale up in the classroom.

I also find truth in Slavin’s (2015) emphasis on the fact that, the longer someone waits to correct a behavior, the more often it will happen. I have seen that firsthand in my own classroom. I used to wait until the end of class to correct a student’s behavior so as not to embarrass them or draw attention to them (although some of the students like the attention). However, I’ve noticed that waiting seems to allow the other students to believe that the behavior is acceptable. Because they don’t see me reprimand the student, they don’t necessarily know that the student did indeed receive consequences. The misbehavior is then repeated by multiple students because they think that they can get away with it. Therefore, I’ve adapted my own behavior to address misbehavior immediately.

With my method, I still do my best not to embarrass the student when reprimanding them. As Slavin (2015) discusses, sometimes, students get angrier because they feel singled out. Of course, some students try to save face by not “backing down” to the teacher, trying to maintain whatever credit they have among their classmates. For this reason, providing punishment should be firm but fair. Sometimes, it can be hard for some teachers to be completely fair while being firm; all teachers have at least one memory of being just a little too strict with a student to set an example for the other students. It’s not necessarily an intentional unfairness, but it’s something that happens nonetheless. Therefore, it’s important to be aware of all aspects of punishment so as not to encourage more lashing out.

            In terms of scheduling of reinforcement, I’ve noticed that effective teachers use all four schedules. Having set expectations and goals for students (fixed-ratio and fixed-interval) allows students the chance to know what how much to be done by what time, and there does have to be a certain level of transparency between teacher and student. However, switching it up a bit and being more unannounced (variable-ratio and variable-interval) keeps students on their toes and discourages them from getting too complacent.

References

Slavin, R. E. (2015). Educational psychology: Theory and practice (11th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson Education, Inc.