Behavior Management is not meant to be a reactive process. When we approach behavior management as a proactive process, we can reduce behavioral problems.
We examine and plan for how the following effective practices will help you and your students get off to a good start from the beginning of the year.
- It begins with developing supportive relationships with your students and their parents.
- The quality of relationships with students influence how effectively a positive learning experience and student motivation is established and will reduce behavior problems (Marzano, Marzano, & Pickering, 2003).
- Next, the arrangement of your room can avoid many opportunities for off-task behavior.
- Arrange the room to orderly movement, keep distraction at a minimum, and make effective use of available space.
- Developing clear procedures and rules so that students know what is expected of them at all times during the day leaves little room for behavioral issues.
- Evertson & Harris (1992) noted that effective classroom management is a combination of organized, engaging lessons and ensuring involvement by teaching classroom procedures to facilitate smooth implementation of lessons and enhancing on-task behaviors.
- Keeping students engaged during teaching and dealing with minor disruptions without affecting the flow of your lesson takes advantage of teaching time and does not provide students with negative attention. When we actively engage students in learning and align student needs with the UDL Framework and Guidelines we maintain a positive learning environment and practice effective teaching.
- Teaching students problem-solving, self-management, and social skills they lack, will help students build personal responsibility for their own behavior. Using a variety of methods for positive behavioral support (school-wide and class-wide) teaches students expected behavior, supports the reduction of challenging behavior and reinforces positive behavior.
- We need to identify and teach replacement behaviors that will result in enhanced educational and improved social outcomes for students.
- Analyzing student behavior to determine purpose and goals of behavior will help you develop an effective intervention plan.
- Applying positive reinforcement strategies has more effective long-term effect than punitive measures. Schedules of reinforcement are determined by baseline data and setting a performance criterion that facilitates continuing improvement.
- Functional Behavior Assessment will identify causal factors, generate hypotheses about the function of problem behaviors and develop possible intervention aimed at replacing challenging behaviors. (Wheeler and Richey, 2014)
