Applied behavioural analysis project - Coursework Example

Trevor Johns Grade: 3rd Age: 9 years School: AB Elementary School Introduction Coolican (1999) posits to the effect that Applied Behavioural analysis (ABS)is concerned with using modern learning theory in order to modify certain behaviours especially of learners below the age of ten years. It seeks to establish a systematic body of knowledge concerning the factors which influence learning and behaviour within an educational context. As such, this project is designed to decelerate the frequency of target behaviour of Trevor who tends to be aggressive to his peers in classroom and outside. The project is based on a descriptive design and it begins by describing the subject as well as outlining his behaviour. The problem is stated in behavioural terms and this is followed by an intervention plan which includes a brief overview of the literature which justifies the choice of that particular strategy. Discussion of the results obtained over a four year period will be done at the end of the project. Strengths of Student The main strength displayed by Trevor is that he has keen interest in attending classes and he respects the educators than his peers. If asked to do something by the teacher, he will dutifully perform the task. This learner fond of art especially drawing pictures and he likes cars. He performs very well in subjects related to general knowledge. In class, he participates mostly in subject areas he has got keen interest with. He is motivated by praise for doing well in class and this compels him to put effort in his studies. He positively behaves towards the educators and can carry out any assigned task. His parents are also very concerned about his progress in school work since they are cooperative and they positively respond to the recommendations made by the teacher. Individualized information about the student Trevor often displays aggressive behaviour towards his peers both in class and outside. He is often agitated by different occasions and his moods are not consistent and this depicts socialised aggression. This learner also displays a carefree attitude and is often found wandering during classroom times like aimlessly gazing out through the window as if watching a very important occasion. If he is in a jovial mood, he cooperates very well in class and is eager to participate. It seems that Trevor has a problem related to dyslexia. It is described as difficulty in learning to read and write or expressing your thoughts on paper which affects those who have normal schooling (Hornsby, 1984). This boy has difficulties in writing especially spellings. His sentences hardly make any meaning as they are disjointed and his hand writing is also crooked such that one needs to take time to try to figure out what he is intending to convey to the reader. In most cases, Trevor hardly finishes his assignments especially those which involve long sentences. However, he is good in mathematics and other subjects with short answers. At the present moment, Trevor is getting therapy with regards to the problem of dyslexia from a qualified professional. In some instances, Trevor is frustrated if he is asked to perform certain tasks such as writing corrections for the work he would have submitted. His problem is that he thinks that he is correct. However, he responds well if asked verbal questions in class. He is keen to participate though at times he does not respond to the question asked. It seems that the aggressive behaviour displayed by Trevor is compounded by anxiety since he tends to believe that he is regarded as an outcast by his peers. Somehow, he is aware of his condition and this is the reason why he often behaves violently like smacking at others. At times, Trevor is not composed since he is constantly fidgeting in his seat as if not feeling comfortable. The other behaviour characteristic of him is constantly suckling his thumb and this often distracts his attention. He swears to his peers if they comment on his behaviour. Previously implemented interventions Trevor’s educator has pointed out that various strategies have been implemented in order to rectify his behaviour and some of them include the following. The reward system through the token economy principle was implemented in a bid to positively change the behaviour of this learner especially that of distracting others in class. To a certain extent, the reinforcement strategy was effective during the early days since this learner positively responded but it declined again during the second week. He was getting frustrated by the method due to its repetitive nature. The time out strategy was also implemented in a bid to change the behaviour of Trevor. However, this method did not produce any meaningful result given that his behaviour did not change. John would be sent out to stand in the open for a duration of ten minutes but he would still continue with his behaviour after being readmitted to the class. At times, Trevor’s behaviour will change if threatened to be taken to the principal or to be reported to his parents since he was somehow afraid of these. However, assisted learning through close monitoring by the educator proved to be helpful to Trevor. Problematic behaviours Behaviour 1 Socialised aggression like physical harassment of others peers such as pinching them or distracting them from their work. Verbal harassment of his peers has also been recorded in different circumstances. On average, this behaviour has been recorded about two times every day. Function of the behaviour: The aim of pinching others is to inflict pain on them or to simply express that he is in control of the situation obtaining in the class. Trevor would be trying to subdue others in and outside the class such that he will command their respect. In some instances, when he is frustrated by work in class, he tends to vent his anger on his peers who would be looking to know what they are doing. He feels frustrated to see others in a position to do something that he would be failing to do on his own. He sees this as a challenge to his integrity hence he attempts to revenge by inflicting pain on his peers. The other aim of physical as well as verbal harassment is to distract them from concentrating on their work. In other words, Trevor would be seeking to draw the attention of the educator by disturbing other pupils who are busy doing their work. Replacement behaviour: Trevor should learn to co-exist with other learners or to ask for help should there be need that physically harassing them. This will help him to improve his relations with them and they can also share their ideas with him. Therefore, interaction is very important in this particular case. It is also expected that Trevor should ask for help from the teacher directly than physically harassing others or distracting them from their work if he encounters certain problems. Intervention: The teacher can model desired behaviour and can reinforce those learners who display desired behaviour ensuring that other students’ behaviour including Trevor is drawn to those outcomes. Monyai (2006) posits to the effect that there will be fairly clear messages in a classroom where giggles at foreign names are reprimanded or directly questioned by the teacher rather than ignored. In this particular case, the teacher has to tell Trevor that all questions or problems are directed to him than to other pupils in class since they do not have the capacity to solve his problems. The educator also ought to implement measures in place that are meant to ensure that Trevor works independently without interrupting others in class. Reinforcement of his behaviour will be needed even though he could have failed to successfully complete the given tasks. This will encourage him to put more effort in all the tasks assigned to him. The teacher also needs to closely supervise Trevor such that he does not disturb others when he encounters some difficulties in his school work. The teacher should also try to ensure that Trevor does not interrupt the learning activities taking place in class through fidgeting in his seat. The teacher has to hint that if such kind of behaviour continues, Trevor will be sent out for a particular period or reported to his parents since he respects them. Documentation: The teacher has to record all the incidents when Trevor distracts the proceedings in class. The frequency of such kind of behaviour will be used to measure the rate of behaviour change against his original state. The teacher should also record the times Trevor asks for something in a polite manner. Amount of improvement expected: It is expected that Trevor’s distractive as well as aggressive behaviour should decline within the first two weeks of inception of this intervention programme. The data collected is supposed to be used to calculate the percentage decline of this behaviour which is expected to be around 60 %. A full schedule review will be carried out after a month in a bid to establish if there has been any positive change in his behaviour. Behaviour 2: Failing to complete written assignments Function of the behaviour: Due to anxiety and withdrawal, Trevor is often incapable of completing his written assignments. This behaviour is used to protest to the teacher that he is not able to complete the written assignment given in certain circumstances. As such, he will be trying to draw the attention of the teacher. If Trevor is frustrated by the written work, he just scribbles meaningless sentences that can be hardly read by any person. This has been happening at least three times for the past four weeks. Replacement behaviour: Trevor should attempt to do all the written assignments on his own under the supervision of the teacher. If it is homework, the teacher should hint to the parents that they should monitor to ensure that he attempts to do all the work. When he needs assistance, then he can ask since this will positively change his behaviour. Intervention: It is imperative for the teacher to assess Trevor’s work relative to his peers and then make decisions about the need for further assessment. In this particular case, the teacher should intervene through giving Trevor ability tests. Askham (2000) posits to the effect that an ability test refers to what a person can do in general. Usually, these ability tests allow the teacher to measure the extent to which a learner can do various assignments on his own. As such, shaping and chaining are two important aspects that can result in positive behaviour change by Trevor. It involves starting with approximations to the desired final behaviour which can lead to the required outcome. The teacher should always encourage Trevor to take his school work seriously and he should use a friendly approach so as to should that he is concerned about his progress in school work. If this learner is fairly treated, there are likely chances that he views himself as a normal person just like any other pupil. Documentation: The teacher has to keep a progress record for Trevor in a bid to establish if there is any improvement with regards to completion of work. The teacher should take note of all completed work before moving on to see if it has been done correctly. Amount of improvement expected: It is expected that Trevor should make an effort to complete all his written assignments. Progress report should be done on a weekly basis to see if there has been any improvement with regards to the intervention strategies suggested above. The rate of uncompleted assignment should decline by about 50 per cent during the first week given that the teacher will closely supervise this learner. Schedule of review and results The methods for intervention in two cases described above have to be reviewed in every two weeks in order to establish if there has been any positive change in the behaviour of Trevor. The reason for choosing a two week period is to enable the teacher to measure if there have been any significant improvement of behaviour of this particular learner. It is also important to make sure that an assessment of the effectiveness of this strategy is carried every month to see if it is bearing any fruit with regards to Trevor’s positive behaviour change. Provisions for home coordination Trevor’s parents should be given access to all information regarding to his progress at any given moment should they desire. The parents should also cooperate with the teacher through provision of other additional information about Trevor’s behaviour when he is at home. All assignments to be taken home should be signed by the parent to ensure that he has done the work on his own. This will also help him to attempt to do all the work on his own if he is aware of the fact that he can get the required assistance. This is likely to bring about positive results in Trevor’s progress towards behaviour change in aspects related to socialised aggression as well as failure to complete work on his own. Crisis management Some behaviours such as socialised aggression towards other pupils can lead to suspension or expulsion from school if they are persistent. As such, certain measures have to be taken in order to ensure that such an unfortunate scenario does not happen given that the behaviour of youngsters can be rectified while they are still at a tender age. A crisis management plan is seen as very effective in dealing with such issues which may not be dealt by a single person. Collective action would be required in this particular scenario. The members of staff especially the class teacher in particular should be able to monitor and see if Trevor is getting agitated over something. As has been noted that this often leads him to physically or verbally harass other pupils, the responsible staff member should try to cool him down such that his behaviour will not go out of hand. If the situation is controlled before it is blown out of proportion, there are likely chances that Trevor’s behaviour will be contained within reasonable limits. In the event that this aggressive behaviour continues, Trevor can be confined to the staff room or another safe place where he can be monitored to ensure that he does not harm himself or others. If his aggression continues, then his parents can be called in such that a decision will be made with regards to this unbecoming behaviour displayed by Trevor. Under normal circumstances, this Crisis Management Plan should be used once a month and the progress report has to be documented. If there is another area lacking, then a review committee has to meet in order to map the way forward with regards to making amendments that can be effective in dealing with this problematic behaviour. Conclusion Over and above, it can be seen that there are certain features that are inherent in Trevor’s behaviour such as socialised aggression as well as inability to complete his written assignments. The findings of the study show that Trevor displays this particular type of behaviour when frustrated or as a result of anxiety which can lead him to be withdrawn from a particular situation. Such kind of behaviour can be replaced through intervention strategies that can be implemented by the teacher and these are very effective as highlighted in the discussion of the likely result of implementing such method. However, a Crisis Management Plan can be implemented in the event that this kind of behaviour has gone out of hand as it can endanger Trevor as well as his peers. Bibliography Ames, L.B. (1980). The Child from one to six: Evaluating the behaviour of preschool children. London, Hamish Hamilton. Askham, S. (2000). Coping when your child has special needs. London, Press Sheldon. Coolican, H. (1996). Applied psychology. London, Hodder & Stoughton. Ginott, H. (1972). Teacher & Child: A book for parents and teachers. New York, NY: The Macmillan Company. Gould, L. (2005). How can I help this child. Cape Town, CT: Shuter & Shooter. Hornsby, B. (1984). Overcoming Dylexia: A straightforward guide for families and teachers. Cape Town, CT JUTA & Company Ltd. Monyai, R.B. (2006). The educator as mediator of learning. Cape Town, CT: Van Schaik Publishers. Sears, W & Sears, M. (1995). The Good behaviour book: How to have a better behaved child from birth to age ten. London, Thornsons. Shaffer, S.M. & Gordon, L.P. (2005). Why girls talk and what they are saying: A parent’s survival guide to connecting with your teen. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Read More