Before this class, the term behaviorism brought to my mind two specific things that I learned while in my undergrad education. B.F. Skinner and his idea of positive and negative reinforcement and how children thrive off of the positive rewards and how negative behavior receives a consequence or a punishment of some kind. Throughout this week I have had the opportunity to learn more about behaviorism and to grow deeper in my knowledge of behaviorism.

I currently teach fourth grade students and in my fourth grade classroom with my population of students, “reinforcing effort” and “homework practice is extremely important just as it is with kindergarten students. Before I started teaching, I used to think that only very small children would thrive off of small rewards such as stickers, a pat on the back, or even a thumbs up. Boy was I wrong! With my population of students, I have definitely learned that is not the case. My students thrive off of the small gestures I show of praise, encouragement, and excitement when they do something good. It is vital as a teacher that I reinforce effort when students are putting forth that effort. I have high expectations for my students and when my students are working to their fullest potential and are putting forth their best effort I will use positive reinforcement to point out the good. “I like how Zach is taking time to work out each math problem. I really love how Tyrus is using the inverse operation to check his work because that shows me that he is responsible and wants to be successful.” A pat on the back and a stamp that says great job does a tremendous amount. Every student begins to do what is expected and begins to put forth the effort in an attempt to get a stamp or sticker on their paper that they will more than likely throw away later that day or in a week or so. Students thrive on receiving positive reinforcement. There is an internal desire to want to please not only parents but your teacher and my students have that desire to do so. They want to make me happy and they love when I point out something good that they are doing. Students work harder when they feel appreciated and they know that you recognize the good that they are doing.

When it comes to homework and practice positive reinforcement is a huge deal for my fourth graders. My students have very little if any support at home and since the majorities of their parents do not have an education and cannot assist the students with their homework, what I send home is very limited. I always make sure that homework sent home is something that students can do and will be successful on. My efforts to send home work to be completed is an effort to raise the confidence of students when they are able to complete something on their own, without parental support (since many cannot assist) and to come back to school to have it checked, showing that they did well. Homework and practice is vital because it reinforces concepts that have been taught and it gives the students a review to make the information more concrete. Students are rewarded when they return to school the next day with the homework completed showing that they put for the effort. My students become very disappointed if they are not allowed to move their paw up on the back of my classroom door each morning when I check homework. They must complete their homework and have done everything required to move their paw up. That one simple opportunity to start the morning off with their paw on outstanding instead of good is a huge accomplishment in the eyes of my 4^th graders and they start their day off so much better and with an awesome attitude just because they were rewarded because they did their homework. Behaviorism and small gestures of showing the students you are proud of them for doing the right thing goes a very long way.

I love the various examples of “reinforcing effort” and “homework and practice” that the text Using Technology with Classroom Instruction that Works talks about. There are some wonderful ideas that I can use in my classroom to gauge students’ interest in their academics and how well they are performing. I intend to create a spreadsheet where students can chart their growth on tests throughout the school year so they can see the growth they are making and how their effort is paying off. It could also be used as a tool of reflection for the students if they do not do well one week. They can reflect on what they did and we can discuss ways to improve for the next time. Students want to be successful just as much as their teachers and parents want them to be successful. We just have to help them to be successful and encourage them as well as praise their efforts.

How well students follow rules and procedures is linked very closely to behaviorism. Students will learn rules and procedures and exactly what your expectations are if you reward or praise them for doing a good job. The following video is one that I came across when researching information on classroom management and teaching expectations for math lessons. This teacher has total control of the classroom but it makes me wonder how long she had to work to get the students to this point. They are all very attentive but I wonder if they were able to work the math problems when it was time to put them into practice.

Whole Brain teaching: Power Teaching: 6th Grade http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XroJtR9gQc8

For more information on behaviorism check out https://www.msu.edu/~purcelll/behaviorism%20theory.htm?pagewanted=all

Pitler, H., Hubbell, E., Kuhn, M., & Malenoski, K. (2007). Using technology with classroom instruction that works. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.