Abstract
An increasing number of students with emotional and behavioral disorders are being served in general education environments. This article provides general and special education teachers with step-by-step instructions in three classroom management strategies that, when implemented well, can increase academic engagement and reduce challenging behavior for all students in inclusive classrooms, including those with emotional and behavioral disorders. The strategies involve providing behavior-specific praise, directing play of the Good Behavior Game, and providing students with frequent opportunities to respond to academic requests.
Mrs. Bochat and Mrs. Myer are fifth grade teachers preparing for the new school year. They work in a Title I building where many students are at risk for special education identification. Many students also display challenging behaviors. The teachers stopped by the school office to get their classroom rosters. When they arrived, Mr. Schmitz, the school principal, informed them that they will both have students in their classes that have been identified with emotional disturbance as well as others who have exhibited challenging behaviors in the past. Looking back on the previous school year, both teachers had experienced great amounts of stress and frustration resulting from challenging student behaviors.
In an effort to avoid the stressors brought on by ineffective classroom management practices, Mrs. Bochat and Mrs. Myer decided they would like to start this year off strong by learning some strategies that they can use in their classrooms to increase student success and proactively reduce challenging behaviors. The two teachers researched strategies that they could easily learn and implement in their classrooms before, during, and after challenging behaviors emerge.
Mrs. Myer found a game called the Good Behavior Game that she could implement in the classroom to help address behaviors before they occur. Mrs. Bochat learned about providing behavior-specific praise at a recent professional development meeting. She remembered hearing that providing praise can help to increase the likelihood of desired behaviors occurring and she wanted to learn more about how to do so effectively. Finally, in their search the teachers also read about the benefits of providing students with opportunities to respond to academic instruction. Mrs. Bochat and Mrs. Myer realized that they can intersperse opportunities to respond within the Good Behavior Game. The teachers also learned that they can provide increased amounts of opportunities for students to respond in order to help them amplify the amount of praise and chances to deliver praise to their students.
The number of students identified with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) being served alongside their peers without disabilities is on the rise. In the most recent report to Congress, the U.S. Department of Education (2007, 2018) announced that 47.2% of students identified with EBD receive 80% or more of their educational instruction inside the general education classroom, which is a 12.5% increase over the last decade. This steady increase is paralleled by an escalation in the number of teachers working with this population of youth (Allday et al., 2013).
To help improve success in the classroom, it is imperative that teachers understand the characteristics of EBD and employ effective strategies while working with students who engage, or have a history of engaging, in challenging behaviors. The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) defines emotional disturbance, hereafter referred to as EBD, as a condition exhibiting one or more characteristics over time to an extent that negatively affects educational performance (IDEA, 2004). Those characteristics include the following: (a) an inability to learn, (b) an inability to build or maintain relationships with teachers and peers, (c) inappropriate behaviors, (d) widespread depression or unhappiness, and/or (e) development of fears or physical symptoms associated with school or personal issues (IDEA, 2004). However, the characteristics necessary for identification are vague and can be interpreted differently across individuals, schools, and districts. As a result of this ambiguity, eligibility is often limited to the most significant cases of serious mental health concerns or intense behavioral needs (Maag & Katsiyannis, 2008). This is an important distinction for teachers to understand, as there may be students presenting challenging behaviors within the general education environment who are not identified with EBD and do not receive special education services.
Behavior and classroom management practices are critical for preventing and reducing challenging and disruptive behaviors. Research has demonstrated that whole-classroom management strategies have promising results in decreasing challenging behaviors (Reinke et al., 2014). However, disruptive behavior is a common reason why teachers alter their career path and exit from the teaching profession (Friedman, 2013). New teachers frequently identify their lack of knowledge, preparation, access, acquisition, and mastery of effective behavioral response strategies as a barrier to their success (Allen, 2010; Brouwers & Tomic, 2000). Using research- or evidence-based classroom and behavior management strategies provides teachers with an opportunity to work smarter, not harder, and can reduce stress and the initial symptoms of burnout (Brouwers & Tomic, 2000). As a result, implementing classroom and behavior management procedures can help educators who work with students with or at risk for EBD to increase the longevity of their teaching careers as well as improve relevant outcomes of the students with which they work.
Rationale
The purpose of this article is to provide frustrated practitioners with easy to implement behavior and classroom management strategies. The strategies included in this article can help to increase student success and decrease challenging behaviors, which can help improve the classroom culture and climate, all while reducing teacher frustration. With today’s classrooms emphasizing inclusive instruction, both special and general educators work with students who engage in challenging behaviors, including those identified with EBD. These strategies can be implemented classwide and while working with students with EBD or other challenging behaviors. These strategies were selected because of their accessibility, ease of use, minimal preparation requirements, and because they are free of cost. Teachers can implement any of these strategies in all academic areas, throughout the day, and in general or special education settings. The strategies, accompanied by step-by-step implementation instructions, include using the Good Behavior Game (GBG), providing behavior-specific praise (BSP), and increasing the provision of teacher requests that allow students opportunities to respond (OTR) to those requests and receive feedback. All of the recommended strategies are grounded within extant literature that demonstrates a greater likelihood of positive academic and behavior outcomes for students with challenging behaviors when the strategies are implemented as designed. A critical takeaway point of this article is that teachers who do not presently implement one or all of these practices can embed them within classroom instruction immediately.
GBG
The GBG is an interdependent group contingency classroom management strategy based on identifying and rewarding appropriate behaviors as defined by the teacher (Alberto & Troutman, 2013). In contrast to individual student behavior determining outcomes, interdependent group contingency is designed where the behaviors of all students determine the outcome of the group or groups as a whole. Teachers can easily learn to administer this whole-class strategy to promote positive classroom behaviors for all students, while simultaneously reducing challenging behaviors.
Research suggests that the GBG is effective in promoting behavior change (Rubow et al., 2018). In a recent review, the GBG was found to have a moderate to large, immediate effect on reducing challenging behaviors in the classroom setting (Flower et al., 2014). The GBG has been used to address off-task behavior, aggression, disruptive behavior, talk outs, and out-of-seat behaviors (Flower et al., 2014). While implementing the GBG, teachers are able to practice multiple behavior management strategies including BSP, teaching classroom rules and expectations, delivering rewards and reinforcers, and providing feedback to address inappropriate or challenging behaviors.
Although the GBG is easy to implement, the effectiveness of this strategy relies on the correct application and implementation of reward procedures (Flower et al., 2014). Extant research indicates that the combination of GBG and rewards is a critical component of positive results such as reductions in challenging behaviors and increases in desired behaviors (Flower et al., 2014; Rubow et al., 2018). When incorporating rewards, it is recommended that teachers conduct preference assessments (see Figure 1) prior to implementing the GBG (Flower et al., 2014) to best understand which rewards are effective motivators for students. Flower et al. (2014) found that studies that used preference assessments prior to implementing the GBG had moderate to large positive effects on targeted behaviors (Rubow et al., 2018). Although rewards can vary, it is important to note that use of tangible rewards such as stickers and candy generally results in the highest effects when compared with verbal praise (e.g., “I love how you are standing quietly in line”) and social/activity rewards (e.g., lunch with the teacher; Flower et al., 2014).
Preference assessment exam.
Before the GBG begins, there must be a clear, complete, and concise operational definition of the replacement or appropriate desired behavior. The GBG is also very flexible, so teachers can establish rules that are most appropriate for their students and classroom. Specifically, teachers can decide to use rules and expectations already in place in their classrooms or use schoolwide rules, as well as targeting other challenging behaviors that may not be addressed in the current set of classroom rules. For example, some behaviors that can be targeted in the GBG are being kind to others, having all materials ready, or raising hands and waiting to be called.
When using the GBG as a reinforcement strategy, teachers can split the class into teams with equal numbers of students per team. Teams can be named. Teachers can decide if they would like to use the GBG during a specific activity, group work, or if they would like to continue the GBG over the course of a few days. Teachers should let students know who is on each team and when the game will begin and end. It is important to note that the GBG is to be played for portions rather than for full days (Joslyn et al., 2019), as this increases the opportunity for student success.
Teachers should remind students that they are to work together as a team and should hold each other accountable for their socially appropriate, or “good,” behavior to earn points. Although the teams are competing against one another, teachers will provide points according to the specific rules that they created for the game. Throughout GBG implementation, teachers can decide to add or subtract points contingent on the students’ behavior. It is recommended that points be awarded for positive interactions and that point reductions be avoided (Groves & Austin, 2019).
Students can also play the GBG against the teacher. In this scenario, the students must demonstrate appropriate, positive behavior to receive a point. If the class is not displaying certain target behaviors determined before the game begins, the teacher receives a point each time the negative or inappropriate behavior is shown. At the predetermined end time of the GBG, the winning team is the team with the most points. The winning team is then rewarded for its appropriate demonstration of behavior (Pennington & McComas, 2017). As we begin to walk through the steps to implementing the GBG, it is important to note that the traditional GBG was traditionally utilized to reduce inappropriate behavior. The version of the GBG we introduce here is an adaptation of the traditional format in which we emphasize prosocial behavior instead of focusing on the inappropriate behavior. Steps to implementing the GBG can be found in Table 1.
Steps to Implement the Good Behavior Game.
Steps to Implement the GBG: Before Instruction
Step 1 (identify times and settings of challenging behaviors): A teacher should decide a specific time or instructional period that the GBG takes place (Lannie & McCurdy, 2007). This period can be decided by the time of day where a majority of disruptive behaviors occur or any time that students need a little extra motivation to be successful in the classroom. The game is to be played during parts of days and should never implemented over an entire school day (Joslyn et al., 2019). For example, group work would be an appropriate time for a teacher to implement the GBG.
Step 2 (create teams): Next, the teacher divides the class into teams so that each team has the same or a fair number of students to compete for the reward. The teams can be selected by putting together students who engage and do not engage in problem behaviors to create even teams. The teacher gives each team a name (e.g., Team 1, Team 2, Team 3, Team 4) so that groups of students can be easily referenced at any time.
Step 3 (determine rewards): A reward for the winning team must be determined. It is best to use a preference assessment prior to implementing the GBG to choose rewards that are motivating to students (see Figure 1 for an example). The teacher can add some flexibility by using a mystery motivator selected from the preference assessments as a reward that will be revealed at the end of the game.
Step 4 (determine target behaviors and post rules): The teacher defines desired behaviors that will be awarded points during the GBG as well as inappropriate behaviors. These behaviors, or rules, should be written on the board so, during the game, the students have access to them at all times. For example, the teacher writes each behavior that will be awarded points on an anchor chart and posts them so they are visible to all students or projects them on a SMART Board.
Step 5 (determine winning requirements): The teacher determines how a team will win the game. As examples, winners could be the first team to 15 points or the team with the lowest point total at the end of math period or the team with the most points at the end of 3 consecutive days of innings during writing instruction.
Step 6 (explain rules): The teacher explains to the students which behaviors will and will not be awarded points during the game. For example, the teacher may explain that teams that are found to be working cooperatively will earn a point, while team members that are judged to be arguing will receive no points.
Step 7 (model): The teacher can anticipate how to increase the chances for all students to be successful within the game through explicit modeling of appropriate behaviors. As an example, the teacher may model different statements that students who are cooperating may say to each other, like, “I agree with what you are saying,” or “I’m not sure if I understand why you chose that answer. Can you please explain it to me or show me where you found that in our textbook?” The teacher can explain that having cooperative conversations like the previous modeled examples can increase the likelihood that students will receive points for that behavior.
Steps to Implement the GBG: During Instruction
Step 8 (award and remove points): Throughout the instructional period, the teacher can administer points for desired target behaviors and may remove points from teams when a student engages in the defined negative behavior, or breaks the predetermined rules. Although the GBG allows for the removal of points for inappropriate behavior, it is our recommendation to establish game rules in which points are provided for teams who are engaging in appropriate behaviors, and prompts, instead of taking away points for follow inappropriate behaviors. For example, during group work, the teacher can walk around the classroom while looking for students who are participating in the behaviors outlined by the rules. When the teacher notices students who are following the determined rules, the teacher can award the appropriate team points.
Step 9 (provide prompts and feedback): When a student engages in negative behavior, the teacher can provide verbal prompts and feedback to the student or team to remind them of the rules and correct the behavior. For example, if the teacher notices a group of students arguing, he or she can prompt this group, reminding them of the examples that were previously provided to the class on working cooperatively.
Steps to Implement the GBG: After Instruction
Step 10 (reward winning team): Once the instructional period or game has ended, the team that has reached the predetermined goal wins. The teacher must give the winning team a reward to reinforce the positive behavior demonstrated. For example, after the time allotted for group work has concluded, the teacher can give the team who received the most points its preferred reward of extra recess time.
Step 11 (repeat process): The teacher can now implement the game in different subjects with new teams and rules. In addition, the teacher can consider strategies and groupings that will allow all students to experience successes, or “wins,” in the GBG over time.
Example
Mrs. Myer loves to make learning a game, so she was very excited when she found out about the GBG. She decided she wanted to implement the GBG in her classroom during group work. In the past, Mrs. Myer has found group work to be a time when a lot of students exhibit off-task behaviors, and she has struggled to effectively manage her classroom during group work activities. While she often dreads facilitating group work activities, Mrs. Myer thinks it is important to provide her students with a collaborative classroom environment.
She decided to put the GBG into action during group work to help her manage the classroom better during these collaborative learning opportunities. She wanted to focus on the target behaviors of teamwork, helping others, and staying on task. She has her room set up so that her students’ desks are split into four teams. She hung signs from the ceiling over each group of desks, labeling them Team 1, Team 2, Team 3, and Team 4. She created a preference assessment for her class to complete, which included tangible items and activities they enjoy participating in. Once all of the students in her class finished the preference assessments, she assigned students to teams according to their choices. Team 1 members would receive candy as a reward if they won, Team 2 would receive iPad time, Team 3 would receive extra recess time, and Team 4 would receive some type of school supply (pencil, pen, eraser, etc.). Mrs. Myer wrote on the board, “Earn points by staying on task, working as a team, and helping each other.” She then verbally explained to her class how they could earn points and win the game. She stated that the class will have 1 hr to work on the assignment, and at the end of the assignment, the team with the most points will win its preferred reward. She reminded her students that they must work together as a team.
After the game had begun and her students were working on their assignment, Mrs. Myer circled the room looking for behaviors that earned points. When she saw Madison helping a teammate use the dictionary, she stated, “Team 3 earns one point because I noticed Madison helping Maddox look up a word in the dictionary. Great teamwork!” Throughout the hour, Mrs. Myer continued to distribute points while offering prompts for behaviors that deviated from the game rules. When time was up she announced that the game had ended and Team 2 ended up with the most points and members will be receiving extra iPad time for their good behavior. After the game was over, the students begged Mrs. Myer to play the game again. Since then, the GBG has become an effective and regularly used reinforcement strategy in Mrs. Myers’ classroom and she now feels much less stressed during group activities.
BSP
BSP is an easy to implement behavior management strategy that can be used to effectively shape student behavior (Ennis et al., 2018). There are two types of praise that can be used in the classroom: general praise (GP) and BSP. GP is used when a teacher praises a student but does not directly reinforce, target, or identify the desired behavior. Examples of GP are statements such as “good work,” “nice job,” and “well done.” GP statements do not connect feedback to specific behaviors and are not as effective as BSP (Ennis et al., 2018). In addition, GP may result in the reinforcement of undesired behaviors because the praise is not directly linked to a specific behavior.
On the contrary, BSP, also known as positive specific praise, is a powerful tool that can be used to decrease challenging behaviors in the classroom and increase the likelihood of a specific, more socially appropriate, behavioral response. The desired behavior that is demonstrated by the student must be explicitly and immediately praised to increase the likelihood of the behavior’s reoccurrence (Allday et al., 2012). Delivering BSP involves identifying a desired behavior and then verbally affirming a student or students for exhibiting the behavior. When teachers provide BSP, they demonstrate the social approval of a desired behavior through positive teacher attention, thus increasing the likelihood of the student performing that specific behavior again in the future (Duchaine et al., 2011). Examples and nonexamples of BSP are provided in Table 2.
Examples and Nonexamples of Behavior-Specific Praise.
There are many advantages to using BSP within the classroom. For instance, teachers can implement this type of feedback to increase motivation, engagement, and independence, which can improve desired behavior, increase learning readiness, and advance skill acquisition (McLeskey et al., 2017). In addition, BSP is an evidence-based classroom management strategy that has a history of effectiveness (Royer et al., 2018). Not only can BSP be used to address behavioral needs and decrease classroom disruptions, but it can be implemented to increase academic and social skill acquisition (McLeskey et al., 2017) and build a positive classroom environment (Ennis et al., 2018).
Increased use of BSP can result in increases in desired student behaviors. Research has demonstrated that teachers who maintain high usage of BSP experience less disruptive behaviors in the classroom (Ennis et al., 2018). Through these results, one may infer that with a lower frequency of disruptive behaviors, a teacher will have more academic engagement time to focus on instruction. Research has suggested a ratio of four positive interactions to one negative interaction as a general rule of thumb (Kalis et al., 2007). BSP is an easy strategy for teachers to learn and implement in the classroom and it can benefit all students. Unfortunately, even with the simplicity of implementation, low rates of BSP are often demonstrated by teachers. For example, Reinke et al. (2008) found that 1 out of 33 teachers implemented praise at the target rate of 4:1. To put that into perspective, maybe one teacher out of an entire school had an optimal positive to negative ratio of BSP.
Just as it is important for teachers to assess and measure the academic growth of their students, teachers should also assess and measure their use of BSP to improve their self-efficacy in BSP implementation. Specifically, prior to implementing BSP, teachers should collect baseline data to determine their current ratio of positive to negative statements. Examples of negative statements and corrective feedback are as follows: “Please stop talking to your neighbor,” “No, I said raise your hand,” “Stop!” “Quit that!” and “I really don’t like the way you are tapping your pencil on your desk.” One option to determine a teacher’s baseline BSP ratio is to have another staff member collect frequency data on positive and negative teacher–student interactions during a specified time. A second option is for a teacher to videotape a lesson, especially during a time with a higher likelihood of challenging behaviors, and then independently review the video and conduct a frequency count of positive and negative teacher–student interactions.
Once baseline rates are determined, immediate implementation of BSP can begin. Again, the goal is to have at least four positives for every one corrective or negative teacher–student interaction. After teachers begin implementing this strategy, they should reexamine their ratio to determine a rate of improvement. Through practice and use of BSP, teachers will find it easier and more natural to implement this strategy in the classroom throughout the school day. BSP can be used in all settings, across all subjects, and directed toward any student. BSP implementation steps are listed in Table 3.
Steps to Implement Behavior-Specific Praise.
Steps to Implement BSP: Before Instruction
Step 1 (identify times and settings of challenging behaviors): Teachers need to identify times and settings when challenging student behaviors occur most frequently. For example, teachers may consistently feel stressed during math time because many students get frustrated, so they begin engaging in challenging behaviors like shouting, walking around the room, and other off-task behaviors.
Step 2 (determine target behaviors and collect baseline data): Next, teachers need to identify specific positive behaviors to target during the time and setting identified in Step 1, to create a more positive learning environment. In this example, teachers would like to see more students appropriately asking for help when they feel stuck. Also, in this step, teachers should collect baseline data to determine the frequency of the desired behavior occurring. In this case, teachers can set a timer for 15 min to determine how many times students raise their hands and ask for help appropriately during math time.
Steps to Implement BSP During Instruction
Step 3 (discuss expectations and model desired behaviors): Once the positive behaviors have been identified, the teacher can discuss these expectations and model the desired behaviors for his or her students. The teacher must model the positive behavior so that the students can clearly see exactly what the teacher is expecting from them. If the teacher expectation is for students to raise their hand quietly and wait for the teacher to respond during independent work time in math class, then the scenario of a teacher responding to a student’s appropriate call needs to be demonstrated. That is, the teacher can explicitly model the student perspective in raising a hand and quietly waiting for teacher assistance.
Step 4 (provide BSP): After the teacher has discussed and modeled desired behaviors with his or her students, the teacher can use explicit and timely BSP when positive behaviors are displayed by students. Continuing the scenario, after providing instructions of the math lesson, the teacher can look for students who quietly raise their hand and wait for help when they are struggling. The teacher provides immediate and specific praise to students exhibiting the on-task behavior that was previously discussed and modeled for students. When noticing that Johnny is on-task, raises his hand, and quietly waits for the teacher to come to him to help remind him of the steps to solve the problem he is working on, the teacher can provide Johnny with BSP, such as “Johnny, I am so proud that you raised your hand when you needed help, and I love how you waited quietly at your desk until I was able to help you.”
Steps to Implement BSP: After Instruction
Step 5 (collect data and continue providing BSP): The teacher continues providing students with BSP addressing the target behavior chosen in Step 1. In addition, the teacher continues collecting data periodically to assess the effectiveness of BSP implementation on the target behavior. We suggest that teachers collect data 1 to 3 times per week.
Step 6 (repeat process): When students begin to demonstrate increased rates of the targeted behavior as measured by data collection, the teacher can explicitly introduce a new behavior and begin the process anew.
Example
Mrs. Bochat read about providing BSP to students and the benefits that can result from having a 4:1 ratio of positive to negative statements in the classroom. She noticed that most days during math a lot of challenging behaviors occurred. This made her feel somewhat burnt out and even made her want to walk out of the classroom at times. Mrs. Bochat realized that the challenging behavior that disrupted the classroom most frequently was when her students would talk out when they were unsure how to solve a problem. She was unsure of her baseline BSP, and decided to ask her colleague Mrs. Myer to sit in during a math lesson and collect frequency data on the frequency of BSP statements she provided to her students during this period.
Review of data revealed that Mrs. Bochat provided an average only one instance of positive statements for every 12 negative statements provided to students during the time that Mrs. Myer observed. The next day during her math lesson, Mrs. Bochat decided to model to her students the way she would like them to ask for help when they are feeling confused or frustrated. She explicitly showed them how to raise their hands and what it looks like to appropriately wait to be called on to ask for help. After her demonstration, she began to give more and more students BSP when they engaged in her chosen targeted behavior. In particular, she began paying attention to the students who presented with the most challenging behavior. She made a good effort to provide high amounts of BSP to these students daily. At first, it felt a little forced, but in no time she found herself providing praise statements without thought. “I am so proud of you for asking for help when you were having a hard time figuring out the answer to that problem,” and “You have been doing an awesome job remembering to raise your hand. That makes me so happy!” were a couple of examples of her latest praise statements.
Mrs. Bochat decided to videotape one of her recent math lessons to find her new praise ratio. She found that in a short period of time she had brought her ratio from 1:12 up to 14:1! Mrs. Bochat realized that raising her rates of praise also resulted in fewer incidences of challenging behavior observed and more efficient use of instructional time. With math time seeming less stressful, she even felt an increase in job satisfaction related to that subject.
Tying the Strategies Together: OTR
An effective way to facilitate increases in teacher use of BSP and improvement in the effectiveness of the GBG is to provide students with greater OTR to instructional requests. OTR is an effective teaching practice that can be used to increase instruction quality and student engagement (McLeskey et al., 2017). OTR combines the rates of prompts, feedback (e.g., BSP), wait time, and instructional talk resulting in a functional relationship between the variables and behavior (Stichter et al., 2009). Types of OTR and the implementation steps are displayed in Tables 4 and 5, respectively.
Modes and Examples of Opportunities to Respond.
Steps in Providing Students With OTR.
Note. OTR = opportunities to respond.
Prompting
Teachers can elicit student responses through prompting. For example, prompting can be done through verbal requests, use of flash cards, technology, body language, and facial expressions. Research has demonstrated that effective teachers provide more prompts per session. Specifically, Englert (1983) found that effective teacher trainees delivered 3.63 prompts per minute compared with 2.21 prompts per minute delivered by less effective teacher trainees. Research on prompt rates also shows a functional relationship between prompting and on-task behavior. In a study of students with EBD, increased rates of prompting by teachers resulted in increases in the on-task behavior of students (Martin et al., 2018). A standard rate of prompting is not entirely clear in the literature. Stichter et al. (2009) suggest that 3.5 prompts per minute seem to foster improvement in both student achievement and engagement.
Wait Time
Wait time is another critical component of OTR that can increase learners’ attention levels, response rates, and achievement. Wait time is the amount of time between teacher instruction and student response. Research has demonstrated that 3 s is an optimal amount of time for teachers to wait to support higher cognitive achievement at all grade levels (Ingram & Elliott, 2016). Wait time allows students time to think about the question at hand and formulate their response. An easy way for teachers to provide wait time is to slowly count to three in their heads before providing further assistance, prompts, or requests from students (Trussell, 2008). It may be necessary to provide longer wait times to students with and at risk for disabilities.
Instructional Talk
Instructional talk refers to information, directions, explanations, and practice delivered to students that are related to classroom learning. Instructional talk is also called “active teaching,” because this is when a teacher is actively engaging students. During active teaching, teachers provide many opportunities to elicit responses from students. These requests create opportunities for teachers to provide BSP. Effective teachers have been found to spend 40% to 50% of instructional time in active teaching (Sanders et al., 2018).
Providing students with OTR has demonstrated effectiveness across subjects and behaviors. Researchers have found improved rates of achievement in reading, math, and science (MacSuga-Gage & Simonsen, 2015). A functional relationship has also been found between OTR and many behaviors, including on-task behavior and engagement, correct responses, learning rates, decreased disruptive behavior, and efficient use of instructional time (Gage et al., 2018). Therefore, by providing more OTR, especially when implementing strategies such as GBG, teachers have increased opportunities to provide BSP, increasing the likelihood of student engagement and reducing the likelihood of disruptive behaviors.
Steps to Provide OTR: Before Instruction
Step 1 (determine mode of response): Prior to instruction, the teacher can determine preferred modes of delivery in increasing students OTR (see Table 4.) For example, the teacher may ask students to create response cards by writing yes and no on either side of an index card.
Step 2 (explain rules): Next, the teacher can explain to students how they will be able to participate in responding. When using yes/no response cards, the teacher can explain that he or she will ask a question and then expect students to quietly raise the appropriate response card and display it so that it can be seen by the teacher.
Steps to Provide OTR: During Instruction
Step 3 (implement): The teacher uses the desired mode of OTR often during lessons. It is appropriate to implement more than one style of OTR in a particular lesson. For example, the teacher can use yes/no response cards multiple times and for multiple reasons within a lesson and also ask students to show thumbs up and thumbs down to check for understanding. The teacher might also ask students to use their response cards to ask if they remember the steps to complete subtraction with regrouping problems. Furthermore, the teacher can work through an example of subtraction with regrouping and ask students to use their response cards to communicate if the teacher should carry the number in the 10s place during a model. In addition, the teacher might embed a technology-based OTR into the lesson.
Step 4 (provide corrective feedback when appropriate): The teacher can provide corrective feedback following incorrect student responses. For example, if a student uses his or her yes response card indicating that the number in the 10s place should be carried but the problem only includes two-digit numbers, the teacher can then correct the student by explaining which numbers are in the 10s and 1 place values.
Steps to Provide OTR: After Instruction
Step 5 (reflect): After instruction, the teacher can reflect on how well the students engaged through the different modes chosen to elicit OTR. If the yes/no response cards were not very effective but students really enjoyed using a technology-based system, it may be appropriate to reteach how to use the yes/no response cards or increase the use of technology-based OTR strategies in the future.
Conclusion
With the use of behavior management strategies, teachers can influence the behaviors and actions of their students. Teachers can implement these strategies to modify their teaching style and the learning environment to positively impact student success in the classroom. BSP, the GBG, and providing students with OTR are all research-based strategies that teachers can easily learn to implement in the classroom to reduce occurrences of challenging behaviors and increase on-task behavior and student achievement for all students, including those with EBD. We have provided the reader with step-by-step directions to plan, implement, and evaluate implementation of each of the three practices. Table 6 provides a listing of additional resources that might be used to find out more information on the GBG, BSP, or OTR.
Additional Resources for Each Strategy.
Footnotes
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
