WEBVTT

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[Music] Welcome to the Overview

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on Describing Behavior Problems
in the Classroom.

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Mr. Thompson is used to having 
his third-grade students act

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out in his class.

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It's almost always the students
who aren't doing well,

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which doesn't surprise him.

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How could any student perform well
when they're so busy making jokes,

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passing notes,
and chatting during instruction?

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After attending a professional
development seminar on student behavior,

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however, he's starting to wonder
if he has it backwards.

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Maybe his students aren't doing poorly
because they act out.

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Maybe they're acting
out because they're doing poorly.

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Once we see behavior as an indicator
of student need and not

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as a defining characteristic
of the student himself,

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we can begin to address the problem.

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In order to understand the roots
of student behavior,

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it's necessary to collect
and analyze data.

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This can be a time-consuming process,
requiring schools to prioritize

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which students most need this type
of investment.

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Questions to ask when assessing the need
for data collection include:

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Is it developmentally appropriate?

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Is the student's behavior persisting?

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Does it threaten the safety
of the students or teacher?

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Does it prevent other students
from learning?

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Is it spreading to other students?

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If the answers to any
of these questions are positive

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and there is a need
for a more in-depth assessment,

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the behavior will need to be defined
as specifically and objectively

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as possible so that connections
and inferences are accurately made.

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"Danny is always disturbing others" 
is not as useful as

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"Danny repeatedly leaves his seat
and distracts others during math class."

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Research shows that data-informed 
interventions have a

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much higher chance to succeed
than more generalized interventions.

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Data can help reveal why students act
the way they do.

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Many behaviors serve a purpose,
and once that underlying purpose is

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understood, teachers can select
strategies to help meet student needs

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and maintain an orderly
classroom environment.

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This understanding can also help 
ensure that teachers don't attempt

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interventions that inadvertently
reinforce the problem behavior.

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If a student is looking for attention
from teachers and peers, for example,

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stopping instruction in order

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to reprimand the student in front
of the class may reinforce the problem.

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Teachers should take all
available information into account

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when analyzing data,
including the student's academic

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history, past disciplinary referrals
and their outcomes, and what is known

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about the student's life outside
of school.

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Only with a thorough understanding
of a student's background can an

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accurate assessment be made
of what the student's academic,

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psychological, and social needs are.

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We cannot know why a student 
is behaving inappropriately

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until we know the student.

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There are several ways to collect
and organize data

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about specific incidents,
from basic spreadsheets

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and frequency tables
to more sophisticated

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analysis databases.

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What is important is the kind
of data gathered and that it is gathered

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over a sufficient period of time.

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Data should be gathered
over several weeks

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and clearly keep track
of what happened immediately before the

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incident, what happened during
and around the incident,

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and what happened
immediately afterwards.

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This data should include concrete
details about the environment,

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such as the lesson content,
type of activity, level of difficulty,

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proximity of the teacher,
what the teacher said,

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the behavior of other students,
and other contextual factors.

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Data should also include the length
and intensity of the behavior.

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With this information,
patterns can begin to appear.

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As teachers look at this information,
they can see which conditions are likely

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to elicit problem behaviors, and which 
conditions are not likely to do so.

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The more accurate the incident data,
the clearer it becomes

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of what triggers behavior
and what reinforces it.

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For example, if a student acts
out to avoid dealing

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with a math practice,
sending the student

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to the office will only reinforce
this behavior.

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Instead, the teacher can send the
student to the library

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to continue working on the task
without interfering with the class.

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At the same time,
the teacher should look

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for tutoring opportunities
to strengthen the student's math skills.

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The task of data collection
and analysis does not rest

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on the teacher alone.

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School and district behavior 
experts can work with teachers

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to conduct independent observations,
facilitate data analysis,

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and propose interventions and strategies
to address the needs reflected

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in the data collected.

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Mr. Thompson began keeping daily logs
of the behavior of students

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that were disrupting his class.

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These logs detailed all occurrences
of problem behavior,

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what preceded that behavior,
and how he responded.

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One student, who had 
reading difficulties,

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showed disruptive behavior only during
independent reading time.

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Another student showed signs of stress
and got up from his seat

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when the noise levels
in the classroom went up.

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With the help of the school
psychologist, Mr. Thompson felt better

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able to address both the emotional
and the academic needs of these students.

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To learn more about describing behavior
problems in the classroom,

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please see the additional resources
on the Doing What Works website.

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[Music]