Plan and Rationale
In Phase I of my action research, I alluded to the fact that I may need to sit down with students individually in order to cement my behavioral expectations in the classroom. As I discovered in Phase I, many of the students that cause the most consistent amount of distractions maintain the self-awareness that their behavior is indeed distracting. However, there seems to be a disconnect between the acknowledgement of distracting behavior and the initiative to improve upon said behavior, especially considering that the group conferences worked less to develop individual strategies with individual students, and more on overall approaches.
As I discussed in my literature review, the use of functional behavior assessment with students has proven effective in reducing problem behaviors in the classroom. It gives teachers the chance to clearly communicate with individual students both his or her classroom expectations as well as developing a plan for improving individual behavior. In our Phase I group conferences, I established what a positive learning community looks like in the classroom and asked the students for suggestions as to how we can work together to reach my goal of a developing a positive learning community. Some students may not share the same goals as me, but the continued problem behaviors still remain consistent for some students in the class, if not themselves. In Phase II, I began by carrying out individual interviews with students who still exhibit disruptive behavior in the classroom. It was no coincidence that most of these students had failing grades in my class. Rather than outlining my personal definition of a positive learning community, we worked together to try and develop a plan (based on the functional behavior assessment ideals) suitable towards fostering a positive learning community in the classroom.
The product of these individual interviews was a behavior agreement. In this agreement, we will outlined together the characteristics of the student's current behavior, their classroom performance, and outlined a plan to help improve both classroom behavior and academic performance. The plan may have involved some sort of reward or consequence, to at least create some extrinsic motivation for positive classroom behavior, that could lead to the development of intrinsic motivation in the future. The notion of creating an agreement contrasts with what would otherwise be called a contract. However, my action research colleagues and I determined that calling a measure like this a "contract" may appear to the student to be a form of punishment, or at the very least an unwelcoming approach towards finding a solution. The goal of these interviews was to work together to develop a rational plan for shifting behavior in the classroom.
Finally, one hurdle that must be avoided is the school’s winter break. My fear of implementing Phase II prior to the school's two week leave of absence is that any conversations I hold with the students in a one-on-one fashion will not "stick" and true academic and behavioral progress may be stymied by the fact that students may have simply forgotten about our agreement. This will also give me the chance to assess a greater amount of the students' performance records, which I can reference after the break to help reinforce the goals of the interviews.
As I discussed in my literature review, the use of functional behavior assessment with students has proven effective in reducing problem behaviors in the classroom. It gives teachers the chance to clearly communicate with individual students both his or her classroom expectations as well as developing a plan for improving individual behavior. In our Phase I group conferences, I established what a positive learning community looks like in the classroom and asked the students for suggestions as to how we can work together to reach my goal of a developing a positive learning community. Some students may not share the same goals as me, but the continued problem behaviors still remain consistent for some students in the class, if not themselves. In Phase II, I began by carrying out individual interviews with students who still exhibit disruptive behavior in the classroom. It was no coincidence that most of these students had failing grades in my class. Rather than outlining my personal definition of a positive learning community, we worked together to try and develop a plan (based on the functional behavior assessment ideals) suitable towards fostering a positive learning community in the classroom.
The product of these individual interviews was a behavior agreement. In this agreement, we will outlined together the characteristics of the student's current behavior, their classroom performance, and outlined a plan to help improve both classroom behavior and academic performance. The plan may have involved some sort of reward or consequence, to at least create some extrinsic motivation for positive classroom behavior, that could lead to the development of intrinsic motivation in the future. The notion of creating an agreement contrasts with what would otherwise be called a contract. However, my action research colleagues and I determined that calling a measure like this a "contract" may appear to the student to be a form of punishment, or at the very least an unwelcoming approach towards finding a solution. The goal of these interviews was to work together to develop a rational plan for shifting behavior in the classroom.
Finally, one hurdle that must be avoided is the school’s winter break. My fear of implementing Phase II prior to the school's two week leave of absence is that any conversations I hold with the students in a one-on-one fashion will not "stick" and true academic and behavioral progress may be stymied by the fact that students may have simply forgotten about our agreement. This will also give me the chance to assess a greater amount of the students' performance records, which I can reference after the break to help reinforce the goals of the interviews.
Data Collection and Assessment Methods
The data collection and assessment methods of Phase II are largely similar to those of Phase I, but they are worth bearing repeating here.
During the interviews, I will be taking notes on the dialogue I carry out with the individual students. I will be paying close attention to each student's input as we work together to develop a solid plan. After these interviews have taken place, I will continue to reinforce the ideas and strategies in the classroom throughout my instruction and lesson support, which were developed originally with the Phase I group conferences. The second part of my data collection will be to record my observation of the students, citing specific areas of concern on a day-to-day basis and formulate new plans of action for the future. The overarching goal of these actions is to reduce problem behavior in my classroom and promote a positive learning experience for all of my students, and I hope to do so by further cultivating the personal relationships with my students.
I will also request some observations from my cooperating teacher to conduct observations of behavior in the classroom. He has been aware of the behavior of the students in my class and we regularly discuss ways in which to overcome these problem behaviors and work towards building a positive learning community. He has also kept up to date on my research and I feel that qualitative comments from observation would be helpful not only with improving my own pedagogy, but assessing the progress of my students working towards a positive learning community.
Finally, I will be maintaining a reflection journal on this online portfolio in order to better assess the progress of the class. Reflection will help me unpack the meanings of certain aspects of the class through a careful meta-analysis of my personal teaching strategies and reactions to behavior in the classroom. All of this data collection and assessment will help me determine next steps for instruction and the development of Phase II of intervention.
During the interviews, I will be taking notes on the dialogue I carry out with the individual students. I will be paying close attention to each student's input as we work together to develop a solid plan. After these interviews have taken place, I will continue to reinforce the ideas and strategies in the classroom throughout my instruction and lesson support, which were developed originally with the Phase I group conferences. The second part of my data collection will be to record my observation of the students, citing specific areas of concern on a day-to-day basis and formulate new plans of action for the future. The overarching goal of these actions is to reduce problem behavior in my classroom and promote a positive learning experience for all of my students, and I hope to do so by further cultivating the personal relationships with my students.
I will also request some observations from my cooperating teacher to conduct observations of behavior in the classroom. He has been aware of the behavior of the students in my class and we regularly discuss ways in which to overcome these problem behaviors and work towards building a positive learning community. He has also kept up to date on my research and I feel that qualitative comments from observation would be helpful not only with improving my own pedagogy, but assessing the progress of my students working towards a positive learning community.
Finally, I will be maintaining a reflection journal on this online portfolio in order to better assess the progress of the class. Reflection will help me unpack the meanings of certain aspects of the class through a careful meta-analysis of my personal teaching strategies and reactions to behavior in the classroom. All of this data collection and assessment will help me determine next steps for instruction and the development of Phase II of intervention.
Timeline
January 6-7: Conduct individual interviews in class.
January 8-17: Mark and observe changes in classroom behavior.
January 17-onward: Consider collected data and determine new action plan.
January 8-17: Mark and observe changes in classroom behavior.
January 17-onward: Consider collected data and determine new action plan.