Individual Assignment

BEHAVIOUR
MODIFICATION

PREPARED BY:
NAME: SUBASHINI A/P GUNASAGAREN

MATRIC NO: UFD180073

PROGRAMME: EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

COURSE:  MANAGING EARLY CHILDHOOD BEHAVIOUR

LECTURER: DATO' DR. JAMALIAH AHMAD

DATE: 30 MARCH 2019

CODE PROGRAMME: UFD1005

What Is Behaviour Modification?

 Use behaviour modification strategies to get your child to follow the rules.

Behaviour modification is defined as "the alteration of behavioural patterns through

the use of such learning techniques as biofeedback and positive or negative
reinforcement." More simply, you can modify your child's behaviour with positive
consequences and negative consequences.

Behaviour modification is based on the idea that good behaviour should lead to

positive consequences and bad behaviour should lead to negative consequences. 

Behaviour modification is often used to discipline kids with ADHD, autism

or oppositional defiant disorder, but it can be effective for kids of all types. 

Behaviour modification involves positive punishment, negative punishment, positive

reinforcement and negative reinforcement.

Positive Punishment

Punishment is used to stop negative behaviours. And while it sounds confusing to

refer to punishment as positive, in operant conditioning, the term positive means
adding. So a positive punishment involves adding a consequence that will deter the
child from repeating the behaviour.

Specific examples of positive punishment include:

 Giving a child an extra chore as a consequence for lying when asked if he

cleaned his room.
 Telling a child to write an apology letter after he hurts someone's feelings.
 Insisting a child do a sibling's chore after hurting his sibling.

Spanking is also an example of positive punishment, but most experts agree

that corporal punishment should not be used in behaviour modification.
Negative Punishment

Negative punishment involves removing something from a child. Examples

include taking away privileges or removing positive attention.

Specific examples of negative punishment include:

 Placing a child in time-out so he is not receiving any positive attention.

 Actively ignoring a temper tantrum.
 Taking away a child's electronics privileges.

Positive Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement refers to giving a child something that reinforces good

behaviour. Discipline that relies mostly on positive reinforcement is usually very
effective. Examples of positive reinforcement include praise, a reward system, or
a token economy system.

Specific examples of positive reinforcement include:

 Saying, “Great job putting your dish away before I even asked you to!”
 Allowing a child to earn time to play on his tablet because he completed his
homework.
 Giving a teenager a later curfew because he got on the honour roll.

Negative Reinforcement

Negative reinforcement is when a child is motivated to change his behaviour

because it will take away something unpleasant.

A child who stops a behaviour because his parent yells at him is trying to get rid of
the negative reinforce (the yelling). Negative reinforcement should be used sparingly
with kids as it is less effective than positive reinforcement.
Specific examples of negative reinforcement include:

 Parents nag their son to do his chores. He does his chores to make the
nagging stop.
 A child has been getting into arguments with peers at the bus stop. His
mother starts going to the bus stop with him every day. He begins behaving
so his mother won’t wait for the bus with him.
 A teenager complains about school during the ride to school every morning.
His father turns on talk radio loudly to drown him out. The next day the
teenager doesn't complain about anything because he doesn't want to listen
to talk radio.

How to Use Behaviour Modification to Change Your Child's Behaviour?

You can't force a child to change his behaviour. But, you can change the
environment in a way that he'll be more motivated to change. Behaviour modification
is about modifying the environment in a way that your child has more incentive to
follow the rules.

Consistency is the key to making behaviour modification effective. If you praise your
child for doing his chores, use praise every time he does his chores until it becomes
a habit. Then, you can gradually phase out your praise over time.

Negative consequences should also be consistent. If your child only gets sent to
time-out once out of every five times he hits someone, your consequences won't be
effective. He needs to go to time-out each and every time he hits someone.

Behaviour modification also works best when adults work together as a team. If
teachers, day-care providers, and other caregivers use the same consequences and
rewards, a child's behaviour is likely to change even faster.

Keep in mind that behaviour modification should be customized to your child's

specific needs. The strategies that work well for one child might not work with
another.
Techniques to Guide Children's Behaviour:

 Here are some basic tips to guide children's behaviour. Remember that
different strategies work best at different ages.

 Keep rules simple and easy to understand. Discuss rules with children and
write them down. Consider children’s suggestions for rules. Repeat the rules
often. A few rules that work well with children include:
o Help each other.
o Take care of our toys.
o Say please and thank you.
o Be kind to each other.

 Say what you mean. Use "do" instead of "don't" whenever possible. Choose
your words carefully, especially when you are guiding children's behaviour. Keep
sentences short and simple. Focus on what to do rather than what not to do.
o Try saying, "Slow down and walk" instead of "stop running."
o Try saying, "Come hold my hand" instead of "don’t touch anything."
o Try saying, "Keep your feet on the floor" instead of "don’t climb on the
table."
o Try saying, "Use a quiet voice inside" instead of "stop shouting."

 Talk with children – not “at” them. Children often don’t pay attention when
you are talking (or shouting) “at” them. Guidance is much more effective when
you talk to children at their eye level. Look them in the eyes, touch them on the
shoulder, and talk with them. Resist the urge to simply lecture. Instead, give
children time to respond, and listen genuinely to their points of view.

 Set a good example. Children watch you all the time. They see how you talk
to other children and adults. They see how you cope with anger or frustration.
They watch how you deal with sadness and joy. They listen to how you say “I’m
sorry.” The way you handle the ups and downs of life teaches children a lot about
how to behave and get along with others.
 Encourage children to set good examples for each other. Children also
learn a great deal from each other. Encourage appropriate ways to share, play,
and be kind to each other.

 Give clear, simple choices. Toddlers can choose between a red cup and a
green cup. Pre-schoolers can choose between playing “airport” and “zookeeper.”
Give children a choice only when there is a choice. For example, saying “It is nap
time, do you want to lie down now?” is not really an option if your rule is that
everyone will rest at nap time.

 Show respect for children. Talk to children about misbehaviour in private,

rather than in front of others. Remind them of reasons for rules, and discuss what
they can do differently.

 Catch children being good. All children want attention. It is better to give

them positive attention for good behaviour than negative attention for
misbehaviour. Comment on something positive about each child, each day.
Better yet, strive for several times a day. And share the good news. When
children have done something positive, mention it to other children and to
parents.

 Encourage like a good coach instead of a cheerleader. A cheerleader just

shouts general praise: “What a great job!” or “What a beautiful picture.” A good
coach tells you what you’re doing right, uses praise as a teaching tool, and lets
you know why he or she is proud of you. If a child sets the table, you might say,
“You did such a good job setting the table! You put the spoons and forks in the
right place and remembered the napkins!” When you look at a child’s painting,
you might remark, “This painting just glows with colour. You used blue, green,
red, yellow, and orange. Tell me how you did this!” To learn more about the
difference between praise and encouragement, see Encouragement Is More
Effective than Praise in Guiding Children's behaviour.

 Use play activities to teach social skills. Become a character in children’s

pretend play and show children how to use good manners and be kind. Read
 children’s books that show how children resolve problems. Play “what if” games.
Encourage children to act out ways to work together.

 Teach children how to resolve conflict and solve problems. Help them

recognize and name feelings, identify problems clearly, come up with ideas for
solving the problem, and try possible solutions. For more information on teaching
problem solving, check out the article Ways Child Care Providers Can Teach
Young Children to Resolve Conflicts.

 Teach children how to apologize. Learning how to apologize is a skill.

Young children have a hard time understanding another child’s feelings, but by
the time they are 4 years old they should begin to recognize that apologizing is a
good way to make up for hurting someone else. Keep it simple (e.g., "Lucas, I'm
sorry I hit you.") With time and practice, children will not have to be prompted,
and their apology will be more genuine. Teach pre-schoolers and school-age
children the four basic steps of apologizing:
o Look at the other child
o Say the child’s name
o Say “I’m sorry”
o Say why

 Teach children how to correct their misbehaviour. If a child throws food

onto the floor give him a broom and show him how to clean it up. If a child draws
on the wall, give her a wet cloth to clean the wall. Even if the child cannot
successfully clean up the entire mess alone, participating in clean-up teaches
him that his actions have consequences. Over time, experiencing consequences
helps children learn self-control.
Case study

Background Information

Tommy is a 5 year-old boy who enjoys swimming, cooking and watch cartoon. He
does not like art activities or large crowds. Tommy has a good sense of humour but
he can be irritable. He is fearful around new people and may become quiet and more
reserved in those situations. His parents and teachers talk him through exposure to
new people. Tommy is highly verbal and speaks by words. Tommy is above grade
level in reading. He enjoys reading, and his favourite book is The Little Red Hen.
According to Tommy, he dislikes writing. Most of his writing is simple sentences with
a great deal of grammatical errors and little detail. He also struggles with math, in
which he is approximately 2 grade levels below. He has recently learned how to pitch
left handed. Tommy has a medical diagnosis of childhood-onset bipolar disorder and
an educational classification of severe emotional and behavioural disorder. He takes
medication for bipolar disorder on a daily basis. He is currently on a new medication.
Tommy has a new baby brother who is 8 months old.

Target Behaviour (Unacceptable Behaviour)

Tommy has been increasingly disruptive the past few months. He has verbal
outbursts and pushes classroom materials onto the floor after being given an
academic task during quiet work time. His verbal outbursts include yelling that he is
not doing the assignment, telling a student to shut up, using profanity, and calling
student’s names and also hitting other students. His teachers do feel that they spend
about an hour per day dealing with the behaviour, and they usually respond to
Tommy’s behaviour by scolding him or by initiating an office referral.

School Classroom Environment

Tommy attends a regular pre-school. Tommy is new to the school. There are 21
students in his homeroom classroom. Tommy has 2 segments in a resource SPED
(special education) class with 5 other students. Tommy also has 1 co-teaching
segment for math. His teacher is very organized and structured. She is loving and
understanding with regards to Tommy needs.

Previous Interventions

Tommy has attended your school for two months now. Initially, he seemed to
acclimate to the new school well. However, things have gotten more difficult for him
lately. Tommy’s teacher set up some rewards for him to earn if he does not engage
in the disruptive behaviour. His behaviour has not improved and it has been difficult
for his team to identify “why” he is engaging in the behaviour. There is no consensus
among his team that the rewards are the appropriate intervention for his disruptive
behaviour. His team agreed to conduct an FBA (Functional Behaviour Assessment)
and develop a BIP (Behaviour Intervention Plan).

Tommy TARGET BEHAVIOR         Student: Tommy

Describe Tommy’s is physically doing that is interfering with his learning or the learning
of others?  

Be Specific. Verbal Outbursts: Tommy has negative verbal outbursts towards adults and
peers which include yelling, name calling, and profanity.

Give an example of the target behaviour and desired behaviour.

Verbal outbursts:  Tommy yells at the teacher that he will complete the given
assignment or shut up to peers, calls students names such as stupid, and uses profanity
towards others. Desired behaviour:  Tommy speaking and participating in class in a
positive manner‐ using a quiet voice, positive, appropriate words.
Is the target behaviour measurable? How would you measure the behaviour?

The number of verbal outbursts

Use the information above to define Target Behaviour One.  Be concise and specific so
anyone could recognize the target behaviour when observing the student.

Tommy engages in the behaviour of negative verbal outbursts.  These negative verbal

outbursts include yelling at peers and adults, name calling, and using profanity.  This
does not include talking during class time in a positive manner.

Case Study 1: Activity 2

ABC Behaviour Checklist Activity

Record the following information on the ABC Behaviour Checklist:

Context or Activities: Student’s Reaction:

 Group – small > Stopped

 Individual Time > Continued
 Reading > Intensified
 Math
 Spelling
 Lunch
 Social Studies
 Recess
 Science
 Writing

Antecedents: Consequence/Outcome:

 Transition > Choice Given

 Denied Access > Redirection
 Instruction/Directive > Discussion of Behaviour
 New Task > Personal Space Given
 Teacher Attention to Other > Changed Activity
  Told NO > Peer Attention
 Choice Given > Verbal Reprimand
 Redirection > Physical Prom
> Time Out
> Removal from Class

REFRENCES

 https://www.verywellfamily.com/what-is-behavior-modification-1094788

 https://articles.extension.org/pages/25703/basic-tips-child-care-providers-can-

use-to-guide-childrens-behavior

 https://www.gadoe.org/Curriculum-Instruction-and-Assessment/Special-

Education-Services/Documents/Sp%20Ldrshp%2014%20Handouts/Case

%20Study%201%20Activity%201-6.pdf

 https://csesa.fpg.unc.edu/sites/csesa.fpg.unc.edu/files/ebpbriefs/FBA_Steps_

0.pdf

 https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/treatments-

approaches/educational-strategies/behavior-intervention-plans-what-you-

need-to-know

 www.behaviorworks.org/files/articles/ABCs%20of%20Behavior%202004.pdf

 Scandinavian Journal of Behaviour Therapy Volume 6, 1977 - Issue 4

 The Construction of the Self: A Developmental Perspective-Journal of

Cognitive Psychotherapy-Vol 15 by Susan Harter. Guilford Publication,1999

 Guiding children's social development and learning-M Kostelnik, A Whiren, A

Soderman, M Rupiper… - 2014 - Nelson Education