Rewards/Stickers for Behaviour in Class

[CupcakesHay]

Hi

Can anyone help? I'm training to become teacher and currently planning a research project on rewards used to help good behaviour in classroom. This is my last project before i defer for a year cos of upcoming baby!

I don't live in Uk otherwise I'd ask friends, so I was hoping someone here might be able to help me.

Do they use rewards at the primary school your DC goes to? Do you think they help? Does your DC think they help?

I'm just trying to get a bit of perspective on the whole thing before i start really. :)

Any thought would be really helpful! Thanks!

I am not kidding about the birthday cake. If I spent 6 hours, and no one said a thing (only has to be "nice") I would be devastated, a normal cake takes 1/2 hour tops, so it would be a lot of extra effort.

Stickers help as they are physical things which can't be denied. One child will deny anything nice has ever been said about their work unless we have proof: being in the top set, a certificate, or a sticker. I'm not saying that just putting a sticker on some work and not saying why it deserves it would help, but as proof that something was done well it is helpful.

I would though be very anti her getting grades or marks, as anything less than 100% is likely to be seen as failure. I personally stopped trying as hard one I stopped getting above 90%, as I felt I was then not doing very well however hard I tried.

Stickers are also a good way to communicate with parents; as I do ask my children about stickers they got and try to re-enforce the praise at home.

BTW schools I know have credits/commendations or house points, at secondary age, and most pupils are just as motivated by those. I don't know anywhere which gives vouchers etc., and I'm not sure it would really work.

My issue with all reward systems is that the worst behaved kids get stickers/merits for not jabbing someone with a pencil for 2 minutes, yet those beautifully behaved "always children" (the ones who are always doing the right thing) lose out. They can become a method of bribery and cajolement - the number of times I've seen TAs with really badly behaved kids say "go on, write one more word and I'll give you a sticker" - whereas I've seen some truly superb TAs do things like "you write one word, I'll write the next" and achieve much more.

Having said that - yes I use them on supply on occasions (half the time I forget I have them in my bag to be honest) when I've got a really really difficult class and I need a short shot in the arm of reinforcement of positive behaviour to pull the rest of the class in line. I use them very much to reinforce proximal praise if I'm starting to "lose" a class (bear in mind I teach supply and it's a very different kettle of fish behaviour management wise to a normal class teacher) - pick the kids doing the right thing that are sat near the ones who you WANT doing the right thing and praise them... usually done like that - it works.

Increasingly though I find classes where it's expected that they ALL get a sticker that day, or kids who think they can come up and demand one. I'm a bit of a fuddy duddy in that I acknowledge and praise when it's deserved, and when a child with behaviour issues is trying - you jump on that and praise it to the heavens - but the expectation that all get a sticker every day... to me that removes the value of a reward completely.

Basically I use them when there isn't a class reward system in place that I'm able/allowed (sometimes believe it or not you're not allowed to give merits etc on supply) to jump onto - but as a crutch for everyday teaching - nah.

Like I say though - I teach supply which can be very very different to the day to day classroom management - you HAVE to go in much more singing and dancing on behaviour on supply as you haven't got the consistent staff-member persona within a school to back you up by reputation - and often you don't know names. So yes, perhaps sometimes I do use stickers for a quiet life - but quite often I don't use them at all.

I dislike the expectation with kids these days that they should be rewarded for normal expected behaviour - but that seems to be everywhere and going in for a day on supply - it's not really my battle to fight.

do you think this magic transition to valuing work for it's own sake happens in the summer holiday between schools? :) Brilliant.

Juule - You are right that there are some times when feedback is useful or nice. But in general it is important for a kid to learn for themselves what is good / bad work - and not to have to ask an adult "did I do well?"

Because then their self worth will get linked to whether other people think they've done a good job or not... Which clearly is damaging.

Well in my experience kids at least until year 9 are still pleased to get commendations. And will actually tell other teachers that they got one!

As a parent I like stickers, and my kids like them (preferably in primary on their sweat shirts so I can ask about them).

I think some children may just never do work that is as good as they would like, e.g. dyslexic, dyspraxic, other SPLD; and unless they are praised they don't see the value in their work. The ideas in their head are Shakesperian or Di Vincian, but the output is scruffy, badly spelt and incoherent. They need to know it is being recognised.

As for primary, my DD has spent at least the last year being told daily that she is: a good reader, good at maths and pretty. She believes she is ugly, bad at writing (2a in year 2), but finally believes she is okay at reading and maths. Stickers have helped in this, as one tool.

There is an enormous body of work to demonstrate quite clearly that reinforcement/reward (call it what you will) works very very well indeed.

I have just completed an mSc on behaviour analysis so it is a subject dear to my hear.

If these systems fail 99% of the time it is because those running a system have failed to either identify effective reinforcers and/or fail to use what we know works in terms of a schedule of reinforcement.

So, if we give stickers to kids who don't give two hoots for stickers of course they don't work!

Alfie Kohn writes in an American context where kids 'bigged up' for breathing so in many ways he has a po int but the UK isn't like this.

The eventual aim is to make the work itself intrinsically reinforcing but some kids need a jumpstart, especially those with SN or with a bad history of school success. Idea is always to fade out external reinforcement leaving sense of pride in a job well done and always always about reingforcing and never punishing.om

This is a great and fairly light introduction to Behaviourism

Highly recommended.
Reinforcement works well with everyone.
Particulalry husbands.

I'm not sure there's any doubt that reinforcement/rewards work. I think the things that are questionable are what is being reinforced, what damage it does to a child's ability to self-assess and what do you do when your reinforcer no longer works.

DS's school uses lots of rewards and on the whole I think the way they do it is ok. They collect caterpillars which are given for good work, effort and being extra nice and helpful. When they have 10 they choose a prize, which is usually a pencil or party favour type thing. I don't want DS to only work for rewards so explain to him that the caterpillar/prize is just a way for the teacher to show them they are right track and to keep it up- he seems to understand that just fine.

They also have a 'miniature hero' every week to recognise extra special achievement or a child overcoming something they are struggling with. DS has had it a couple of times and has been really really happy.

Any reinforcement system run by someone who knows what they are doing (by which I mean someone with an MSc or PhD in ABA and a qualification as a board certified behaviour analyst) would know exactly how to tackle such issues Juule.

Trouble is, most people using them have no idea of the science of Behaviourism.

Moondog - I haven't read anything much about behaviourism, so please correct me if I'm wrong.

But what I understand is (like juule says) is that rewarding desirable behaviour works to reenforce and produce more of the desirable behaviour.

The problem is, is that we don't really want that behaviour, what we want is the values underlying that behaviour.

For example, we might want to teach our kids to be happy, confident, responsible, independent and respectful.

Now for some reason the kids have to stand quietly in line. If we reward the 'standing quietly in line' behaviour, we will teach them to stand quietly in line.

But will we teach them to be respectful of other people, which was really the point of them standing quietly in line?

I don't see how you can get happy, confident, creative, independent, resilient people by using behaviorism to control children behavior

Am watching this debate with interest. I once got into "trouble" for saying that I do not wish to teach my children to be obedient. I myself have always been obedient in school - but that was because I knew even from primary school age that if I put up a good show of obedience I could cash in at some point and get away with murder. Very astute child I was.

Indigo, I used to think like you, and did so, for many years. I had a very hard time getting my head around something that challenged much of what I fundamentally believed in.

it's impossible to articulate what behavioural principles really are about in the context of an internet discussion but I will try and address a few points.

I agree, kids need for example to know why it is important to stand in line. They don't necessarily need stickers handed out willy nilly. Within a verbal community, it is usually not too difficult to use language to communicate this fact.

Now say you have an autistic child who really sees no reason why he should sit down or wait in a line. His verbal understanding is virtually non existent so what are we to do? Force him? Leave him to do his own thing (maybe twirling and retreating or falling to the ground every time you ask him to stand in line?)For achild like that, learning this life skill may only be posssible through judicious use of reinforcement.

He might like tickles so you may initially get him to wait for say, two minutes, then give him tickles. Over time ,he will associate standing in line with a really nice thing and in his own way, relax and think 'Ok, i get this system. I do what they want and they do what I want.'

Over time you 'thin the schedule' which means you stretch the waiting in line time more sandm ore and offer less and less of the reinforcement. By this time, the child haslearnt that standing in line is no bad thing and often leads to other interesting stuff-out to play, lunchtime or so on.

Can you see how invaluable this is and how it can transform people's lives (it really can, I have seen it for myself).

What is sad is that people who don't like the sound of using a 'reward system' will (unconsciously) have no such qualms abut using punishment-shouting, sarcasm, rudeness, impatience and so on.

It is endemic even amongst those who truly beleive they aren';t doing it. I know-Ispend many hours taking data on this stuff.

Alfie Kohn (I have read alot of his stuff) really gives an incomplete picture of Behaviourism which is really bad news, particularly as he had the privilege of meeting and interviewing Skiiner (Godfather of Behaviourism).

Skinner was a wonderful compassionate manwhose dream was to use this science to make the world ahappier better place in which coercion had no part.

A great read to counter Alfie is his 'Beyond Freedom and Dignity' which I have just finished.

Moondog - I am absolutely, categorically not talking about SN kids. I have an ASD kid - and I know that all the normal rules don't apply to him.

But, in the context of 'normal' kids, do you believe in (frequent) rewards and/or punishments to control their behaviour?

I agree ABA for Autistic kids transforms lives.

What's 'normal'? (silly question I know).

I don't believe in punishment, no.
I don't use it with my own children.
Do I use rewards?
Yes, indeed I do.
I'musing one right now.

I want my 6 year old to read, write and do some maths with his father. When he has done it, he will spend an hour playing a favourite computer game with him.

He's not being coerced or forced. He grumbles a bit at first but in 2 minutes he will be really enjoying donig hiswork and getting it right (that is, enjoying the activity for its own sake).

Quite often, I offer a 'reward' and they end up enjoying what they are doing so much, they never ask for it.

Also,( get this) the computer game is actually a maths programme.

What about you Indigo?
Do you operate well under a reward system?
Do you receive a wage, a loving glance and squeeze for a job well done from your dh, a 'Congratulations' card from a friend, a glass of wine at the end of the week.

Reinforcement is, people forget, all of these things. If it means something to you and stengthens your tendency to do something again, then it is an effective reinforcer. If it doesn't it isn't.

I run a lot.
My reinforcement is the buzz I get when I finish.

Re kids doing something to feel proud of doing something, the 'feeling proud' bit is the reinforcement. Do you see that?

But the reinforcement of 'feeling proud' is not a reward in the sense that someone else has rewarded you.

Do I respond to rewards?

Well I enjoy my work better when I am paid better - but I would think nothing of changing my job tomorrow if somebody paid me more. So it doesn't make me either loyal to the company, or encourage me to do a better job. I don't consider a wage a reward. I consider it a wage. No wage - no do job.

I'm not sure I ever reward myself. I overeat whenever I want to - I would never have chocolate or wine as a reward - I have those things when I want them.

My husband and kids definitely don't reward me. :)

I think the concept of reinforcement is separate from the concept of rewards. And I still think rewards are bad - and in particular teachers rewarding kids with stickers is a very bad idea.

'But the reinforcement of 'feeling proud' is not a reward in the sense that someone else has rewarded you.'

You're right but it is a reinforcer asdfined by a properly trained Behaviourist and I need to point this out as so many people accuse Behaviourism of being about stickers and chocolate buttons which it isn't!

I think you are saying you disagree with ill designed and poorly executed behavioural methods. I am with you all the way on that one.

Ok, Moondog. I'm fairly sure we agree on most things :) but:

Will you really not let your boy play an educational game on the computer if he doesn't do work with his Dad? And if so, why?

Nobody says thank you IndigoBell? Doesn't it bother you that your husband and kids never thank you?

Moondog -- do you really think Skinner was that great a man? I can't get over the botched pass he made at Temple Grandin (she was on World Service today, btw, if anyone is interested, might be on Listen Again feature).

I think that sometimes form helps deliver substance. I hope one day DC will have the 'right' values motivating their actions, but until they are mature enough to really get the why of it, I will settle for them doing the expected behaviour, and being given a short-term reward for good behaviour is fine to help ensure that.

I am not sure about a sticker-like reward system for secondary school, though, maybe I'd have to see how it worked.

Ragged - I'm sure they say thank you to me occasionally, but it's definitely not something I insist on, or make a big deal out of, or care about.

I run round after my kids because that's my job as their Mum. Whether or not they say thank you I still have to do everything for them that I do...

I guess I do like it when they smile... But I don't do stuff to make them smile. I do things (like give them cuddles etc) because it makes me feel good.

I don't know very much about Skinner. But am currently reading Temple Grandin's book and am loving it.