Week 5

Chapter 10
Positive Behavioral Supports & Reinforcement Strategies
Summary Assignment (10 points)

1.List two types of reinforcement schedules, and give examples of the use of each
reinforcement schedule within a classroom environment.

In a fixed ratio schedule the teacher may provide the student a reinforcement after a
fixed number of times a target behavior occurs. For example, every time the teacher
asks a student to go to their desks and do their work a teacher might reward on a ratio
of 1, meaning every time the student follows directions and goes to his or her desk, they
receive the reinforcement.

Another schedule is a fixed interval schedule. If the same student is at their desk and
working after every 5 minutes, the teacher provides reinforcement. This is reinforcement
set up on a fixed interval of 5.

2. What is a socially valid reinforcer?

A reinforcer that is consistent with the norms of a student's social setting.

3. On page 232, Classroom Connection 10.1, Example of Using Interval Schedule of

Reinforcement, read about a middle school teacher using an interval schedule of
reinforcement. What is a frequent mistake teachers make when setting up a
reinforcement program? In the first phase of Anns program for Paul, Paul had to sit in
his seat initially for only 5 minutes to earn a token. Why do you think she picked this
time interval as a starting point for Pauls program?

They may satiate the student by not balancing their magnitude of reinforcement with the
frequency of reinforcement. Because she knew he was able to and wanted him to be
successful so that he can be motivated to complete the next phase.

4. Discuss the process of shaping new behaviors. Give an example of shaping a series
of behaviors within a classroom setting.

The process is rewarding approximations of a terminal behavior in a step by step way

so that the student gradually gets closer to and performs the terminal behavior. This
may help in teaching a new skill or expanding the duration of a target behavior. During
reading time a teacher may reward her second grade students every 5 minutes they get
closer to a goal of reading for 30 minutes.
5. What do we mean when we talk about program generalization and maintenance?
How can they both be facilitated during and after a behavior management program?

Program generalization means that a student carries the learned behavior into other
behaviors and that a teacher maintains that behavior even after the intervention plan
has been taken away. They can do in in several ways, which some are: implementing a
behavior change program across classrooms and with different teachers, trying to shift
from artificial stimulus controls to natural stimulus controls that occur in a natural
environment and enforce generalization and maintenance.

6. Attention to appropriate behavior increases the rate of appropriate behavior. What

are the implications of this statement for classroom teachers, parents, and other
caregivers? Discuss possible reasons for why this is done so infrequently in
classrooms, in the home, etc. Discuss strategies that would assist parents, teachers,
and caregivers to increase their rate of attention to appropriate behavior.

The implication is that if you want to decrease an undesired behavior, you will be more
successful by paying attention to an appropriate behavior that can replace the
problematic behavior.
The reason that this might be done so infrequently though, is because it is easier to
focus on the negative behavior. Some strategies parents or caregivers may use in
increasing their attention to positive behaviors are creating programs for students such
as token programs, or making a contract with a student that states the caregiver will
watch for appropriate behavior and praise it.

7. On page 238 , Classroom Connection 10.3, Example of a Token Economy Program,

read about an example of a token economy. Answer the following questions; Marge
asked her students for suggestions about what items and activities should be included
on her reinforcement menu. What do you think of this strategy? How can Marge get
students input in identifying target behaviors, how many tokens students can earn, how
much reinforcement items will cost, and other aspects of the token economy program?
How is this helpful to her program?

I read in the chapter that it is best to do an assessment of students favorite reinforcers

without asking the students. However asking can also be a part of it. She must assess
her reinforcement menu often to ensure that the reinforcements are still valued to the
students. Marge can also discuss other aspects of the plan such as identifying target
behaviors, how many tokens a student earns for a certain behavior and so on. This will
help her come up with more ideas that the students agree with and it will help them
understand the plan better