Behaviorism and the Never-Ending Need for Discipline Essays

The gift of education is one of the most important gifts a parent could ever give a child. I searched a few different definitions of the word “education” and it’s amazing how it has changed over the years. The first definition I found that was profoundly different from today’s definition was dated back in the 1800’s and it states “Education, noun [Latin educatio.] The bringing up, as of a child, instruction; formation of manners. Education comprehends all that series of instruction and discipline which is intended to enlighten the understanding, correct the temper, and form the manners and habits of youth, and fit them for usefulness in their future stations. To give children a good education in manners,

Behaviorism is one of the most used theories in education. Due to it can fit in both a classroom setting and at home. Educators had sought out the reason why for many years. But due to each child learns a different way so should the educator. Behaviorism was study by many great Psychologists over the years. Just to name some that had done work and publish books on the subject are, John Watson, Ivan Pavlov, Clark Hull, and B.F. Skinner.

In regards to behavior management, I use a combination of positive discipline and discipline with dignity. As defined by Fredric Jones, positive discipline emphasizes that teachers can help students to support their self-control (Gage, 2015). This management theory aligns with behaviorism and is carried out in my classroom through strong classroom structure where the rules and routines are clearly defined. Additionally, there is a leveled behavior chart hanging on the front wall where each student can visually see and monitor their behavior for that

Managing student’s behavior should be under classroom discipline and not classroom management. Behavioral management is defined as “preventing, suppressing, and redirecting misbehavior (Charles, 9).It is the misunderstanding between the two terms, which Wong believes that is the reason why many teachers struggle with classroom management, is that “teachers think classroom management means discipline. So what they do is they go into the classroom and put all their emphasis on discipline. They think classroom management is about crowd control or teaching kids to be quiet” (Wong). In order to establish proper behavior in a classroom I believe that understanding each student’s personality and learning style is important. Establishing just one discipline regime would cater to only certain students, whereas the other students may be seen a “misbehaving,” due to their

Behaviorism is a theoretical perspective of learning that focuses on the observable changes in behavior (Tracey and Morrow, 2012 p.55). Behaviorists believe that learning takes place when knowledge is separated into smaller steps from easier to more complex tasks. Instruction in a behaviorist classroom focuses on conditioning student behaviors and rewarding students when they are successful with feedback and positive reinforcement. Often instruction is direct and repeated until the desired behavior or skill is learned, becomes automatic and is error free. There

As I was observing the children in the classroom I was noticing every one of their behaviors and learning styles was different. For example, there was a little girl who liked to get treats when she was learning, also known as positive reinforcement, and this worked for her. She was engaged because she knew she was getting a treat if she answered correctly vs little boy who needed more help or more direction when he was trying to get through his worksheet. Something I also noticed during my observation period was that behaviors of the children were not the same. Some of the children’s behavior was more aggressive than other children. The other children were more relaxed, but very fidgety while they were sitting.

In the behaviorism theory, the student and the teachers have different roles. The role of the student is to be passive and respond to the stimulus given by the teacher. The role so the teacher is to design the learning environment, shape the behavior of the student with positive or negative reinforcements, provide materials and makes sure the student understands the material and assesses the learning of the

There are many theories surrounding education and what lies within our biological functions that can effect how we learn as human beings. Our book, Creating Literacy Instruction For All Students, by Thomas Gunning goes more in depth of these approaches and theories. Behaviorism is a theory that “stresses observable responses to stimuli”. This approach includes conditioning good behaviors and eliminating

The idea behind the behaviorist branch is that they believe that psychology is studied through observable behaviors. The behaviorists were the first to focus on more objective research as opposed to the subjective research like the previous leaders in psychology such as Titchener and Freud (Lilienfeld, Lynn, Namy, Woolf). Behaviorism or black box psychology opened the eyes of the psychology community by showing them that they should not just rely on the reports of others, but having data they could replicate and prove allowing them to have a stronger scientific footing (Lilienfeld, Lynn, Namy, Woolf). The major behaviorists are Watson and Skinner. Pavlov also had a major impact on this particular branch of psychology. I will discuss a

For students in a self-contained classroom, cueing and behavior modification are frequently used components of behaviorism. Cueing is using a method other than a verbal reminder as a way to encourage appropriate behavior, or discourage inappropriate behavior (Standridge, 2002). Behavior modification, as outlined in Foundations of Workforce Education, is used “to elicit better classroom performance from reluctant students” (Brewer, Campbell, & Petty, 2000, p.17). Behavior modification involves several components, such as determining what is desired, creating specifics within the environment, identifying appropriate rewards, reinforcing behavior patterns,

Resolving behavioral issues with students in the classroom is been one of the main problems teachers are facing today. Students get to school sometimes with a negative attitude and teachers have to find ways in how to help these students succeed in the classroom. A major reason teachers leave their profession is because their frustration encountering many minor disruptions during activities is constant (Jones & Jones, (2016). There are many critical components that teachers need to implement in the classroom to have all students behave appropriately and willing to learn. Educators must listen to their student’s opinion and value their work otherwise they will keep facing behavioral issues with students. An effective teacher must be willing

This is correlation study that empirically examined the relationship between workplace discipline and organizational productivity in Nigeria. An accessible population for the study comprises of 225 managerial and supervisory staff randomly drawn from a purposely selected 15 manufacturing organizations operating within the six states of the South-south region of Nigeria. Using Kretche and Morgan sample determination table 225 respondents were drawn from a total population of 550 employees across the organisations. Findings revealed high correlation coefficients between the two variables with discipline demonstrating a high mean score for it critical importance to organizational productivity. It therefore recommended that management should show some leadership

Like many great men before me, I believe in behaviorism. That is to say that I agree with men such as B. F. Skinner. Skinner believed that “organisms including humans, are entirely the products of their environment; engineer the environment, and you can engineer human behavior”(Sadker, Sadker pg 337). William Bagley also had great ideas that I agree with. He was an essentialist that believed math, science, history foreign language, and literature should be the core curriculum taught in the classroom. Bagley’s “traditional back-to-basics approach is meant to train the mind, promote reasoning, and ensure a common culture among all Americans”(Sadker, Sadker pg

In my aspiration in my classroom is that I will be able to touch each child. Whether the touch I give is through that of knowledge and understanding, moral goals, or growth as a person within society. Behavioralism is seen in this particular part of my personal philosophy of education. Founded on the view that human beings are primarily the product of their environment and that children can become moral, intelligent people if they are rewarded for proper behavior.

The human species is highly adept at learning from past experiences and progressively becoming more and more sagacious. One learns by observing, reading books, experiencing pain, and so much more. The idea of education has become a favorite in society; for example, people may feel more attracted to their lovers, upon learning that they have graduated from Harvard with a 5.0 GPA. Nations also take pride in their inhabitants who have basic education; in fact, in the United States, state governments have took control over education and morphed it into what it believes will generate a smarter America. However, the idea of how students should be educated is not only a controversial issue, but it continues to change over time. People are beginning to lose sight of what education is truly about, and this could ultimately result in an uncreative and unmotivated generation of students marching into the real world. Education, the process of handing information from one person to the next, forces individuals to think restrictively.