Applied Behavior Analysis - Case Study Example

BEHAVIOUR CHANGE/FBA {Insert university’s name} October 20, 2013. BEHAVIOUR CHANGE/FBA Anactedol observation George is a seven year old boy. He never misses his classes and is active both in and outside classroom. He has two sisters and one brother who are older than him. George comes to school ready to learn and he is attentive during class. He completes his other homework but does not finish his English and mathematics homework. George reads with fluency and accuracy and has strong comprehension skills. However, in mathematics, he understands key concepts but losses concentration during class, and instead plays and distracts other students. George takes active role in practical activities in both English and mathematics classes. However, he loses interest in writing and reading activities. George has just two friends as most children avoids him. He shouts at his fellow students and pushes them around. This makes the children to withdraw from him. At times he is so rough and say nasty and mean things to the friends. Teachers concerns George shows various inappropriate behavior both outside and inside classroom. During class, George is very disruptive particularly in Maths and English lessons. George refuses to listen to the teacher and does not take part in class activities if directed to do so. He scribbles on the works of other students, takes their lunch boxes, walk up to them and talk directly to their faces. Whenever he finishes his work, he laments how boring it is and swears he will never do it again. At time his sits on his books and refuses to write. George at times goes physical with other students, pinching, kicking and slapping their heads in order to get their attention. In the playground, George’s behavior do not change. He will tease other students and enjoys the reaction he gets as a result. When reported to the teacher, he acts as the victim and shouts at the teacher too. Whenever, the mother drops him in the morning, she shouts at him in front of other students, and his siblings. George is not willing to change his behavior or improve in his Maths and English performance. Parents concerns The teacher sets time and meets George’s mother. The mother thinks that Maths and English classes are so boring to his son, and it’s the students that provokes George. However, she is so concerned about George’s physical behavior, and his poor performance in English and Maths. She says that his other siblings are well behaved and George is even rude to his older brothers and sisters. At home, he is usually in control of television and computer games. His room is untidy as he leaves things scattered on the floor and bed. Observation notes Students rush back to the class after the break. They are running all over and no order. It is period 3, the second last class of the day. The teacher asks the students to arrange the tables for the next class. There is further disturbance and disputes as a result of the activity. Students spend a lot of time moving around and they do not immediately settle in their seats. Another five minutes is wasted. George takes another students seat, throws away her books and refuses to move despite the teachers instructions. However, when the teacher further warns him, he pushes the chair and the table and goes to his seat. The students laugh, and he seems to enjoy the reaction. Another students stands up and picks the table and the chair. The teacher ask s the students to clap for the students, and George does not clap but instead imitates the teacher. The teacher warns him, and George makes faces and his noises become louder. In one corner, two students are fighting over a pencil. The teacher’s attentions is distracted by this. George seem to be enjoying the scene, he cheers and laughs at them. The teacher starts a spelling session after calming the situation. George gets his paper and pen but as other students write, he is busy fetching something from the ground. At the fifth word, he has not written anything and ask the teacher what the first word was. He opens his books and starts to scribble. The teacher tells him to stop, he throws away the book and the pen. Other students laughs loudly at him, and he seems to enjoy the attention. The teacher continues with the spelling session without paying more attention to him. However, he places Y mark against George’s name. When the session is over, the teacher picks one student to come and write the words on the board. Other students raises their hands including George and complains that the teacher does not usual pick them up. The teacher tells them they need to behave well to be selected. The teachers walks around to check those who got the answers right. George picks another students work and present it at his. When the student protests, he shouts at him, and insists that the work is his. The next activity is comprehension. George tears his paper and throws it away. He laments that he is too bored to write and that the work is easy for him. Other students laugh, and the teacher warns George. He protests by yelling at the teacher. He stands up, starts singing and dancing. He goes back to his seat, looks around and laughs loudly. Throughout, the activities, the students were laughing, and George was enjoying every. The observation took about 34 minutes. I request the teacher if I could have some time with George away from the class. The teacher agrees. I approach him and politely tells him that I need a little time with him. He shouts at me, yelling that he does not want to go out with me. I convince him and he slowly gets up. On his way out, he pushes away the tables and chairs. When he gets in front of the class, he sings and dances, then makes faces before finally joining me. Most teachers avoid George and only preferred well behaved students. This makes students such as George to be more rebellious. TEACHERS COMMENTS COURSE CONCERN COMMENT ENGLISH Attendance/Punctuality Comes to class on time but takes a lot of time to settle down especially after the breaks. Behaviour He is so rude to students and physically abuses them at time. Achievement Poor results in English.He does not take part in classroom activities. He refuses to write during spelling sessions. He tears and throws away his books and pens. Takes other student’s works and present as his own. MATHEMATICS Attendance/Punctuality He arrives to class on time. Behaviour He does not usually bring his Maths book and refuses to do work in class. He laments the activities are Boring. He brags that they are easy. During the classes, he yells and make funny noises instead. He is always not attentive during the lessons. Achievement The student understands the basic concepts in Maths. However, he does not take part in doing the exercises. He is a below average student in Maths SCIENCE Attendance/Punctuality Regular attendance and punctual. Behaviour Seems to be attentive during science classes and enjoys the practical aspects. He actively contributes to discussions. Takes part in team-work. Achievement He performs above average. PDH/PE Attendance/Punctuality George is never late for his classes. Behaviour He behaves well during science classes. He is not rude to the teachers, and other students. He gets upset with students easily. Achievement He participates in the physical activities. Sometimes he gets rough and knock other students around. ABC CHART Name of the student: Date: October 19, 2013 observer; activity: classroom class period: English Antecedent behavior consequences lack of attention rudeness, physical abuse Student not keen in class. Being isolated by other students. shouting from parents Shouting to others, rude. Making noise in class, shouting to both teachers and students. Being very rude. Performs poorly in class. The student becomes rebellious. poor self-concept The student shouts in order to be heard. He believes that he cannot change the bad behavior. The student continues behave rudely and make noise in class. Functional Behavioral Assessment: Part 1 (Description) Date: Data Sources: / Observation | / Student Interview |  /Teacher Interview |  /Parent Interview |  Rating Scales |  Normative Testing Description of Behavior (No. 4 ): George is rude and arrogant. He is also rough and physically abusive. He does not pay attention in class. He is however active in other activities. George performs purely in Maths and English. He argues with both adults and children Setting(s) in which behavior occurs: the behavior takes place inside and outside classroom. The parent however observes him at home. Frequency: In a week, George shows a rude behavior 5 times to the teacher and 7 times to other students. There were 4 observations in Maths and 3 times in English classes. George does not take part in English classes’ activities four times, and Maths 2 times. Intensity (Consequences of problem behavior on student, peers, instructional environment): the behaviors interferes with the character of other students, because some want to emulate him. Some students however are likely to avoid him. Additionally, some students lose attention in class. Other students develop fear. In the instructional environment, there time wastage. Additionally, the teacher spent a lot of time trying to calm the situation. Duration: the observation took two weeks while George’s behavior has been on for about four months. Describe Previous Interventions: George was disciplined by mostly preventing him from participating in other class activities. He was rewarded whenever he completed his homework and English and Maths activities. He was further given alternative classroom seating, i.e sitting in front of the classroom. For longer assignments, George was provided with breaks, whereby he could be allowed to listen to music. The mother was requested to speak to George in a calm voice and avoid shouting at him. Teachers also talked to him privately with an aim of changing his behavior. Educational impact: The strategies did not impact much on the academic achievement of George. George continued to perform poorly in Maths and English. He still paid less attention during his classes. However, he slightly improved in doing his Maths and English homework. Name Functional Behavior Assessment (function) part 2 Date Function of Behavior (No. ): Specify hypothesized function for each area checked below.  Affective Regulation/Emotional Reactivity (Identify emotional factors; anxiety, depression, anger, poor self-concept; that play a role in organizing or directing problem behavior): George behavior is as a result of poor self-concept. When interviewed by the teachers, George confesses that he does not think he can change to be a good boy. The self-concept can also be linked to the manner in which George’s mother speaks to him.  Cognitive Distortion (Identify distorted thoughts; inaccurate attributions, negative self-statements, erroneous interpretations of events; that play a role in organizing or directing problem behavior): First George states that he is not going to change, because he cannot make it. The manner in which the mother shouts at him is another factor that directs the problem behavior. Furthermore, the teacher seems to be selective on those who need to do presentations. For instance, he selects only students who behaves well and leaves those who do not. For instance, George laments that the teacher does not select him to present or write answers on the board. The lessons are further boring to him, thus contributing to the behavior.  Reinforcement (Identify environmental triggers and payoffs that play a role in organizing and directing problem behavior): Antecedents: some of the triggers to rude behavior are parenting and need for attention. Shouting contributes to rudeness and rebellion. Parents should talk to their children in a calm voice. The environment should be interesting. Teachers should praise children for any good behavior, and reward system used.  Modeling (Identify the degree to which the behavior is copied, who they are copying the behavior from, and why they are copying the behavior): the likelihood of behavior being copied is high. For example, George’s mother shouts to him. George seems to have copied the behavior, and is seen mostly to shouting to his students and even adults. The children seemed to be copying George’s behavior by being disorganized.  Family Issues (Identify family issues that play a part in organizing and directing problem behavior): the parent makes critical statements about the student. The parent does not give the student attention he requires. This makes him seek the attention from others. The parent expecting academic performance and behavior that is unrealistic. Children are not the same.  Physiological/Constitutional (Identify physiological and/or personality characteristics; developmental disabilities, temperament; that play a part in organizing and directing problem behavior): some of the personality characteristics are rudeness and need for attention.  Communicate need (Identify what the student is trying to say through the problem behavior): through the behavior problems, the student’s needs attention which seems to be lacking. Furthermore, the strategies applied during lessons are not appropriate for the student. The student requires interesting strategies that will captivate his attention.  Curriculum/Instruction (Identify how instruction, curriculum, or educational environment play a part in organizing and directing problem behavior): There is need for the school to provide a positive behavioral support system. It is important for the school to have a warm, caring and safe learning environment. The curriculum should also be meaningful and interactive. A range of individualized instructional strategies should also be used. Additionally, the curriculum should not only teach skills but also self-control. Positive behavioral supports and interventions need to be proactive as well as culturally sensitive in nature. This will prevent the students from engaging in problem behaviors. This can be achieved if the environment is changed. Behavioral Intervention Plan Date Student name: ID: DOB: Case manager: Behavior number Expected Outcome(s) Goal(s) Intervention(s) & Frequency of Intervention Person Responsible Goal/Intervention Review Notes 1.Rudeness A. The student to interact with all the students without physically abusing them. B. The student should be polite to other students. A. The student to perform well in Maths and English. B. The student to do all the homework. A. The student to participate in all class activities. A. The student should be taught self-control skills. This will enable him to stop abusive behavior. B. The parent and the teacher should give the student much needed attention. C. The student should be assigned roles in the class. D. The student should sit in front of the class and near the teacher. E.The teacher should organize class meetings. This will be essential in building relationships, and solving classroom conflicts. A. -The exercises should be made interesting so that the students don’t get bored. -Develop the student’s self-esteem. This can be achieved by providing the student with opportunity to showcase their competencies. B. Their self-esteem fostered by attentively listening to them. The teachers should value their opinions, ideas and interests. The student’s self- esteem need to be built. The teacher should praise them as well as focus on their academic and behavior improvement. The teachers should acknowledge difficult tasks. C. The teacher should use affective education techniques. The affective education programs assists in building relationship among students. The programs and strategies should involve students in resolving conflicts. Teacher and parent Teacher and parent. Teacher Teacher Teacher, School counsellors. Teacher Teacher and parents. Teacher and parents Teachers and parents Teacher Teacher There was 60% improvement on goal A and B. the teacher worked in collaboration with the parent to ensure that goal B is attained. The parent and teacher discovered that there was need to interview and observe the student further in order to have a better understanding of the social problems. There was 70% improvement in goal A and B. The student developed interest in doing his assignment and homework. The student’s self-esteem improved and thus he became active in class. The ability of the student to show his competencies improved by 70%. The concentration of the student improved by 60% as a result of praises. Affective education improved goal A & B by 80%. References Alberto, P.A., & Troutman, A.C. (1998). Applied behavior analysis for teachers (4th ed.). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Merrill/Prentice-Hall. Bambara, L.M., & Knoster, T.P. (1995). Effective behavioral support. Harrisburg, PA: Pennsylvania Department of Education. Carr, E.G., & Durand, V.M. (1999). Reducing behavior problems through functional communication training. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 18, 111-126. Colvin, G., Sugai, G.M., & Kameenui, E. (1993). Reconceptualizing behavior management and school-wide discipline in general education. Education and Treatment of Children, 16, 361-381. Conroy, M.A., Clark, D., Gable, R.A., & Fox, J. J. (1999). Building competency in the use of functional behavioral assessment. Preventing School Failure, 43, 140-144. Conroy, M.A., Clark, D., Gable, R.A., & Fox, J.J. (1999). A look at IDEA 1997 discipline provisions: Implications for change in the roles and responsibilities of school personnel. Preventing School Failure, 43, 64-70. Donnellan, A.M., Mirenda, P.L, Mesaros, R.A., & Fassbender, L.L. (1984). Analyzing the communicative functions of aberrant behavior. Journal of The Association of Persons with Severe Handicaps, 9, 201-212. Dunlap, G., Kern, L., dePerczel, M., Clarke, S., Wilson, D., Childs, K.E., White, R., & Falk, G.D. (1993). Functional analysis of classroom variables for students with emotional and behavioral disorders. Behavioral Disorders, 18, 275-291. Durand. V.M. (1990). Severe behavior problems: A functional communication training approach. New York: Guilford. Kerr, M.M. & Nelson, C.M. (1998). Strategies for managing behavior problems in the classroom (3rd ed.). New York: MacMillan. Read More