Human Services Profession - Essay Example

s It is an established truth that the education plays a crucial role in the social, cultural, intellectual and even personal development of an individual. In this context, school constitutes the most significance educational institute of children which shapes their personality in every way possible. This implies that quality education is critical for healthy development of a child into a responsible citizen. Furthermore, the international community has also now recognized the fact that it is the primary responsibility of state to offer quality education to children to ensure that the children are effectively incorporated into the social fabric of the society in the future. Therefore, problem solving in the area of education is widespread. However, one particular area which lies within the scope of education as a necessity is that regarding the state of children with challenging behavior. In other words, the children with challenging behavior are often neglected or discouraged to seek quality education due to lack of proper training in institutes as to how to deal with such special children. As a consequence, either these children drop out of school or settle for a lower quality of education which leaves lasting impacts on the social as well as intellectual development of these children (Knowles & Ladner 2012). For this reason, the paper will focus on human services profession i.e. teachers and instructors dealing with such children, specifically with context to their training and development. Therefore, an analysis would made over the assessment of the teachers training programs aimed to incorporate the children with challenging behavior effectively into classrooms, in such a way that they grow up to be ordinary citizens of the state. Prior to making an assessment, the inherent issues of defining the scope and behavioral patterns of the ‘children with disabilities’ must be pointed out. While there is a general agreement over the view that policy initiatives must be taken in such a way so as to incorporate children with challenging behaviours in the classroom, there may be a disagreement amongst the scholarship over what constitutes such a behaviour (Hutchinson & Smith 2012).Though the widely accepted definition by Emerson et al (1987) tends to cover some of the aspects of the aforementioned behaviour, other may also depart from their view. Yet, the definition is the most widely accepted one so far, which implies that challenging behaviour may constitute an aggressive or disruptive behaviour demonstrate at repeated intervals, or the one where the child is found withdrawn from class activities or any other behaviour which is not in compliance to the socially accepted norms is considered to be challenging behaviour (Kelly & Perkins 2012). Despite major disagreements over the exact scope of the issue, there are efforts being made to identity pragmatic solution to resolve the issue to incorporate such children into learning activities being departed in classrooms. Research further indicates that one of the most advocated ways to resolve the issue is to propagate teachers training programs in such a way that they develop the capacity to incorporate such children with special needs into the classroom environment in such a way that they aren’t left out of the school learning and social experiences. Looking into the prevalence, intensity and frequency of the issue indicates that a significant proportion of minority has been found displaying such challenging behaviour in educational settings. Research indicates that children have at various instances displayed various kinds of behaviours which the teachers have identified as challenging. For instance, few of such children displayed inappropriate sexual activity, while others were found making disruptive noises in classroom. Similarly, school teachers have over the time reported that the incidence and even the number of such children with challenging behaviour have only increased over the past few years. Research further indicates that various underlying causes may also be connected to such challenging behavioural patterns found amongst children. For instance, general communication difficulties may sometimes be regarded as the underlying cause, while sometimes even socio-economic disadvantages coupled with another underlying medical cause can be attributed to the issue (Knowles & Landen 2012). Given the widespread prevalence of underlying causes, teachers have historically dealt with the issue differently from how the issue is being dealt with currently. While current practices constitute active participation of teachers into capacity building programs to deal with such children, such was not the case in the past. A decade earlier, children with deviant behaviours were being treated merely as deviants. Since the educational institutes were being treated as organs to ensure social control, such children were also being considered in the context. In other words, deviants were being treated as delinquents and thus, in an effort to control such children, punitive action were being taken by the teachers. Furthermore, even when an inherent disability in such a children was pointed out, the teachers refuse to take responsibility and considered the issue as merely medical and not social. The institutes therefore didn’t own such children with disabilities in the past decade where such children were made subject to abuse, discrimination, ouster or other forms of social disapproval which only made the matters worse. That is, these children with challenging behaviours were usually ignored or brutally punished for not adapting to behaviour compliant with the social norms. Such children usually ended up dropping-out themselves as a result of the disaffection experiences by them from other pupils at schools. The fact that there is some underlying cause behind such behaviour was often ignored. However, research indicates that with considerate attention to the needs of such children and by utilizing proper techniques in the area, the issue can be resolved. However, it was only after rigorous research in the area and interest amongst various sociologists that the issue started being considered as social and the issue finally came onto the policy agenda, which was a grave need of the time. Therefore, it only recently when the policy program of teacher`s training to deal with children with challenging behaviour has become an issue worth taking initiative for, where policies are being focussed to design and implement such programs which encourage children with special needs to be incorporated into classroom scenarios. Therefore, after much debate and research in the area there is a consensus amongst sociologists in the point that promoting positive behaviour towards children demonstrating challenging behaviour is a responsibility of the teachers; and the most effective technique to resolve the issue early on in the life of a child is to equip the teachers with tools to manage deviant behaviour in children. However, the main concern arises over the application and modes to apply such techniques to effectively encourage a positive environment for such children with special needs. Moreover, the policies would only be effective if they contribute toward building a positive culture in the institute where an encouraging environment can be reaped to help the children with challenging behaviours. Thus, an analysis over the literature here becomes essential to understand how the consensus amongst the research had so far been translated into policy, and more importantly the effectiveness of such techniques which have been applied in the past. Therefore, in order to offer a holistic analysis of the children with challenging behaviours, an evolutionary perspective of the topic needs to be built. In addition, the future course of action which must be undertaken to reap positive results must also be discussed. As mentioned above as well, the topic has become a policy concern for all institutions imparting education to children, considering how these institutes have lasting implications on the students. Considering the prevalence of the issue and the need to reform the educational training practices amongst the teachers, the topic has now undertaken an international significance. That is, it is now recognized that challenging behaviour in children, if ignored repeatedly, impedes either the learning outcomes of that child or even affects other children around him. Therefore, an understanding has now developed over the fact that if the issue is identified at an early age, grave conflicts in the personality of these individuals at a later age can be avoided. More so, policy experts now even argue that if there is a targeted focus on the social development of such children at an early age, alongside mere focus on the educational needs of such children, positive impacts on their personality may be achieved. Therefore, policy initiatives are now being designed in such a way that teachers can play an important role in incorporating such children into mainstream educational scenarios to ensure normal intellectual and social development of such children. Therefore, training programs are being designed to engage or rather re-engage such children into mainstream education. However, this is not as simple of a task and teachers on a massive scale need to be trained which would only be possible after some serious policy reforms in institutions, which must be implemented at all levels possible. Current practices which are in place constitute training mechanisms which offer tools for the teachers to effectively engage pupils who often reflect challenging behaviour into classroom activities. This includes equipping these teachers with strategies to ensure that these children are attentive towards coursework. For instance, special visual aids and worksheets may be designed by the teachers to keep these students engaged. Therefore, current practices tend to focus on training the teachers over using resources effectively to deal with such children with special needs. However, intervention mechanisms are also incorporated in these training programs to allow a functional assessment of the issues of these children where the teachers are required to build a communicative relationship with such children. Thus, these children won`t have to face reclusive attitude at their educational institutes, and even if the peers develop a discriminatory attitude towards these pupils, they tend to rely on the teachers to get through such situations. Therefore, a set manual has been developed and approved by the stakeholders which is used for training programs over the teachers, which for the most part includes tools and resources to keep these children interested in class activities. (Lindoln 2012) In this context, certain limitations maybe pointed out regarding the current paradigm in place for teacher`s training programs to deal with children with challenging behaviours. These limitations can be translated into policy recommendations will include high quality education to be ensured at least at pre-school level where all children are subject to uniform teaching practices with an aim to develop positive attitude, to enhance the self-esteem of such pupils reflecting challenging behaviour. Therefore, teachers must be given special training to make them empowered to deal with such children having intense emotional needs since certain strategies need to be implemented in order to deal with the attention seeking behaviour of such children, which also requires efforts on part of their parents who the teachers need to keep on board (Lindoln 2012). Therefore, only when teachers would be well equipped to deal with such children can the schools ensure that such children aren’t expelled out of school to maintain discipline in the institutions which would otherwise impede the social development of such children. Also, it must be a part of the teachers training program to offer awareness on social development to other students as well, so that alongside the teachers, even the students learn how to deal with the children with challenging behaviours. More so, teacher must not only be equipped to merely deal with the children, in additional they should also learn to identify the underlying issues. On one hand where these policies seem to be quite effective, on the other hand they are too vague and difficult to implement and thus, further research is needed in the area. The aforementioned policy suggestions can be understood in context to the differential reinforcement framework actively advocated by B F Skinner (Maclure, Jones, Holmes & Macrae 2012). The model can further be applied in the teachers` training practices to help them identify ways to bring about positive changes in children demonstrating challenging behaviour. The model implies that positive behaviour can be morphed into individuals by reinforcement, while undesirable behaviour can be morphed out of individuals by ignoring it. Furthermore, differentiating the positive behaviour from negative must also be a component of such training programs, therefore further research must also be focussed on developing certain indicators regarding such behaviors (Morgan & Ellis 2011). Yet, certain reinforcing factors can also be identified and then incorporated into the daily routine of these children to incorporate the desirable behaviour into the habitat of these children. After careful qualitative as well as quantitative analysis, these reinforcers can be identified and then placed into the policy model to seek material change into the results. Literature identifies a few such indicators, for instance, a pro-active environment for children can be simulated by the teachers which would not only motivate them, but also challenge them and at the same time excite them while diverting their attention towards learning and away from destructive behaviour. (Day & Travis 2012) Therefore, a thematic analysis of the research on the issue indicates that there is almost complete agreement over the need to quantitatively as well as qualitatively enhance teacher`s training practices for children with challenging behaviour into institutional as well as state policies. Also, that the reforms resulting from such training programs must not result in the quality of education imparted to children with special needs, but also in the social development of these children by actively finding ways to reinforce desirable behaviour (Rogers 2004)). However, a disagreement can be sensed over how far an institute must go in order to ensure that deliberate wrongful behaviour isn’t being confused with natural issues in children. This implies that though policy makers have become sensitive to the special needs of such children with challenging behaviour, yet the fact that delinquents are also found in such settings can`t be ignored. For this reason, the teacher`s training programs can further be designed in such a way that teachers are able to distinguish the socially challenged children with those being genuinely delinquent. In other words, the issues of the stakeholders regarding the discipline and decorum of an institute can also be addressed by incorporating the perspective of striking a balance between discipline and empowerment of children with needs in the institution. (Visser, Daniel and Cole 2012). Thus, strong groundwork must be placed in order to ensure that such teaching programs are concise and accurate, and also respond to the needs of such children and even the institutes. Therefore, conclusively, children with special needs can`t be ignored and secluded from classroom settings. Doing so will only inhibit their growth and resultantly, a significant proportion of minority suffering from such challenging behaviours would be left out of the normal educational process which is crucial to their intellectual, social and personal development. A solution to such an issue related to the capacity building of the teachers who can act as facilitators in the process by being able to effectively engage such children with special needs into the classroom activities. Though current policy imperatives tend to offer training to teachers regarding resources and tools essential to dealing with such special children, further reforms need to be made in the area. In other words, the training programs need to be revisited and further enhanced in such a way that the teachers are able to assess and identify certain reinforces which not only bring a material change in the condition of such pupils but also help them better adapt to classroom settings. Therefore, further research needs to be addressed in the area to ensure that a more integrated teaching methodology is undertaken by the teachers to incorporate and engage the children with challenging behaviour which further contributes in avoiding complication which these children may have to face in future due to seclusion, abuse and discrimination from others. Works Cited: DAY, T., & TRAVERS, J. (2012). Special and inclusive education a research perspective. Oxford, Peter Lang, Internationaler Verlag der Wissenschaften. http://public.eblib.com/EBLPublic/PublicView.do?ptiID=1056098. HUTCHINSON, N., & SMITH, H. (2012). Intervening Early Promoting Positive Behaviour in Young Children. Hoboken, Taylor and Francis. http://www.UCM.eblib.com/patron/FullRecord.aspx?p=1074978. KELLY, B., & PERKINS, D. F. (2012). Handbook of implementation science for psychology in education. Cambridge, UK, Cambridge University Press. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=508918. ROGERS, B. (2004). How to manage childrens challenging behaviour. London, Paul Chapman. http://site.ebrary.com/id/10218056. KNOWLES, G., & LANDER, V. (2012). Thinking through ethics and values in primary education. London, SAGE/Learning Matters. LINDON, J. (2012). Understanding childrens behaviour 0-11 years. London, Hodder Education. MACLURE, M., JONES, L., HOLMES, R., & MACRAE, C. (2012). Becoming a problem: Behaviour and reputation in the early years classroom. British Educational Research Journal. 38, 447-471. MORGAN, N. S., & ELLIS, G. (2011). A kit bag for promoting positive behaviour in the classroom. London, Jessica Kingsley Publishers. http://public.eblib.com/EBLPublic/PublicView.do?ptiID=727518. VISSER, J., DANIELS, H., & COLE, T. (2012). Transforming troubled lives strategies and interventions with children with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties. Bingley, U.K., Emerald. http://www.emeraldinsight.com/1479-3636/2. Read More