This week's article is entitled, "A Practical Plan for Managing the Behavior of Students with Disabilities in General Physical Education". The article begins with stating that one of the top reasons teachers feel discouraged from teaching is because they lack the ability to manage and motivate student behavior. There are others who believe that using punishment to control students' behavior means having a behavior management plan. "The purpose of this article is to describe how to develop a positive behavior plan designed to empower students rather than control their performance and learning" (Lavay, French, Henderson, 2007). The article provides information that may guide teachers who teach physical education create their own plan using the examples and methods explained in this article.
The article states that in order for any behavior management plan to work is to include everyone that sees this student part of the team so that the student knows everyone has the same expectations, he or she will have a plan that is consistent and fair. There three steps to follow in creating a behavior management plan. First the physical education teacher must observe the behavior he/she wants to decrease, redirect, or change. The behavior needs to be measureable and defined in order to have well thought out plan and know what exact intervention/s to use. If there are various behaviors that need to be change, teachers should choose the behavior that occurs the most and the one that creates a barrier to student's learning and his/her safety and his/her classmates.
The second step is to use observe and analyze the chosen behavior. It is important to create a baseline. This is called the functional behavior analysis. This is the time to keep track of the behavior, how long does it last, how intense its is, and at what time it occurs. After the observation has occurred, a realistic goal must created that students can work towards to. Here is where a teacher can use different types of behavior management approaches: Behavior Approach, Humanistic Approach, and Biophysical Approach. Behavior approach most common model is the ABC approach (antecedent-behavior-consequence). The Humanistic Approach focuses on the development of self-concept, positive interpersonal relationships, intrinsic motivation, personal and social responsible and other qualities of good character. The Biophysical Approach focuses on the physiological. Taking a look at what student eats, trying relaxing techniques, and checking if medication is being taken.
The third and last step is to evaluate the intervention(s) and determine how effective they were. In the end, the article emphasizes the importance of including physical education teachers in behavior management plan, the plan needs to be developed considering the individual student, the environment and incorporate the use of different behavior management approaches.
To better understand how intervention strategies can be used in the physical education setting, there is an example used following the process of an behavior management plan with a student.
This article made me realize the importance presence in BMP is. I don't think I've ever sat in a meeting that included the P.E. teachers. At my building it seems like they create their own plan independently from the gen. ed. teachers. The article provides so many good ideas that it makes me want to share these with my co-workers.
Lavay, B., French, R., Henderson, H. (2007, February). A practical plan for managing the behavior
of students with disabilities in general physical education. Solutions for Including Individuals with
Disabilities Vol. 78 (2). Pages 42-48. Retrieved from
http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ794532.pdf.
I saw the title of this article as I was looking for mine. It is very interesting that Physical Education classes be addressed in particular. PE classes are less restrictive than other classes and I often see that many confrontations and fights between students occur here. These teachers have increased class sizes or combined classes. They also have to deal with a larger area including locker rooms. PE teachers should definitely be able to participate in behavior plans and interventions. The interventions must be feasible for all teachers to carry out and we need to remember that each part of a child's education is important.
ReplyDeleteI also think that it is interesting that physical education is specifically addressed here. It is important to maintain consistency with a behavior plan, but also to be able to have a variety of input about behaviors and environments in which they occur to better implement an effective behavior plan.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting spin and look at Behavior Plans. Totally makes sense--PE is an unstructured time and can be the environment of many difficult behaviors, so I think its great they studied this specific context.
ReplyDelete