Standard 4.

3: Manage Challenging Behaviour

Graduate Level: Demonstrate knowledge of practical approaches to manage challenging behaviour.
Managing classroom learning environments effectively is significant, not due to the fact of having
‘control’ over students, but more so, to ensure provision of quality classroom conditions that support
student engagement and learning.
Prevention Strategies
Developing the Classroom as a Learning Community
A classroom community is built around a sense of security, open communication, connectedness and
trust. These factors and the sense of community help to prevent unproductive behaviours. When
students feel valued by their peers as well as their teacher, have constructed meaningful and positive
relationships within the community, and have developed a sense of belonging in their learning
environment, they are more likely to engage in productive behaviours.
Classroom Environment
Student behaviours are not an isolated action; they instead are impacted by all elements included within
the Ecological Model of the Classroom, which includes factors of the physical environment. A classroom
learning environment must provide conditions in which all students have an opportunity to partake in
active engagement, learning and achievement; when these are promoted student behaviour is more
productive.
Developing a quality learning environment is a gradual process, and it is through the establishment of
clear expectations and standards, teacher attitude and instructional processes that a learning
environment can be developed that prevents students’ unproductive behaviours.
Expectations and Standards
When expectations and standards are explicit, developed early and maintain consistently there is a
decrease in unproductive behaviours. The development of clear standards for behaviour works to
support students’ pro social behaviour, and the establishment of a learning environment with high
expectations of all students will also support students in behaving productively.
Intervention Strategies
There is a hierarchy of intervention techniques, these range from; least disruptive intervention, low
disruption intervention practices, and finally, specific focus intervention strategies.
Non-Verbal Signals (Least Disruptive Intervention)
Some non-verbal signals include; making direct eye contact with a student, establishing a signal as a
class that can be used to indicate that a particular behaviour needs to be stopped, this could be a simple
shake of the head, or the use of an instrument, sound device or similar that is not intrusive or too loud,
the use of positioning and proximity control are also exceptionally effective.
General and Task Verbals (Low Disruption Intervention)
General verbals as either announcements or reminders that are aimed at the whole class. These may
include; the use of progress and behaviour reminders, this can be effectively achieved by positively
reinforcing the behaviour of a student that is behaving productively, who is also in close proximity to the
student behaving unproductively.
Whereas, task verbals relate more to the use of the content or structure of a particular learning task to
refocus students or the whole group. Task verbals intervention approaches may include; initiating a
conversation with a group or an individual student asking if they have understood what they are
expected to do and whether support can be given to them. Also checking what progress has been made,
this is generally a good way at redirecting students and assisting them if necessary, as students are more
likely to behave pro socially when they are actively involved and engaged in quality curricula.
Transaction Verbals (Specific Focus Intervention)
Transaction verbals are generally aimed at individual students who are displaying unproductive
behaviours. It is recommended that teachers speak privately to an individual student or a group of
students about their behaviour. The teacher should specifically describe the student’s behaviour and
why it was not desirable, ensuring that the focus is on the behaviour and not on the individual student.
Speaking privately to students respects their human dignity by dealing with the intervention in a
respectful manner, it also provides them with an opportunity to share their thoughts on the situation,
which is promoting a legitimate sharing of power between teacher and student.
Conflict Resolution
Unfortunately, there will be times in a classroom environment when the approaches outlined above will
not be effective in intervening in and redirecting unproductive student behaviour. Three approaches
have been highlighted as most effective in intervening in student behaviour as well as being successful
approaches to conflict resolution. Distracting can defuse potentially dangerous situations by diverting
students’ attention, this provides all involved parties with a cooling off period and lets the situation be
resolved at a later time. Postponing, similar to distracting, postpones the conflict resolution to a time
when the people involved feel more able to handle to resolution appropriately and respectfully. Finally,
abandoning, quite similar to the other approaches mentioned, but has a more student-centred
approach, that requires students exercising self-control and self-regulation.