Shirley SATITI

EDUC 3007 Managing Learning Environments

Planning for Intervention

Introduction: Context

Previously, a preventative plan with strategies addressing disengaged behaviours that are
minor and frequently experienced have been structured and introduced into Reception class
of 15 students aged between 5-to-6 years old during the first days of school. These
strategies were the use of clear expectations, active listening and responding to off task
behaviour, which reflected upon the principles of Managing Learning Environment
specifically the importance of establishing high expectations on students’ engagement,
relationships that is beneficial for learning development and teaching practices that respect
children’s dignity (University of South Australia 2019). However, despite the best intentions
and preparations, unproductive behaviours still occur throughout the term which has
disrupted the students’ learning and learning environment. Hence, an intervention plan will
be in place.

General discussion about intervention

Intervention is the aim to respond thoughtfully and with the purpose to de-escalate
behaviours that could potentially cause disruptions to students’ learning and routine, and
teacher’s teaching (Jones and Jones 2010). In order to de-escalate disruptive behaviours, it
requires teacher to be aware of early warning signs such as when a student stops working,
looking angry or upset, and disengaged from groups by turning away or looking distracted.
When intervening, responses used by the teacher should maintain the student’s dignity
while still able to indicate the expectations and behaviour standards which have been
agreed-on. However, instead of responding with the focus on punishment, teacher should
assume that such student behaviours are expressions of struggles and that they require
assistance in developing new skills (Jones & Jones 2010).

Principles of intervention & Qualities of the teacher

Student nowadays are much more aware of their own rights and view authoritarian
teaching methods as negative. It has been challenging for me to turn away from such
teaching practices due to the mixture of personal experience with authoritarian teaching in
former schooling years and the lack of training and skill in responding to behaviour that
disrupts students’ learning. With the guiding principles of Managing Learning Environment
(University of South Australia 2019), I am learning to able to view and respond to students’
behaviour problems as an interpersonal, skill-based issue rather than a control issue
through acknowledging and respecting their rights to human dignity and fair treatment.
 Shirley SATITI

In other words, my approach will engage positive strategies that enable students to feel
valued, safe and empowered by ensuring that their individual needs are catered for. And
being mindful of the treatment for students especially those of colour and low-income
backgrounds as often, they view discipline as being differentially applied to them.

Approach to intervening when responding to unproductive behaviours

In the school community, students bring a variety of abilities, aspirations, attitudes, beliefs
and values which can rapidly change the social culture in their classroom environment. With
such variety of personalities in a classroom, there is the possibility of social behaviours
clashing among the students which could lead to an increase in challenging behaviours that
interrupts the flow of lesson and learning for all (Thompson & Carpenter 2014). Additionally,
challenging and disruptive behaviours including the negative attitude these students bring,
has the potential effect on teachers and can be the source of stress and burnout. To reduce
the effect of students’ challenging behaviours on myself, I will be implementing the
intersectionality approach (Symington 2004, cited in Thompson & Carpenter 2014, p.149) to
support behaviour change by considering and being sensitive to their multiple issues,
varying life stressors and life experiences in social contexts.

The ‘one size fits all’ approach would not be successful in intervening challenging behaviours
of various levels. Hence, I have also reframed challenging behaviours as defined by situation,
not the student and reinterpreted strategies to be used in low-level, complex level and
conflict level of disruptive behaviours to respect the intersectionality of individual students,
as well as their human dignity.

Low level intervention

Low-level disruptions that are frequently experienced by teacher in the classroom are trivial
yet, it could easily disrupt the flow of a lesson and learning for all students. These low-level
disruptions often happen when teacher is explaining a task to a whole group of students
which include behaviours such as “talking out of turn, intentionally making distracting
noises, making impertinent remarks and mucking around” (Sullivan, Johnson, Owens &
Conway 2014, p.49). As low-level disruptions are less intrusive and persistent, it has been
suggested for the teacher to view it as the best and most effective way a student know how
to achieve their needs and desire (Thompson & Carpenter 2014). To interrupt the cycles of
disruptions, teacher should recognise the preliminary indicators that can include “increase
or decrease in body movement, increase in eye movement or staring into space and
provoking other students” (Colvin 2004, cited in Thompson & Carpenter 2014, p.153).
Moreover, it is useful to be reminded that students’ behaviours do not happen in isolation
but within the interactions between all elements; the physical environments, the curriculum
and resources and the teacher’s teaching practices (Sullivan et al. 2014).

As the previous strategies of prevention did not work with low-level disruptions, I will be
implementing low-level intervention strategies that requires non-verbal prompts adapted
from Jones and Jones (2010). When addressing the behaviours, I will simply move closer and
 Shirley SATITI

give a pat on the shoulder to the student who is showing early signs of disruptions while
continue to teach as the first step. If the student is still persisting with the behaviour, I will
use a signal which will be negotiated with all students prior to the use of strategy, to
indicate that the behaviour has to stop. Another strategy which will be helpful is to make a
positive initial contact with the student by praising a positive behaviour they made after the
first request to stop. The use of evil eye or dirty look has been strongly disagreed upon by
Jones and Jones (2010) will be avoided as such technique will not facilitate positive teacher-
student relationships.

Complex intervention

Students may display secondary level of disrupting behaviour when they decide to
collaborate together with their own social groups during lessons. This could lead to
interrupting the learning of their own and those around them. Often, the unsettled
student’s behaviour is caused by their dislike of school, their lack of motivation to learn, or
may have learning difficulties and poor attention span (Thompson & Carpenter 2014).
However, students should not be made to think that their behaviours at school and their
teacher’s expectations of their behaviour are better or worse than other behaviours, but to
be reminded that only certain behaviours are necessary for effective learning within a
school community (Jones 2015).

As the teacher, it is important to understand the context of the situation and recognises
signs that may cause the students to feel unsettled and engages in complex behaviours.
These are the intervention strategies that I will be applying to handle with calm and
positively with this level of behaviours;

Provide students with choices:

The key for managing complex behaviours is to provide students with choices as it
encourages students’ needs for competence and power while reducing their view of the
teacher’s attempt to control them (Jones & Jones 2010). It can be through a flexible seating
plan and a space for ‘chill out’ (Thompson & Carpenter 2014). With a flexible seating
arrangement, students are able to be responsible for their own learning and behaviour and
enabling them to make strong choices when sitting with their social groups. Also, it allows
teacher to monitor and relocate problematic combinations of student without having to
disrupt the entire class as the students would anticipate such action from teacher if weak
choices are made and being irresponsible of their own behaviours (Colvin 2004, cited in
Thompson & Carpenter 2014, p.162). As for a designated area for ‘chill out’, it acts as a
behavioural tool that enables students the choice to collect their thoughts and emotions
without losing their dignity when they are unable to manage their aggravation.

Sending I-messages:

The key ingredient when sending I-messages is to ensure that the student who receives it
will feel respected and not under attack (Jones & Jones 2010). I will be required to use polite
language and refrain myself from allowing the blame onto other person or evaluating the
 Shirley SATITI

person’s behaviour, but to simply state the concrete effect of such behaviour on my feelings
(Larrivee 2009). While engaging I-message with the student, I will be active listening to what
he or she is saying, trying to grasp the feelings they are currently experiencing and sending
back a message that communicates of my understanding of the situation (Larrivee 2009).
Then, making a direct request that provides choices for the student, to either change his or
her behaviour or the next intention when the behaviour continue to occur.

However, if these strategies do not seem to be successful in intervening before student

being extremely disruptive, the next best step is to refocus other students onto their own
tasks then talk privately with the disruptive students (Jones & Jones 2010).

Conflict Resolution

Punishments is not the most effective strategy to resolve conflicts or handling violent
student behaviours that arises in the classroom setting. Instead, teacher should intervene
potential violent behaviours through recognising early signs and applying strategies used to
manage complex behaviours, which are I-messages and providing student the options to
make positive choices. Before implementing intervention strategies, teacher should
recognise the many reasons for conflicts to occur, but the most relatable reasons would be
that the student is unable to understand the task, unable to be involved in the learning
activity or unable to obtain assistance when he or she requires it (Jones & Jones 2010). It is
also helpful for teacher to use several strategies but, these are strategies that I would place
prior and during a situation when the behaviour quickly escalates into violence and I am
unable to manage.

Protection and teacher’s behaviour:

When handling a student who is violent, it is best for the teacher to respond calmly and
politely when making a firm statement for the behaviour to stop, ensuring that the student
does not feel threatened or confronted. It is best for the teacher to not respond when being
too emotional as it could further influence the student’s feelings that could potentially
increase the chances of harming both the teacher and other students (Jones & Jones 2010).
Additionally, it prevents the student from thinking of alternative positive way to handle their
behaviour. If the behaviour escalates, teacher would have to do two things. Firstly, the
teacher should seek assistance from other adults to be witness of the interventions so that
the teacher’s actions would not be misinterpreted and inaccurately reported by the student
(Jones & Jones 2010). Secondly, student’s right to have strong feelings should continue to be
acknowledge while informing the student of consequences if the behaviour remains and
provide assistance to prevent them from receiving the consequences (Jones 2015).

Collaboration with student and parents:

When planning for intervention for conflict behaviours which can be done prior the next
term, the student and their parents should be involved, along with the assistance of
experienced personnel (Thompson & Carpenter 2014). By involving the student in planning,
it enables them to be responsible for their behaviour and decide on how and what the
 Shirley SATITI

student would like to do to regain self-control. As for collaborating with parents to resolve
the student’s behavioural difficulties, parents are able to share any information of the
student’s behavioural difficulties at home and how they respond when the student behaves
in that way (Porter 2007). With the information, both teacher and parents are able to decide
the best possible way to help each other resolve the difficult behaviour and monitor the
progression of any changes (Porter 2007).

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is essential for teachers to develop an intervention plan that respects

students’ rights to human dignity and fair treatment. The intervention strategies that has
been outlined in this plan has considered the variety level of disruption behaviour while
ensuring students are being empowered in choosing to engage in positive behaviours. There
is the potential of strategies outlined to fail, but the teacher should take that opportunity to
improving their classroom management strategies and to continue finding alternate ways to
assist children’s behaviour as ‘one size fits all’ approach never work.

Word count: 1846

 Shirley SATITI

References:

Jones, VF & Jones, LS 2010, ‘Chapter 8: Responding to violations of rules and procedures’,
Comprehensive classroom management: Creating communities of support and solving
problems, 9th edn, Upper Saddle, Merrill, NJ.

Jones, VF 2015, ‘Chapter 4: Developing standards for classroom behaviour and methods for
maximising on-task student behaviour’, Practical classroom management, 2nd edn, Pearson,
Boston, MA.

Larrivee, B 2009, ‘Conflict and stress management strategies’, Authentic classroom

management: Creating a learning community and building reflective practice, Pearson,
Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Porter, L 2007, ‘Collaborating with parents and other experts to resolve school-based
behavioural difficulties’, Student behaviour: Theory and practice for teachers, 3rd edn, Allen
& Unwin, Crows Nest, NSW.

Sullivan, AM, Johnson, B, Owens, LD & Conway, RNF 2014, ‘Punish them or Engage Them?
Teachers’ Views of Unproductive Student Behaviours in the Classroom’, Australian Journal
of Teacher Education, vol. 39, no. 6, pp. 43-56.

Thompson, R & Carpenter, L 2014, ‘Chapter 8: Supporting classroom management for

challenging behaviour’, Diversity, inclusion and engagement, Oxford University Press, South
Melbourne, VIC.

University of South Australia 2019, Course outline: Managing Learning Environments,

University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia.