Parent Communication and its Effects on Classroom Management

Transcription

1 Parent Communication and its Effects on Classroom Management Allison Renaut and Jamie Frey Professional Development School Interns Ferguson Township Elementary April 23, 2008

2 When beginning teacher inquiry, one must consider related questions that, if answered with the support of evidence, can enhance the classroom atmosphere and improve student learning. A common question is that of effective classroom management. We began our inquiry by examining this broad concept and identifying key factors in the promotion of positive behavior in the classroom. Teaching Context Our original inquiries are derived from our kindergarten classrooms at Ferguson Township Elementary. Jamie s class includes sixteen boys and eight girls, making up a total of twenty-four students. There is a large range of personalities in this class, varying from shy, reserved students to energetic, defiant children. The girls demonstrate strong characteristics in personality as they make their presence known. Some students are socially and emotionally mature for their ages, while there is a stark difference in the level of maturity of other students in the class. As personalities differ, so do academic levels, as there are substantial gaps between the performance levels of the students. Jamie s class includes three students who are ESL learners, one special needs student, and four students with Instructional Support Teams (ISTs) who require additional support. Three students have diabetes that must be monitored closely by paraprofessionals and teachers multiple times per day, and the sugar levels of these students affect their behavior and performance in the classroom. There are many ethnicities, family structures, and income levels represented in the class, and these differences are embraced and celebrated by the students and teachers. Allison s class is similar in some ways, but also very different. This class consists of twenty-five students, sixteen boys and nine girls. There is a core group of boys who 1

3 are very active and busy, and the class as a whole is playful, engaging, and boisterous at times. The personalities of the boys are very strong, as are some of the girls, which make for a chatty and dominant class personality. There is not much variation between the academic levels of the students in reading, writing and math, when compared to Jamie s class. Currently there are not any students who are ESL learners, and one boy has an IST in place to improve his concentration and focus. Overall, the socioeconomic status of the students and their families is fairly consistent, as are the family structures and ethnic backgrounds. The classes both have strong parental support, which is a common attribute to many classes at Ferguson. It is in this final quality that our inquiry began. Because our classes have similar levels of parental support, we decided to work collaboratively in researching this connection to management and developing new inquiries and understandings regarding classroom management and what affects it. We know that managing behavior is a struggle that affects not only the teacher, but also the students and their abilities to learn. At this point, we felt that our students were losing instructional time because of behavior-related issues that could be resolved differently. We hoped to diminish the amount of behavioral reminders we gave our students and therefore increase the amount of instruction and learning in our classes. Given the context of our classrooms, we inquired into the effects of increased parent communication on behavior so we can better help our students become self-regulated, responsible learners. Wonderings and Questions Main Question: Does effective parent communication have an influence on the behavior of students? Sub-Questions: 2

4 Are the parents satisfied with the current amount of communication regarding their child s behavior at school? If not, would they prefer more or less feedback? How can we keep parents informed of their child s behavior in school while also motivating students? In beginning our inquiry, we wondered if there was a connection between the classroom and home in relation to students behaviors. If so, this connection could be used to increase positive behavior in the classroom with the support of the parents. Allowing parents to feel that there is an open line of communication, will allow both parent and student to feel a part of the classroom (Charner, 1989). We implemented an intervention to see if more frequent communication between home and school would positively effects students behavior in school. This intervention, entitled the Five Star Program, is a response-based system that involves color-coded tiers of consequences and incentives for students daily, as well as reporting behavior to parents. The students will be assigned five colored cards of their own: green, yellow, white, blue, and red. Each of these colors denotes a leveled consequence for an inappropriate behavior. At the end of the day, the goal is for all students to still have their green card facing up, showing their parents that they demonstrates positive behavior. Once warned three to four times about inappropriate behavior, the students will be asked to flip their cards to yellow. This is a warning card, and if students need further reminders, then they will have to change their cards to white. With a white card, students will then need to spend some thinking time during Choice Time or recess with the teacher. If students should need additional warnings, then their cards will flip to blue and they will help the teacher write a note to her parents. The final tier of consequences is a red card, which means the students will call home to explain to 3

5 their parents about their behavior at school. At the end of each day, the students will record their card color on a chart to be seen and signed by parents daily. The foundation of this program is the potential to earn stars for each green day. Once the students earn five stars, or five green days, they will be rewarded with extra computer time, recess, or lunch with a teacher. The focus of the program is on this reward, rather than the aspect of flipping cards and earning the negative consequences. We chose the Five Star program because of its ability to keep parents informed of their child s behavior at school. Parents were made aware of each of the color-coded tiers and the associated consequences, as well as the potential rewards available for their child. As parents viewed their child s chart to sign it daily, they could find comments from the teachers regarding their child s behavior. This intervention was helpful in providing us with the data that we needed to address our questions about the correlation between parent communication and student behavior. Data Collection and Analysis: To begin the process of data collection, we first considered the types of data we could use to collect evidence to support our inquiry. We developed a list of ideas that included parent and student surveys, keeping in mind that we had to find data that could support or counter our inquiry questions and sub questions. We needed to record the entire process of implementing the new program in order to see if it created a positive or negative change in behavior. Finally, we needed to decide exactly what we wanted to learn and from whom we wanted to learn it. We first decided that we wanted parental input, and so we designed and sent out a parent survey. For this first survey, we asked parents to rate the level of communication 4

6 they felt they had with the school and students. We also asked parents if they were satisfied with the level of communication or if they wanted it to change. The baseline level of communication for our parents was through a weekly newsletter featuring updates and previews about the classroom, parent conferences twice a year, and on an individual basis if there was any specific academic or behavioral problems or questions. We asked if they would support a new behavioral program in the classroom that would directly communicate to parents on a daily basis about their child s behavior. Finally, we asked parents what discipline techniques they found to be successful at home and at school for their child. To analyze this data, we decided to collect all of the parent surveys that were returned and tally up the answers that the parents provided for each question. When we analyzed the data from the parent survey, we found that 19 out of 29 parents were not satisfied with what they rated as a low level of communication in the classroom. Most parents said they would prefer more information about their child s behavior at school. Four parents commented that they knew if there was a big problem academically or behaviorally that they would hear from the classroom teacher, but would appreciate communication on a more regular basis when their children are behaving well. One parent commented by saying, More communication is always better. We felt the need to increase parent communication in hopes of influencing student behavior for classroom management purposes. Open parent communication within the classroom strengthens the classroom community (Wright, 2003). We also wanted to reach out to the majority of classroom parents who desired more information about student behavior. 5

7 After analyzing results from our parent survey, we found that 89% of our classroom parents did support the implementation of a program that informs parents on a daily basis of their child s behavior. We also found that 28 parents out of 30 parents who returned our survey commented that they felt more communication would positively affect students behavior in the classroom. This part of the survey was especially interesting to analyze for those students of whom we knew personally struggled with behavior inside of the classroom. Many of these students made progress, earning more green cards each week. Since we had the support of our classroom parents, we knew that it would be vital to our inquiry to find a behavioral system that worked to both communicate with parents and encourage appropriate classroom behavior. Although it was more difficult to analyze the open-ended questions regarding the different management styles at home and school, we were able to determine that 64% of our classroom parents used a sticker chart to record and reward behavior at home. These parents felt that this type of system was most helpful for their children and saw great changes in behavior when they used it. Other parents supplied rewards for positive behavior and punishment or timeout for negative behavior. After realizing that most parents used a behavioral sticker chart, we began to wonder how we could motivate students in the classroom while increasing parent communication, and we decided that we would implement the Five Star Program. Through the Five Star Program, we were able to collect many pieces of data to use for our inquiry questions. Since students recorded their own behavior on a daily basis, we were able to observe, over a four-week period, the increase in motivation and positive behavior. We were able to do this through the collection of student recording sheets. To 6

8 analyze the data, we counted the number of the positive behavior green cards, the yellow warning cards, the white timeout cards, and the final warning cards that were blue and red. We turned these numbers into a data graph that visually shows the increase of green cards over the recorded time period. This data can be used as evidence to support the Five Star Program and the increase in motivation for positive student behavior. During the second week of our Five Star Program, we decided to include a section for parent/teacher comments on the recording charts. In the first week we noticed that we felt the need to explain to parents why their child earned a warning card, and parents were responding with comments regarding their child s specific behavior. We found that the box allowed parents to provide positive comments and ask questions, while teachers could explain student behavior, answer questions, and provide encouragement for both parents and students. The data clearly shows that communication increased with the comment box and the increase in green cards is linked to this increase in communication. Through comments, parents expressed their positive feelings about the program; several parents commented that they have brought the program into their homes and that the reinforcement is working well in the classroom and at home. During the end of our second week, we wanted to know what our students thought of our new program. From our observations, we could tell that students valued their green cards and the rewards that came with the positive behavior in the classroom, but we wanted to collect concrete data that would give insight to their thoughts and feelings about this new system. We asked our forty-nine students how they felt when they received a green card, yellow card, and their five green card reward. We also wanted to know if students felt that the program helped them with needing fewer reminders during 7

9 the day to see if the students could observe a difference in their own behavior. Finally, we asked students if they liked the new program. Since our students are kindergarteners, we asked them to circle pictures of a happy, an indifferent, and a sad Garfield to answer the survey questions. To analyze this data, we combined the classes and counted the number of responses for each question. We realized that forty-four out of the forty-seven students that we surveyed said that they feel very happy when they received their green cards and their five green card rewards. All but one child circled an unhappy or mad Garfield to represent how they felt when they had to change their card to a yellow warning card. These pieces of data tells us that our students are motivated to keep their green card and therefore work very hard to maintain positive behavior throughout each day to earn their rewards. We now had two pieces of data, our Five Star recording sheets and the student surveys, that strongly support our question of how to motivate students and keep the lines of parent communication open. We were particularly interested in the last two questions on our student survey to see how students perceived their own behavior and the new program. All but four students, 91% of both classes, said that this program has helped them with their behavior in the classroom and with needing fewer reminders. Again, this data directly supports our question of how to motivate student behavior in the classroom. All but four students also indicated, by circling the happy face, that they liked our new Five Star program. We thought this piece of data was exceptionally important to see the effectiveness of our program. We knew that students behavior has changed through our own observations and the data from recording sheets, but we believe for students to observe changes in 8

10 their own behavior is extremely powerful in the classroom, for their own development, and for our inquiry. Explanation of Findings After four weeks of collecting data and implementing our Five Star intervention, we have come to analyze this data and form claims according to our original questions. These claims are supported and strengthened by the evidence we have gathered. Claim 1: An increase in parent communication about behavior positively affects students behavior. As we began the inquiry process, we noticed that our students were practicing inappropriate behaviors and in need of frequent reminders of positive behavior. In speaking with our mentors, we wondered if there would be an effect on behavior if the parents were more involved and informed. After collecting parent surveys that indicated their desire for an increase in communication regarding behavior, we implemented our Five Star intervention and began to notice the climates of our classrooms changing. Over the first four weeks of the program, the number of green cards earned increased in each classroom, while the number of yellow and white cards remained steady or decreased (appendix, 24). This data supports the claim that, in general, keeping parents informed of their child s behavior, whether it be positive or negative, positively affects student behavior in the classroom. Parents are using their awareness to reinforce the intervention at home by offering further rewards or consequences that were consistent with the Five Star Program. For example, in addition to the classroom reward given for five stars, one child will receive extra swimming time each week for every three consecutive green 9

11 cards he earns. This support has added extra incentives for the students to behave appropriately. Claim 2: Parents are interested in feedback regarding their child s behavior at school on a daily basis. The parent survey we developed gave parents the opportunity to comment on the current level of communication regarding their child s behavior and whether or not they would like to see that level changed. After receiving completed surveys, we analyzed the data and found that 63% of the 29 parents who returned the survey, requested an increase in the amount of communication. Since the beginning of the intervention, we have also received positive comments from parents regarding the increased level of communication in relationship to the new program. These pieces of evidence show us that the parents are interested in more feedback, as often as on a daily basis. Many parents, 63% of those who returned the survey, noted that they would appreciate more feedback concerning their child s behavior in school, and that a program consisting of daily feedback and communication would improve the overall communication between the classroom and their home. In addition to this data, parents also showed appreciation for feedback concerning appropriate and inappropriate behavior from their child. We felt that it was important to keep parents aware of their child s positive behavior in hopes that this would act as further incentive to the students. 10

12 Claim 3: Open communication between parents and classroom teachers, along with a consistent rewards system, positively affects students motivation to behave appropriately in school. After analyzing the data from our intervention that showed an increase in positive behavior and a decrease in distraction from learning, we wondered what the students thought about the Five Star Program and whether or not they felt that it was helping them. We interviewed each student in our class using a Garfield survey (appendix, 28), and concluded that most of our students felt that they benefited from this program. Overall, they anxiously anticipated the rewards and were motivated to keep their card on green. These surveys affirmed our claim that the rewards associated with this comprehensive intervention motivated students to behave in positive ways, and we are hoping to see lasting effects throughout the remainder of the school year with the continuation of the Five Star program. Reflections and Future Practice We chose to focus our questions on the concept of classroom management because of the common struggle in this area for both beginning and veteran teachers. With a strong amount of parental support, this inquiry proved to be fruitful in our current classrooms and the Five Star Program is helping our students become more responsible, self-regulated learners. The claims we have made regarding parent communication will be useful in entering our first year of teaching, as we can approach the year knowing the effects of keeping parents informed and involved in their child s behavior at school. We realize that the Five Star Program might not be as effective in other classrooms, as management strategies are rarely versatile enough to benefit all types and groups of 11

13 children. However, this process has given us experience in experimenting with the components of effective and consistent classroom management. After exploring the positive effects of parental support on student behavior, we are left with further wonderings and questions. We are interested in other factors that contribute to effective classroom management, such as teaching styles, gender differences and ratios, effective instruction, and class size. Any of these questions could be further explored and would most likely reveal strategies with which to experiment. When asked about their comfort level regarding classroom management, Ferguson Township Elementary staff members, varying in years of experience, indicated a general discomfort with their strategies and systems of management. After implementing an effective program into our practicum classrooms, we hope to take this experience into our first year of teaching. With this experience, we now feel better prepared with strategies that promote a positive atmosphere from the beginning of the year in which distractions are at a minimum and instructional time is maximized each day. We will look to involve as many willing parents as possible to increase the amount of positive behavior in the classroom, and we will offer feedback to students that is motivating, rewarding, and consistent. Our research has guided us towards evidence-based claims that support this type of management strategy and we intend to use ideas like these to strengthen our teaching styles and create environments in which our children can thrive every day. 12

14 Works Cited Charner, K. (1989). The preschool letters and notes to parents book. New York: Gryhon House. Wright, K. (2003). Building school and community partnerships through parent involvement. New Jersey: Prentice Hall. 13

15 Appendix Inquiry Brief Annotated Bibliography Parent Survey Letter Parent Survey/Results Five Star Informational Letter Five Star Chart Five Star Student Award Five Star Program Data Photographs of Five Star Program Student Survey/Results Behavior Chart Examples

16 Jamie Frey Allison Renaut February 27, 2008 Inquiry Brief Context and Rationale Our inquiries are derived from our kindergarten classrooms at Ferguson Township Elementary. Jamie s class includes sixteen boys and eight girls, making up twenty-four students. The girls demonstrate strong characteristics in personality as they make their presence known. There is a large range of personalities in this class, varying from shy, reserved students to boisterous, defiant children. Some students are very socially and emotionally mature for their ages, while there is a stark difference in the level of maturity of other students in the class. As personalities differ, so do academic levels, as there are substantial gaps between the performance levels of the students. Jamie s class includes students who are ESL learners, one special needs student, and students with Instructional Support Teams (ISTs) who require additional support. Three students have diabetes that must be monitored closely by paraprofessionals and teachers multiple times per day, and the sugar levels of these students affect their behavior and performance in the classroom. There are many ethnicities, family structures, and income levels represented in the class, and these differences are embraced and celebrated by the students and teachers. Allison s class is similar in some ways, but also very different. This class consists of twenty-five students, sixteen being boys and nine girls. There is a core group of boys who are very active and busy, and the class as a whole is playful, engaging, and boisterous at times. The personalities of the boys are very strong, as are some of the girls, which make for a chatty and dominant class personality. There is not much variation between the academic levels of the students in reading, writing and math, as 1

17 compared to Jamie s class. Currently there are not any students who are ESL learners, and one boy has an IST in place to center in on improving his concentration and focus. Overall, the socioeconomic status of the students and their families is fairly consistent, as is the family structures and ethnic backgrounds. The class has strong parental support, which is a common attribute to many classes at Ferguson. In discussing our class dynamics, we found a common wondering regarding behavior management. Teachers in both rooms, both mentors and interns, were struggling with management and we were thinking about what makes management strategies effective for certain types of classes. Do the personalities of our students affect the types of strategies we use, and do our personalities and styles as teachers affect the success of our management? Because our classes have some similarities, we decided to work collaboratively in researching our wonderings and developing new inquiries and understandings regarding classroom management and what affects it. It is important for teachers to feel comfortable with the tools they use to manage behavior in the classroom, and by investigating and comparing the behavioral profiles of our two classes, we can better judge the type of management that works for our personalities and shows positive results in the classroom. We know that managing behavior is a struggle that affects not only the teacher, but also the students and their abilities to learn. At this point, we feel that our students are losing instructional time because of behavior-related issues that could be resolved differently. We hope to diminish the amount of reminders of appropriateness we give our students and therefore increase the amount of instruction and learning in our class. Given the context of our classrooms, we will inquire into the effects of the student and teacher 2

18 personalities on behavior so we can better help our students become self-regulated, responsible learners. Main Wondering: Classroom Management: In what ways do classroom, student, and teacher characteristics affect student behavior? Sub Questions: WONDERING: Does gender ratio affect classroom management? The kindergarten classrooms that we work with have an overwhelming majority of male students. We know that the gender ratio affects the classroom personality, but we wonder if it also effects how a teacher effectively manages classroom behavior. WONDERING: Is it more effective to use a variety of management strategies or one structured set of rules? Through different interventions, we hope to see if it is more effective for classroom management to institute one program or to use a variety of techniques and strategies. WONDERING: Does the transition from the size of group instruction make a difference in student behavior and classroom management? Throughout the year, we have noticed that our class struggles with transitions. We wonder if the activity or size of group instruction that they are transitioning to or from effects student behavior. WONDERING: Should the size of our class affect the type management strategies used? In what ways does class size affect student behavior? Our two kindergarten classes are quite large. We wonder if the size of the class dictates the type of effective management used. WONDERING: Does effective parent communication have an influence on the behavior of students? We wonder if there is a connection between the classroom and home on students behaviors. We hope to try some interventions to see if a stronger communication between home and school positively effects students behavior. Projected Calendar: February: Send/Receive parent and teacher surveys on classroom management Noting observations on specific students and behaviors Evaluate classroom management techniques and personalities/effects on class March: 3-7 Inform parents of their role in new behavior interventions letter home 3

19 17 After spring break- Begin interventions -Begin with 5 Star program, then add strategies as needed (marble jar, good work slips, Super Student badges) All month: Receive parent and teacher surveys on classroom management April: 1-15 Analyze and evaluate data, interventions, and surveys for further use Write paper APRIL 23 rd : INQUIRY IS DUE!! Data Collection Ideas: We have many ideas for the data collection portion of our inquiry. In order to get a recorded baseline on our students behaviors, we plan on noting student behaviors prior to any interventions or changes in classroom management. We also plan to keep a journal on our own classroom management techniques to monitor the effects of our personalities on our students and classroom management. To gain insight on our topic, we will be sending out parent and teacher surveys on classroom management. We will also be conducting student surveys to see how our students view their classroom and the management techniques that are used. We will have several different surveys and interviews throughout the inquiry process. There will also be different interventions that we will try throughout our inquiry. Our first goal is to create a strong communication between home and school, in hopes that it will positively affect student behavior. We hope to do this through a program called the Five Star Program, where students behavior is monitored and parents are constantly aware of their children s behavior in school. We also plan to use different ways to communicate with students home lives in order to positively influence student behavior. 4

20 Another interest that we have within this inquiry is to experiment with different classroom combinations to find the effects that they may have on classroom management. We would like to try an all female and all male classrooms, switch teachers, and introduce different management styles. This would be done for a short period of time each day for a week. We want to change the dynamics in our classroom and to experiment with personalities and styles of the teachers to see the effects on classroom management. 5

21 Allison Renaut and Jamie Frey Annotated Bibliography Babyak, A. E., Luze, G. J., & Kamps, D. M. (2000, March). The good student game: Behavior management for diverse classrooms. Intervention in School & Clinic, 35(4), Retrieved February 11, 2008, from This journal article provides us with an example of a behavior management tool that uses incentives and the modeling of positive student behavior to decrease inappropriate behaviors. Good students become role models for others in the way they behave appropriately, and classroom management system revolves around the emphasis on positive behavior. We think that this kind of positive motivation can help to create more intrinsic motivation in our students. Because we have groups of students who do behave appropriately, we are able to exemplify them and encourage other students to notice their behaviors. This kind of positive modeling could also support our other management ideas as we explore the effectiveness of the tools in each classroom. Cangelosi, J. S. (2008). Classroom management strategies: Gaining and maintaining students cooperation. New York: John Wiley & Songs. This book provides typical behavioral situations in the classroom and different management tools and outcomes that a teacher could use within the situations. 6

22 Since these cases are common classroom problems, it will be a useful source in our inquiry to try different management techniques on the same situation. The book also provides goals and objectives that a teacher should have for different behaviors that students exhibit. Cases range from disruptive and off-task, to non-disruptive and off-task behaviors. Finally, the book also encourages teachers to find ways to motivate students to engage in learning therefore positively influence students behaviors. File, N., & Gullo, D. F. (2002, March). A comparison of early childhood and elementary education students beliefs about primary classroom teaching practices. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 17(1), Retrieved February 11, 2008, from B- 45B686V2&_user=209810&_coverDate=03%2F31%2F2002&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=s earch&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=c &_version=1&_urlversion=0&_userid= &md5=08a5346b6242d This journal discusses studies performed with beginning students and pre-service teachers in early childhood and elementary education. The study focuses on their beliefs of teaching practices, including those of classroom management. In the area of behavior management, there seems to be a large gap between the beliefs of those students beginning in the field of education, and those teachers practicing in the field. We might find this journal helpful as we examine our own beliefs about teaching and managing behavior. As an aspect of our wondering suggests, we are curious to see the 7

23 relationships between our personalities and beliefs and our management styles and techniques. This research provides us with at least one point of reference in this area of study. Herrell, A. L., & Jordan, M. (2007). 35 Classroom management strategies: promoting learning and building community. New York: Pearson Education. This source introduces a learning environment that supports students engagement as a preventative measure to disruptive behaviors. It includes the arrangement of furniture, access to resources/materials, and adequate time to work, interact, and collaborate with other students. Once the learning environment has been properly set up, then teachers introduce a management style that properly fits the classroom. The book discusses how to find a system that is built on respect and mutual understanding and how to give students responsibility on their own behavior. Finally, the book discusses the role of parents in the classroom and how they can influence students behaviors. Jacobs, M. M., & Langley, N. (2007). Real classroom management. Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield Education. This book addresses the question on classroom management: Whose job is it? It talks about the role and responsibilities of teachers, administrators, and parents in the classroom, and how each can influence behavior. It also discusses an interesting connection between the classroom and the community, and how the community plays a role in classroom behavior. This book will be 8

24 useful in our inquiry when we look at the role of teachers and parents in the classroom and how they both effect classroom management. It is also a great resource for new and veteran teachers, as well as parents and administrators. Lewis, C. (2008, January 13). Tools for Classroom Management. Interview presented at New Oxford Elementary. Mrs. Lewis suggested a group incentive tool that involves filling a jar with objects every time the group is following directions and acting appropriately. For example, she uses cotton balls in her jar, and when students are on task she will place a handful of cotton balls into the jar. Once the jar is filled, the students will be rewarded with an extra recess or choice time. She also takes out handfuls when she sees misbehavior. This puts peer pressure on the students to stay on task and engage in appropriate behavior. This is a tool that can supplement the behavior card system. A mix of individual and group incentives could provide for a delicate balance in the classroom. We plan on investigating the effects of using more than one behavior management system simultaneously, adding them onto each other as time goes on. This activity could easily be introduced and added on to any type of current management structure. Noell, G. H., Duhon, G. J., Gatti, S. L., & Connell, J. E. (2002). Consultation, follow-up, and implementation of behavior management interventions in general education. School Psychology Review, 31(2), Retrieved February 11, 2008, from 9

25 This journal article discusses the implementation of interventions for behavior management and the results of that intervention. Teachers were studied while putting the interventions into place, and the variations in implementation were noted. The research showed high levels of stability and effectiveness when interventions were conducted with consistency and an emphasis on follow-up. When conducing our inquiry, we plan to implement interventions as we explore behavior management strategies. It is important to focus on the implementation of these tools to monitor for success as we reflect upon our abilities as teachers to be consistent in management. This research will provide us with research and information related to implementing behavior interventions and achieving higher success rates with our programs. Ravet, J. (2007). Are We Listening? New York: Trentham Books. This book discusses the importance of the student-teacher-parent connection. It will be a great source to use during our inquiry because we are interested in strengthening the bond between home and school. Not only does it give the student and teacher perception on why students struggle to focus and behave in the classroom, but it also gives the parent perspective. Finally, the book gives strategies on how to collaborate to have a successful classroom. This book would be appropriate for first year and veteran teachers alike. Renaut, D. (2008, January 9). Classroom management. Interview presented at New Oxford Elementary. This interview took place via , as Mrs. Renaut provided us with examples of 10

26 behavior management tools she uses in her kindergarten classroom. She uses a Five Star system in which students have sets of cards in five different colors, each color representing mounting consequences. As the students perform inappropriate behavior, they flip their cards and their color is reported to their parents. Students get a star for each day they don t have to move their card. After five days of keeping their card on green, the original color, the students are rewarded. This strategy, with some adaptations, is a suggestion we are interested in because of the communication with parents. It would be feasible to implement this into our classrooms because of our strong parental support, and this strategy might provide our students with the consistency they need. Scheuermann, B. K., & Hall, J. A. (2004). Positive behavioral supports for the classroom. New York: Pearson. This text on classroom management will be beneficial to our inquiry because it provides detailed information on how to institute new routines and management programs in the classroom. Another major portion of the book deals with successfully using positive reinforcement as a management tool. One of the strongest parts of the book is the section that deals with the importance of looking at students learning difficulties as an influence on classroom behaviors. This will motivate us to not only look at students behaviors, but to look at the causes of students behaviors.there are also different recording sheets that are used to record students behaviors, which might be a way for us to record the behaviors in our classrooms. Finally, this 11

27 book includes a section on common and expected behaviors in the classroom, and what might cause them. Watkins, B. (2008, January 9). Classroom Management Tools. Interview presented at New Oxford Elementary. Mr. Bryan Watkins is a second grade teacher who uses a similar system to that of Mrs. Donna Renaut, noted previously. Mr. Watkins utilizes his students homework folders to keep track of their behavior throughout the week. At the end of each day, they record the color of their card in their homework folder and parents are to sign their folder each night. Each day their card is on green, they get a sticker, and five stickers awards them an extra recess. I feel that these incentives would have an effect on our students. It emphasizes the positive rewards of behaving appropriate and takes the emphasis off of misbehaving. I like the idea of having the chart built into their homework folders, and would consider this for an older grade. 12

28 Letter to Parents Attached to Survey February 22, 2008 Dear Parents, We need your input and insight! In order to ensure our continued professional development as teachers, we will be conducting an inquiry project throughout the remainder of the school year that focuses on classroom organization and the management of behavior within our classrooms. As students and teachers, we have been questioning the most effective ways of managing behavior, both appropriate and inappropriate, as we are taking more and more responsibility for our classrooms. We want to increase the level of engagement and instruction in our classes and reduce the amount of reminders 13

29 we give to the students when they are not meeting the behavioral expectations. This topic has become and will continue to be our passion for the remainder of the year as we research and collect data that will hopefully answer many of our questions about general behavior management. Here s where you come in. You know your child better than anyone in the world, and we would appreciate if you would take a few minutes to tell us more about his or her behavior in school and how effectively it is communicated to you. These surveys will remain anonymous and will be used as data in our research study. Please feel free to add any additional comments you might feel would be helpful as we continue to inquiry about children s behaviors and how to best meet the needs of our current and future students! Attached are the survey questions and some brief instructions. We encourage you to be as detailed as possible, knowing that your time is precious. Thank you in advance for your support and input, and please feel free to contact us with any questions or comments! Sincerely, The Kindergarten Interns Allison Renaut and Jamie Frey Parent Survey February Please rate the level of communication you feel you have with your child about school: No Communication Open Communication 2. Would you like the above level to change? Yes No 3. Please rate the level of communication you have with the school about your child: No Communication Open Communication 14

30 4. Would you like the above level to change? Yes No 5. Do you feel that an increase in communication with the classroom about your child would positively affect your child s behavior at school? Yes No 6. Would you be interested in an increase of communication/ a program that would link home and school to promote motivation and positive behavior for your child? Yes No 7. On a regular basis, rate how your child describes their experience in school? Negative Positive 8. What types of discipline styles do you feel would work best for your child in school? 9. Is there a successful discipline technique or incentive that you use at home that might work for your child in school? Parent Survey 1. Please circle the level of communication you feel you have with your child about school (where 1 is little or no communication and 5 is open and honest communication): (1) (0) (7) (11) (10) No Communication Open Communication 2. Would you like the above level to change? Yes No (16) (12) 15

31 3. Please circle the level of communication you have with the school about your child (where 1 is little or no communication and 5 is open and honest communication): (1) (2) (11) (5) (10) No Communication Open Communication 4. Would you like the above level to change? Yes No (17) (10) 5. Do you feel that an increase in communication with the classroom teacher about your child would positively affect your child s behavior at school? Yes No (28) (2) 6. Would you be interested in an increase of communication, such as a program that would link home and school to promote motivation and positive behavior for your child? Yes No (26) (3) 7. On a regular basis, please rate by circling how your child describes their experience in school (where 1 is a negative experience and 5 is a positive experience): (3) (11) (14) Negative Positive 8. What types of behavior management styles do you feel would work best for your child in school? Type of record-reward sticker chart:19 Communication:1 Motivation: 1 Structure and rules: 5 9. Is there a successful management technique or incentive that you use at home that might work for your child in school? Type of record-reward sticker chart:14 Structure and rules: 2 Attention: 1 16

32 Counting: 1 Negative Reinforcement: 6 Stressing the importance of education: 1 Informational Letter about the Five Star Program March 6, 2008 Dear Parents, An important part of your child s kindergarten year is to learn to respect others and to practice positive behavior. Our Polar Bears have been working on following our classroom promises and have made a great deal of growth since the first day of kindergarten! After Spring Break, we will be implementing a new program to encourage such positive behavior. Your child will be given the opportunity to earn a Five Star Student Award after five days of positive behavior. In our class, each child will be given five cards to keep in a pocket chart that has his/her name on the pocket. The top card is green and the object 17

33 is to have no behavior issues throughout the day and earn a green day star sticker on their pending Five Star award. After the first inappropriate behavior, the child will flip to the second card, which is yellow. This will be a warning card. For the next negative behavior, the child will flip to a white card and will serve five minutes of thinking time at a table during Choice Time or recess. The fourth card is blue and the child will sit out of a different activity and a note or will be sent home to the parents. If the child needs to flip to red, he/she must make a phone call home to the parents explaining his/her behavior. After three consecutive days of flipping to a red card, the teacher will arrange for a meeting with the student and his/her parent(s). At the end of each day, your child will fill out a behavior sheet that will be coming home in a folder in their backpack. This chart will show the color of card your child ended the day on and the sheet will need to be signed and returned each day. We are encouraging your child to talk with you about their behavior in school, no matter what color they are reporting! The charts will remain in the folders for the duration of the week and will be taken out by the teachers at the end of the week, as a blank chart will replace it. If a chart is ever lost or destroyed, the student can receive a new, blank chart upon request. After five days of positive behavior (staying on green), your child will receive a reward (extra computer or choice time, lunch with a teacher, etc.) and he/she will bring home a Five Star Student Award with his/her five stickers. Please encourage your child to be a good listener, to follow our Polar Bear Promises and to be respectful of others. Look for many Five Star Student Awards to come home with your child! As you enjoy your Spring Break, please take a moment to discuss this new program with your child and feel free to or call me with any questions. Thank you for your cooperation! Sincerely, Miss Renaut Akr5001@psu.edu

34 Below is an example of the behavior chart that will need to be signed and returned to school each day: Green: Your child had a great day! He/she was a good listener throughout the day and worked cooperatively with others! Please tell him/her how proud you are! Yellow: Your child was given a warning about his/her behavior today. He/she called out more than once on the carpet, was not working well with others, was running or yelling in the classroom, hallway, or other places, was not following directions, other (teacher will circle one or specify if necessary!) White: Your child was given the above warning and continued to behave inappropriately in the same or a different way. He/she spent some time thinking at a table during Choice Time or recess today. Blue: Your child was given the above warnings and consequences for their behavior today and continued to behave inappropriately. Please look for a note or from the teachers explaining his/her behavior in more detail. Red: Your child was given the above warnings and consequences and continued to behave inappropriately. He/she will be calling you to explain this behavior. March 17 March 18 March 19 March 20 March 21 (child will color in these blocks according to his/her card color for the day) 19

35 Parent signature: Parent signature: Parent signature: Parent signature: Parent signature: FIVE STAR STUDENTS! 20

36 Parents, Please review your child s behavior with them every day! This will help our students better understand the process of taking responsibility for their actions in school and continue on the path of positive behavior and encouragement! Please sign the enclosed chart each day to acknowledge that you are aware of your child s behavior for that particular day and return the chart to school in this folder each day. The descriptions for each color card are listed on the behavior chart. At the end of the week, the filled charts will be collected and new charts will be placed in your child s folder. If his/her chart is lost or destroyed, they will be supplied with a new, blank chart. Completed charts will be used to determine if your child has earned five stars! Thank you for your cooperation and support! Kindergarten Behavior Chart 21

37 Green: Your child had a great day! He/she was a good listener throughout the day and worked cooperatively with others! Please tell him/her how proud you are! Yellow: Your child was given a warning about his/her behavior today. He/she called out or was talking more than once on the carpet, was not working well with others, was running or yelling in the classroom, hallway, or other places, was not following directions, other (teacher will circle one or specify if necessary!) White: Your child was given the above warning and continued to behave inappropriately in the same or a different way. He/she spent some time thinking at a table during Choice Time or recess today. Blue: Your child was given the above warnings and consequences for their behavior today and continued to behave inappropriately. Please look for a note or from the teachers explaining his/her behavior in more detail. Red: Your child was given the above warnings and consequences and continued to behave inappropriately. He/she will be calling you to explain this behavior. April 7 April 8 April 9 April 10 April 11 Parent signature: Parent signature: Parent signature: Parent signature: Parent signature: Comments Comments Comments Comments Comments Five Star Student Award 22

38 has practiced positive behavior and is a FIVE STAR STUDENT! Congratulations! Amount of Green Cards Earned in Each Classroom 23

39 24

40 Amount of Yellow and White Cards Earned in Each Classroom 25

41 26

42 27