Ang Hui Shan, Group B

Case 1: intervention to promote Annie’s social development and to overcome her behavior difficulties.


(i) The intervention – systems theory

•Teach Expectations.
According to Stormont, Espinosa, Knipping and McCathren (2003), children at risk for challenging behavior need to be taught and shown explicitly what they are expected to do to meet their needs without jeopardizing the needs of others in the classroom setting. One way teachers can accomplish this goal is to give concrete and specific feedback to children (Stormont et al., 2003). For example, teachers may point out to a child when he behaved appropriately to a peer or adult. Conversely, if a child was displaying inappropriate behaviors, teachers may first explain to her that what she did was not right in very specific terms and then help her converse what she wants to express in an appropriate way. Young children who are vulnerable for behavior problems may not have the language skills necessary to negotiate their needs with peers (Stormont et al., 2003). Teachers need to support children in learning new words and new strategies to negotiate their needs and desires (Stormont et al., 2003).

•Monitor Interactions.
According to Lewis and Sugai (as cited in Stormont et al., 2003, it is vital for teachers to monitor the feedback that they are giving to children. For example, children may assume that they are able to attract teacher’s attention and assistance when they break the rules or went off-task. Jack and colleagues (as cited in Stormont et al., 2003) found that children who exhibit challenging behavior had four times more negative than positive interactions with teachers. Teachers need to collect data on how often they are providing positive feedback to the students they find most challenging (Stormont et al., 2003).
Feedbacks can be monitored on an index card that the teacher keeps in his or her pocket or desk (i.e., where numbers of negative, corrective, and positive comments are tallied). If teachers find that they are not giving enough positive comments to some children, they can try to provide more positive comments when children behave appropriate or achieve something (Stormont et al., 2003). The feedback should highlight for expectations that are appropriate and helpful for their overall learning or social relationships.

•Target Individual Needs for Extra Support.
According to Lewis and Sugai (as cited in Stormont et al., 2003), settings that include large groups of children and minimal adult supervision are often associated with problem behavior in young children.
Some students may also need more direct instruction on specific social skills. Young children who are vulnerable may have some common social skills deficits like for example, using violence to resolve conflict. Children who use aggression when they are angry need strategies for regulating their anger appropriately. For example, children can be taught to express their feelings with specific people when they are feeling upset. They can also provide teachers with a signal that indicates that they are feeling unhappy and need help coming up with appropriate ways to deal with a conflict (Stormont et al., 2003). Children become angry for different reasons. Some may get upset when they could not complete as task or when they are not able to converse their emotions in a situation. For children who need more concrete directions or assistance completing tasks, teachers can assign them a few peer buddies who can assist the student when he or she needs it (Stormont et al., 2003). Teachers can also educate the peer buddies on how to work with, communicate and help peers who are more vulnerable without completing the tasks for these peers(Stormont et al., 2003).




(ii) its effectiveness (as reported in the journal article)

By providing the child with feedbacks, it enhances his/her overall social relationships. When teachers target individual’s needs for extra support, it helps the individuals to create organizational structures to approach play with their peers (Stormont et al., 2003). In addition, it also helps to support learners with diverse range of need and enable them to succeed in school
As mentioned by Pinata (as cited in Stormont et al., 2003), Classroom relationships can be powerful influences in all children's lives and through positive interactions with children, teachers can inculcate important competencies that may protect children from developing or sustaining problems.

Dalton and Watson (as cited in Stormont et al., 2003) also noted the benefits of supportive classroom relationships. Their research with the Child Development Project in elementary schools indicates that children who perceive that their schools and classrooms have a strong sense of community and that their schools and classrooms are places where their teachers and classmates care about them and where their ideas and concerns are considered important are more likely to "like school, trust and respect their teachers, enjoy challenging learning activities, be concerned about and help others, and resolve conflicts fairly and without force" (p. 164). Furthermore, as quoted by Battistich, Solomon, Kim, Watson and Schaps (as cited in Stormont et al., 2003),"the relationships between school community and student outcomes—particularly attitudinal and motivational outcomes—hold for schools at a wide range of poverty levels and, in some cases, appear to be strongest among schools with the most disadvantaged student populations"( p. 649 ) .




(iii) Your personal evaluation how the child will benefit from this intervention

Annie will be able to know the expectations from teachers and the appropriate ways to express herself which enhance her ability to bond with her peers. By having supportive classroom practices and relationship through these interventions, Annie will also be able to overcome her difficulties with the support of the environment. When teachers monitor children individually, it helps them to narrow down to the main causes of problems and inappropriate behaviors more easily, allowing them to provide accurate strategies to overcome the problems faced.




(iv) your suggestions how you can make adjustments to cater to the needs of the
child and to facilitate integration of the child / the intervention activity into
your classroom.

Personally, before implementing the intervention, I will educate the Annie’s peers on her conditions and create awareness among them. Role plays can be used to impart appropriate values to the children, showing them the appropriate ways to treat their peers and why is it not nice to jeer at someone who is different from them. Social stories can be used to further enhance appropriate values for both Annie and her peers.




Reference:
Stormont, M., Espinosa, L., Knipping, N., & McCathren, R. (2003). Supporting vulnerable learners in the primary grades: Strategies to prevent early school failure, 5(2). Retrieved September 8, 2009, from http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v5n2/stormont.html