Combating Problem Behaviors

ED 672

Course Description

This course provides busy educators with practical, easy-to use strategies for preventing and responding to misbehavior in ways that will build respectful, responsible and cooperative classroom communities. This course is designed to directly deal with the issues surrounding problem behaviors in a classroom. You will learn to establish a caring, stimulating and safe community for learning where democratic values are fostered, diversity is embraced, and students assume responsibility for learning. Candidates will explore instructional strategies to enhance teaching and learning for all students.

This course will focus on creating a classroom of exceptional learners who are committed to the learning process when dealing with diverse learners, including those with special needs. We will learn to promote democratic values, appreciate diversity, and create classroom communities with high expectations for all students. We will examine the causes of misbehavior, classroom disruptions and oppositional behaviors that affect student learning.

The first half of this course will focus on a proactive approach with a focus on specific techniques you can use to prevent problems from occurring in the first place. You will learn five specific phrases guaranteed to build relationships with any student as well as numerous strategies designed to make students want to behave because they care about you and each other. In addition, you will learn many practical ways to satisfy the needs that often drive students to misbehave without sacrificing precious instructional time.

The second half of the course will focus on why kids misbehave and how to intervene when one student or a small group of students disrupt the learning process for all. When students are disruptive, you will learn specific things to say and do that will enable you to maintain your authority and the student's dignity while ending the disruption quickly so you can get back to teaching and keep the student in class. You will learn two phrases that will have challenging students agreeing with the consequences given. Finally, you will learn exactly what to say and do when you must remove a student to make them want to return to your class.

Objectives

Examine the importance of relationship building in the teaching process.
Create artifacts that support relationship building teaching strategies.
Develop strategies to predict and prevent disruptive behavior.
Design strategies that will increase student work completion.
Assess the root cause of student misbehavior.
Differentiate between being fair and treating everyone the same way.
Determine when differentiated instruction and discipline is necessary.
Explore and practice creative teaching and testing strategies.
Assess how, why, where and when to sue cooperative learning to maximize group work.
Decide how to use rules, consequences and punishments.
Structure and define values for rules, consequences and punishments.
Apply strategies to diffuse a power struggle.
Implement strategies to help students make responsible decisions.
Recognize and correct specific ways teachers inadvertently cause bullying.
Determine how to effectively use awards without bribing.
Implement core concepts, strategies and ideals from first nine modules.
Explain aspects of classroom management.

Curriculum Design

This is a 45 hour, three credit graduate level course completed over fifteen weeks.

One semester credit equals fifteen (15) hours of online class time. Each course is equivalent to three (3) semester credit hours.

A minimum of one hundred thirty five (135) hours should be anticipated for completion of the course. This includes forty five (45) hours of direct contact and ninety (90) hours in preparation and study; three (3) and six (6) per week respectively.

Hardware & Computer Skills Requirements

Students may use either a Macintosh computer or a PC with Windows 2000 or higher. Students should possess basic word processing skills and have Internet access as well as an active email account. Students also are expected to have a basic knowledge of how to use a Web browser, such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Safari, etc.

Course Materials

The required textbook for this course is Strategies for Successful Classroom Management: Helping Students Succeed Without Losing your Dignity or Sanity by Brian D. Mendler, Richard L. Curwin, and Allen N. Mendler. In this text, educators will learn dozens of strategies to improve lessons and eliminate disruptions and one secret strategy that every teacher needs for successful classroom management. You will learn to differentiate instruction without adding any work for the teacher. Finally, you will understand the three biggest classroom management mistakes and how to avoid them. Case studies, rubrics, and lesson plans are included.

Student Requirements

Participation: Actively participate in all Forum activities
Reading assignments: Complete all readings and reflection assignments
Students are required to put the classroom management strategies and concepts into action and will be required to construct a portfolio during the course that will serve as a toolkit of specific ideas and protocols for their classrooms as a part of their final project due by the end of Module 10.

Grading Criteria

Grading Criteria
Assignment	Points	Grading Scale
Forum Participation	25	95-88	A
Assignments	45	87-81	B
Final Project	25	80-73	C

Credit hours

One semester credit equals fifteen (15) hours of online class time. Each course is equivalent to three (3) semester credit hours.
A minimum of one hundred thirty five (135) hours should be anticipated for completion of the course. This includes forty five (45) hours of direct contact and ninety (90) hours in preparation and study; three (3) and six (6) per week respectively.

Student Academic Integrity

Principles of academic integrity refer to cheating and plagiarism. Participants guarantee that all academic class work is original. Any academic dishonesty or plagiarism is a violation of student academic behavior standards and are subject to disciplinary action. Plagiarism is defined as taking ideas, writings, etc. from another and offering them as one’s own. Academic dishonesty is defined as practicing dishonesty or misrepresentation of facts. All forms of dishonesty and intent to defraud through falsification are considered cheating. Violation of these principles will merit a failing grade in the course in which the violation is documented.

Privacy Rights and Confidentiality

In accordance with the provisions of the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (Buckley Amendment), Teacher Education University honors student privacy and protects the confidentiality of educational records and the rights of students to inspect and review these records. Only upon the written request of the student may information collected by the University be released. Specific transcript information is not available for general statistical purposes.