The purpose of this study is to determine if incentive programs like Renaissance impact high school students and faculty. Incentives can go a long way for students in schools. At Lehigh Senior High School (LSHS), for example, students were introduced to the Renaissance Program this school year, by receiving goodies. Coupons at Dairy Queen,…

This book contains a widely used method for structuring learning in a positive environment. The material is presented in a workshop format. Each unit should be read and worked on for one week; the teachers should then meet to exchange ideas. Unit 1 discusses behavior, and informs the reader that if he/she wants to influence a change in behavior,…

Three hypotheses were tested in this 6-week study: a) training in systematic application of strategies designed to reinforce desirable pupil behavior would enable the teacher to develop and maintain classroom control and increase pupil learning; b) desirable pupil behavior thus produced could be transferred from one classroom to another in which…

Argues that the most important factor in the success of any teaching method is the teacher's ability to reward children for correct behavior rather than punish them for incorrect behavior. The application of behavior modification principles to language arts instruction and discovery learning is discussed. (CW)

A preview of statistical data from previous studies determined the benefits of positive reinforcement on learning in students from kindergarten through college. Results indicate that differences between reinforced and control groups are greater for girls and for students from special schools and that reinforcement appears to have a strong effect…

This publication provides practical, step-by-step guidance for teachers on becoming more effective in classroom management by using a positive and constructive, rather than negative and punitive, approach to foster prosocial student behavior. The publication is divided into an introduction and three parts. The Introduction examines why effective…

A three-school study suggests that more intensive teacher effort, more attention to contriving successful pupil reading experiences, and freer delivery of "payoffs" to pupils who are reading, offer the possibility of modifying pupil attitudes about reading. (Author/RL)

Case studies were conducted to assess the personal learning styles and behaviors of elementary school children to provide teachers the opportunity of using prescribed teaching techniques to match students' styles. Six groups of behaviors were identified: (1) students demonstrate little internal control and are likely to act out and create…

The study investigates whether procrastination in Personalized System of Instruction (PSI) can be alleviated by two behavior-modification techniques. The efficacy of oral urging with praise by the proctor and a point reward for the early completion of units in reducing student procrastination behavior in two PSI psychology courses are examined. In…

This article argues that challenges in motivating gifted underachievers should be addressed from an integrated systems approach. The design and implementation of specific interventions for these students are described, with a special focus on reward menus and behavior contracts. Suggested target behaviors and individual and class rewards are…

To motivate slow learners and discipline-problem pupils to improve their writing skills, a reinforcement program was developed in Baltimore, Maryland, modeled on an earlier program which created a school environment operated like the business world. Upon successful completion of assigned tasks, the experimental group, 24 eighth graders, were given…

This paper describes a portion of the Kennedy Youth Center program concerned with motivating previously intractable sociopathic youths in the academic and industrial arts schools. Male delinquents considered uneducable in traditional education programs, have been advanced two years in the one year they spent as participants in the differential…

Briefly reviews the research literature concerning the overjustification effect. The effect describes the situation where positive reinforcement reduces one's intrinsic motivation for a behavior, thereby decreasing the probability that the behavior will be repeated. Notes the limitations of this explanation and recommends a broader representation…

A 10-week program to increase assignment completion was implemented with 10 sixth graders who rarely completed assignments. This behavior modification program entailed the use of an assignment completion contract for the students. The criteria for meeting this contract increased each week. When students met the weekly criteria, they were given a…

Three kindergartens and one prekindergarten, totaling 213 children, participated in a Behavior Modification program during the 1971-72 school year. A research assistant in each location worked directly with the teacher in measuring and evaluating teaching methods and in developing alternative procedures as needed to teach the same skills or…