In many middle schools, poor student lunchtime behaviour is an ongoing problem. Such behaviour can have a detrimental effect on a school's climate and culture, which can in turn degrade the quality of learning that occurs in the classroom. As a result, improving students' lunchtime behaviour should be a priority for staff. One solution is to make…

TOP High School (Transitional Option in Peoria) has just completed its first year of operation. The vision of TOP is to become one of the best schools of hope and opportunity in the nation. The staff recognizes there is no such designation, so the vision statement is designed to capture the imagination and attention of students, parents,…

Educators, particularly those who work with students outside the classroom, are trained to identify and correct problems. This approach typically addresses gaps in skills but does not identify and exploit personal strengths. In this article, the authors argue that institutions and the students who attend them would be better served by…

This study evaluated the effectiveness of contingency mapping, a new visual support strategy designed to enhance clients' understanding of the contingencies associated with functional equivalence training (FET). The study was conducted in a general education classroom with an adolescent boy with autism who engaged in prompt dependent behavior. A…

Strengths-based social work practice has become a major approach to working with clients. The social constructivist perspective is a foundation of this approach. Narrative treatment is one form of strengths-based practice arising from a social constructive perspective. The demands of time and material needing to be covered in the social work…

After 41 years of a varied and exciting career in Miami-Dade County (Florida) Public Schools, the author recently retired as a middle level principal. Although he also served as a teacher and a counselor, more than half of his career was spent as an administrator in more than a dozen schools. As he reflects on his role as a school leader and…

Positive psychotherapy (PPT) contrasts with standard interventions for depression by increasing positive emotion, engagement, and meaning rather than directly targeting depressive symptoms. The authors have tested the effects of these interventions in a variety of settings. In informal student and clinical settings, people not uncommonly reported…

This study examines the effects of using response cost in combination with positive reinforcement procedures in helping two second grade students with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder maintain their attention in the classroom. This involved the loss of reinforcers/points contingent upon inappropriate behavior in the classroom, in addition…

This brief paper describes a Behavioral Intervention Program (BIP) in Georgia in 1995-1997 that provided services at the local level for 88 students with severe and challenging behaviors. Under the program, students with severe behaviors are identified at the local level and referred to the BIP through a request for service process. The local…

Some students need help in solving their daily challenges. The program described here teaches students to function more efficiently in the school environment and the community. Various strategies provide students with alternatives to suspension/expulsion, and encourage parental and community involvement with "at-risk" youth. The program…

This monograph aims to assist parents in dealing with behavior problems of children with disabilities. It begins with a case history of an 8-year-old girl with learning disabilities, emotional problems, and behavior problems and her parents' advocacy efforts to obtain an appropriate educational environment for her. Aversive interventions are…

For 2 years, at least 2 days a week were spent by a researcher in observing, through the actions of the principal, the dynamics of cultural and ideologic conflict and the process of social control in an elementary school. This personal account analyzes the principal's use of corporal punishment, symbolized by the paddle, and positive…

A look at what we may expect in the future suggests some advantages to be gained from a motivational model, drawn from a synthesis of the latest research into behavior modification, and its link to contigency theories of organizations. (Author)

Board members and administrators can build public confidence in their schools by taking every opportunity to communicate positive attitudes about the people in the schools. As leaders, they have the responsibility to use people power to promote the schools. If school employees feel good about their jobs, they will build confidence within the…

A review of literature on the subject of student motivation identified five areas which could be used to increase motivation among students: (1) using an incentive program; (2) using "fun" or "unusual" activities to motivate students; (3) goal setting; (4) students motivating other students; and (5) using parents to motivate students to learn.…