Incentives can be useful tools for reinforcing and encouraging appropriate behavior in class, if they are done correctly. What is a meaningful prize to one student may not be for another, so making sure to know the interests of your students is important to developing the most effective incentives plan for your class. In my classroom we have several types of rewards systems in place. After the first month or so, the honeymoon is over and that is when I introduce the incentives. After getting to know the class, with their likes and dislikes, I am able to tailor the rewards to fit what I know will drive their motivation. This is a discussion that we have as a whole class when reviewing the rules and expectations. They all understand what is expected and what they can individually earn if they meet those objectives.
It would be great if they stayed eager to please all year long, and for some of them, that is the case. However, many of them need those incentives as a reminder and motivation to display the appropriate behavior. The incentives, whether they are praise, stickers on their card, or something tangible like a prize, are plentiful at the beginning of the school year and taper off as the months pass. As they mature and learn to better use their social, emotional, and behavioral skills, I make the incentives a bit harder to reach as a reminder to them that they do not need to get a prize for every positive act. This also allows us to change up the incentives plans for the rest of the school year (Hamlett, 2018). Even when I have identified the most motivating incentive for a specific student, it may not always work. In this case, I believe that a consequence is the most appropriate route to take as the rules have already been set, incentives are desirable and available, but the student is still not meeting the behavior expectations. Just like the incentives, the consequence should be meaningful to each student, for example, missing a desired activity or losing time for free choice, chromebooks, etc.
The peer group, even at this young age, is highly influential. When thought out carefully and used correctly, teachers can use peers as a positive role model for students who are not showing appropriate behaviors. When implementing a behavior plan and the peers are reinforcing inappropriate behaviors, I provide individual and group incentives for the peers who show positive behaviors. Some students may have a specific goal in their behavior plan about staying on task and having that peer group around can help them be successful in meeting their goals if they are motivated to do so. I give verbal praise for the peers who are encouraging the student to stay on task and allow the group as a whole to earn crystals in their jar for overall group behavior. When their jar is filled, the group can earn a tangible reward from the prize box. When the peers are encouraged and rewarded for their positive behavior, it prompts the student to engage in the same positive behaviors. This type of team building activity helps the students to “support each other, develop boundaries, and establish ground rules within their peer relationships” (Hamlett, 2018, p. 1). Providing these opportunities for peer engagement improves their self-confidence and practice of appropriate social skills.
References
Hamlett, T. (2018). Module 4: Incentives, Peers, and the Educative Time-Out Process Part 1 Transcript: Incentives [Lecture notes]. Retrieved from http://www.ace.edu
Hamlett, T. (2018). Module 4: Incentives, Peers, and the Educative Time-Out Process Part 2 Transcript: Peer Support [Lecture notes]. Retrieved from http://www.ace.edu
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