Psychology Application Project

Jennifer LeeClass ObservationCEPD 4101-03

Where I Observed…

School: Heard County Elementary

Teacher: Mrs. Katie MeadowsGrade: Pre-KLocation: 4647 Pea Ridge Road 

Franklin, GA 30217Time Spent Observing: 31.5

hours

Who I Observed…

20 studentsAges 4-5 years9 boys & 11 girlsMajority Caucasian with a few

African American students.

My Role In The Classroom

Being at Heard County Elementary was part of my field placement for practicum.

I was to mostly observe, but also help out in any way the teacher needed me to. I was also required to teach at least 1 lesson.

Things I may have done were things like; calendar, picking daily helpers, making copies, lead a small group, read books to the class, etc.

Initial Observations

Most of the students spent as much time observing me as I did observing them the first day!

Many of the students were very timid about approaching me during the first day, but a few of the outgoing students approached me right away.

My next couple visits I began noticing the students asking “Am I having a good day?” or “Am I getting a bad note today?”

B.F. Skinner’s: Theory of Operant Conditioning

Basic idea behind operant conditioning: all behaviors are accompanied by certain consequences, and these consequences strongly influence whether these behaviors are repeated and at what level of intensity.

Principles of Operant Conditioning I observed in the classroom:Positive ReinforcementNegative ReinforcementPunishment

Type 1 or Presentation Punishment

Project Findings…Punishment: Type 1 or Presentation

Punishment

Type 1 or Presentation Punishment: presentation of an aversive stimulus that reduces the frequency of a target behavior.

During my time in Mrs. Katie’s class I began to understand why the students kept asking those questions … Mrs. Katie wrote notes home for any student exhibiting bad behavior throughout the day. She was presenting to them an aversive stimulus (something they did not want) in order to reduce their bad behavior at school.

Project Findings…Positive Reinforcement

Positive Reinforcement: involves strengthening a target behavior by presenting a stimulus immediately after the behavior has occurred. Increasing the probability that a particular behavior will be

repeated.

I observed Mrs. Katie using positive reinforcement when she brought popsicles for the students one day.

She waited until the end of the day and gave one to all the students that followed directions and went to sleep during naptime.

Project Findings…Negative Reinforcement

Negative Reinforcement: strengthening a target behavior by removing an aversive stimulus after the behavior occurs. This is NOT punishment; the goal of negative

reinforcement is the same as positive reinforcement.

I observed Mrs. Katie one day telling the students that “no note is a good note”. That afternoon some of the students were pleased to find no note in their folder!

She was taking away the aversive stimulus that they were used to, when they exhibited good behavior that day!

Final Observations

I found that the students’ behavior was motivated by the rewards and punishment they would be receiving from it.

Every good behavior the students exhibited they wanted to be rewarded in some way.

It was the same for the bad behavior, if the students knew they had been bad they would ask if they were getting a bad note home that day.

My ThoughtsThe book states:

“The term operant conditioning refers to the fact that organisms learn to “operate” on their environment (make a particular response) to obtain or avoid a particular consequence.

I completely agree with what the book said about operant conditioning. Through observing I noticed that the students know exactly what is right and wrong and they will do the right thing if there is a reward in it for them, or even to just avoid getting a bad note sent home that day.

I feel that although you don’t want to have to give rewards every single time, this is very beneficial for younger students.

References

Psychology Applied to Teaching 13th Edition By: Snowman/McCown

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operant_conditioninghttp://www.heardelementary.org/ http://www.simplypsychology.org/operant-

conditioning.html