ADDRESSING STUDENTS’ DISRUPTIVE BEHAVIOR THROUGH PRAISE
MONICA A. MADRONERO
Teaching is the noblest profession. The future of the young generations partly depends on how students were taught in school. Parents send their children to school because they trust teachers. It is a challenge and a great responsibility that teachers are expected to shape or mold the children as they step on the ladder of their educational process not only to accumulate knowledge, equipped with skills, explore and enhance their potentials but it also includes character formation.
Problem on students’behavior is one of the most mentioned concerns arising in schools. It is a great challenge for teachers to maintain a noise-free, safe and conducive learning environment. The undesirable behavior of some learners affects the whole class. However, according to researchers, one effective strategy to address this behavior is giving praise to students.
According to Barbara R. Blackburn, most educators usually practice praise in the classroom. She identified six characteristics of an effective praise using the acronym itself - PRAISE. That is, Positive, Reinforce high expectations, Appropriate, Independence, Sincere and Effort and progress. Praising students must always be positive so that learners will be encourage and learn to be appreciative. Praise students who have done very well and better as expected from them through their efforts because it will help learners to gain confidence. In giving praise, it should cover different and specific behaviors. It may come in different forms like verbally or written, publicly or privately recognized and Learners’eagerness to do such tasks with the best they can independently when praise comes from the heart and based from reality.
Praising students right after answering well or had done something beyond what is expected motivates them. Other researchers stated that public praise is much more effective to elementary students while private praise is effective to high school students. On occasion, verbal or non-verbal praise can be utilized at the same time depending on the prevailing circumstances.
Teachers therefore must praise the behavior or the work of students and it is one way of minimizing disruptive behaviors in the classroom or even within the school campus. — oOo—
The author is Teacher III at San Luis High School