Ethan Sais – 17974628 – Assessment Task 1 – PPLE

PPLE – Assessment Task 1

Ethan Sais
Introduction

It is difficult to define student misbehaviour due to its highly contested nature. What

teachers, parents, students and the community characterise as misbehaviour changes depending on

their socio-economic status, cultural values and beliefs as well as personal perspectives and

experiences. It is therefore suffice to say that misbehaviour is defined by acts that create a

disruption to an individual’s learning, the classroom environment, the school climate and the wider

community. This report will delve into the literature surrounding student misbehaviour and try to

discern the common issues associated with it. This will form a basis for the analysis and synthesis of

the data collected from six interview responses. This data has been gathered from a range of

stakeholders in the school community in order to collect the most diverse and evenly distributed

perspectives on the issue. These include teachers, parents, and pre-service teachers as well as

student learning support officers and other people within the school community. This report will

consider these findings and present the implications that this not only has for teachers and the

school community but also the implications this will have for my own teaching methodology and

practice.

Literature Review

This literature review has incorporated many articles and synthesised these down to 4

categories that look at varying factors which aid or disrupt classroom behaviour. These include

stakeholder perspective, ownership of actions and roles in misbehaviour, student social and

emotional wellbeing as well as behaviour management strategies and interventions. The literature

presents the argument that student misbehaviour is highly dependent on how it is perceived. Fish,

Finn and Finn (2013) suggest that the literature on misbehaviour is limited in the sense that it is

generally focused upon in three forms of misconduct these being truancy, violence and drug use.

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However, disruptive acts such as talking within the classroom, disobeying teacher instructions and

throwing objects also pose a serious threat to creating a cohesive and safe environment for students

that impacts upon their learning. Furthermore Crawshaw (2015) highlights that the literature in

general does not reflect the reality of misbehaviour in schools particularly how much it has

increased. Furthermore, he suggests that the two most commonly reported dimensions of

misbehaviour within the literature is that of frequency and seriousness. Crawshaw states that how

these dimensions are perceived by teachers is dependent upon their cultural values and beliefs and

their socio-economic status and could therefore, benefit from using an operational definition that

pinpoints and focuses on the actual description of the behaviour as to avoid ambiguity (2015).

Fish et.al. (2013) and Crawshaw (2015) highlight that inattention, lack of focus, tardiness and

absenteeism are regarded as the most troubling aspects of misbehaviour for teachers and school

administrators. However, Fish et al. presents an argument that demonstrates little understanding of

the antecedent factors that play a role in a student misbehaviour and instead focuses on the

perspective of the teacher. Thompson (2011) in contrast, highlights the significance of students’

inner lives suggesting that students who suffer social or emotional difficulties often experience

markedly poorer outcomes. It is evident that this article takes on a far more wholistic view of

behaviour management that considers the antecedents and consequences for student

misbehaviour. Thompson (2011) and Crawshaw (2015) suggests that students with behavioural and

emotional disorders have much lower grades and are significantly less likely to attend university or

tertiary education and are far more likely to have trysts with the law. In concurrence with

Thompsons findings Bonella, et. al. (2017) and De Jong (2005) suggests that students are less likely

to engage in risky and disruptive behaviours if they experience a school and classroom environment

that is engaging and creates a sense of belonging. Bonella et.al. argues student behaviour can be

shaped through “Value Added Education” which enables students to develop critical reasoning skills

and positive affiliations with social norms promoted by the school and community (p.207, 2017). De

Jong (2005) like Thompson, also champions a focus on the inner and outer lives of students by

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modelling democratic values, personal responsibility and self-control when engaging with behaviour

management strategies. De Jong also suggests that greater student autonomy like providing

students with more choice and aa greater understanding and engagement with social justice

thinking can also lead to greater affiliations with the school and wider community (2005).

According to Thompson minor disruptions within the classroom can lead to an increase in

class room stress and an increase to teacher burnout (2011). Killu (2008) agrees that ill equipped

teachers and understaffed schools also play a huge role in poorer teacher experiences. However,

Killu goes further to say that this also equates to less effective behaviour management not only in

individual class rooms but across the whole school (2008). Thompson (2011) highlights a range of

intervention strategies that directly target student behaviour and academic success. These include

instructional based interventions, like momentum strategies which involve scaffolding smaller more

enjoyable task to eventually complete less enticing and more intensive tasks. Another intervention

could also be response card systems which allow all students to engage with the class discussions,

task modification strategies which consists of making tasks more engaging and relevant to the

students needs and academic level. Cothran et al. suggest that creating a greater sense of belonging

for students is a very effective way to curb misbehaviour this coincides with the arguments

presented by De Jong (2005) and Bonella et. al. (2017), as a greater sense of connectedness to the

community equates to a greater affiliation with positive, socially acceptable behaviours.

Methodology

To further develop an understanding of student misbehaviour this report conducted a series

of informal interviews with varying stakeholders within the school community. These interviews

followed a set of ethical protocols as such all participants were volunteers and could withdraw at

any time. Furthermore, participants were each provided with an information sheet and any

questions regarding the interviews and how their information will be used were answered. The

interviews were conducted in private at various locations. They were conducted in a conversational

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style and notes were taken, no recordings were made. To protect the identities of the participants

the names of the interviews will be presented under pseudonyms. The interviewees were selected

for their diverse insights into the education system as stakeholders within it. The participants key

characteristics are presented in the table below:

Fig.1

No. Participant identifier Gender Age Occupation/Experience

1 Harriett Female 33  Highly accomplished teacher with 8
years experience.
 Specialisation: Physical education &
geography
 Year advisor.
2 Bernadette Female 25  Student learning support officer
 Single mother
3 Max Male 49  Maintenance Fitter
 Father
4 Gordon Male 20  Full time student
 Pre-service teacher
 No professional practice experience
5 Vera Female 19  Child care worker
 Graphic Design student
 Recently completed high school
certificate
6 Dianna Female 21  Pre-service teacher
 Full time student
 Tutor
 Some professional practice
experience

To aid in greater synthesis participants responses were sorted into themes these are:

antecedent factors, Consequences and effects, and strategies and responses to misbehaviour.

Results and Synthesis

The Antecedent factors revealed in these interviews highlighted three main themes these

being: social and emotional factors, home life factors and class room content. All participants

interviewed believed that misbehaviour stemmed from factors at home. As Bernadette relays “I

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think parents play a huge role in shaping how their kids behave”. Harriett elaborates on this further

saying “often in my experience I’ve found that parents no longer have the time to assist students

with their home work and struggle to provide students with the attention or guidance a teenager

needs from home”. This is evidence to support the key argument in Crawshaw’s (2015) article that

being how culture and values shape how teachers and other stakeholders in the community view

misbehaviour. Another key issue identified by some of the participants was that the content offered

in the classroom was either too hard or not hard enough. In Dianna’s experience she found students

were disengaged when tasks were too difficult “Students on my prac often would play up when they

didn’t understand the task or concept. I found myself having to simplify my activities” this

demonstrates how important differentiation is to providing students with the optimal opportunity to

engage with the tasks at hand. Max found that in his case the content presented in class was not

hard enough, “I got a call from the teacher saying that my son was misbehaving at school particularly

during reading groups, turns out he was capable of reading like ten levels ahead of what the teacher

had set for him”. Vera also touched on how important social image and peer groups are in shaping

student behaviour. Vera said, “it didn’t happen quiet as much in senior years but a lot of kids just

mucked up cause they were with their friends and thought it would be funny”. This suggests that the

underlying factor in this behaviour is a need for connection, that these students are looking to

develop a sense of belonging to their peer group.

It is clear from the literature that misbehaviour has a huge effect on how teachers carry out

their lessons and teach their students. Harriett found that settling a class “…sometimes takes 10 to

15 minutes” this could be extremely troubling for teachers when you consider that a majority of

lessons are 45 to 60 minutes long. In Gordon’s opinion this is precisely the students aim; “I think a

lot of the time kids are just trying to avoid work by distracting the teacher”. Cothran et.al. and De

Jong argue that often a consequence of misbehaviour is a student searching for a meaningful

connection within the wider community as Dianna observed; “I think students who misbehave, do so

because they are trying to find an adult that can guide them and provide them the emotional

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support they crave”. However, students often end up alienating themselves in the process, therefore

teachers need to take on a more democratic approach to student behaviour and see the behaviour

from the student’s perspective. These interviews have also presented data highlighting the diverse

ways teachers combat students misbehaviour particularly those who suffer from mental and

emotional difficulties. Bernadette in her experience as an SLSO has had the opportunity to see this

diversity in action drawing from her observations of how two different teachers address their

student’s behaviour. she states that “the classroom teachers have very different ways of dealing

with their students, one is very strict and instructs the students a lot and the other encourages and

rewards students”. This response demonstrates two forms of behaviour management employed at

the same school one that is teacher centred and another that uses intrinsic and extrinsic rewards

both to varying degrees of success. However, it could be more prudent to take a more wholistic

approach to behaviour management by implementing a whole school strategy instead. Both Dianna

and Harriett point this fact out in their responses. As Dianna states in her experience that a whole

school approach “models and reinforces behaviours that are socially acceptable”. This is a clear

argument made by Thompson (2011) and Bonella et. al. (2017) which suggests that through

strategies such as value added education or strategies that model appropriate behaviours, students

start to see these behaviours as social norms.

Implications

The literature and research suggest to me that all of these factors play a part in behaviour

management. Perspective plays a huge role in determining why these behaviours take place within

the classroom. This has highlighted the notion of self-reflection as a key issue to consider when

determining behaviour management plans as well as being willing to reflect on my own practice and

teaching methods, so that I consider how this plays a role in shaping student behaviour. Another

major aspect to consider is the social and emotional issues that can play a role in a student’s

behaviour. Every participant in the interviews highlighted the significance of students’ home lives as

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an influence in how they behave. Furthermore, two participants recognised how behaviour is also

influenced by a student’s inner personal feelings and the social stress they experience. Therefore, in

my own practice I will approach student misbehaviour from a non-bias perspective and use empathy

to gauge a greater understanding of my students lives and point of view. A key skill that I will aim to

improve will be my emotional intelligence. This will hopefully foster a greater sense of belonging and

connectedness within my classroom and amongst my students. This could also be employed through

lessons and strategies that focus on student connectedness and allows students to further develop

the social skills needed to foster greater relations with their peers.

Conclusion

This report has delved into the various opinions that pervade the literature and ideas

surrounding student misbehaviour. It is clear that misbehaviour is highly dependent on the world

view of those who come across it. This report has attempted to highlight this fact through the

interviews it presents. These interviews have provided a sounding board for analysing the legitimacy

of the dense literature that highlights the factors, consequences and strategies that play a role in

shaping and satiating misbehaviour in the classroom and school community.

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References

Bonella, C., Shackletonb, N., Fletcherc, A., Jamald, F., Allene, E., Mathiotf, A., Markhamg, W.,
Aveyardh, P., & Viner, R. (2017). Student- and school-level belonging and commitment and
student smoking, drinking and misbehaviour. Health Education Journal, 76(2), 206-220.
doi:10.1177/0017896916657843

Cothran, D.J., Hodges Kulinna, P., & Garrahy, D.A. (2009). Attributions for and consequences of
student misbehavior. Physical Education and Sports Pedagogy, 14(2), 155-167.
doi:10.1080/17408980701712148

Crawshaw, M. (2015). Secondary school teachers’ perceptions of student misbehaviour: A review of

international research, 1983 to 2013. Australian Journal of Education, 59(3), 293-311.
doi:DOI: 10.1177/0004944115607539

De Jong, T. (2005). A Framework of Principles and Best Practice for Managing Student Behaviour in
the Australian Education Context. School Psychology International, 26(3), 353-370.
doi:10.1177/0143034305055979

Fish, R.M., Finn, K.V., & Finn, J.D. (2013). The Problems Public Schools Face: High School
Misbehaviour in 1990 and 2002. Education Research and Perspectives, 38(1), 59-80.
Retrieved April 2018

Killu, K. (2008). Developing Effective Behavior Intervention Plans: Suggestions for School Personnel.
Interventions in School and Clinic, 43(3), 140-148. Retrieved April 2018

Thompson, A.M. (2011). A Systematic Review of Evidence-Based Interventions for Students with
Challenging Behaviors in School Settings. Journal of Evidence Based Social Work, 8(3), 304-
322. doi:10.1080/15433714.2010.531220

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