A Portrait of the Student as a Young Wolf

Using Canine/LupineBehavior Models to Increase Classroom Motivation

“Wisdom begins in wonder.” --Socrates

I wonder what’s for dinner.

The Ideal Student

The Actual student

If dogs, why not students?

Dogs and students (or teachers)

Parents’ weekend

Cheerleading tryouts

Sorority sister

Frat brother

Humans and wolves (and house-wolves such as Gwyn)

• Distance runners• omnivores• hierarchical social

structure• group hunters• fluent in body

language• readily motivated

Both want reward: tangible and intangible

    

                    

      

Both fear discomfort: pain, humiliation, vulnerability

                       

:

Neither is inherently reinforced by formal education

“You want it so badly? You pick up the stupid thing.”

Game 1: Motivate the student

Our student: friendly, articulate, and willing to perform manageable tasks.

Motivation

Reinforcement:

Positive

Negative

no reward marker

Play/prey drive

Status

Reinforcement

Anything that, occurring in conjunction with an act, tends to increase the probability that the act will occur again.

Good ReinforcersImmediate

(“YES!!” “NO!” “TOUCHDOWN!!”)

timing is information

Focused

Something the student wants….

…. or wants to avoid

You would do almost anything for a million dollars. Would Gwyn?

Important note: Reinforcers are relative!

Think about it. Gwyn would do almost anything for a piece of raw

liver. Would you?

Poor Reinforcers

• Overly deferred (grades)• Unfocused (given for vague tasks)• Unwanted rewards• Nagging and scolding (if it doesn’t

stop immediately when the behavior changes, it’s nothing more than noise)

Reinforcers

• Positive reinforcer

• Negative reinforcer

• No-reward marker

Positive Reinforcement:

“What you are doing now is good, and will gain you something, so do it some more.”

Positive Reinforcement: advantages

• Highly motivational

• Shapes precise behavior

Positive Reinforcement: disadvantages

• Can lose impact quickly

• Can focus student on reward rather than task

“Mom, I am not a billionaire! A billion is like a thousand million; I’m worth a hundred million. A hundred million is just a hundred million.”

Positive Reinforcement: overcoming disadvantages

• Conditioned reinforcer

• Variable schedule

• Jackpotting

Conditioned Reinforcer

– Instant--focuses on specific behavior– Promotes long-term work (“keep going”;

“you’re getting there”; e.g., people work endlessly for money, a conditioned reinforcer for things money can buy)

– ALWAYS leads to tangible reward– Must be reserved for “real” task--a specific,

realizable goal

Gwyn’s CR Game Part 1

• Find the glove!

Variable Reinforcer: think slot machines (or cartoons)

• Constant reinforcement only for learning stages

• encourages improvement

• longer schedule, more powerful motivator

• exception: puzzle or test, which must be rewarded each time

“Oh, good Lord. Let him have the damned cookie.”

Jackpot• earned and unearned• can be used to mark a

sudden breakthrough, or

• to motivate an unwilling, fearful, or resistant subject

Aversives• “Natural” aversives

• Negative reinforcers

• Punishment

“Natural” aversives

• Product of “natural” distaste or social conditioning

• Must be overcome (using whatever creative measures are necessary) before progress can be made

Negative Reinforcement

“What you are doing is not good, and something bad will happen unless you stop.”

“Mind if I turn my hearing aid down?”

Negative Reinforcement

• Based on student control--can be halted or avoided by changing behavior

• Linked to clear, specific task

• Stops immediately when new behavior begins

Results of Negative Reinforcement

• Student confidence

• Self-motivation

Punishment: too much, too late

• Based on student weakness--change in behavior will not affect outcome

• Based on student confusion--no idea of how to escape the punishment

Results of Punishment

Flight

Fight

Total Submission

Shutdown

No-reward marker• “That will not be

reinforced”; “Save your strength”; “That’s a blind alley”

• Neutral--no aversive

• Informative

Game 2: Train the dog

We need 4 volunteers

Behavior shaping: performance without pain

• Single large goal broken into a series of feasible intermediate tasks (no one can write a book)

• Each specific task is selectively reinforced

• Reduction in repetition• Increase in quality

Shaping the scent retrieve

• 1.Dog holds forefinger unwillingly• 2.Dog holds forefinger willingly• 3.Dog opens mouth for forefinger• 4.Dog reaches for forefinger• 5.Dog holds paper roll• 6.Dog reaches for paper roll• 7.Dog picks up paper roll• 8.Dog holds dumbbell• 9.Dog reaches for dumbbell• 10.Dog picks up dumbbell from 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 feet• 11.Dog retrieves dumbbell next to unscented

anchored leather article• 12.Dog holds leather article• 13. If averse to leather, desensitize• 14.Dog reaches for leather article• 15.Dog picks up leather article• 16.Dog picks up leather article from 2, 4, 6, 10, 12

feet• 17.Dog retrieves leather article next to unscented

leather article • 18.Dog holds metal article• 19.Dog reaches for metal article

• 20.Dog picks up metal article from 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 feet

• 21. If averse to metal, desensitize• 22.Dog retrieves metal article next to unscented

anchored metal article• 23.Dog retrieves leather article next to

unscented anchored metal and leather article• 24.Next to unscented anchored leather and two

unscented metal• 25.Dog retrieves metal article next to unscented

anchored metal and leather article• 26.Dog retrieves metal article next to unscented

anchored metal and two unscented leather• 27.Dog retrieves metal article next to gradually

increasing combinations of anchored unscented metal and leather up to 10 unscented articles

• 28.Gradual removal of anchors--if dog retrieves unscented article, repeat steps 19 to 24 as needed

• 29.Introduction of “cold” vs. “hot” scent• 30.Introduction of foreign scent• 31.Dog does scent retrieve in distracting areas

Self-reinforcement

I suppose it should be

enough that I heard it…

Prey drive

• The “Aha!” moment

• “Killing” a problem

• Following movement

• Physical activity

Competition

Status• Most powerful

motivator--stronger than food or sex drives

• Linked to tangible rewards and prey drive

“Getting USDA approval means a lot to you, doesn’t it?”

Game 4: Beat the Dog

Winners of game 2 vs. Gwyn

“You feeling lucky, punk? Go ahead…make my day.”

The Pack and Pack Dynamics

Pack hierarchy

The Alpha Wolf (or student)

• assumes leadership (or may challenge existing leadership)

• makes rules (or tries to get around existing rules)

• gives orders (or subverts them)

• takes chances

• learns and innovates

• has most rewards

• is most stressed

As goes the alpha, so goes the pack.Control the alpha, and you control the

pack.As go the alphas, so goes your class.Control your alphas, and you control

your class.

Note: Alpha identification is essential to effective teaching!

The Beta Wolf

• good follower• takes direction• obeys rules• avoids risks• memorizes • fewer rewards• less stress

The Omega Wolf

• bottom dog in pack• outcast• often attacked by

other pack members when they’re uncertain of their own status

• only reward is pack association (quintessential groupie)

Searching for Your Alphas

Search Strategies

1.     bone/magic pen

2.     games (which can separate alpha from mere extroversion)

3.     relative space/seating (two sides in front, rear center)

4.     body language

5.     eye contact

Alpha Multiplication

The Well-run Pack in the Home

Multiple beta system designed to promote peace

A Peaceful Pack

Darby-Super Alpha

Gwyn-Alpha F

Solo-Young Alpha M

Gwynedd-Beta F

WYSIWYG-Delta F

Morgan-Puppy F

A Winning Pack

AlphaM

AlphaM

AlphaF

AlphaM

AlphaF

SuperAlpha

The well-run pack in the classroom

Traditional methods (lecture) designed to produce multiple betas

Teaching the Pack model:the lecture mode

• Maintains order• Effective for

transmitting facts• Produces stasis• Rewards followers,

memorizers, risk-avoiders

• Directed toward comfort of all

• Only one Alpha

Beta Beta Beta Beta BetaBeta Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta

Beta Beta Beta Omega Beta BetaDelta Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta

Beta Omega Beta Omega Beta Beta BetaDelta Delta Beta Beta Beta Beta Beta Delta

Alpha

The multiple Alpha model:peer learning

• Challenges • Motivates• Excites• Encourages critical

thinking• Encourages

original ideas• Uncomfortable• Multiple Alphas

Alpha Instructor

Alpha BetaDeltaOmega

Alpha BetaDeltaOmega

Alpha BetaDeltaOmega

Alpha BetaDeltaOmega

Alpha BetaDeltaOmega

Alpha BetaDeltaOmega

Using Multiple Alpha Status in the classroom

• Alpha squares

• Alpha circles

• Leader of the pack

Alpha Squares• Basis of the peer

learning idea.• Students form groups

of 2-4, shifting the alpha pattern, reshuffling the pack

• Individual strengths emerge

• Students get taste of alpha-hood

Alpha Instructor

AlphaBeta AlphaBeta

BetaBetaBetaBeta

OmegaOmega DeltaDelta

AlphaAlphaAlphaAlpha

BetaBetaAlphaBeta

Alpha Beta

Delta Omega

The Alpha Circle

• Circle shifts Alpha role from minute to minute

• High initial stress, resistance

A

Leader of the pack

• Traditional oral presentation; lecture format

• not stressful when used after successful trial alpha runs with alpha squares and circles

Recap: Using canine behavior models to motivate students

• Positive reinforcement• NO punishment--ever• Negative reinforcement--think student control• Behavior Shaping—know what you’re shaping

and why• Play/prey drive: competitive (including self-

competitive) games; “killing” the problem• Status: bringing out the alpha in your students

The End: Good audience! So clever!! Good work!!!

“I understand the Everest climb used to be quite a chore.”

Selected Bibliography• Benjamin, Carol Lea. Mother Knows

Best: The Natural Way to Train Your Dog. New York: Howell, 1985.

• Chance, Paul. First Course in Applied Behavior Analysis. Pacific Grove CA: Brooks/Cole, 1998.

• Galvin, Kathleen M. and Pamela J. Cooper. The Basics of Speech. NTC/Contemporary, 2001

• Smith, Karl A. et al. Cooperative Learning : Increasing College Faculty Instructional Productivity. Wiley: 1992

• Lewis, Janet R. Smart Trainers; Brilliant Dogs. Lutherville MD: Canine Sports Productions, 1997.

• Pryor, Karen. Don’t Shoot the Dog! The New Art of Teaching and Training. New York: Bantam, 1999.

• Walvoord, Barbara et al. Effective Grading. Jossey-Bass, 1998. "Every teacher should have been an animal trainer

at some time in his career, because when the animal doesn't do the trick, you don't blame the

animal!"--Jean Piaget

A Portrait of the Student as a Young Wolf

Using Canine/Lupine

Behavior Models to Increase

Classroom Motivation

“A dog has the soul of a

philosopher.” --Plato