Praise Notes: An EffectivePart of School-wide

Positive Behavior Support?

Gregory Cox, Ed.D.Benjamin Young, B.S.Julie A. Peterson, Ph.D.Ellie Young, Ph.D.K. Richard Young, Ph.D.

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Outline

• Introduction

• Literature

• Case Study

• Applications

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3000???

• Was a corresponding effect produced inOffice Disciplinary Referrals (ODRs)?

• What does the research say aboutwritten praise notes?

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Literature

Literature

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Literature General Praise

• The term ‘praise’ means to value highly (Shepell, 2000)

• It involves commending the worth of an individual orexpressing admiration or approval (Blote, 1995)

• Praise is positive reinforcement thought to encouragedesirable behavior, while extinguishing undesirablebehavior (Thomas, 1991) .

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Teacher Praise

• Teacher praise contains positive affect and is a moreintense, detailed response to student behavior (Blote, 1995)

• Praise has been widely recommended as an importantreinforcement method for teachers because it canbuild self-esteem, provide encouragement, and build aclose relationship between student and teacher (Brophy,1981)

• Of elementary students, 91% preferred to be praisedoften or sometimes (Burnett, 2001)

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Effective Teacher Praise

• Teacher praise was most effective when it wasbehavior specific (Brophy, 1981)

• Effective praise includes constructive encouragementby focusing on improvement and efforts, usingsincere comments and recognizing students’ feelings(Hitz & Driscoll, 1994)

• Praise can be motivational in the classroom ifreinforcement is descriptive, and involves usingstudent’s name, choosing appropriate praise wordscarefully and describing precisely the behavior thatmerits the praise (Thomas, 1991)

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Effective Teacher Praise

• Praise is most effective when– immediately delivered– given frequently– enthusiastically– teacher looks at the child– teacher describes the

behavior– variety of praise

statements are used (Loveless, 1996)

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• Those who receive verbal praise report having moreintrinsic motivation than those who do not receive it(Cameron & Pierce, 1994)

• When praise is sincere, promotes autonomy, commentson competence without social comparison, and createsrealistic expectations, it increases intrinsic motivationand improves perseverance (Hederlong, 2002)

Effects of Teacher Praise

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• Students who received more general praise weremore satisfied with their classroom than thosestudents who received less praise. Praise seems tobe an important strategy for managing classroombehavior (Burnett, 2002)

• Praise for work in the classroom and frequent publicpraise for good work or behavior at assemblies led tobetter behavior (Rutter, 1979)

Effects of Teacher Praise

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• Praise increases students’ on-taskbehavior (e.g., attending toteachers, reading, writing, or work-related discussion with a peer…)(Ferguson & Houghton, 1992)

Effects of Teacher Praise

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Effects of Teacher Praiseon Students with EBD

• Praise is widely recognized as an effective practicefor both correct academic responses and appropriatesocial behavior (Gunter & Coutinho, 2001; Sutherland, Wehby, &Copeland, 2000; Gunter & Denny, 1998)

• Praise provides a non-intrusive naturalistic strategyfor positively affecting the behavior of students withEBD (Sutherland, 2000)

• Teacher praise has a positive effect on readingachievement and math achievement of students withEBD (Gable & Shores, 1980)

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• Verbally praising students for correct responses andappropriate social behaviors can improve academicoutcomes and decrease levels of disruptive andaggressive behaviors of students with EBD

(Sutherland & Wehby, 2001)

• Students’ on-task behavior increased when theteachers’ behavior-specific praise increased

(Sutherland, Wehby, & Copeland, 2000)

Effects of Teacher Praiseon Students with EBD

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Teacher Written Praise?

• Most students (69%) preferrednot to have public praise, whileonly 31% wanted public praise

(Burnett, 2001)

Literature

• PeaceBuilders (a research-driven program) hasidentified written praise notes for positive actions asone of the characteristics that create a more peaceableschool environment (Lackey, 1997)

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Case Study

Case Study

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ProjectSchool-wide prevention and intervention model insecondary settings

• Middle school—grades 6 and 7• Junior high school—grades 8 and 9 / 7-9

Positive Behavioral Support Model• School-wide positive expectations for behavior• School-wide, weekly instruction of social skills• Teacher committee to address school climate• Praise notes to promote a positive school environment.

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Praise Notes

• Teachers asked to write a note to studentsdescribing specific instances when theyobserved students using social skillsappropriately.

• Teacher training on qualities of effective praise:SpecificGenuineTimely

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Praise Note

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Praise Note

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Praise Note

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Praise Note

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Implementation

• Set goals for number of praise notes• Reminder posters in classrooms• Weekly drawings for prizes• Winners announced for additional

recognition• Service Learning class gathered praise

notes• Teacher incentives and recognition

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Data

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Participants

Middle School - Grades 6-7

Total Students – 1094Male/Female – 551/543

Free, Reduced Lunch – 39%

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ParticipantsMiddle School - Grades 6-7

African-American - - - - 0%Asian - - - - - - - - - - - - 0%Caucasian - - - - - - - - - 90%Hispanic - - - - - - - - - - 9%Native American - - - - - 1%Pacific Islander - - - - - - 0%

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Does Praise Effect ODR?

Praise given to students with ODRVS

Difference between the two years of ODR(per day per student )

Correlation = .72(p < .05, n = 10 months)

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Musings/Reflections

• Students picking up notes has had a beneficialimpact

• PBS committee has been concerned with notesgetting to parents (public relations)

• Reinforce and continue to teach staff about theuse of effective and specific praise– Non-example “Joanie is a great kid!”

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– Example “I want torecognize Kelsey forbeing a great listener. Ican always call on herand her responses showthat she is right with me.She follows instructionsand always make gooddecisions.”

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Musings/Reflections

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Musings/Reflections

• Teachers praising Teachers - interest inrecognizing each other

• Students praising students/staff “CaughtYa” notes

• Tie into the school mascot• Teaching basic civility

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Further Research Ideas

• Can this be replicated?• Does recognition of positives change teacher

attitude which affects & effects student behavior& performance?

• As the school environment becomes morepositive, do EBD students experience greaterchange?

• Teacher to teacher praise – Student to studentpraise?

Applications

Expressions. . .I wrote up a couple notes on Monday without thinkingmuch about it and for some reason I think I hit the nail on thehead. One girl came up to me after class and thanked me.She was really excited to show the note to her mom. Anotherboy who usually received negative notes from substituteswas wonderful for my sub the other day. It's cool to see howstudents rise to the occasion when they know the adults intheir lives notice their positive gestures.

Expressions

. . . I gave a note to a student lastyear. He placed it in the slip coverof his notebook where it remainedfor the rest of the year. I didn’trealize it would have such aprofound effect on him.

. . . One student took the note home to his parents whoput it on the refrigerator where it remained for the schoolyear. The parents commented it was the first good thingthey had heard about their son since elementary school.

BYU – Positive Behavior Support Initiative236 S 700 E

Provo, UT 84606(801) 377-0560

Fax (801) 377-0597byu.pbs@gmail.com

Gregory Cox - gregory_cox@byu.eduBenjamin Young - ben.young@nebo.eduJulie Peterson - julie.nelson@nebo.edu