3.3.3 Reinforcement Strategies: Strength,
Timing and Tokens

Strength

For some teachers, all reinforcement is roughly equivalent. All positive behaviors get stars by their names and all misbehaviors are penalized by a verbal warning. In my opinion, that is too simplistic of a view. We've already said that you have to vary the types of reinforcers that you use. But you must also vary the strength of the reinforcers. You have to know when to use something mildly
positive, like 'good job,' or when to use something with a little bit more kick, like a public display of a well-written paper. The same goes for negative reinforcement. Sometimes all you have to do is stop talking so that attention is drawn to a misbehavior. Other times the severity of the infraction will require a stronger reaction, like the temporary removal of a prized privilege.

Timing

Timing helps you become less predictable. Timing is part of students' not knowing what they did or didn't get away with. It is also a part of the overall level of classroom control. By this I mean that for some students, public criticism is going to devastate them. To reach those students, you must choose the time and setting to raise your concerns. By choosing the time and the place of your reinforcement, you manipulate the situation to your benefit. There are some principles to follow, though. One of these is that the closer the reinforcement comes to the activity the more effective it is. Immediate feedback boosts the value of the reinforcement. Timing and setting is everything.

Tokens

Effective teachers create external rewards that students value. When you put stars on the wall, you have created a token reward. You can use anything. A giraffe is worth one, a bear is worth two, a lion is worth three, and an elephant is worth four. If you want giraffes to be worth more than elephants, all you have to do is say so because it is your call. You decide what is valuable. The point that I am trying to make is that you need to feel powerful about creating and using tokens, not apologetic and timid. Some tokens have intrinsic value, such as praise, and some have only the value that is assigned to them, like giraffes and elephants. But as a teacher you should understand the token system so you can manipulate it.

Alternative Sources

Strangely enough many teachers never consider that reinforcement can come from someone other than them. Those teachers are very wrong. Students can reinforce each other, and parents are a valuable source of reinforcement. Most parents don't expect to hear from schools unless there is bad news. For a child to call his mother during school, and say, 'Mummy I did well,' is really powerful for the kid and the parent. Another option is for the teacher to call mom and/or dad and say 'Lindsay did really well today. Be sure to compliment her when she gets home.' By doing this you are setting up the opportunity for parents to reinforce the experience. Unfortunately, we as teachers don't do enough to bring other people into the loop.


Why is the timing and place of reinforcement so important to classroom
management? What are the principles to follow with this?

Mr. Reynolds is a fourth grade teacher in a small, private elementary school. His
class is worse than the other fourth grade class in the school, and he has tried
everything that he knows of to improve their behavior. The teacher next door to
him that teaches the other fourth grade class in the school describes methods of
strength, timing, and tokens to reinforce the behavior of the students in his class.
How might Mr. Reynolds use these methods effectively in his classroom with his fourth grade students?