A Case for Positive Behavioral Support (PBS) PART I

I finished my ninth half marathon this morning and may have even PR'ed (still waiting for my chip time to post online)! Now that I've refueled with an In and Out grilled cheese/animal style meal (TMI?) I have all afternoon to do non-active things, like blog!

Something that has been on my mind recently is the debate on using incentive, or token, systems as Positive Behavioral Support (PBS) for secondary students. Some make the argument that students should be motivated intrinsically to behave and do well in school; they should do it because that's what they are supposed to do. What happens when the incentive system is taken away and they are unable to maintain on their own?

Parents ask every year, as do other school staff members. I've felt obligated to ask and answer these same questions of myself in order to give a thoughtful reply to these questions. I've spent many hours reading some of the plethora of research articles on PBS and incentive based systems. I don't want to practice anything in my profession that is not supported by research. After all, I am new and I should really leave it to the experts in the field :)

So here is my case:

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my job. I love coming to work, am willing to put in "overtime," and think of my job as really fun most days. That said, if I were not to get paid for this job I love so much, I would certainly not show up. For most learning disabled students, school is not something they LOVE,LOVE, LOVE. It is flat out hard. For many, school has always been a place of negative associations and little success. Hence behavior problems, poor grades and low motivation. Understandable.I can't imagine being forced to show up everyday to do something that I had repeatedly failed at. No adult in their right mind would put themselves in that position.

Do I expect that these students show up to school? Of course, that is the law. But do I expect them to be instantly happy or motivated to do so? Not at all. But, do I think that I can get them to a place where they begin to feel successful and start to replace those negative associations with positive ones? Absolutely.

Enter the incentive system I use with my students, the Student Salary...

Interested at all? STAY TUNED for PART II where I will explain how and why this system works!