1. Chapter 10
Classroom Behavior

2. Purposes for Assessing
Classroom Behavior
 Nonacademic demands of the classroom
and other learning environments
 Determine if the behavior is severe and
pervasive
 Determine if the behavior affects school
performance

3. Primary Approaches
 Direct student observation
 Gathering information from informants

4. Issues and Trends
 Preference for the term “behavioral
disorders” rather than “emotional
disturbance”
 Definition of disability varies
 Treatment has been influenced most by
behavioral model and more recently by
the ecological perspective

5. Current Practices
 Both informal and formal measures are
used
 Personality measures are rarely used

6. Sources of Information
 School records
 Student observations
 Rating scales and inventories
 Teacher observation and information
 Peer acceptance and interaction
 Parents can describe home environments
and behavioral expectations

7. Behavior Rating Scales
 Behavior Rating Profile (2nd ed.)( BRP–2)
 Student self-rating and peer ratings
 Behavior Evaluation Scale–2 (BES–2)
 Items linked to federal definition of serious
emotional disturbance
 Social Skills Rating System (SSRS)
 Assesses social skills, problem behaviors,
and academic competence
 Links assessment to interventions

8. Rating Scales Differ on
 Age levels
 Informants
 Types of behaviors included
 Psychometric quality

9. Direct Observation
 Describe the behavior to be observed
 Select a measurement system
 Set up a data collection system
 Select a data reporting system
 Carry out observations and interpret
results

10. Direct Observation

11. Functional Assessment
 Describe the behavior
 Identify factors that influence the behavior
 Generate a hypothesis
 Program planning

12. Attention Deficits and
Hyperactivity
 Sometimes identified as ADD or ADHD
 Criteria used is suggested by the
American Psychiatric Association
 Measures available:
 Attention Deficit Disorders Evaluation Scale
(2nd ed.) (ADDES–2)
 Conners’ Rating Scales–Revised
 Children’s Attention and Adjustment Survey

13. Self-Concept and Self-Esteem
 Piers-Harris Children’s Self-Concept
Scale (2nd ed.)
 Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventories
 Multidimensional Self-Concept Scale
 Self-Esteem Index
 Culture-Free Self-Esteem Inventories (3rd
ed.)

14. Peer Acceptance Scales
 Peer Attitudes Toward the Handicapped
Scale (PATHS)
 Sociometric techniques used to establish
student’s acceptance in a specific
classroom

15. School Attitudes and Interests
 Attitudes are usually assessed informally
 Some formal measures available
 Incomplete sentences may elicit attitudes
about school
 Interests assessed informally or by norm-
referenced instrument
 Kroth’s Survey

16. Learning Environment
 The Instructional Environment Scale–II
(TIES–II)
 Assesses 12 components of the learning
environment
 Behavioral expectations
 Classroom rules few in number
 Classroom management may be informal or
structured

17. Learning Environment
 Instructional demands are influenced by
 Curriculum
 Materials and activities
 Teaching procedures
 Task requirements
 Student-Teacher interactions
 Brophy-Good Teacher-Child Dyadic Interaction
System
 Flanders’ Interaction Analysis Categories
 EcoBehavioral Assessment System Software
(EBASS)

18. Learning Environment
 Physical conditions
 Sound
 Convenience
 Movement efficiency
 Flexibility
 Density

19. Answering the Assessment
Question
 Relies heavily on informants
 Many informal techniques are used
 Divergent views may be presented
 Rating scales and checklist may appear
to be similar but yield different data
 Behavioral problem must be severe and
persistent