Case study 1: Grade 5 - Impulsive and Lack of Social Skills. In Autumn of 2018, I visited a Tier 2 School, Yoyogi International School from 1pm to 4pm. I observed two lessons. In this school, Grade 5 and Grade 6 students are combined due to several reasons. Firstly, from April of 2017, the school has expanded its service by offering Grade 5 and Grade 6. Secondly, due to numbers, the school has decided to combine Grade 5 and Grade 6 in 2018. There were 9 students in the class and one of the students is very emotional. Let's call him Daniel. The homeroom teacher said that Daniel cannot sit still for more than 10 minutes, he needs to move around, walk around the classroom and come back. Daniel also stutters when he speaks. In the last period, Daniel exploded when the teacher asked the class an open question. As he was speaking, two of the students giggled and the teacher raised his voice, scolded them and continued with the lesson. In the second to last period, was a Japanese lesson taught by two different teachers. 5 students are in Grade 5 and 4 students are in Grade 5. The 2 students that giggled are in Grade 6 and Daniel is a grade 5 student.
Tier 1 PBIS Intervention
Touch base with the student: In the classroom, "shaping is essentially about having appropriate and realistic expectations for individual students" (DeGeling, 2012). The teacher used this incident to point out the importance for respecting their classmate. "Tell student you also have confidence they can do just as good or better than today."
Talk to parent: the two Grade 6 students need to show respect for different cultures and various physical conditions.
Tier 2 PBIS Intervention
Self-Monitoring: "Checklists and charts may be used by students to keep track of their behaviors." I remember back in High School (Westlake Boys High School, Auckland, New Zealand) one of my friends carried a light green book that the teacher had to sign at the end of the lesson. The teacher just had to tick whether the student was present, tick a box of whether the student behaved or not. The teacher could also write comments if necessary. This would be useful if the "mocking" behaviour continues as this may be the start of bullying.
Behaviour Intervention Plan (BIP): "Meet with the student, teachers, parent, and support staff to review the behavior plan, giving copies to everyone and having everyone sign the plan." I think depending on how severe the behaviour is, if the teacher thinks that it's more serious than checklists, this should be implemented in addition to the checklist.
TIER 3 PBIS Intervention
Behaviour Meetings: "When a student is at Tier III, regular and consistent behavior meetings are absolutely essential and necessary." "I pledge to try. (students point thumb of right hand upward). I will reach for the sky. (students point right index finger upward). I will listen, learn, and apply. (students point fingers 2, 3, and 4 upward as they say the three words listen, learn, and apply) (Educationworld.com, 2009). Sitting down with the student and letting him or her know that the school cares is crucial. The British School would probably have a system in place to ensure improvement in the student's behaviour.
Reflection: Pover's (2009) information is a bit out-of-date. The second edition released in 2014 is available but unfortunately, I don't have the book. In 10 years, things must've changed a lot. I know for a fact that the British School has that system where they "include" all students is because the parents must cover the financial cost for the school to hire a LST (Learning Support Teacher). St. Mary's and Yoyogi do not have this system. They rely on technology and it is up to the homeroom teacher to establish meetings with the parent and the student.