Removing students from a classroom activity can help to stop an undesired behavior ONLY IF students want to be involved in the classroom. Ryan et al. (2007) found that time-out became a reinforcer for negative behaviors when it allowed students to avoid an activity they did not want to do. I found this when interviewing a third grade boy who was happy to go to the safe seat and not work. Being a part of the classroom has to be a desired situation for removal to be effective in reducing problem behaviors. How can teachers make the classroom a positive space for students?
"I didn't want to do it anyways"
Themes
"Why am I here?"
Teachers need to explain why a student has been punished to most effectively stop inappropriate behaviors. Students will not stop doing an undesired behavior if they do not know what they did wrong. Readdick and Chapman (2000) found that preschoolers could not identify why they had to go to time-out. Teachers need to talk with their students when they go to the safe seat so students know what the problem behavior is.
Teachers need to explicitly share with their students tools for calming or removing themselves when they feel frustrated. Like my second grade host teacher, students can be taught that the safe seat is a place where students can go when they are feeling distracted, frustrated, or “wild.” Students can also be taught strategies, such as Stop Think Proceed, that they can use to problem solve before going to the safe seat or to reflect on what happened if they have been sent to the safe seat. Teachers need to give their students tools for calming and self-regulating because students may not know how to do so on their own.