Findings
The findings of the study on a program evaluation of positive behavior support in school that was designed to test the various hypothesis of the study are presented in the table and graphs below.
Figure 1: The response of students to the research question
In the above table, the position or responses of the students are presented in terms of percentage. Following the students’ attitude towards their classrooms, 12% of students liked their classroom and said it was a welcoming room while 9% were not sure about their feelings towards their classroom and 79% regarded their classroom as welcoming and had a positive attitude towards it.
Whether students feel safe or not in their respective classrooms was also sought and a total of 86% of the students interviewed said they are very safe in the classroom. Nine percent of the students disagreed and said that they were never safe in the classrooms while 5% were undecided. They were not sure whether they were safe or not while in the classroom.
Opinions of students were also sought on whether teachers come to their assistance whenever they were in trouble after the implementation of PBS. A total of 74% of the students said whenever they had difficulties in classwork or other issues that pertain to academic work, their teachers were responsive enough and always came to their aid. On the other hand, 14% percent of the students did not agree with their colleagues and insisted that no teacher ever come to their assistance whenever they were faced with trouble in class. The other 12% were not sure whether the teachers helped them or not; they were undecided and did not take sides.
The relation of teachers to students was also sought by asking the students whether teachers really had the same expectation for all the students. A total of 51% of the students did not see any partiality of teachers by agreeing that the teachers had the same expectation for all of them. About 20% of the students disagree and maintained that teachers had a higher expectation of some students more than others. Twenty-nine percent of the students were not sure which position to take in the matter.
Peer influence with regard to keeping or following classroom rules was sought as well. A third of the students agreed that indeed their peers sometimes make it difficult for them to follow classroom rules. A good number of students of about 35% of all the students disagreed and said that peer pressure cannot and has not made it difficult for them to follow classroom rules while 32% were not sure of the influence of their peers on the keeping of classroom rules.
Whether teachers treat all the students fairly was also sought after and 80% of the students interviewed agreed that their teachers were fair with regard to the handling of the students. However, 13% of them did not agree. They perceived teachers as unfair when it comes to the handling of students but the other 7% were undecided on the issue.
Students were asked after the implementation of Positive Behavior Support whether their teachers always encouraged them to do their best and 64% of them said that indeed they do. About 25% of the students did not agree by saying that teachers do not encourage them to do their best in academics while11% were not sure whether to agree or disagree with the subject.
Students’ opinions on whether teachers care about their opinions were sought with 66% of the students agreeing that teachers seek and always consider their opinions on matters that concern their studies. The other 34% of the students either disagreed or were not sure about the matter with 14% disagreeing and 20% not decided.
Teachers’ acknowledgment of their students was sought after and 85% of the students like it so much when teachers acknowledge them for doing well in class. On the contrary, 7% of the students disagreed that when doing well in class they do not like teachers recognizing their efforts while 8% were not sure whether they liked teachers acknowledging their success in the classroom or not.
The result of the student’s opinions on the nine fundamental issues that relate to or affect their performance was presented in the graph shown in figure two below where letters A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, and I represent the questions that were administered to the student as illustrated below:
- A – This classroom is a positive and welcoming place.
- B – I feel safe in this classroom.
- C- My teacher helps me when I am having trouble.
- D- All of the teachers have the same expectations for us students.
- E- Sometimes it’s hard to follow the classroom rules because of the pressure from peers.
- F- Students are treated fairly in this classroom.
- G- My teacher encourages me to do my best.
- H- My teacher cares about my opinions.
- I- like it when my teacher acknowledges me for doing well.
Figure 3: Showing descriptive data of posttest student survey analysis
The average number of students who agreed with the research question posed to them is 69 while those who disagreed are 17 and those who were not sure 15. The sum of the total responses that agreed was 618 while the sum of those who disagreed were149 and the sum of those who were not sure were 133. The standard error of the analysis shows that those who agreed are closest to the mean of the true population with 5.8 followed by 3.3 for those who were not sure and 2.9 for those who disagreed. The result shows a normal distribution where skewness of those who agreed is -1.2, while those who were not sure have a skewness of 1.0 and those who disagreed have 1.3 skewness.
Discussion
After the implementation of the PBS majority of the students of about 79% of the total students were positive and contented with their classrooms while the other 21% were either not contented or were not sure about their feelings. This means the PBS was a success with regard to this particular issue. For students to realize success in academics it is important they feel at home in their classroom (Mitchell, 2004). The other issue that was tested is students’ feelings on their classroom with relation to safety and 86% of them agreed that they feel safe in their classroom. This is another boost to the students’ performance since feeling safe in a classroom will create a good condition necessary for learning in a classroom.
A total of 74% of the students agreed that their teachers help them whenever they have trouble while26% either disagreed or were not sure. This is a very positive indication that the PBS achieved its intended objective. Teachers should not only always listen to their students but should also try to offer a solution to problems affecting their students, academic problem or social. When this is done the quality of learning will be high. This result also indicates that some students were not attended to by teachers. This should be a challenge to teachers to ensure that they are always there for their students.
From the study, it was established that about half of the students were sure that teachers have the same expectation for students. This is a fairly good result but a lot needs to be done in order for students to feel that teacher regards them equally without showing any form of partiality as it will boost greatly the quality of learning (Guntern & Sailor, 1979). Peer pressure is an issue that if left unresolved can seriously jeopardize the quality of learning. With only 35% saying that peer pressure does not affect their obedience to classroom rules is wanting. Students need to be enlightened on the dangers their peers pose to their respective success in the classroom in order to achieve the best.
The majority of the students agreed that their teachers treat them fairly which is very healthy in learning since it improves the interpersonal relationship between teachers and students and among students. This will make students appear equal before teachers and school administration hence they will regard one another with respect and openness present a cool climate for learning which will translate to better performance. It was also found out that majority of the students which is 64% are encouraged by their teachers. Students need motivation because some might not be aware of the impact that the attention they give to their academic work will have in their future. It is therefore very necessary for teachers to win the confidence of their students and always encourage them to work hard and even harder. Such responsibility will make the students feel that the teacher cares about them and will boost the efforts in-class work as a result.
Teachers should seek and consider the opinions of students on some issues that are related to their classwork. About 66% of students agreed that teachers do care about their opinions. When students are incorporated in decision-making in solving problems that affect them, they will feel part and parcel of the process and they will feel that they also matter which is very instrumental in boosting the quality and environment of learning. In addition, it was established that 85% of students like it when teachers acknowledge their good performances. This is proof of the success of the implementation of the PBS because nearly all students confirmed this very important matter (Stormont, Lewis, Johnson & Beckner, 2007). Students more than any others need commendation on good performance since it will make them even work harder and the result will be high performance in classwork.
Conclusion
When the positive Behavior support is well implemented within a suitable timeframe, the result will automatically be positive. After the implementation of the PBS, it was established that the majority of the students’ attitudes had changed greatly for the better (Evertson & Weinstein, 2006). According to the students’ school climate has improved so well that made the learning conditions quite conducive which is a recipe for quality learning. When implemented appropriately Positive Behavior Support will ensure benefits such as improved school climate and climate; the reduced activity of violence in the community and school; increased interagency collaboration; increased high school graduation rates; enhance public confidence in education; increased student independence and community participation and reduced dependency on public correction, assistance, corrections, and other public services agencies. Eventually, it can be ascertained that the implementation achieved its objective by proving all the alternative hypotheses since it was established that there is a significant impact on students attitudes, behavior, grades, students being referred to the office after the implementation of the PBS.
Recommendations
- Teachers should be impartial to all the students irrespective of the difference in gender, race, color, ability, performance and others (Carr, 1999).
- Students should be informed of the dangers of yielding peer pressure to be able to resist it.
- Students should be in cooperated in making important decisions that relate to their learning so that they can feel part and parcel of the system and resolutions
- Teachers should do their best to win the confidence of the students that disagreed and those that were undecided in most of the important issues in order to realize even higher performance.
References
Carr, E. (1999). Positive behavior support for people with developmental disabilities. US: AAMR.
Evertson, C. & Weinstein, C. (2006). Handbook on classroom management: Research, practice and contemporary issues. New Jersey: Rutgers.
Guntern, G. & Sailor, W. (1979). Social change, stress and mental health in the pearl of the Alps. Switzerland: Springer.
Mitchell, D. (2004). Special education needs and Inclusive education: Inclusive Education. New York: RoutledgeFalmer.
Stormont, M., Lewis, T., Johnson, N. & Beckner R. (2007). Implementing positive Behavior Support system. United States: Corwin Press.