*This post is an attempt at a live blog (more like an immediate response)
to a presentation from Josh Justice on November 21, 2013.
Josh is an educator who works in Kentucky. He is an LPCA. SIGHTS
He works in a self-contained behavior unit. This unit primarily consists of students with IEP's, IQ's of 75+, and a learning disability while many are from low-income households.
He starts off observing students at their current schools, then he get the kids in the program to help them and give them the consistency they need. This is done because they are hoping to get them back into a standard classroom.
Has to deal with reluctance to pay him for his services. Fighting against people who are trying to deny these children these services.
The transition time between a student receiving medication and new behavior can be fascinating.
They take away the students' previous medicine to start from a new baseline. Too often, these kids are misdiagnosed by family doctors who only took a couple months of residency on mental health.
In some cases, the family dynamic has been messed up so much that these kids are not receiving positive attention at home. The program uses positivity and persistence to try to reverse these trends. He explained examples of a student's familial relationships improving through the program.
Josh spends all day working with these students. There are four adults that work with five children.
Staff try to be respectful with each other but it can be tough. Teacher and assistants all have unique ideas and expectations-they all want to contribute. Power balance can be tough but is rewarding in the long run when you create a fair and balanced working relationship.
Age ranges are widespread. There is a pre-school age (4yr old),elementary age (7yr, 8yr, 8yr old), and even a middle school age (10yr old).
It is difficult on the Special Education Professionals do develop lesson plans for these different age groups. The reinforcement schedule is also a challenge because certain age groups need things in a different manner and time than others.
Switched halfway to focusing on the positive things as opposed to the negative things that they should not do. On the push for positivity, "It changed the dynamic of the classroom" and it became "contagious."
He spoke about the differences in working with boys and girls; how there is a huge contrast between working with the two and he sees that in the classroom.
He didn't allow work avoidance to occur by requiring a student to stay after school and finish their work. Takes extra commitment but is worth it in the end.
Communication/Follow-up is key! Need to be consistent on both ends and build relationships with families. Develop rapport with students and family members.
Believes in taking care of himself (self-care) to recharge his batteries. Make sure you are in control of yourself so you can positively impact students.
Further Thinking:
----Carl Rodgers 40%
----PCIT- Parent Child Interaction Therapy
-focusses on catch the child doing good things instead of always getting on to them for negative things
-being proactive
----Token Economy
----Function Behavior Analysis
-all behavior is to do something or to avoid something
----Oppositional Defiant Disorder
-a student that doesn't like being told what to do
----Different response as males than that of women in education
----SIGHTS acronym
----Avoid passion fatigue?
I'm glad you took such careful notes and still asked questions. What are your top three take-aways? What were some things he said that align or don't align with your learning theory?
ReplyDeleteMy top 3 take-aways were:
ReplyDelete1.) The difficulty of working with multiple adults in the classroom.
2.) The importance of loving what you do and how that can impact performance.
3.) How important the relationship with parents is when dealing with a behavioral issue.
Most of Josh's philosophy seemed to be behaviorist. As a constructivist I do see the importance of rewards and I think I can give it a more constructivist spin by looking at long term success.