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"Catch 'em doing something right"
 

"Catch 'em doing something right" seems to be the latest advice to teachers faced with unruly classes.

Children need praise for good behaviour as well as good work and constant telling off has little effect, according to three psychologists who today outlined a short training programme which they claim has helped to improve classroom behaviour dramatically.

Jeremy Swinson and Alex Harrop of Liverpool John Moores University, and Richard Melling, of Brent education authority, found that teachers at all levels from nursery to sixth form are good at praising children for good work but rarely praise pupils for good behaviour.

With behavioural consultant Mike Cording, they devised a training programme lasting between two and three hours based on four steps to managing behaviour in the classroom, they told the British Psychological Society's child psychology annual conference in Bournemouth.

The steps are:
· always make instructions to the class extremely clear;
· look for the behaviour you want, not the behaviour you don't want;
· frequently acknowledge students when they are doing what is required;
· change the frequency of feedback to suit the situation, with more positive feedback at the beginning of a lesson or new activity.

Teachers were also given advice on dealing with low-level disruption by responding positively, and also with more severe disruptive behaviour.

As a result the amount of praise from the teacher rose from 54% to 85% and the level of "telling offs" fell from 46% to 15%. The average percentage of pupils doing what the teacher wanted them to do increased to 94%.

Dr Swinson said: "It is clear that many teachers, prior to receiving the training, were unaware of the skills needed to deal with unruly classes and over-relied on telling pupils off, which in the long run had very little effect on the pupils' behaviour."

 
 
Author : Donald MacLeod
Source : http://education.guardian.co.uk/pupilbehaviour/story/0,,1680036,00.html
Publisher : The Guardian
Article Id : 11822
Girls' autism 'under-diagnosed'
Outline of a boy
Boys and girls with autism may show different signs of the disorder

Girls with autism may not be identified because they do not show traditional signs of the disorder, an expert warns.

Children with autistic spectrum disorders have poor social and communication skills.

Hyperactivity, and interests in technical hobbies have been seen as characteristics of the disorder.But Christopher Gillberg, of the National Centre of Autism Studies, said girls were often passive and collected information on people, not things.

 
Girls are more passive and not as active or aggressive as boys with autism are
 
Professor Christopher Gillberg

Around 535,000 people in the UK are estimated to have autistic spectrum disorders. The number of boys diagnosed is much greater than the number of girls, but Professor Gillberg said the difference in incidence may not be as great as currently thought.

'Outsiders'

His theory is partly influenced by studies which did not find what they were expected to.Researchers had looked at the male X chromosome, to see if genetic faults there could influence a boy's risk of developing the condition. But no conclusive link has been found.

Professor Gillberg said: "Scientists had been very surprised that, so far, so little has come out of research into the X chromosome."But it may be that girls present differently to boys.

"The number of females with autism spectrum disorders may be under-diagnosed."

He said studies, including one his team had carried out into women with anorexia who were also autistic, as well as his own clinical practice, had shown the gender difference. He added: "Autism may be behind many cases of anorexia. A girl may be withdrawn and uncommunicative, without attracting attention, but when she develops a calorie fixation it becomes a serious problem.

"Counting calories may be a manifestation of autism. "I've seen quite a number of cases where the anorexia has become completely entrenched because people haven't understood that underlying the eating disorder is autism."

Lists

Professor Gillberg said that, at an earlier age girls with autism were likely to be more passive and not as active or aggressive as boys with autism are - and may be seen as simply shy. "With some girls, there's a perception they are outsiders, someone who can't really mix with other children.

"They may tend to either avoid other children, or be on the periphery of the group." He said boys were likely to show interest in technical or maths-related hobbies, whereas girls were more interested in people.

"They may have hobbies such as compiling books about their 'so-called' friends, and may make lists of their names and the colour of their eyes and hair, but not actually interact with them." Professor Gillberg said girls may be perceived as simply shy, and parents and teachers may not realise there's a problem.

He added that differences in the way girls and boys learn to speak could also mask signs of autistic disorders. "Girls tend to use language immediately, and use new words as soon as they hear them. Boys have longer periods of repeating what they know and processing what they are learning."

He said both genders may have the same combination of autism genes, but girls' natural linguistic ability may hide the associated language difficulties. "Autistic spectrum disorders may be more difficult to pick up in girls, because they have superior linguistic abilities."

Judith Gould, director of the National Autistic Society's Diagnostic Centre, said: "We still know so little about this complex lifelong disability that it is essential we continue to question current thinking and suggest alternative theories for its prevalence.

"We would certainly agree we are probably missing autism in girls due to the different way in which it often manifests itself in females.

"We would also agree that anorexia, which is predominantly diagnosed in girls, could be linked to autism in an unknown proportion of cases."

BBC News 28.0605
 
For more information contact, Mindroom,
Mig Coupe, tel +44 (0) 131 317 1016
Email: mig@mindroom.org
 

Leaflets of Hope

Dumfries and Galloway Council's Hope Service has had a "fantastic response" to its unique information pack on learning difficulties.

The pack, which was written by Mindroom and funded by Jobcentre Plus, contains leaflets explaining a range of learning difficulties, how employers might help staff with these common conditions, and what particular benefits people with these difficulties can bring to a business.

"Employers say they appreciate having the information set before them in layman's terms, and that they now understand what they saw as behavioural problems as being traits of their employees' personalities," enthuses Cath Graham, of Hope Service. "I think the most powerful aspect of the pack is that all the leaflets feature real people."

The Hope Service, which believes individuals with a disability should have the same opportunities as able bodied people, joined forces with Mindroom in an attempt to encourage local employers to create more places for people with learning difficulties.

"We know how many children we have in the education system who come into the learning difficulty spectrum. Our task is to ensure there is a service to support them when they leave school and look for work.

"These information packs are a very successful part of our programme, and we are now looking at a structure for expanding our programme."

The Hope Service has had businesses around the country, and overseas, requesting packs and Graham has inserted them into the delegate packs at national supported employment conferences. Employers wishing a copy should contact Cath Graham on tel: 01387 249172, or Mindroom on tel: 0131-653 6235.
 

Feasibility Study

A feasibility study into the merits of Mindroom's proposed one-stop diagnostic centres was completed earlier this year. The study was carried out by Mairi Sutherland and sponsored by Standard Life Assurance Company as part of its Community Investment programme.

The report examines current practices in relation to the diagnosis, follow-up and facilities for people with learning difficulties and looks at national and international models.

It highlights the need for independent, diagnostic centres with multi-professional teams able to give quick and accurate diagnosis of learning difficulties and recommendations on treatment. These centres, it suggests, should also act as a valuable source of research, and improve communications between agencies, such as health, education and social service and charity groups.

Mindroom is working with the results of the study to devise practical plans for Mindroom Centres. These will bridge the gap between the ideals of policy and the reality of practice in the UK.
 


 

 

Stop press! Stop press! Stop press!

Queen Silvia, The Queen of Sweden, comes in as patron for the upcoming Mindroom/Gillberg conference The Social Brain2 - See The Bigger Picture, 2 & 3 March 2006, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, Glasgow. 		Queen Silvia Image

 

Independent school first in Scotland to ban fizzy drinks

The New School at Butterstone has become the first independent school in Scotland to ban the consumption of sugary drinks such as Irn Bru and Coca-Cola as part of a new healthy eating initiative.

Headteacher, Bill Colley, believes that pupils will benefit in a number of ways and that there will be inevitable gains in concentration, application and general academic progress in the classroom.

Established 12 years ago to make provision for children who struggle to thrive in mainstream schools, The New School has developed a expertise in helping children to overcome barriers to learning such as dyslexia, dyspraxia, Asperger's Syndrome and developmental delay.

Bill Colley explained that the decision to ban fizzy drinks is based on firm scientific, and convincing anecdotal evidence, that the bodies of young people are not equipped to cope with the 'spike' in blood sugar levels that occurs very soon after consumption. He argues that the vending machine has a major part to play in the learning and behavioural problems that many schools are struggling to address today and believes that other schools should follow his example.

"For The New School our aim is to improve academic performance rather than behaviour and the ban is only one part of a package of measures designed to help pupils with learning difficulties achieve their potential. Small changes to diet can have a big impact on some children and I have seen at first hand the transformation that can take place if children avoid sweet drinks, increase their consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables, and take dietary supplements high in Omega 3 oils."

Although the school food was recently commended by inspectors, Liz Boyne the cook believes in being proactive in developing healthier eating styles so that children will be better able to choose a balanced diet when they leave school and cook and shop for themselves. She is keen that staff and pupils become more involved in making decisions about school meals and has given her full support to the new initiative.

With health chiefs becoming increasingly alarmed at the dramatic rise in rates of childhood obesity and diabetes, such a move is likely to be welcomed as a major step forward that should be repeated throughout the country.

 

 

 

 

 

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