I was curious to find out how effective behavioral approaches are in guiding student behavior. I did some research into the effectiveness of token-economy behavior systems in elementary classrooms. The experiment, “Behavior Change and perceptions of Change: Evaluation the effectiveness of a token economy” by Reitman, Murphy, Hupp, and O’Callaghan (2004) had really important applications to motivation theory. The authors had teachers in 14 different classrooms evaluate student behavior every 10 minutes and reward positive behavior. If students behaved positively they were allowed to play a simple game. The authors found that token economy system lowered problem behaviors 50-75% (as measured by direct observation) though it did not lower teachers’ perceptions of problem behavior occurrence. This made me think about teacher’s skewed and sometimes biased interpretation of student motivation. As teachers we often mis-diagnose. We use anecdoctal evidence and project our own values and beliefs about what motivated looks like. For example, when I evaluate my students level of motivation, I usually do it through a lens of a what I look like when I am motivated. I project my actions and behaviors onto my students. This happens both implicitly and explicitly. If teachers were provided with objective data regarding student motivational styles and patterns this may be beneficial to everyone involved. If a trained psychological evaluator was allowed to give diagnostic information for all of my causing them to shut down) and avoid missing an unmotivated child that is just really good at looking motivated.
