This article was downloaded by: [UQ Library]On: 15 November 2014, At: 02:40Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registeredoffice: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Educational Psychology: AnInternational Journal of ExperimentalEducational PsychologyPublication details, including instructions for authors andsubscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/cedp20
Secondary school teachers’ perceptionsof students’ problem behavioursEmma Littlea RMIT University , AustraliaPublished online: 05 Oct 2010.
To cite this article: Emma Little (2005) Secondary school teachers’ perceptions of students’problem behaviours, Educational Psychology: An International Journal of Experimental EducationalPsychology, 25:4, 369-377, DOI: 10.1080/01443410500041516
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01443410500041516
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE
Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the“Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis,our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as tothe accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinionsand views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Contentshould not be relied upon and should be independently verified with primary sourcesof information. Taylor and Francis shall not be liable for any losses, actions, claims,proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and other liabilities whatsoeveror howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to orarising out of the use of the Content.
This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Anysubstantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing,systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms &Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions
Educational PsychologyVol. 25, No. 4, August 2005, pp. 369–377
ISSN 0144-3410 (print)/ISSN 1469-5820 (online)/05/040347–05© 2005 Taylor & Francis Group LtdDOI: 10.1080/01443410500041516
Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions of Students’ Problem Behaviours
Emma Little*RMIT University, AustraliaTaylor and Francis LtdCEDP104134.sgm10.1080/01443410500041516Educational Psychology0144-3410 (print)/0144-3410 (online)Original Article2005Taylor & Francis Group Ltd254000000August 2005EmmaLittleDepartment of Psychology and Disability StudiesRMIT UniversityBundoora [email protected]
Much of the research into behaviour problems and school interventions has focused on primaryschool-age children. In the primary school setting, the behaviours that cause the most concern toteachers are frequently occurring but relatively minor behaviours such as calling out and interrupt-ing the learning of others. These minor problematic behaviours have been shown to respond tolow-level interventions that are presented as written advice. The behaviours that secondary schoolteachers perceive as problematic, and the preferred method of intervention, have received compar-atively little attention in the research. An investigation of the behaviour problems that high schoolteachers find most troublesome was conducted in this study. It was found that similar behaviourswere reported as troublesome in the secondary school classroom compared with the primary class-room, although differences were demonstrated across year levels. Teachers were also surveyedabout their preferred method of intervention/assistance for these behaviour problems. This infor-mation about intervention approaches informs the development of strategies for assisting class-room teachers.
Media portrayals of behaviour problems in the secondary school environment tend tofocus on bullying and violence as being the major areas of concern. However, whetherthese are the behaviours that cause the most concern to secondary school teachers isstill to be widely investigated. Much of the research into behaviour problems andschool interventions has focused on primary school-age children. One well-knownstudy in this area is that by Wheldall and Merrett (1988a), who examined the class-room behaviour problems that primary school teachers found most troublesome. It isimportant to note that in their study Wheldall and Merrett examined both severity(most troublesome) and frequency, as it was possible that there may be differencesbetween the two. That is, the most troublesome behaviours may have been the more
*Division of Psychology, RMIT University, Bundoora 3083, Australia. Email:[email protected]
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
370 E. Little
dangerous and volatile behaviours (aggression/violence), but the most frequentbehaviours might be more minor behaviours that cause concern because of how oftenthey occur. The results of their study indicated that the most frequent and the mosttroublesome behaviours are very similar in the primary school setting. Talking out ofturn (TOOT) and hindering other children (HOC) were the most problematic behav-iours identified in the study. Other behaviours that were identified as being problem-atic in primary schools were disobedience, aggression, and idleness (being off task).
Subsequent replication of this study with an Australian sample found that thesebehaviours were also identified by Australian primary school teachers as problematic(McDonald & Wilks, 1994). However, in the Australian study, being easilydistracted and not listening to directions were the two most commonly reportedbehaviour problems, followed by TOOT and HOC. Taken together these resultsindicate that in the primary school setting the most concerning behaviours to teach-ers are those that involve minor violations of rules and regular disruption to thesmooth functioning of the classroom.
To date only one study has investigated the behaviour problems that high schoolteachers find most troublesome. This study, conducted in England, found thatTOOT and HOC were the most frequent and troublesome classroom behavioursidentified by secondary school teachers (Houghton, Wheldall, & Merrett, 1988). Inaddition 55% of secondary teachers reported that they spend too much time dealingwith issues around maintaining order and control in the classroom. This is consis-tent with the findings of Wheldall and Merrett (1988a), where 51% of teachersreported spending too much time on issues of order and control. Clearly classroombehaviour problems are causing concern to teachers and are interfering with thelearning of both the individual child and his/her peers.
Houghton et al. (1988) examined behaviour problems across the different Britishsecondary school faculties and across year levels. There was little difference inbehaviour problems across faculties, with all reporting talking out of turn as beingthe most troublesome behaviour. Across year levels, talking out of turn was alsoidentified as the most problematic behaviour. However this behaviour declined infrequency over the high school years. In addition, idleness was not identified as aproblem in the early high school years but increased in frequency by the fifth year ofhigh school to 25%. It is important to note that teachers were asked to reflect on theclass they taught most often, so the same teacher was not reflecting on different yearlevels. In Australian secondary schools, most teachers teach across all levels of highschool (or at least across a range of years); therefore it may be possible to have teach-ers identify the behaviours they consider problematic across year levels. This mayeliminate any group differences from teachers reflecting on only one year level. Thisinformation would provide the basis for the development of specific interventions foruse with high school students. It may be the case that older students cause quitedifferent problems for their teachers than younger secondary school students.
Given that teachers perceive that they are spending too much time on issues oforder and control, and that these behaviours are minor in nature, it is clear thatinterventions that deal specifically with these behaviours are needed.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions of Students’ Problem Behaviours 371
Interventions in the classroom setting are often developed as a comprehensiveclassroom management program that involves quite time-consuming and cost-intensive assistance. Given that teachers are reporting that relatively minor (butfrequently occurring) behaviours are the ones that cause them the most trouble inthe classroom, it may be that such intensive classroom management programs arenot required by all teachers. In response to this issue in the primary school setting,some written advice for teachers, in the form of “tip sheets” that dealt with specificclassroom behaviour problems, was developed and trialled in Australian schools(Little, Hudson, & Wilks, 2002). The tip sheets provided specific strategies for thedifferent behaviour problems identified by Wheldall and Merrett (1988a) andMcDonald and Wilks (1994) and it was found that this was an effective and highlyacceptable method of intervention for these disruptive behaviours (Little et al.,2002). Such an approach has not been developed for the secondary school setting.In fact, few interventions for secondary school classroom behaviour problems havebeen developed at all.
One comprehensive intervention specifically designed for the secondary schoolclassroom is the BATSAC program (Behavioural Approach to Teaching SecondaryAged Children) developed by Wheldall and Merrett (1988b). This program is deliv-ered as six one-hour in-service sessions provided to groups of teachers and uses theprinciples of behavioural psychology as a basis. Skills covered include identifyingand monitoring behaviour, consequences, and rule setting. This program was foundto increase on-task classroom behaviour, decrease the number of negative teacherresponses, and increase the number of positive responses (Wheldall, Houghton,Merrett, & Baddeley, 1989). This provides clear evidence that a behaviouralapproach to classroom management in the secondary school environment is effectivein improving classroom behaviours. However, it may not be possible for manyschools to implement this program as it is quite time intensive and costly. In addi-tion, teachers who have already established some effective management strategies, orthose who are dealing with minor behaviour problems, may not require suchcomprehensive training. An alternative, less restrictive intervention may be requiredin those instances where the teacher needs assistance in managing specific behaviourproblems.
Researchers have previously reported that one strategy for addressing behaviourproblems will not fit all young people (Keller & Tapasak, 1997). Therefore, a flexi-ble approach to intervention is needed that allows strategies to be matched with theneeds of the student, and of the teacher. Given the success of teacher tip sheets inthe primary school setting (Little et al., 2002), high school teachers may also benefitfrom having specific strategies to deal with the behaviour problems that theyperceive to be most problematic in the classroom. Written advice certainly fits intothe “least restrictive alternative” philosophy and allows teachers to try lower-levelinterventions (such as following written advice) before moving on to higher-levelinterventions if needed (such as teacher in-services). However, before such an inter-vention can be developed, further information is needed regarding the behavioursthat teachers perceive as being most problematic in the secondary school setting.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
372 E. Little
The aim of this study was to examine secondary school teachers’ perceptions ofproblematic behaviours. In particular, are the behaviour problems identified in theBritish study a decade and a half ago still salient in today’s secondary school class-room? If so, do teachers need assistance in managing these behaviours? Finally, howwould teachers like this assistance to be delivered?
Method
Participants
In all, 148 secondary school teachers from schools throughout Victoria, Australia,participated in this study. Schools were randomly selected from each of the eightDepartment of Education, Employment, and Training (DEET) regions withinVictoria. A total of 400 surveys were sent out, with a return rate of 37%. Of theteachers who participated in the survey, 94 were women (63.5%) and 54 were men(36.5%).
Materials
The survey used in this study was modified from that used in the study by Hough-ton and colleagues (1988). Teachers were asked to provide demographic informa-tion (age, gender, year levels currently taught, average number of students inclasses). The first question of the survey asked teachers: “In general terms do youthink that you spend more time on problems of order and control than you ought?”Following this, the survey had the same questions repeated for three groups(juniors: Years 7 and 8; middle group: Years 9 and 10; and seniors: Years 11 and12). For each of the levels the teachers were asked: (1) “Write down the two catego-ries of behaviour you find most troublesome with your classes as a whole”; and (2)“Write down the two categories of troublesome behaviour you find most frequentwith your classes as a whole”. Teachers were instructed only to fill in the questionsfor the year levels they currently taught. The final question asked teachers to indi-cate the type of assistance they would prefer for managing students’ behaviour prob-lems (face to face; book; tip sheets; teacher in-service courses; advice from otherteachers; or any other form of assistance). These items were derived from pastresearch that identified these approaches as being the ones most commonly used byteachers (Little, 1999)
Procedure
A letter describing the project was sent to principals of rural and urban secondaryschools in Victoria, Australia. Schools were randomly selected from each of the eightVictorian DEET regions. Once the principals agreed to have their school participatein the study, teachers who agreed to participate were provided with a copy of thesurvey. The survey took approximately 10 minutes to complete and once done the
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions of Students’ Problem Behaviours 373
teachers returned the surveys in a reply paid envelope. No identifying informationwas provided by the teacher.
Results
With regard to classroom management, 68% of respondents reported that theyspend more time on issues of order and control than they believe they ought. Themean number of troublesome students per class was 5.3 (SD = 3) and males werereported as being more problematic than females, with a mean of 3.5 troublesomeboys compared to 2 troublesome girls per class.
Table 1 provides a comparison of the most frequent and most troublesomebehaviours reported by secondary school teachers. It can be seen that there waslittle difference between the most troublesome and most frequently-occurringbehaviour problems. The only exceptions were unpunctuality and disobedience;both were reported as most troublesome more often than being reported as mostfrequent. Therefore, the remaining results reported will relate to the most trou-blesome behaviours, as the results for the most frequent behaviours are almostidentical.
Table 2 shows the most troublesome behaviours across junior (Years 7 and 8),middle (Years 9 and 10), and senior (Years 11 and 12) secondary school. It isevident that the most troublesome behaviours differ depending on the age level ofthe students. In the junior secondary school, talking out of turn was the mostcommonly reported troublesome problem (50% of teachers listed talking out of turnas most troublesome), followed by hindering other children (20%) and disobedience(15%). In the middle levels talking out of turn is still the most troublesome behav-iour (35%) and hindering other children and idleness ranked equally as the secondmost commonly reported behaviour problem (19%). At senior levels idleness wasthe most commonly reported behaviour problem (42% of teachers) followed by talk-ing out of turn (22%) and lack of punctuality (15%).
Table 1. Most frequent and troublesome behaviours as reported by teachers
% reported most troublesome % reported most frequent
Talking out of turn 34.6% 36.5%Hindering others 16.5% 12.8%Idleness 21.7% 21.1%Disobedience 12.7% 6.07%Unnecessary noise 2.8% 3.6%Aggression 2.2% .9%Unpunctuality 7.9% .9%Untidiness 1.0% 1.3%Out of seat .3% 2.6%Eating .4% 5.7%
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
374 E. Little
As an additional area of interest, teachers were asked to indicate their preferredmethods of gaining knowledge about managing classroom behaviour problems.Table 3 provides the mean ratings for five methods of assistance reported in pastresearch to be most frequently used (Little, 1999). It can be seen that teachersreported staff in-service courses, advice from teachers, and tip sheets as being highlyacceptable. Consultation with a psychologist was given an average ranking of“acceptable” and the use of books on classroom management had an average ratingin the “neutral” range. A non-parametric chi square indicated significant differencesbetween groups (χ2 = 149.9, p < .001). Subsequent post hoc analyses revealedsignificant differences between all variables except in-service courses and tip sheet,and advice and in-service.
Discussion
The aim of this study was to examine the current status of classroom behaviourproblems in the secondary school setting. It was found that the behaviour problems
Table 2. Most troublesome behaviour problems across year level
Junior secondaryYears 7 and 8
Middle secondaryYears 9 and 10
Upper secondaryYears 11 and 12
Talking out of turn 48.2% 33% 22.6%Hindering others 19.3% 18.3% 11.9%Idleness 5.3% 19.3% 40.5%Disobedience 16.7% 16.5% 4.8%Unnecessary noise 5.3% 1.8% 1.2%Aggression 3.5% 1.8% 1.2%Unpunctuality 0 8.3% 15.5%Untidiness .9% .9% 1.2%Out of seat .9% 0 0Eating 0 0 1.2%
Table 3. Mean rating for intervention type
Mean rank
Advice from teachers 4.1Staff in-service 4.1Tip sheet 3.8Consultation with psychologist 3.2Book 2.4
A ranking of 3 indicates “acceptable” on a scale of 1–5.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions of Students’ Problem Behaviours 375
that secondary school teachers perceive as being most problematic are, not surpris-ingly, similar to those of primary schools.
In the first four years of high school talking out of turn and hindering other childrenare identified as two of the most troublesome behaviour problems. It is only in thesenior years (Years 11 and 12) that a clear difference is seen between secondary schooland primary school students. At this level, idleness becomes the most concerningbehaviour problem for teachers. While caution must be used when interpreting cross-sectional data, it appears that as students move through high school, and the academicdemands on students increase, teachers report being more concerned about attentionand task-related behaviours than disruptive behaviours. It is also imperative toconsider that, just as children’s behaviour may differ across parents, their behaviourat school may differ across teachers. Therefore, it is important that the perceptions ofindividual teachers are considered, as a specific intervention may be required for oneclass setting and not for another.
The current study supports the findings of previous research into behaviour prob-lems in primary schools in that the most common disruptive behaviours are generallyminor behaviours such as poor attention, off-task behaviour, and “repeated infringe-ments of class rules and procedures” (Fields, 1986, p. 56). As Fields states,“extraordinary intervention strategies are not normally required for these behav-iours” (p. 56). As Wheldall and Merrett point out, “these problem behaviours areones that respond to simple, positive behavioural methods” (1988a, p. 24). Thesebehaviours have been successfully treated in the primary school classroom usingteacher tip sheets as the means of providing teachers with intervention advice (Littleet al., 2002). Therefore, the development of similar specific intervention strategiesfor the secondary school classroom is warranted.
Teachers were also requested to rate the types of assistance commonly used toprovide teachers with further education on classroom management. The categorieswere selected based on the findings of previous research and qualitative datacollected from teachers (Little, 1999). It should be acknowledged that a limitation ofthis section of the questionnaire was the requirement for teachers to rank the inter-ventions without gathering information about their familiarity with each type.Therefore, extensive examination using qualitative data collection may providefurther information about the types of intervention teachers prefer and their reasonsfor these preferences.
Taking into consideration these limitations, the results are still worthy of somediscussion. Teachers in the current study indicated that written advice in the form oftip sheets would be an acceptable method of assistance. While teachers ranked staffin-service courses and advice from other teachers as being more acceptable than tipsheets, there may be associated difficulties in using such methods. For example, staffin-service courses are typically very time-intensive and costly as they involve runningsessions with large groups of teachers over at least a few hours. Providing teacherswith written advice in the form of tip sheets allows the teachers to access the materialin their own time and with minimal cost. Relying on advice from other teachers forbehaviour management strategies is also problematic as it assumes that the other
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
376 E. Little
teachers have effective techniques for managing classrooms. Providing tip sheetsmay serve to inform teachers regarding effective strategies, which they can then passon to their colleagues.
In the primary school setting, using tip sheets with written advice for managingspecific classroom behaviour problems has been shown to be very effective andacceptable (Little et al., 2002). Adaptation of these tip sheets for the secondaryclassroom setting may lead to an alternative, acceptable, and less time- and cost-intensive intervention approach than current intervention packages. For examplestrategies such as setting up clear expectations and rules, immediate consequencesfor inappropriate and appropriate behaviour, and teaching target behaviours are alleffective in reducing calling out. These strategies often do not require extensivetraining and can be readily understood through written advice. Secondary schoolteachers may find tip sheets to be just as acceptable and effective as their primaryschool colleagues. The findings of this study will inform the development of similartip sheets for the secondary school setting.
With regard to issues of order and control, 68% of respondents reported thatthey spend more time on these than they believe they ought. This is higher thanthe 55% of primary school teachers in Houghton and colleagues’ (1988) study andis of concern due to the implications this may have on classroom functioning andteacher stress. Further, Houghton and colleagues suggest that their figure of 55%is likely to be conservative, given the self-report nature of the survey. It is evidentthat teachers are spending a great deal of time and energy on managing inappro-priate classroom behaviours that are of a minor (but disruptive) nature. There isevidence of a substantial proportion of students in secondary school classroomsengaging in behaviours that are interfering with their teachers’ ability to teach andthe smooth running of the classroom. In this study the mean number of trouble-some students per class was 5 compared with 4.1 in Houghton and colleagues’study.
The next step in the process of assisting teachers with these problematic behav-iours involves developing effective interventions that are highly acceptable, andtherefore likely to be used by teachers. Providing a hierarchical approach to interven-tion that allows practitioners and teachers to move from less intensive and intrusiveinterventions through to higher-level interventions would be beneficial in ensuring abest fit between problem behaviour and management.
References
Fields, B. A. (1986). The nature and incidence of classroom behaviour problems and their remis-sion through preventive management. Behaviour Change, 3, 53–57.
Houghton, S., Wheldall, K., & Merrett, F. (1988). Classroom behaviour problems which second-ary school teachers say they find most troublesome. British Educational Research Journal, 14,297–312.
Keller, H. R., & Tapasak, R. C. (1997). Classroom management. In A. P. Goldstein & J. Close(Eds.), School violence intervention: A practical handbook (pp. 107–126). New York: TheGuilford Press.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
Secondary School Teachers’ Perceptions of Students’ Problem Behaviours 377
Little, E. (1999). Conduct disorder: Generalisation across settings and implications for home and schoolbased interventions. Bundoora, Victoria: RMIT University Department of Psychology andDisability Studies.
Little, E., Hudson, A., & Wilks, R. (2002). The efficacy of written teacher advice for managingclassroom behaviour problems. Educational Psychology, 22, 251–266.
McDonald, F., & Wilks, R. (1994). A survey of 45 primary school teachers’ self-perceived disciplinestyles: A pilot study. Bundoora, Victoria: RMIT University Department of Psychology andDisability Studies.
Wheldall, K., Houghton, S., Merrett, F., & Baddeley, A. (1989). The Behavioural Approach toTeaching Secondary Aged Children (BATSAC): Two behavioural evaluations of a trainingpackage for secondary school teachers in classroom behaviour management. EducationalPsychology, 9, 185–196.
Wheldall, K., & Merrett, F. (1988a). Which classroom behaviours do primary school teachers saythey find most troublesome? Educational Review, 40, 13–27.
Wheldall, K., & Merrett, F. (1988b). Packages for training teachers in classroom behaviourmanagement: BATPACK, BATSAC, and the Positive Teaching Packages. Support forLearning, 3, 86–92.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
UQ
Lib
rary
] at
02:
40 1
5 N
ovem
ber
2014
Recommended
