Wednesday 14 May 2014

Addressing Challenging Behaviours

We've looked at triggers, and an ideas for identifying them.  But what about challenging behaviours that persist?  We so often look at a loud, aggressive reaction from a child and immediate want to stop it, or 'fix' it.  When you work with children in preschool settings, or even one on one at home, it's soon apparent that this adult reaction won't have a very lasting or successful result. Difficult as it may be to swallow, we need to assess ourselves and our environment first.  Knowing a child's strengths, interests and challenges are also essential to developing a positive relationship between educator and child. Consider the Teaching Pyramid
This model (detailed below), adapted from the mental health model and created by a team at Vanderbilt University, encompasses four tiers.  Each tier, from the bottom up, is a requirement for a successful and positive preschool experience, reducing challenging behaviours, and promoting social and emotional development.  It is transferable, too.  Taking time to collaboratively assess an environment, including the program, the interests of all children, the learning opportunities available, and the people in place to support them is a large stepping stone to finding out what is working, and what may need changing or addressing in order to reduce challenging behaviours.  The wonderful social and emotional programs that exist are all relevant here.  Linking with families, early intervention services,  healthcare workers are all relevant here.  And deciding you want to TEACH social emotional skills rather than assuming they are inherent skills is very important here. 

When we look at any given moment of challenging behaviours, we can expect to find triggers (even if we have to look hard), and a reaction.  Identifying the FUNCTION of that reaction, that behaviour, will be pivotal in how we address and thereby assist the child in reducing the need for that challenging behaviour.  We can expect the function to be either to obtain something or someone (i.e. a toy or attention for example) OR to escape (an experience or a person).  We now have a formula for teaching.  The next challenge for the adult is to address the function, and honour it!  Provide the child with strategies to enable the child to obtain or escape appropriately!  This is not giving in, it's a prevention in the long run, and it's a building block to a strong relationship.  Remember, you will not do this alone.  Learning to honour the function and not simply 'stick to our own ideals' is hard.  It takes a lot of practice and patience, and a lot of collaboration.   Self-reflection of practices is instrumental

For help and further information regarding the Teaching Pyramid Framework and strategies, contact your local SCAN Project Officer in Riverina Murray, Orana Far West or Central West.   For further online references and resources, explore www.csefel.vanderbilt.edu

The Teaching Pyramid Framework: 
 
At the first yellow tier is the Effective Workforce.  This requires open lines of communication, supports, networking opportunities, collaboration and team members who feel valued and important - both as team members and in the lives of the children. 
 
The two blue tiers highlight Nurturing and Responsive Relationships and High Quality Supportive Environments.  In other words, high quality early childhood programs for all children reflective of the EYLF.  The ongoing supportive and responsive relationships developed between adult and child promote healthy social and emotional development.  Families feel valued.
 
The Targeted Supports in the green tier are specifically targeting Social and Emotional development.  This is important for children who need further support in learning friendship skills, emotional resilience, being able to identify emotions and empathise with others.  Teaching social skills can be preventative and remedial in effect.
 
And the top red tier are where a few of our children sit and where educators will seek further collaborative supports.  This intensive intervention tier is explicit child focussed.  Intervention sought at this tier would be a result of collaborative assessments and result in individualised behaviour support plans. 

No comments:

Post a Comment