PODCAST EPISODE

How to Improve Classroom Management with the Good Behavior Game

CE Offering: 1.5

Instructor: Jeanne Donaldson, Ph.D., BCBA-D

Session 171 Good Behavior Game

If you're a BCBA supporting kids in public school settings, or even if you're a parent who has kids in school, you probably already know that sound classroom management is hard to come by. This phenomenon is perhaps more acute as schools have had to contend with the disruptions in continuity imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.

As such, it is reasonable to ask what Behavior Analysis has to offer when it comes to helping teachers spend more time teaching, and less time dealing with conduct problems.

Luckily, Behavior Analysis has provided us with a tried and true, easily implemented strategy for improving classroom management, and it's called The Good Behavior Game (GBG for short). And in Session 171, I had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Jeanne Donaldson from Louisiana State University about the GBG in quite a bit of detail.

Jeanne earned her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of Florida and is now an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at Louisiana State University, where she conducts research on commonly-encountered childhood behavioral challenges. She was the 2018 recipient of the B. F. Skinner Foundation New Applied Researcher Award from APA Division 25. She is currently an Associate Editor at the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis.

In this episode we discuss how Jeanne got into Behavior Analysis, we provide an overview of the general structure of the GBG, and we hear what it was like for Jeanne to run the GBG for the first time in a classroom setting. We also talk about procedural variations of the GBG as well, and how to troubleshoot when the GBG does not work as planned.

In these exchanges, I hope you'll develop an appreciation of the broad applicability of this approach, especially in light of some of the positive outcomes that have been documented in some longitudinal studies of the GBG.

At the same time, I always get a bit disappointed when discussing the GBG, because we have an extraordinarily robust intervention ready to offer the world, but as we discuss in this episode, most public school teachers have no clue about it. It's kind of the opposite of the Habit Reversal literature, where the behavioral treatment of tic disorders could be considered standard-of-care these days.

Instructions for this event:

1. Listen to Session 171 of The Behavioral Observations Podcast. Feel free to skip forward to about the 20-minute mark, as the first segment is comprised of opening remarks and a discussion of Dr. Donaldson’s background.  This link takes you to a page where you can access this episode via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube; along with streaming the show directly from the website.
2. Purchase the CE. This will require creating an account for first time purchases, or logging in for returning customers.
3. Check your email for a link to a quiz.
4. Take the quiz in order to demonstrate attendance. NOTE: prior to taking the quiz, you will be prompted to enter your name and BACB Certificant #. Please enter your name in the way you want it to appear on your CE attendance certificate. This is important because some customers will occasionally enter their user names into this field, and in the event of a CE audit, the BACB will likely refuse to accept documentation with incorrect names.
5. Download the certificate of completion.
6. Save all materials, including emails confirming purchase.
7. Optional: complete C.E. feedback survey, again you may need to cut and paste this URL into your browser: (https://goo.gl/forms/vA1Uyd5hsCcCdzAG2).

PS – please note that your participation certificate is emailed to you at the successful completion of the quiz. I have had some customers’ emails get lost in their spam/junk filters. If you do not receive an email with a link to your downloadable participation certificate, please check your spam folder first, and then reach out at the email below if it is not there.

Thank you so much for participating in this BACB Continuing Education event. If you have any questions about this event or anything else related to the podcast, please feel free to email me at Matt@behavioralobservations.com!