Reflecting on behaviorism

By Samie
College of Education
Long Island University, C. W. Post
November, 2010

In class today learning about punishment and praise helps me realize a lot of mistakes people make everyday in a classroom. Such as the constant ridicule from classmates and the facilitator as well. When a child is constantly yelled at the information in their mind is rushed and often times the answer that comes out is the one that comes to their mind the fastest and often times it is the wrong answer. Most times children with disabilities believe that the teacher is picking on them or the class is simply going way too fast for them to process the information in time to answer. When punishing a child with a learning disability they can easily get put down and in most cases most people don't know a child has a disability until they have been diagnosed and most cases a child isn't diagnosed for a while. This will make the child feel less than he or she is and possibly cause them not to interact within a classroom setting. Unless you know the child full potential and know for a fact that he or she is just being lazy in their actions and are not focusing in class because they are having select attention then i will understand why punishment will be the option.

Praising a child also has its ups and downs such as praising a child too often could cause the child to be less attentive because they will feel they have the full understanding of the class, even when new information is taught. Praising a child could also make a person want to continue to strive for more especially if they have been punished before being praised. A child seeks approval from other because of their ego, they feel they are better so they will continue to strive for better.