Anika Webber June 6, 2013 ECD 1404 Professor Ofeimu Theorist Paper Child Development and Behaviorism

After our discussion on David Weikart and High-Scope I wanted to research early childhood theorists who had studied and taken an interest in children and their behavior. I wanted to see what studies said about how children learn to behave. By doing this I would learn and be able to measure what things have the most impact on children as they develop. During my research I became most interested in 2 important behavior theorists. The first theorist is Burrhus Fredric Skinner, better known as B.F. Skinner. The second theorist name is John B. Watson. Both Skinner and Watson deemed a childs actions to be more important to study than their thoughts. I will talk more about both theorists throughout this paper ultimately tying it into how it benefits my goals as a childcare provider. B. F. Skinner was born on March 20, 1904. He lived in Susquehanna, Pennsylvania until he became an undergraduate at Hamilton College. There he studied English. Later he attended Harvard University and received his degree in psychology. He spent three years at Harvard in one of the most notable positions as a young scholar- a junior fellow. Skinner went on to teach and hold other notable positions at other universities but ended at Harvard University. He remained there until he retired. Skinners research focuses mainly on behaviorism or

behavioral psychology. According to J. M. Blackbourn, Skinner is one of only

three behavioral scientists to have received the President's Medal of Science. He has been referred to as the most-well-known psychologist since Freud (Blackbourn 934). Skinner utilized schedules of reinforcement- they are continuously done or they were intermittent or ratio schedules (fixed or variable for both). Having a fixed-ratio schedule and a variable-ratio schedule under the ratio schedule and a fixed-interval and variable-interval schedule under intermittent complicate ones ability to understand partial reinforcement schedules. Ratio schedules based on reinforcements that are not continuous occur based on the number of times a behavior is repeated or variably which is an unpredictable number of responses. Interval schedules are based on fixed time periods or the average time since the prior reinforcement. Simply put these schedules are principles of operant conditioning that are utilized to reward children for positive behavior and penalize them for negative behavior. Most importantly, these schedules can be utilized as a foundation for effective instruction. John B. Watson was born on January 9, 1878 in Travelers Rest, South Carolina. He attended Furman University and the University of Chicago where he received his PhD. As a psychologist Watson, developed and publicized the basic concepts of behaviorism, which in the 1920s became one of the major schools of psychological thought (Wiley & Sons 1). Wiley & Sons then continued to add on that, Watsons behaviorism explained human behavior in terms of physiological responses to environmental stimuli and psychology as the study of the relationship between the two. Watson sought to make psychology a purely objective

experimental branch of natural science, with conditioning as one of its chief methods (Wiley & Sons 1). In my opinion the theories on behaviorism are very important for an educator. I find the systems of reinforcement and penalties to be more beneficial than the High-Scope approach. These theories on behavior are important to me as an educator because they provide me with an appropriate concept on how to approach children in their developmental stage. I think it is important to provide children with a solid foundation while they are young in order for them to transition the best into higher education and real life. When a child behaves poorly I believe that Skinners schedules of reinforcements provide an effective and positive alternative to disciplining children. As a child I came from a school where adults utilized words and actions to discipline children. I do not believe that that was the best strategy. The High-Scope concept seems to provide children with the opportunity to behave freely, a concept that is the complete opposite how I was raised. The behaviorism theories provide a delicate balance of the two approaches in my opinion. As noted by Blackbourn, these theorists perspective and focus on observable behavior under conscious control, learning, behavior change, and the development of new behaviors is of particular interest to educators. His theory is particularly relevant to special education, child development, and classroom management (Blackbourn 935). As an infant the brain is like a blank canvas. Daily experiences later become engraved and we learn from these experiments. In an resourceful environment a person has advantages. In a resourceful environment, children have a tendency to

be more capable of having of higher reaction rates. Deprived children are just the opposite. A child deprived from vital resources decreases his/her reaction rate. Resources expand to having access to a safe, positive, and instructional learning environment. John B. Watsons suggests that with proper assistance he could, take any one [infant] at random and train him to become any type of specialist [he] might select...regardless of [their] talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations and race of his ancestors (Myers 321) It is vital to affect a child while they are young. Reinforcing their behavior, permitting or encouring them to excel during their early years has a direct result on who that child will become as they grow. The ability to learn is often said to be innate. Nevertheless, when a person is born they cant talk. They begin to learn through their surroundings by observing the people in their immediate surroundings. If infants never heard people talking or we were never taught to talk we would not be able to. There are studies that show this for example, someone spent well over twelve years in solitary confinement. She wasnt able to converse with people and after many years of rigorous work psychologists were not able to get her to speak at a first grade level. Hence why, different intellectual abilities require environmental stimulation for development and are open to change (Garlick 129) While an educator may have success with children while practicing these theories, I think it is also important to understand that an educators work can be hindered by a childs person life. For instance, a study was done with children whose parents were divorced. The results were compared to children whose parents were not divorced. The (environment or) situation for these children with divorced

parents affected their behavior. A quote reads, In the biological family sample, 28 percent of the families divorced by the childs 12th birthday. Following the divorce, these children had more behavioral and emotional problems (aggressive behavior, delinquency, depression, anxiety and withdrawal), lower levels of academic achievement and poorer social adjustment reported by their teachers. The children also reported earlier drug use more than the children whose parents did not divorce, noted psychologist Thomas G. OConnor, Ph.D., of the Institute of Psychiatry in London, England (OConnor) Educators still have a vital role to play in a childs life during early childhood development. Children who have an outstanding performance in certain areas (like art, music, reading) excel pass the typical testing scores than children who are considered to be average. Their environment affects their IQ levels or tests scores in certain areas. An artist may excel in art more than they would in a science class. This is because they have been largely exposed to art, they have studied different concepts and art ideas. Environment plays a significant role in peoples test scores. People who perform poorly in certain or all areas that lack proper resources and illfit teachers. Such places are not able to produce as well as environments with the proper resoruces are. Research shows that group differences in intelligences are directly linked to environment. In conclusion I have learned that there are many appoaches in while an educator can chose to practicce while affecting children as they develop. At this time I am most interested in the theories that Skinner and Watson researched. As mentioned, they provide both an educator and the child with a practical way to go

about teaching and learning. I feel as if children will be more exciting to learn with these practices because they will be enthused to be rewarded for their good work. Children will also be reasonably discouraged from behaving without regard to how their actions affect others. I want to provide children with a safe place to grow. By practing these theories I will be able to do just that. Progress will be measured fairly. All children will be able to be heard. The children would not have to fear being controlled by another childs desires (and this could easily happen in a HighScope environment). Works Cited "Are Associations Between Parental Divorce and Children's Adjustment Genetically Mediated? An Adoption Study," Thomas G. O'Connor, Ph.D., and Robert Plomin, Ph.D., Institute of Psychiatry, London, England; John C. DeFries, Ph.D., Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado and Avshalom Caspi, Ph.D., Institute of Psychiatry and University of Wisconsin, Madison, Developmental Psychology, Vol. 36, No. 4 Blackbourn, J. M. "B. F. Skinner." Encyclopedia of Educational Leadership and Administration. 206. SAGE Knowledge. Web. June 2013. Myers, David G. "5." Psychology. New York: Worth, 2004. 321. Print. "WATSON, JOHN B." Encyclopedia of Special Education: A Reference for the Education of Children, Adolescents, and Adults with Disabilities and Other Exceptional Individuals. Hoboken: Wiley, 2007. Credo Reference. 19 Jan. 2010. Web. 6 June 2013. <https://libproxy.usc.edu/login?

url=http://www.credoreference.com.libproxy.usc.edu/entry/wileyse/watson_j ohn_b>. "Understanding the Nature of the General Factor of Intelligence: The Role of Individual Differences in Neural Plasticity as an Explanatory Mechanism," Dennis Garlick, Ph.D., University of Sydney, Australia; Psychological Review, Vol 109, No. 1.