Carry yourself well, stay under control, be polite at all times and you will develop a good

reputation for being well behaved. Good behavior makes a good impression on teacher’,
administrators and they will be inclined to put in a good word for you. A squeaky clean record
and upright demeanor can also improve your college admission prospects and help you search
for jobs. This essay is an endeavor to discuss using concrete and practical examples how a
teacher can use punishment in a real Zambian, classroom. Will first begin by defining key terms
and then discuss how and finally draw up a conclusion.

Behavior modification is treatment approach, based on the principles of operant conditioning that
replaces undesirable behaviors with more desirable ones through positive or negative
reinforcement. (Thorndike E L, 1911).

Behavior modification is based on methodogical behaviorism, which refers to limiting behavior

change procedures to behavior that’s are observable in particular pre-assumed consequences,
such as increasing or decreasing the frequency of behaviors and altering an individual’s behavior
through positive and negative reinforcement to increase desirable behavior through extinction
and punishment. In contrast to operant conditioning, behavior modification never used stimulus
control it also lacked the conceptual. (Bachrach AJ, 1962).

Punishment is the authoritative imposition of a desirable or unpleasant outcome upon a group or

individual in response to particular action or behavior that is deemed in acceptable or threatening
to some norm. (Hugo, Adam B, 2010).

Reinforcement is a process in which a consequence, reinforcement, is given following a desired

behavior to increase the likelihood that the behavior will occur again under similar conditions.
Reinforcement is designed to be used systematically and contingently. There are many types of
rein forcers; they should be selected based on their reinforcing nature for a given person and
situation

There are generally two types of reinforcement, positive and negative. Positive reinforcement
refers to an increase in the future frequency of a behavior due to the addition of a stimulus
following an event. For example, a cookie is given to a child (the addition of the stimulus)
whenever he sits appropriately, and the frequency of the child’s sitting appropriately increases.
On the other hand, negative reinforcement refers to an increase in the future frequency of a
behavior due to the removal of a stimulus following an event. For example, an annoying song is
turned off (removal of the stimulus) whenever the child asks, and the child’s asking behavior
increases.
It is important to establish how frequently the reinforcement will be provided. Too frequent use
of reinforcement may cause the individual to grow tired of the reinforcement and result in a loss
of reinforcement effectiveness. (Karsten, & Carr2009).

The truth is you can't control all your behavior. We are all a little out of control. Some of us are
seriously out of control. For example, some of us are ruining our lives and/or killing ourselves
with food, drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, careless driving and other ways. Some of us are blowing off
our school work or our jobs but still believing, even though it is very unrealistic, that we will "be
successful." Some of us can't get or hold a job, or hold on to love, or properly care for our
children, or manage a home and pay our debts. There is an enormous difference between the
people who are out of control and those in control. It is important to understand the causes of
behavior and how to change it.
Teachers spend a good deal of time dealing with inappropriate disruptive behaviors. Often
time’s attempts to modify student’s behavior are unsuccessful due to constraints, inconsistent
implantation and a lack of understanding of the principles of behavior modification. Teachers
have come up with many measures to try and modify the behaviors of learners in the classroom
and out of the classroom. Some of the reinforcement measures are; fixed -ratio schedule which is
reinforcement delivered after every response for instance the child gets a cookie after each 5
name spellings. Fixed‐interval schedule is another type of reinforcement which is delivered for a
behavior after a fixed length of time for example child gets a cookie for the first correct spelling
of his name after five minutes have passed since the last reinforcement. Variable‐ratio schedule
is the third reinforcement that is delivered after a variable number of responses a child gets a
cookie on average every third time he spells his name correctly. Another one is Variable‐interval
schedule, reinforcement is delivered after a variable time for example each time the child spells
his name correctly, the teacher gives him a cookie. An incompatible response is reinforced to
reduce the occurrence of a behavior for instance the child gets a cookie whenever he asks instead
of screaming.
Reinforcement of other behavior, reinforcement is delivered to any behavior other than the
undesired one to reduce a frequent behavior, for instance the child gets a cookie whenever he
uses his hands to do anything other than screaming

Another example of behavior modification is the target behavior for Susan was to learn the
alphabet. In the beginning, whenever Susan identified a correct letter, the teacher gave her a
small piece of cookie and praised her. Later on, the teacher still praised Susan for every correct
response but gave her a small piece of cookie after three correct responses. Gradually, the
teacher continued to use verbal praise for every correct response, but gave Susan a small piece of
cookie a few times in an unpredictable manner. After a couple of sessions, the teacher only gave
Susan verbal praise when she answered correctly.

It is important to establish how frequently the reinforcement will be provided. Too frequent use
of reinforcement may cause the individual to grow tired of the reinforcement and result in a loss
of reinforcement effectiveness. Thus, arranging a schedule for when to use reinforcement and
how often is critical.

Bandura (1977) came to believe that human behavior is largely self-regulated. He concluded that
we evaluate our own behavior; the satisfaction felt when we do well is intrinsic reinforcement.
He assumed that self-rewarded behavior was just as well learned as externally reinforced
behavior, maybe better. Psychologists have focused more attention on the power of
consequences-rewards, punishment, and removing something unpleasant--to change behavior
than any other method
Reinforcement is one of the most fundamental and most important principles of applied behavior
analysis. The following strategies are commonly used by teachers in working with children with
autism; behavior contract is intervention that is widely used to change student behavior. It is a
formal written agreement that spells out in detail the expectations of both the student and the
teacher carrying out the intervention plan, making it a useful planning document. Also, because
the student usually has input into the conditions that are established within the contract for earn
rewards, the student is more likely to be motivated to abide by the terms of the behavior contract.
Token economy is a system that emphasizes reinforcing positive behavior by awarding “tokens”
for the performance of the desired behavior. In this system, tokens are accumulated exchanged
for a reinforcer. For example, whenever the child spells his name correctly, he earns token. After
the child has collected five tokens, he can exchange them for playing the leading role in the
school concert.

Many people confuse negative reinforcement with punishment. Since negative reinforcement
sounds like the opposite of positive reinforcement (or a reward), people wrongly assume it is
punishment. Actually, punishment and negative reinforcement are opposites: punishment causes
pain, negative reinforcement avoids pain. Thus, punishment and negative reinforcement have the
opposite effect- negative reinforcement strengthens the previous behavior, punishment reduces
or stops the preceding behavior (at least while the punisher is around). The terms will be clear if
you realize there are two kinds of reinforcement and two kinds of punishment (Grusec &
Walters, 1977)
In conclusion punishment and reinforcement is an important factor in behavioral modification in
a classroom because children learn to differentiate between good behavior and bad behavior.
Reinforcement is one of the most fundamental and most important principles of applied behavior
analysis The truth is you can't control all your behavior. Behavior modification is based on
methodogical behaviorism, which refers to limiting behavior change procedures to behavior
that’s are observable in particular pre-assumed consequences, such as increasing or decreasing
the frequency of behaviors and altering an individual’s behavior through positive and negative
reinforcement to increase desirable behavior through extinction and punishment. In contrast to
operant conditioning, behavior modification never used stimulus control it also lacked the
conceptual