January 2011 Archives

"Orlando, Florida (CNN) -- If an elementary school teacher graded you on your involvement in your child's education, what kind of a grade would you get?

Should your kid's first-grade teacher be grading you in the first place? If Florida state Rep. Kelli Stargel's bill becomes law, public school teachers will be required to grade the parents of students in kindergarten through the third grade."

http://www.psychologicalscience.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt.cgi?__mode=view&_type=entry&blog_id=19

How does this relate to the ABCs of behavior?
How does this relate to punishment?
How does this relate to the the idea of taking away the parent's driver's license some of you commented on before?
(http://www.psychologicalscience.com/bmod/2011/01/revoking-driving-rights-for-parents-of-truent-kids.html)

"WASHINGTON -- Drug legalization is an "entirely legitimate topic for debate," President Barack Obama said Thursday during his online YouTube town hall, in response to a question from a former deputy sheriff who has turned sour on the drug war."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/27/obama-drug-legalization-debate_n_815074.html

How does this relate to punishment?
How does this relate to the ABCs of behavior?
How does this relate to what V Fox the ex Mexico president had to say about legalizing drugs?
(http://www.psychologicalscience.com/bmod/2011/01/mexicos-ex-president-vicente-fox-legalize-drugs.html)
What do you think would happen if we stopped punishing drug use?

How does this relate to the ABCs of behavior?

(Thanks to Kayla for sending)

Video games are already a ubiquitous component in the lives of young boys and grown men alike, but a new Japanese game is literally making a splash all its own.

The AFP reports that Sega has debuted four types of "Toylets," or urine-controlled games, in Toyko men's rooms in pubs and game arcades. Urinals are fitted with special pressure sensors, with eye-level LCD screens displaying the action. "

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/19/toylets-mens-room-video-games_n_811102.html

How does this relate to the ABCs of Behavior Modification. What is the Antecedant, Behavior, and Consequence here?

How does this tie into our notion of punishment and changing the antecedants. If you don't want someone to break the law, change the law?

"One problem is that students just aren't asked to do much, according to findings in a new book, "Academically Adrift: Limited Learning on College Campuses." Half of students did not take a single course requiring 20 pages of writing during their prior semester, and one-third did not take a single course requiring even 40 pages of reading per week."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/18/45-of-students-dont-learn_n_810224.html

How does this relate to what we are trying to accomplish with the hybrid class?

Review the material from sections 2.3 and 2.4. Then find a bMod topic that you are interested in related to the current readings. Then find some websites based on that topic and read them and use them to write about a topic. You might, for example, find people who are doing research on the topic, you might find web pages that discuss the topic, you might find youtube clips that demonstrate something related to the topic, etc. What you find and use is pretty much up to you at this point. But use at least 3 sources.

Once you have completed your search and explorations, I would like you to say what your topic is, how exactly it fits into the chapter, and why you are interested in it. Next, I would like you to take the information you found related to your topic, integrate/synthesize it, and then write about it. At the end, please include working URLs for the three websites.

By now you all should be skilled at synthesizing the topical material you have obtained from the various web sites you visited. If you need a refresher please let me know.

Include a list of the terms and concepts you used in your post. (example - Terms: positive reinforcer, extinction, reinforcer, discriminative stimulus...)

Thanks,

--Dr. M 

What I would like you to do is to find a topic from sections 2.1 & 2.2 that you were interested in and search the internet for material on that topic. You might, for example, find people who are doing research on the topic, you might find web pages that discuss the topic, you might find youtube clips that demonstrate something related to the topic, etc. What you find and use is pretty much up to you at this point. But use at least 3 sources.

Once you have completed your search and explorations, I would like you to say what your topic is, how exactly it fits into the chapter, and why you are interested in it. Next, I would like you to take the information you found related to your topic, integrate/synthesize it, and then write about it. At the end, please include working URLs for the three websites.

By now you all should be skilled at synthesizing the topical material you have obtained from the various web sites you visited. If you need a refresher please let me know.

Include a list of the terms and concepts you used in your post. (example - Terms: positive reinforcer, extinction, reinforcer, discriminative stimulus...)

Thanks,

--Dr. M 

Please read sections 1.5 and the handout on recording behaviors for this week. The hand out will be sent to you as an attachment.

Let me know if you have any questions.

What I would like you to do is to find a topic from section 1.5 or the handout on recording behaviors that you were interested in and search the internet for material on that topic. You might, for example, find people who are doing research on the topic, you might find web pages that discuss the topic, you might find youtube clips that demonstrate something related to the topic, etc. What you find and use is pretty much up to you at this point. Please use 3 or more resources.

Once you have completed your search and explorations, I would like you to say what your topic is, how exactly it fits into the chapter, and why you are interested in it. Next, I would like you to take the information you found related to your topic, integrate/synthesize it, and then write about it. At the end, please include working URLs for the three websites. Keep in mind that it will be easier if you keep it to one topic.

By integrating/synthesizing I mean to take what your read/experienced from the internet search (and from chapter 1 if you like) organize the information into the main themes, issues, info, examples, etc. about your topic and then write about the topic in your own words using that information. This is hard for some people to do - many students write what we refer to as "serial abstracts." They are tempted to talk about the websites rather than the topic proper and this what you DON'T want to do! They will talk all about website #1, start a new paragraph and talk all about web site #2, start a new paragraph and talk all about web site #3, and then write some kind of conclusion. Serial means one after the other...again, this what you DON'T want to do! If all three sites are on the same one topic it will be easier.

At first it is a real challenge to get out of the habit of writing "serial abstracts," but I assure you once you get the hang of it it is much easier to write using the integration method. And besides this is the way researchers and scientists write their technical reports and findings - many of you will have to be able to do this for other classes and for jobs that you may eventually be hired for so now is a good time to learn this skill. At this point don't worry about a grade, worry about doing your best to have fun with the topic and then integrate it into your own words to share what you found and now know. We will work on citing the sources later....

Include a list of the terms and concepts you used in your post. (example - Terms: positive reinforcer, extinction, reinforcer, discriminative stimulus...)

Let me know if you have any questions.

Please read sections 1.3 and 1.4 for this week.

After reading the sections, think of all the terms and concepts used in all of section 1 (1.1, 1.2 and the ones in these two sections).  Please respond to the following questions and try to use these terms and concepts as you respond to the following questions.

Which section did you like the most? Why? Which section did you like the least? Why? What do you think is the most useful piece of information from section 1.3? Why? Most useful from 1.4? Why? What are your thoughts on the use of reinforcement? Why? What are your thoughts on the use of punishment? Why?

Prior to reading these sections, what did you think about behavior modification?  Why? What are three things you will remember from what you read in the sections? Why? How has reading the sections changed what you originally thought about behavior modification? How so?

Finally indicate two topics or concepts that you would like me to cover in more depth in class.

Let me know if you have any questions.

"Wells has drafted a bill that would suspend parents' driver's licenses if their students are chronically absent from school.

Wells has drafted a bill that would suspend parents' driver's licenses if their students are chronically absent from school."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/14/erik-wells-west-virginia-truancy-drivers-licenses_n_809397.html

How does this fit within the ABC's of behavior?