Overcoming Learning and Behaviour Difficulties

Partnership with Pupils

Tony Charlton, Dr Kevin Jones, Kevin Jones

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2002
• eBook ISBN: 9781134814343
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Education General

Partnership with students, involving them more in decisions which effect their education, can improve both motivation and behaviour. This is recognised by recent legislation, notably the Code of Practice for special needs. The contributions in this collection first consider issues such as empowerment and sources for learning and behaviour difficulties. The central sections, written by respected experts, look at different kinds of partnership and how they can be used, including peer tutoring, counselling, contracts, class-based support, self- monitoring and a range of whole school approaches.

Part I
Pupil responses to schooling

Kevin Jones and Tony Charlton challenge common responses to learning and behaviour difficulties and draw attention to the multiplicity of factors which may create and sustain them, including factors:

• within pupils (e.g. physical, cognitive and emotional states)
• within the curriculum
• within pupils’ learning environment (e.g. classroom management strategies, pedagogy, ethos)
• located within the broader social context (e.g. home, neighbourhood).

The authors claim that a real understanding of the factors which cause a particular pupil to experience difficulties can only be achieved through consultation with the individuals concerned. Many pupils are able to make visible sources of learning and behaviour problems which are often overlooked by their teachers. This understanding leads to the suggestion that best responses to learning difficulties and problem behaviours will be achieved through a development of ‘partnership with pupils’.

Chapter 1
Sources of learning and behaviour difficulties

Kevin Jones and Tony Charlton

INTRODUCTION

When a simple mechanical device fails to function properly, a skilled engineer is usually able to trace the cause to a single fault and rectify the problem within minutes. In contrast, learning and behaviour difficulties are rarely attributable to single, uncomplicated, causes. They are usually the result of a complex interaction of different factors, some of which are easily visible, while others are ‘hidden’ amongst features of the setting in which they occur. If professionals merely seek to identify and respond to the causes which, to them, are most visible, they will, at best, produce only temporary solutions to problems. More lasting solutions will also require an in-depth assessment of, and appropriate responses to, less visible factors which cause people to behave in certain ways.

The intricacies of human behaviour also affect the way in which different people attempt to describe the causes of difficulties. The roles which people play, their interests, past experience, knowledge base and theoretical inclination will all affect the way in which they are inclined to analyse and describe causation. Rachel’s experiences, described below, illustrate some of these points:

The first sight of Zell am Zimmer took Rachel’s breath away. The majestic snow-covered mountains and valleys of the Austrian Tyrol were every bit as beautiful as they had appeared in the brochures. As the coach drew near the outskirts of the town attractive Alpine houses came into view, many of which were surrounded by neatly stacked firewood which would keep the inhabitants warm throughout winter. Although it was already early evening, ski-lifts were still plucking people from queues, tugging them up clearings between pine trees, and discharging them on to pistes of varying levels of difficulty. Rachel was filled with a strange mixture of competing emotions. She felt excitement, anxiety and eager anticipation as she watched the progress of the skiers. She had been looking forward to this holiday for over eighteen months.

When she looked out of the window the following morning a small trickle of snow was covering tracks which had been made the previous day. It was a peaceful and quiet scene; a stark contrast to the view from her own bedroom window at home, which faced on to the main street of Kimberley, in Nottinghamshire.

The group assembled in front of their instructor at the bottom of the nursery slope. Despite the fact that the area was relatively flat, ‘raw recruits’ were skidding past at some speed. Having introduced them to the rudiments of skiing, Jan encouraged members of the group to make their first attempts at the ‘snow-plough’. Rachel was excited by the challenge and couldn’t wait to master the technique. She was eager to experience the wonderful sensation of gliding down the more advanced runs, which her cousin, Mark, had often described to her.

Rachel was satisfied with her first attempts on the nursery slope and she was pleased to receive warm smiles and positive comments from Jan. She soon got to grips with the snow-plough and could weave around the nursery slope and bring herself to a controlled stop. She was promoted to the next stage on the second day.

The day started much like the previous one. After rising from the warmth of the big wooden bed, she took in the delightfully peaceful scene before savouring a light breakfast of croissants and coffee. The success and enjoyment of the first day made her eager to get going.

The new group gathered around Julie, who instructed them on the intricacies of getting on to a T-bar ski-lift. This seemingly simple act had to be deftly performed with one hand while holding ski-sticks with the other. The first three members of the group managed without mishap, giving Rachel confidence as she shuffled into position. The next T-bar came swinging around towards her. She had prepared herself well; the skisticks were already in her left hand, and she was easily able to take hold of the T-bar with the other, positioning herself ready for ‘take-off’. She was surprised by the speed at which she was plucked from standing position and hauled quickly up the slope. She went forward without mishap and soon settled back to enjoy the sensation of sliding effortlessly uphill. After a relatively short time, the town of Zell am Zimmer seemed quite a distance below her. When she reached the top she skied from the T-bar and positioned herself alongside other members of the group who were chatting to Volka, their instructor for the next stage.

The short feeder slope, which linked the top of the ski-lift with the ‘mini-piste’, was slightly greater in gradient than the nursery slope. Each person in the group enjoyed the sensation of zig-zagging down this pretty little clearing. Volka gathered them together at the top of the mini-piste. Rachel came to a halt and then looked down towards the town. For the first time panic swept through her. Previously relaxed muscles tensed up like the taut strings of a violin. The mini-piste, as it had been called, appeared to plunge towards the distant town at an incredibly steep angle. Given the speeds which had been achieved on the relatively flat nursery slope, she feared that this ‘mountain’ would plunge them into disaster. On a nearby slope, more experienced skiers flicked up snow as they performed skilful turns.

Rachel snapped out of her thoughts as Volka started to give the group new instructions. The wind was starting to get up and Rachel struggled hard to make sense of Volka’s broad Austrian accent. She picked out the words ‘snow-plough position’, ‘traverse’, and ‘turn’. She also heard him say, ‘Do not attempt to lean back into the slope of the hill’. She watched avidly as he demonstrated the technique to the group. At the end of the demonstration he side-stepped back to the group and was eager to set the first members off down the piste.

The three people who had been first on the ski-lift were also first to go down the slope. They picked their way cautiously and carefully across the line of the hill and executed shaky, but safe turns at the end of each traverse. Within minutes the first person was standing at the bottom of the slope, waving encouragement to other members of the group. Rachel pushed off with her ski-sticks, determined, but anxious. The tightness in her muscles eased, but her legs now felt like jelly. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She maintained the correct snowplough position and managed to get across the slope quite smoothly. When she reached the far end she put her weight on her left ski and began to turn. Slowly, but surely, she completed the manoeuvre and enjoyed the second ‘traverse’. As she approached the next turn her heart began to pound. She put her weight on to her right ski and once again turned to face downhill. This time the turn seemed to fade. Fear caused her to transfer some of her weight on to what now seemed the safer ski. The effect was catastrophic. She went into a fast, oblique, downhill run. She thought about flinging herself on to the ground in order to reduce speed, but her body was gripped by fear. She couldn’t move. The faster she went the more frightened she became. She was now at the total mercy of natural forces. Everything became blurred. Eventually she crashed into a huge pile of snow which had been piled up to one side of the piste. The enormous force of the impact punched the breath from her lungs. Tears streamed down her face and her skis continued their journey to the bottom of the slope without her. Her pulse was racing and she trembled vigorously. After a few moments she picked up her sticks and hurled them down the slope. Eventually, she stood up, stared down at the snow, and stamped down the slope. No longer was she attracted by the beauty of the Tyrol. Never again would she attempt to ski.

That incident destroyed Rachel’s holiday, as well as her confidence in her ability to learn to ski. She complained to the manager of the ski-school and demanded a refund, on the grounds that instructions were unclear and the level of proficiency required on the minipiste was too high. In her opinion there should have been an intermediate stage between the nursery slope and the mini-piste. When Volka gave his account of the incident to the manager he had quite a different perspective on things, claiming that Rachel had let her emotions take control. He was also of the opinion that she was poorly co-ordinated and that the first instructor should not have allowed her to progress to the second stage so quickly. The manager asked him whether the mishap might have been caused by a freak patch of ice on the slope.

The above incident shows how the three key ‘players’ were inclined to protect their own interests by looking for causes which were outside their own control. For example, Volka preferred to blame Rachel and Jan, rather than considering whether the incident was also related to his own actions. The truth of the matter is that Rachel’s problems were caused by a mixture of interacting factors, some of which resided within her (e.g. co-ordination, emotional state), while others were related to the progression and presentation of instructions and the condition of the piste, to name but a few.

PERCEPTIONS OF THE CAUSES OF LEARNING AND BEHAVIOUR DIFFICULTIES

Learning and behaviour problems which are encountered by pupils in schools are also usually caused by a mixture of interacting factors and, as in the above case, different people (e.g. teachers, pupils, parents, associated professionals) have sometimes differing views about the causes of those problems, depending upon their own interests, experience, knowledge base and theoretical inclination.

It is interesting to note the results of Croll and Moses’ (1985) study, which showed that many teachers believe that the main causes of learning and behaviour problems are related to:

• factors innate to the child (e.g. IQ/ability)
• the child’s attitude or concentration
• home circumstances.

Thus, like Rachel and Volka, many teachers identified causes which were external to them. Very few considered that problems could be caused by factors which were within their control, such as the curriculum, classroom activities or their own actions. In contrast, Ainscow (1993) claims that many pupils encounter problems because of the inability of a teacher, or a group of teachers, to provide classroom experiences that are meaningful and relevant to the interests, experiences, skills and knowledge of particular children. These opposing views further illustrate the disparate theories of causation which are held by different people.

Pupil learning and behaviour, like that of adults, will be affected by a range of interacting factors, some of which reside within the child, while others can be traced to an inappropriate curriculum, or related to conditions within the learning environment (Jones 1992, 1994). A failure to consider adequately any one of these factors, or the interaction between them, is to risk overlooking the very heart of what affects learning for a particular child. Teachers and associated professionals must be wary of the danger of only addressing those causal factors which, to them, are highly visible. While other influential factors might be ‘hidden’ from their immediate view, they should be aware that others (especially pupils), are likely to be in a much better position to notice them. Effective responses to learning and behaviour problems are only likely to occur when the whole spectrum, rather than just one layer, of causal factors is taken into account.

Despite the fact that pupils are likely to be able to throw light upon causes of learning and behaviour problems which might be overlooked by their teachers, research shows that until recently they were rarely consulted (see Chapter 2). While there has been a growing involvement of parents in the assessment of their child’s special educational needs, and a growth in case conferencing, the need to consider the interests and views of pupils has only recently been accorded more importance. This is regrettable, because there is a growing body of evidence which shows that, under the right conditions, pupils can provide useful insights into important matters which affect their learning (see Tisdall and Dawson 1994). In Chapters 3 and 4, Lewis and Scott-Bauman, respectively, discuss ways in which teachers can develop their listening skills in order to help pupils to voice their concerns and opinions, and Leech (Chapter 10) describes how computer technology helped teachers to adapt classroom conditions for learning and allowed one pupil to inform his teachers and parents about his educational and life needs. Furthermore, both Charlton (Chapter 2) and Garner (Chapter 13) emphasise that children, by right, should be involved in educational decision-making.

Wade and Moore (1993) provide several examples of insightful comments made by pupils, which further support the argument that if they were considered to be ‘partners’ in the assessment and planning process, the information which they could contribute would provide a good foundation from which simple changes could be ...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contributors
• Introduction
• Part I: Pupil responses to schooling
• Part II: Control and empowerment
• Part III: Working with individual pupils and small groups
• Part IV: Classroom-based support
• Part V: Whole-school approaches
• Part VI: Enhancing pupils’ involvement in chools