38 Reinforcement Incentives
Definition
The promotion and use of appropriate rewards/ incentives to promote positive behaviours, increasing the likelihood of the behaviour occurring again in the future.
In action
Teachers can use a wide variety of reinforcement incentives based on student interests to motivate students toward specific goals. Caution should be taken regarding food-related incentives in promotion of healthy habits and behaviors.
Support Strategies
- Allow for student choice in selecting incentives and related goals to work toward.
- Plan special activities (e.g., an outdoor lesson) when students meet a given learning objective
- Introduce special seating options (e.g., an exercise ball) that students can use when working together effectively
- Identify words and phrases of encouragement that resonate with students and write them down on a post-it note to give to them when they are working well
- Celebrate small successes (e.g., solving one step in a three-step math problem) to motivate future achievements
- Highlight and enhance natural incentives
- When appropriate, utilize reinforcement schedules and fading to decrease reliance on reinforcers and increase student independence
Case Study
Student: Grade 1 student in a language lesson.
Content: The class is practicing printing the letters in their names.
Problem: The student is only to write the first three letters.
Solution: The teacher reminds the student that three letters is more than half of their name, praising their efforts thus far. The teacher offers the student the opportunity to take a break before trying to print the final two letters. When the student returns to the task, the teacher reminds them that the class will be playing a game once everyone has finished printing their letters. The student is excited about the particular game and feels ready to continue printing.
Additional Resources
- Blog post describing ideas for rewarding student reading achievements from Reading Rockets
- Exhaustive details, definitions, and ideas on appropriate use of reinforcement strategies from the National Center on Intensive Intervention
- Extensive list of ideas and strategies for motivating students with autism spectrum disorder from Reading Rockets
- Descriptive explanation of reinforcement schedules with advantages and disadvantages of each from Franklin Porter Graham
- Ideas for reinforcement in the classroom from IRCA
- Tips and tools for classroom reinforcement specific to early childhood education from the IRS Center
- Description of reinforcement in education and suggestions for practice from Learn Alberta
