Behaviour Learning and Conditioning
Discuss about the Individual Differences in 2nd Language Acquisition.
Behaviour can be defined as the range of actions or behaviours made by an individual depending on the set of behavioural norms set by the society or surrounding environment of the individual. Behaviour is termed as a response or reflex action of certain kind of situation presented in front of the subject of the individual, where the situation can be internal or external, conscious or subconscious, voluntary or involuntary. This paper is going to deal with internal and external factors that influence the behaviour in the students like Mental Health Difficulties (MHD) and other internal factors like culture, tradition, gender, physical abilities, monetary income and many more which will help in the development of interpersonal and intrapersonal behaviours of the students. This paper also presents a theory of behaviour with examples for better understanding and it will also help in knowing about behaviour in an individual more precisely.
In behaviour learning, many theorists believe that learning has been completed when there is a change of behaviour. In this learning model of behaviour, conditioning helps in the process of learning. Conditioning is a process where a reward is given for a desired response which acts as a motivator and increases the chance of getting the desired behaviour repeatedly. Enforcement is an important part of the behaviourist approach. Continuous reinforcement for desirable behaviour in every situation can result in an increase of repeated desirable response. After the desirable behaviour is habituated, continuous and regular reinforcement maintains the behaviour. This theory is often used in getting results like weight loss, smoking discontinuation physical training or exercise, dieting and anxiety reduction programs. The continuation of the rewards for the desired behaviour immediately and not regarding for the undesirable behaviour is very crucial towards the success of this behavioural approach of learning. The process of learning is broken down into small steps for ease and also it increases the probability of success. For an instance, when a patient learns how to inject insulin independently, the nurse or the doctor expects for a positive behaviour and also gives immediate feedback like “You did a great job” or “you need to be calm and cool from the next time”. The feedback also plays a vital role in the learning process. This theory is mainly based upon the idea and facts that everyone has the potential to make a change in himself and also to make a contribution to the society and to exhibit excellent and likeable behaviour to their surroundings.
Internal Factors Affecting Behaviour in Students
“Children’s experience within the school is crucial in determining their likelihood of experiencing MHD (Mental Health Disorders), but this experience is clearly individual in nature and individual differences in competencies, such as self-regulation and social skills help to explain why children in similar environments may experience different levels of well-being.” (Humphrey & Wigelsworth, 2012, p. 339).
According to Humphrey & Wigelsworth (2012), learning is affected in the school children facing from mental health difficulties that results in undesired behaviour of the children. Attention De?cit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), anxiety, panic attack and depression are examples of common mental health difficulties in primary school-aged children. Diagnosis of these mental health difficulties requires severe symptoms and behaviours to be noted interfering in the child’s ability in everyday’s life. Behaviours in the students are inherited from their culture or intake from their teaching or the surroundings. Family culture and education play an essential role in establishing a behaviour norm for a student according to their surroundings. The main factors affecting the behaviour differences in the students are individual factors, psychological factors, different family structure and norms, impairment/disabilities and environmental factors as well (Butcher, Mineka & Hooley, 2013).
According to Dörnyei (2014), individual differences can be a cause of growth and development in an individual. It includes gender differences, conceptual and analytical difference, physical differences and emotional and personal differences. Sex difference includes the gender of the person. Everyone in this world is born with specific genders of the two, so it is a difference. The main differences are mainly due to the anatomical and physiological based. In general, girls are considered soft and fragile, whereas boys are regarded as strong and aggressive which affects the behaviour of the individual due to certain expectation. The main problem in the gender issue is the expectations and the myth which states that women are weaker than their counter part and cannot compete with males in several fields (Cooper, 2015).
According to Entwistle & Ramsden, (2015), conceptual and analytical differences between individuals play a vital role in the behaviour of the students, some are born bright while some are born dull or with inferior complex affects the behaviour of the students. Physical differences in people can be a reason among the students for differences in their behaviour (Fajardo, 2014). Physical appearance like facial features, growth and development, energy, weight can be a factor in the behaviour of the students. Personal and emotional differences are also a part of individual differences which can affect the behaviour of the students. Students with different interests, ability, aspirations and attitudes have different behaviour towards the school and also towards studies.
External Factors Affecting Behaviour in Students
Different family structure and culture have commonly been held responsible for their children’s behaviour or character until they reach adulthood. The parents and the family are primarily associated with most of the children’s behaviour and reaction. There are many factorsin the families that affect the behaviour of the students like the number of people in the families can create a problem in children’s behaviour. The Socio-economic status of the family also plays a role in children’s learning and behaviour (Palardy, 2013). Poverty can prevent the child from going to school or getting a quality education due to lack of resources. Food, health and shelter are given most priority comparing to education and learning for the poor people.
According to Dettmer, Knackendoffel & Thurston (2013), impairment/disabilities among the individuals can affect the learning in the students. Physical Disabilities like motor impairment, hearing impairment, poor vision affects the learning in the student. Disabilities caused due to biological factors like the nervous system, endocrine systems, and hereditary factors are mainly responsible for variations in the learning and development affecting the behaviour of the students.
According to Kohl & Cook, (2013), most of the biological factors can be cured with proper treatment nevertheless it contributes to the behaviour. Some more biological factors can affect the children in classroom-like brain damage or dysfunction, nutritional errors, genetic disorders, sleeping disorders and eating disorder as well. The physical and social environment of the student in school and its surrounding also contributes to the change of behaviour of the student. Geographical factors like location of the school like rural or urban areas, climate, surrounding affect the progress of personality, character and behaviour of the children (Perlman, 2013). They also affect in the way of dressing, walking and attitudes as well. Social environment includes everything the child experiences like hearing, eating, drinking or other that influences on the child how they behave on certain issues and situations.
According to Porter (2008), cultural habits also affect the behaviour of the child inside or outside the school in creating good or bad manners in the child. Asking the teacher before having water or asking for an excuse after sneezing is termed good manners which are taught in school and also in-house that affects the child. Psychological factors also affect in the behaviour of the students, for example, encouragement and motivation from the teacher can help in the upliftment of the morale of the student, and it can result in better behaviour both inter and intrapersonally inside and outside of the school (Cacciatore, 2013). It also depends on the satisfaction of the student on certain aspects that can help in the change of the behaviour. The range by which the student is satisfied and happy or unsatisfied and disappointed can determine the behaviour patterns in the student. The factors that contribute to the satisfaction of the student are failure in class, health problems, fearfulness, poor memory, suffering, retardation, shyness, speech impairment, isolation, fear, physical disabilities, worry and poor self-image.
Individual Differences and Behaviour in Students
Conclusion:
Behaviour in the student depends on the mental health of the child and also the capacity of the child for learning and development. Mental Health Disease (MHD) is a threatening disease, which can affect the future of the children, and it can also affect the surrounding and society of the children. The behaviour of the students mainly depends on the learning and development of the children both internally and externally. External factors include individual differences, disabilities in the individual, socioeconomic environment and socio-cultural learning and environment helps in affecting the behaviour of the students. Students in the classroom need patience and proper focus to be able to compete with others. Behavioural changes can affect the development of the child both in interpersonal and intrapersonal. Teachers need to focus on every child to be able to detect any type of (MDH) symptoms in the child for proper treatment and development of the child. Behaviour in every child differs from another child in terms of reaction to the situations and also the personality of the child.
References:
Butcher, J. N., Mineka, S., & Hooley, J. M. (2013). Abnormal psychology. ^ new York New York: Pearson.
Cacciatore, J. (2013),. Psychological effects of stillbirth. In Seminars in Fetal and Neonatal Medicine (Vol. 18, No. 2, pp. 76-82). WB Saunders.
Cooper, C. (2015). Individual differences and personality. Routledge.
Dettmer, P., Knackendoffel, A., & Thurston, L. P. (2013). Collaboration, consultation, and teamwork for students with special needs. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Dörnyei, Z. (2014). The psychology of the language learner: Individual differences in second language acquisition. Routledge.
Entwistle, N,. & Ramsden, P. (2015). Understanding student learning (Routledge revivals). Routledge.
Fajardo, I., Ávila, V., Ferrer, A., Tavares, G., Gómez, M., & Hernández, A. (2014). Easy?to?read texts for students with intellectual disability: linguistic factors affecting comprehension. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 27(3), 212-225.
Humphrey, N., & Wigelsworth, M. (2012). Modeling the factors associated with children’s mental health difficulties in primary school: a multilevel study. School Psychology Review, 41(3), 326.
Kohl III, H. W., & Cook, H. D. (Eds.). (2013). Educating the student body: Taking physical activity and physical education to school. National Academies Press.
Palardy, G. J. (2013). High school socioeconomic segregation and student attainment. American Educational Research Journal, 50(4), 714-754.
Perlman, D. (2013). The influence of the social context on students in-class physical activity. Journal of Teaching in Physical Education, 32(1), 46-60.
Porter, L. (2008). Young children’s behaviour: Practical approaches for caregivers and teachers. Elsevier Australia.
Restorative Practice:: Hull :: Primary Schools and Early Years. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.hullcentreforrestorativepractice.co.uk/?page_id=19
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