Getting the Balance Right: The Challenge of Balancing Praise and Correction for Early School Years Children who Exhibit Oppositional and Defiant Behaviour

Abstract

INCREASINGLY, EARLY CHILDHOOD PRACTITIONERS are faced with children who present with significant levels of oppositional and defiant behaviour. The management of this behaviour is often difficult and stressful. Efforts to minimise disruptive behaviour and to encourage more prosocial behaviour have very much revolved around the teaching of appropriate behaviour and the acknowledgement and reward of it when it occurs. More and more schools are using approaches like School Wide Positive Behaviour Support (SWPBS) to achieve a better positive acknowledgement to correction balance in teacher–child interactions. Just how successful schools are in this respect and with particular reference to interactions with children who display oppositional and defiant behaviours was the subject of two exploratory investigations, results of which are reported in this paper.