EDU20004 Assignment 3: Case study

Assignment 2: Folio asked you to briefly respond to three scenarios with one resource and one strategy. This assignment requires you to engage with a case study in more detail and consider how you would respond as an educator to support and guide each child’s behaviour. The response for this assignment, therefore, requires more depth and detail.

In completing this assignment, you will draw together the behaviour guidance theoretical frameworks as well as policy frameworks and models considered in the unit to respond to a range of behaviours displayed in the learning environment. You are required to create strategies and describe these in your response, considering how they support inclusive and ethical practices with families, community and support agencies.

Select one of the following case studies and write a 1200-word case study response:

• Reflect upon the behaviour displayed in this learning environment and describe how you will incorporate behavioural theory frameworks as well as policy frameworks and models to respond to the behaviours displayed.
• Create and discuss strategies in your response about how you can support strength-based practices with families and community.
• Enlist the support of external agencies to support the child or children, the education setting and families.

Case study 1: Ruby is a five-year-old who attends a kindergarten/preschool where you are the teacher. Her family has communicated to you that she enjoys physical activities and ball games but can become upset if she is 'losing' or having to wait for a turn. She engages with complex conversations and discussions but may not listen to instructions when asked to stop chatting and focus on her task. She also enjoys art experiences and is able to paint and draw with great detail and expertise. Ruby has had several outbursts since she began attending three months ago. On four separate occasions, she has physically struck out at other children in the group by punching and kicking them. She has also been noticed pinching other children and then running away so the child does not see her. These incidents have been observed and documented. Conversations with her family so far have been informal and they do not seem to think her behaviour is a concern.

Case study 2: Rufus is a three-year-old who has always seemed happy and cognitively engaged with learning but in recent weeks he has started to become withdrawn. You have observed him in the outside playspace and he appears isolated and does not play with the other children. Rufus is reluctant to join group activities, and when he does participate, he remains quiet and does not appear to contribute to the discussion. Upon discussion with his family, they have said they see no changes with him at home and when Rufus returns home from kindergarten, he tells them all about the things he has been doing.

Case study 3: Cassie, Ella and Amy are all four years old and they love playing in the home corner or dramatic play areas. Cassie and Ella often lead the playscripts and sometimes Amy is left out from the play. On some occasions, she has been told she is not allowed to enter the home corner and she stands and watches, rather than seeking out other children to play with. You have asked your co-educator to observe the situation and he has attempted to guide Amy with skills to enable her to enter the space, but he notes that whenever this happens, she has to be the baby or the dog and is not allowed to move or speak. Amy likes a range of learning experiences and she has a baby brother. Her family says that she has good social skills with her cousins and family friends, and she enjoys coming to kindergarten, but has started to speak about how some of the children are mean to her.

When approaching your case study response, remember that you have a snapshot of information about the learner and therefore careful consideration is needed when providing strategies and identifying reasons for the behavior.

Your case study response should include:

• an introduction and conclusion
• identification of behaviours and analysis of the reasons why you think they are happening, using evidence to support this interpretation
• identification, creation and discussion of a variety of effective strategies and interventions that could guide the child in the case study to self-regulate their behaviour within the learning environment
• identification of how you would prepare and plan within the physical and social learning environment to contribute to the child’s relationship with others and learning
• identification of family, cultural and ethical considerations related to the case, including a discussion about how you would support inclusive and ethical practices with families and community
• identification of relevant support agencies that support the child/children’s learning and support teachers and family understandings
• consideration and discussion of policy frameworks, strategy and models, and how you would apply and make effective use of these
• consideration and discussion of the behavioural learning theories that have been used to guide your approaches to behaviour management
• a reference list.

Guidance and Challenging Behaviors | NAEYC

Department of Education and Training Victoria