Chapter 4 Classroom Management and Organization
4.1 Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following statements has been supported by research?
A) First-year teachers often identify classroom management as a problematic area.
B) Classroom management is de-emphasized in many teacher preparation programs.
C) Classroom management is becoming increasingly difficult due to the wide range of diversity in today’s
classrooms.
D) all of the above .
2. Ms. Ash is inconsistent in her disciplinary style. The students in her classroom have learned that she will often
change her mind regarding assignments when pressured. According to Doyle (1986), this phenomenon is best
represents which of the following?
A) publicness
B) multi-dimensionality
C) immediacy
D) simultaneity
3. Ms. Chung begins her teaching in her fourth-grade classroom during the middle of the school year. Prior to this time,
one teacher has quit, and two substitutes also refused to teach in this classroom. On the first day of class, Ms. Chung’s
students are very disruptive, non-compliant, and rude. This is an example of which of the following according to Doyle
(1986)?
A) publicness
B) unpredictability
C) history
D) multi-dimensionality
4. Mr. Long is often teased by his students as having “eyes” in the back of his head. This is because he is able to
teach, stop students from talking, and provide prompts and reinforcements to students with apparent ease.
According to Doyle (1986), this ability is indicative of which of the following?
A) history
B) publicness
C) unpredictability
D) simultaneity
E) multi-dimensionality
5. Mr. Meek’s sixth-grade math class is disrupted by a fire drill alarm. Mr. Meek, an excellent classroom manager, has
practiced the routine for a fire drill several times with his class. Consequently, his students line up and leave the
classroom in an orderly fashion. According to Doyle (1986), Mr. Meek has addressed which of the following important
elements of classroom management?
A) multi-dimensionality
B) publicness
C) unpredictability
D) history
6. In Ms. Chen’s classroom, students are often hostile and disruptive. In fact, when you enter the room, you can feel the
tension. According to your textbook authors, this concern is reflective of the ________ in Ms. Chen’s classroom?
A) level of students’ aspirations
B) number of students who have failed
C) classroom climate
D) social acceptance levels
7. Which of the following plays a critical role in the climate of a classroom?
A) students’ attitudes about school, authority figures, and their classmates
B) the teacher’s disposition, competencies and skills
C) peer values and pressures
D) level of family support and involvement in a student’s education
E) all of the above
8. ________ refer(s) to the physical aspects of the classroom, including layout, wall space, and signage.
A) Procedural management
B) Organizational management
C) Classroom arrangements
D) Accessibility
9. A(n) ________ is any event that reinforces, and therefore, strengthens the behavior it follows.
A) contingency contract
B) natural consequence
C) benign intervention
D) reinforcer
10. Which of the following is a basic principle regarding the use of positive reinforcement?
A) The reinforcer must be tangible in order for it to be reinforcing for the student.
B) The reinforcer must be followed by extinction procedures.
C) The reinforcer must be delivered immediately following the performance of the desired behavior.
D) The reinforcer must be presented in a token form.
11. Which one of the features below is essential to writing effective contingency contracts?
A) Contracts should initially reward successive approximations of the behavior.
B) Contracts should provide frequent reinforcement.
C) Contracts should be fair, clear, and positive.
D) all of the above
12. Each of the members of Shelley’s group are reinforced when Shelley earns 80% or more on her weekly spelling test.
This type of group contingency is known as a(n)
A) dependent group contingency.
B) interdependent group contingency.
C) independent group contingency.
D) none of the above
13. In Mr. Hawkins’ class, the entire class will have a pizza party if all students in the class make at least 80% on their
weekly spelling test. This is an example of a(n)
A) dependent group contingency.
B) independent group contingency.
C) interdependent group contingency.
D) none of the above
14. In Ms. Bayer’s class, every student who accurately completes his or her work for the week is allowed free time at the
end of the week. This is an illustrative example of a(n)
A) dependent group contingency.
B) interdependent group contingency.
C) independent group contingency.
D) none of the above
15. Which of the following is not an example of a behavioral intervention designed to decrease undesirable behaviors?
A) extinction
B) differential reinforcement of lower rates of behavior
C) natural and logical consequences
D) group contingencies
16. ________ is a limited or complete loss of access to positive reinforcers for a specific period of time.
A) Response cost
B) Extinction
C) Time out
D) Benign intervention
17. Nine-year-old Elaina forgets to bring her pencil to math class. Rather than loan a pencil to her, Elaina’s teacher does
not intervene. After several attempts to borrow a pencil from her classmates, Elaina is unable to complete her math work.
This situation is an example of
A) punishment.
B) reinforcement.
C) a natural/logical consequence.
D) differential reinforcement of lower rates of behavior.
18. Ten-year-old Miquel frequently gets out of his seat. This frequently results in a situation in which Miquel fails to
complete his assignments in class. Rather than punish his out-of-seat behavior, Miquel’s teacher decides to reinforce his
on-task behavior. This situation is an example of
A) natural and logical consequences.
B) differential reinforcement of lower rates of behavior.
C) response cost.
D) differential reinforcement of higher rates of behavior.
19. Twelve-year-old Carrey talks constantly in class without permission. After collecting observation data, Carrey’s
teacher decides that she is giving too much attention (albeit negative) to Carrey’s constant talking. Her teacher decides to
ignore Carrey’s talking. This situation is an example of
A) extinction.
B) reinforcement.
C) response cost.
D) differential reinforcement of lower rates of behavior.
20. Each of the following is a strategy for creating and increasing a desirable behavior except
A) positive reinforcement.
B) contingency contracting.
C) group contingencies.
D) extinction.
21. Jeremy’s teasing of other children dramatically decreased in Mr. Hester’s math class after a behavior management
program was implemented. Jeremy’s teasing behaviors continue unabated, however, in Ms. Smith’s history class. This
may be due to
A) the fact that Jeremy’s behaviors were not maintained in Ms. Smith’s class.
B) a behavioral rebound effect.
C) a failure of Jeremy’s improved teasing behavior to generalize to other settings.
D) behavioral rigidity.
22. Constance is a seven-year-old whose behavior management plan has resulted in an increase in academic
productivity and a concomitant decrease in talking-out behavior. Given this satisfactory outcome, Constance’s
teacher discontinues the behavior management program. Unfortunately, Constance once again fails to complete tasks
and begins talking out at an unacceptable level. This occurrence may be due to
A) problems related to maintenance of behavior.
B) problems related to generalization of behavior.
C) problems related to a “rebound effect.”
D) behavioral inflexibility.
23. Ms. Helms teaches her students the COPS strategy. Initially, Ms. Helms provides much guidance and support for
students during instruction. Eventually, her students internalize the strategy and are able to use it independently. This
is an example of:
A) self-motivation.
B) self-reinforcement.
C) self-regulation.
D) self-evaluation.
24. ________ is a strategy in which students observe and record their own behavior.
A) Self-motivation
B) Self-instruction
C) Self-monitoring
D) Self-reinforcement
25. The response to intervention approach to working with struggling students means that
A) teachers differentiate instruction for students who are labeled only as special education.
B) special education teachers assist students in a special education classroom.
C) teachers address individual needs of students by making key adjustments across a number of instructionally–
related areas and provide effective instruction.
D) teachers measure each attempt to intervene with students who have behavioral problems.
26. A teacher’s skills in differentiating instruction
A) are more necessary now than ever
B) are less important for beginning teachers
C) are necessary only in special education classrooms
D) are important only for experienced teachers
27. Differentiated instruction is needed for
A) students who are struggling but have never been tested
B) students who are trying to master the English language
C) students who are gifted
D) all of the above
28. Content differentiation includes all the following except
A) Reducing content coverage
B) Compacting
C) Preferential seating
D) Acceleration
29. Differentiation of material
A) is necessary only for students who lack pre-requisite skills
B) is necessary when the amount of information is overwhelming for students
C) is needed when the linguistic complexity of material is too difficult
D) is necessary in all the above situations
30. Ways to enhance comprehension for students who are struggling includes all the following except
A) Previewing the assignment
B) Reducing the amount of reading required
C) Use of prior reading strategies
D) Highlighting the material
E) Teaching comprehension monitoring strategies
4.2 True or False
1. Classroom rules and procedures should be taught, practiced, and reinforced in order to be effective.
2. When more attention is given to reactive intervention than to preventative intervention, classrooms run more
smoothly.
3. A teacher with good classroom management skills will spend considerable time designing classroom
management strategies before the school year begins.
4. Behavioral differentiation must include developmentally appropriate practices that address the individual needs of
a student.
5. The use of positive reinforcers is designed to teach or increase desirable behavior.
6. The use of natural and logical consequences is designed to decrease undesirable behaviors.
7. Punishment should never be considered an option to reduce problematic behavior.
4.3 Short Answer
1. ________ is defined as a systematic designing of the classroom environment to create conditions in which effective
teaching and learning can occur.
2. ________ provide a general sense of what is expected of a student in a particular classroom. In contrast, ________ refer
to the specific way in which various activities will be performed or the way certain situations will be handled.
3. ________ presents a desirable consequence for the performance of a desired behavior.
4. ________ involves the assessment and re-engineering of environments so that students with problem behaviors
experience a reduction in undesirable behaviors and an increase in the social and personal quality of their lives.
5. The two (2) major components of a contingency contract are _________ and ____________.
6. A ________ group contingency is sometimes referred to as a hero approach because it singles out one student’s
performance for attention.
7. ________ tactics are punishment strategies that are very unobtrusive.
8. ________ involves the presentation of something unpleasant or the removal of something pleasant as a
consequence for the performance of an undesirable behavior.
9. A ________ is a verbal statement or non-verbal gesture that expresses the teacher’s disapproval.
10. ________ are interventions that though initially taught by the teacher, are intended to be implemented
independently by the student.
11. _______ is a process to approach teaching and learning for students of differing abilities in the same class that
maximizes each student’s growth by meeting each student where he/she is to move forward.
4.4 Essay
1. Design a pictorial representation of an ideal classroom arrangement using the guidelines and recommendations
provided in your textbook. Then discuss why you arranged your classroom in this manner.
2. Design a time out system for your classroom. Be specific, and be sure to include the three different types of time
out (i.e., contingent observation, exclusion time out, and seclusion time out). Make sure you include the
recommendations for using time out that are provided in your textbook.
3. As a first-year-teacher, you are having difficulty with many of your students in terms of talking out and out-of-seat
behavior. Design a self-management program for your classroom. Describe your program in detail, including how you
plan to implement and monitor the program.
4. Throughout this chapter, the authors of your textbook spent considerable time addressing the need to create positive,
nurturing environments. Describe how you plan to create such an environment in your own classroom by synthesizing
the content in this chapter.
5. What are some ways to enhance comprehension in struggling students?
6. The authors of your textbook describe nine (9) guiding principles of effective classroom organization and management.
Identify seven of these principles.
7. Describe how each of the following factors influence the climate of a classroom.
(1) student factors
(2) teacher factors
(3) peer factors
(4) family-related factors
8. Develop five (5. classroom rules for your classroom using the guidelines and recommendations provided in your
textbook. Describe how you plan to teach and implement these rules in your classroom.
9. Give examples of five (5) common classroom procedures.
10. Give three (3) recommendations for seating arrangements provided in this chapter.
11. Some students with disabilities require the use of specialized equipment. Describe various
types of specialized equipment and provide suggestions for teachers who must develop a
management plan for addressing specialized equipment issues.
12. Three (3) principles must be followed for positive reinforcement to be most effective. What are these three principles?
13. What are the four (4) features of effective contracts?
14. Provide three (3) illustrative examples of benign tactics.
15. Briefly describe three (3) different types of time out.
16. Identify and briefly describe three (3) types of punishment.
17. Identify at least three (3) suggestions for implementing response cost in the classroom.
18. In your classroom, you have recently taught ten-year-old Brian to raise his hand when assistance is needed. In fact,
your intervention is so successful, that you are ready to plan for maintenance and generalization in other settings.
Discuss how you will address maintenance and generalization concerns using recommendations provided in your
textbook.
19. Identify and describe the four components of self-management described in your textbook.
Chapter 4 Classroom Management and Organization
4.1 Multiple Choice
4.2 True or False
4.3 Short Answer
4.4 Essay
