Question

Mr. Herrera has a large glass bowl on a counter in his third-grade classroom. At the end of each lesson, he places a paper fish in the bowl if the students were not disruptive during the lesson. At the end of the week, if there are at least 10 fish in the bowl, he allows the students to participate in a choice of three preferred activities (private reading, drawing, or doing a puzzle) for the final 20 minutes of class. Mr. Herrera is using which of the following?

A. Rational emotive behavior therapy
B. Aversion therapy
C. Systematic desensitization
D. A token economy

Answer 1

Mr. Herrera is using a token economy in his classroom, where students earn tokens for good behavior, redeemable for preferred activities.

Step-by-step explanation:

Mr. Herrera is employing a token economy in his classroom, which is choice 'D'. A token economy is a behavior modification system that uses token reinforcers which can be traded in for rewards or privileges. In this scenario, paper fish are used as tokens which the students earn for non-disruptive behavior during lessons. If they accumulate at least 10 fish by the end of the week, they are rewarded with the opportunity to participate in preferred activities. This system of reinforcements helps in modifying behavior by increasing desired behaviors through the use of secondary reinforcers, which in this case are the paper fish. Token economies have been shown to be effective in various educational settings to enhance both behavior and academic performance.