Golden Time as an Effective Positive Behaviour Incentive
If you've ever glanced through the gates at a primary school during recreation, you know that kids can really be a handful – even at the best of times. There are a number of ways teachers and other school officials work to improve the behaviour of students, and Golden Time has become an increasingly popular option.
Golden Time and Behaviour Management
All children need continuous, positive reinforcement to thrive. In order for them to learn to make good decisions, children can benefit from reward-based schemes that also include some form of deterrent for bad behaviour. Golden Time allows teachers to organise weekly lessons with a structured form of behaviour control integrated into their plan.
Golden Time schemes, when implemented effectively, provide teachers with increased positive power in the classroom setting. Less time spent shouting or scrambling to respond to bad behaviours ultimately means more time for learning and positive social and emotional development for children.
By providing even very young children with a clear list of Golden Rules, and clear rewards for good behaviour, along with defined consequences for failing to follow the rules, you can effectively address the social and emotional development needs that lead to poor behaviour.
How Golden Time Succeeds
Children respond to positive behaviour incentives. When it comes to social and emotional learning, using such incentives is an excellent way to achieve results, according to child behaviour specialists. The key to Golden Time is providing a clear structure for penalties as well as rewards.
As a behavioural tool, Golden Time works by encouraging children to control their actions by understanding the consequences of their choices. To encourage this step in development, clear signals must be provided as a child progresses toward losing some of their Golden Time. For example, Jenny Mosley's model uses sun symbols for younger children: a golden sun, followed by a sun with a cloud slightly covering its face, followed by a frowning cloud.
As children commit transgressions, they are asked: "Do you want to come back to the Golden Rules and stop your bad behaviour or do you want to keep breaking the Golden Rules and lose some Golden Time?" This actively involves the child in their potential punishment, by allowing them to consider the consequences of their choices. Ultimately, though children are still being punished for poor behaviour, they are developing both social and emotionally.
Is Golden Time for Everyone?
Critics claim that Golden Time provides a knock, rather than a boost, to a child's developing sense of self-esteem. This couldn't be farther from the truth. By providing a system of warnings, rewards and even second chances, a good Golden Time programme will bolster self-esteem by empowering children to make positive choices.
At the same time, the consequence of losing out on some Golden Time gives children another kind of positive reinforcement – the sort that comes from knowing adults are paying attention to their actions, care about the result and treat them the same as others.
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