Research School Network: Improving Behaviour in Schools – A Look at the Evidence This post examines the research evidence behind this EEF guidance report.

Last week, the EEF published their most recent guidance report ​‘Improving Behaviour in Schools’. The report contains six evidence informed recommendations for tackling poor behaviour in schools. In the introduction, Sir Kevan Collins outlines why this is such an important issue:

​“Misbehaviour in lessons is something that has been documented by teachers for centuries. And while most pupils in most lessons are well-behaved, it’s a major cause of stress for teachers and can have a lasting impact on the outcomes of the pupils in the class.”

This post summarises the key messages from the research evidence, for each recommendation.


1. Know and understand your pupils and their influences

Evidence from psychology demonstrates a clear development pattern that affects behaviour in children and young people, which can support teacher understanding.

Research on adverse childhood experiences demonstrates that being exposed to four or more significant adverse experiences tends to affect children and teenagers’ behaviour as well as their physical and mental health, both immediately and throughout their lives. This is a relatively new field of research and it appears that interventions can reduce the harmful effects, but more research is needed to understand the most useful ways of applying this knowledge to support children and young people in schools.

There is a strong evidence base that teacher-pupil relationships are key to good pupil behaviour and that these relationships can affect pupil effort and academic attainment.


2. Teach learning behaviours alongside managing behaviour

Several high-quality studies suggest that a shift of focus from managing a child’s behaviour towards teaching a child learning-behaviours may be beneficial. This research evidence fits with the message from the 2005 report from The Practitioners’ Group on School Behaviour and Discipline led by Sir Alan Steer, “‘Learning Behaviour’”. A learning behaviour is any behaviour that supports learning, such as paying attention to the teacher or persevering with a difficult task

The body of evidence relating specifically to self-regulation is covered more thoroughly in the EEF’s Guidance Report, ​‘Metacognition and self-regulated learning’.

There is a strong evidence base that teacher-pupil relationships are key to good pupil behaviour and that these relationships can affect pupil effort and academic attainment.


3. Use classroom management strategies to support good classroom behaviour

A review of the literature found 31 studies of classroom-based strategies to manage behaviour aimed at the whole class. Studies came from a range of countries including the U.K. though most were from the U.S.A. (19). The vast majority of studies took place in primary schools, with only three studies including secondary-age pupils.

Overall, consistently positive (small to medium) effects are seen for approaches that train teachers in classroom management approaches. Of programmes available in the U.K., the Incredible Years® Teacher Classroom Management programme is the ​‘off the-shelf’ programme with the largest evidence base, accounting for seven studies in our literature review. Evidence suggests that effective training for building classroom management expertise involves teachers or school staff:

•Reflecting on their own approach;

•Trying a new approach;

•Reviewing progress over time.

Evidence for ​‘bought-in’ reinforcement programmes is mixed; however, most programmes that focus on teacher training in classroom management also involve reinforcement systems. This combination of training teachers alongside delivering a rewards-focused reinforcement programme holds most promise.


4. Use simple approaches as part of your regular routine

There is a substantial and growing evidence base relating to ​‘behaviour kernels’: behaviour influence techniques for ensuring an orderly classroom and a harmonious school culture that, if implemented with fidelity, should change behaviour. These ​‘kernels’ could aim to reinforce positive behaviours, such as a headteacher lottery, where token rewards for positive behaviour are linked to random rewards from the headteacher at the end of the week. Alternatively, they could be used to discourage unwanted behaviours, such as positive practice (or ​‘overcorrection’), where pupils repeat the correct behaviour when they have acted inappropriately – for example if a child walked down a silent corridor noisily, they might be asked to walk down the corridor again silently. The greatest impact on improving behaviour with simple strategies is seen in classrooms with high rates of disruptive and inattentive behaviour but there is potential for strategies implemented consistently across the school to see bigger changes.

Some of the research is small-scale or not UK-specific. More studies are needed to ensure that teachers and headteachers can make informed decisions about simple strategies to implement.


5. Use targeted approaches to meet the needs of individuals in your school

For those pupils who need more intensive support with their behaviour, a personalised approach is recommended. This may involve targeted interventions implemented by trained teachers; teachers reflecting on their classroom management techniques for the whole class may also be particularly beneficial for the individuals with greater needs. For pupils who are disruptive, targeted interventions are often most effective when adapted to the needs of the individuals involved.

Evidence for targeted interventions comes from 25 targeted studies, including 15 RCTs. Most of the research available is based in primary school settings: there is a need for more research on targeted interventions in secondary school settings.

Targeted programmes tend to demonstrate a bigger effect on behaviour outcomes compared to whole-class or whole-school programmes — this is to be expected as pupils are generally selected because they need specific support. However, targeted approaches have less consistent results than universal approaches, with studies varying from reporting no effect to very large effects.


6. Consistency is key

Among behaviour interventions, those at whole-school level more consistently improve attainment outcomes. The effects of whole-school approaches on behaviour and learning outcomes tend to be smaller and take longer to emerge than in classroom based approaches.This is to be expected, particularly given the difference in the level of disruption between classrooms in most schools: improving behaviour across the school may not have much of an effect on the lessons where behaviour was already good, but that does not mean the policy is not working. The effect of a whole-school approach can be enhanced when deployed in combination with targeted additions and modifications for pupils who consistently struggle to meet the standard set by the approach.


Download the full guidance report here.