The challenge is for a teacher to determine what establishes reinforcement and punishment for each child, and then to target very precisely the desirable and undesirable behavior. This method is well known as contingency contracts. Skinner emphasized the importance of generalized reinforcements such as praise, stars, and points. He also believed that punishment should be avoided; Extinction, i.e. ignoring, is the way to eliminate inappropriate behavior. Certainly, classical conditioning would suggest maintaining a positive environment, or else there would be an opportunity for students to develop a negative attitude toward a subject due to unpleasant feelings associated with the way it was learned. Example "A child is in a classroom. When he is silent (reading or drawing), the teacher pays him no attention. He throws a ball of paper at another child. The teacher expresses this. He begins to read, but after a while he throws things again to worry about it, he throws objects frequently (p. 53 Greene and Hicks, 1984) The child obviously does not see. being blamed for a punishment, but rather a reward because it establishes a form of attention/consideration In a class where the teacher uses reinforcement or punishment effectively, we see: 1-The behavior required is quite precisely. rewarded, perhaps by