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Effects of Self-Monitoring on On-Task Behaviors of At-Risk Middle School Students

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Abstract

The purposes of this study were to evaluate the effects of self-monitoring on increasing the on-task behaviors of four at-risk middle school students, and to examine its indirect effects on academic performance. Additionally, we attempted to develop and validate cost- and time-efficient procedures that typical classroom teachers could use. The data from a multiple baseline design across three academic settings, replicated with four students, revealed immediate increases in on-task behavior as each student began to self-monitor in each sequential setting. The data also revealed slightly higher levels of academic performance and, in most instances, gradually accelerating trends. These findings suggest that self-monitoring is a cost- and time-efficient procedure that classroom teachers can use to teach at-risk students to manage their own behaviors.

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Wood, S.J., Murdock, J.Y., Cronin, M.E. et al. Effects of Self-Monitoring on On-Task Behaviors of At-Risk Middle School Students. Journal of Behavioral Education 8, 263–279 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1022891725732

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