The “Canon” of English Literature

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have to pick one of this 3 after reading one of the below stories.

 

What do I have to do? 

Begin by making your own copy of this document. Do so by clicking “File” and choosing “Make a Copy”. Name your copy “Name Unit 1 Response”. Then close this copy.

On your own copy, work through all of the attached readings. Use the comment feature to annotate the reading to demonstrate that you are engaging actively with the texts. Then, in 250 to 400 words, please respond to one of the following prompts.

Your response should be typed and double-spaced throughout. You may use dictionaries, glossaries of terms, and other reference works as necessary. Please be sure to identify the question to which you are responding, either by number or by using the question itself as your title.

You will submit your copy of this document, as well as your response, by the date indicated below. All content will be submitted via Google Classroom. APA in-text citations are required. 

Prompts: 

  1. Sanders (2012)  points to a significant challenge with canonical standards: they “favor the powerful and … marginalize the powerless, regardless of the merits of their work”. Are there any creators whose work is undervalued (or dismissed) because of any number of factors, including but not limited to age, belief system, body, (dis)ability, gender identity, genre, industry/interests, race, or social class? What are we missing out on? 
  2. Kellman (1997) presents three sides to the controversy about the canon: canons exclude a multitude of voices and only really centre the voices of “dead white [able-bodied, straight, upper-class] European males”; canons are “undemocratic” and create artificial hierarchies of texts; regardless of who wrote what, texts that have “esthetic and moral value” must be read to avoid “cultural illiteracy”. Where do you find yourself in regards to these three schools of thought?
  3. Morris (2018) states “canon-making is a fairly human impulse: I love this. Everyone else should, too!. Over time a single book becomes a library; the library becomes a school of thought; the school of thought becomes a prism through which the world is supposed to see itself.”  How does this logic perpetuate a limited view of the world? 

 

The “Canon” of English Literature

By Arnie Sanders (2012)

1

Canon: n., from the Latin canon or “rule.”  Originally, an ecclesiastical code of law or standard of judgment, later any standard of judgment, usually based upon determinate set of authorized texts, like the canonical books of the Bible, Torah, Qu’ran, or Sutras.  In modern literature study, the “best” or “most important” or “most representative” works of secular literature which anchor the study of English and American literature. 

2

Until literature has a “canon,” it has been argued, it has not risen to the level of sophistication at which it can be studied seriously by scholars.  I would argue that the reverse is true: scholarly study creates canons by making accurate texts available and by defining the terms by which they are studied.  Folk literatures, for instance, tend not to have canons until scholars have gotten into the act, collecting and correlating and analyzing the wild oral transmission of the folk tale or song.  People might argue whether “Tune X” is “really a blues song rather than rock and roll or rhythm and blues,” but until a canon of “blues” exists, people will tend to disagree rather hopelessly about the facts.  When asked whether “Tune X” is “a great blues song,” their opinions will be even more divided by appeals to unstable definitions until people have taken the time to make serious, systematic studies of the how the art is created.

3

Canonization also distorts literature and introduces predictable biases in interpretation.  Canons of literature may fossilize their subject and reduce its study to dry memorization for its own sake.  The rules by which the canonical texts are selected tend to favor the powerful and to exclude or marginalize the powerless, regardless of the merits of their work.  Or, rather, “merit” will become unconsciously identified as a property “naturally” belonging to the powerful, and “naturally” unavailable to the powerless.  The values and tastes of the powerful will turn the process of canon formation and its product into a cultural prison.  But does this mean we cannot have informed discussion of canons without allowing them to imprison our values and tastes?  Think about what rejecting any serious study of tastes and values will do to our understanding of literature.

4

Studying how literature is created and testing claims for its place in the canon makes us better readers, more aware of [authors’] choices and the strategies guiding them.  Instead of stopping at “I like it” or “I don’t like it,” readers will be able to talk about what “it” is, how it works, and what kinds of beautiful or ugly effects it produces in all of its elements over time as it unfolds.  This process aids canon formation, it is true, but without it, we cannot communicate or fully understand what we like about literature, and it acts upon us in ways we cannot fully understand, a dangerous cultural situation which caused Plato to argue that we ought to ban poets from the ideal city.  Let us welcome the poets to our city, but let us understand how their art works…

Source Citation: Sanders, Arnie. “The ‘Canon’ of English Literature.” ENGLISH 211: English Literature Beowulf to Dryden, Goucher College, Fall 2012, http://faculty.goucher.edu/eng211/canon_of_english_literature.htm.

 

1

At Issue

Of making books, declares Ecclesiastes, there is no end. But, in a finite life, which books should one read? With almost 50,000 new titles published in the United States alone every year, even the most voracious reader cannot keep up with all of contemporary publishing, let alone the libraries of what has already been published. Readers are obliged to make choices, to set priorities among the vast supply of texts competing for attention. The canon is the body of writings endorsed as most worth reading. It is a weighty response to the question: Which ten (one hundred, one thousand) books would one take to an uninhabited island? More serious forms of this question include: Which books merit humanity’s most immediate and enduring interest? Behind such a question lie two more questions: Who makes that decision? On what basis?

2

History

The word “canon” derives from a Greek root meaning measuring rod. Canonical literary texts represent the standard against which any individual work is measured. Before the rise of modern secular literature, it was the Bible that provided the definitive canon for Western culture. The Bible (the words “the Bible” mean “the book”) is itself a compilation of disparate sacred writings accumulated over centuries.

3

During the Renaissance, when secular studies started to rival religious ones, a parallel canon began to be formed out of significant but non-Scriptural texts, works that came to be widely recognized as classics. Over the centuries in the West, a rough consensus developed that the writings of several authors (including classical Greek and Roman authors, Dante, Miguel de Cervantes, William Shakespeare, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Gustave Flaubert, Leo Tolstoy, and John Milton) represent the summit of human literary achievement, that they articulate values crucial to Western culture, and that they are indispensable to any genuine education. Canons developed in other fields as well, including music and painting. While the literary canon was never as precisely formalized as the biblical one, its presence and authority have been manifest in high school and college curricula, in lectures and publishing programs, and in influential anthologies that purport to represent the most important authors throughout history. Some institutions, including the University of Chicago and St. John’s College, have attempted to base their curriculum on an undergraduate’s mastery of a set of great books. Elsewhere, classes in literary masterpieces attempt to cover the canon, and they are more likely to include [Greek philosopher] Sophocles than [horror writer] Stephen King. While sometimes permitted to study [science fiction writer] Robert A. Heinlein, English majors are often required to read [Middle Ages poet] Geoffrey Chaucer.

4

The Controversy

The canon, along with other institutions and practices in North America and Western Europe, has been subject to question and attack. Many argue that the canon is too narrow, that it is almost exclusively the product of dead white European males and needs to be opened up to authors from different backgrounds. Feminists fault anthologies and curricula for failing to include more than a few token women, and multiculturalists criticize the Eurocentric bias they find in the canon. The traditional canon seems almost entirely devoid of Black people, Asians, Latinos, and Indigenous people, for example. The existing canon is also charged with homophobic bias.

5

Liberal critics who attack the canon for being too narrow and who fight to reconfigure it to include previously excluded groups often nevertheless assume the basic validity and value of canonization. A more radical challenge to the canon comes from those who reject the concept of a canon, who argue that canons are inherently undemocratic and coercive. Instead of merely tinkering with the components of the canon, they call for a leveling of literary hierarchies, for a culture in which no text or reader is privileged over any other. There are no great books, they charge, because greatness is a political construction, one that gets in the way of analyzing all cultural activity. The remedy for Eurocentrism is elimination of all centers.

6

Conservatives respond to attacks by liberals on canonical choices and to attacks by radicals on the institution of canon by reaffirming the esthetic and moral value of those literary masterpieces that have managed to withstand the test of time. They insist that not all works merit an equal claim on humanity’s limited attention, and they refuse to reduce assessments of artistic achievement to a political algebra. Regardless of Milton’s race, gender, class, or sexual biases, Paradise Lost (1667), they maintain, is a masterpiece, and time spent studying it will enrich its readers. Because of the values that it embodies and its exemplary craft, the traditional canon, conservatives argue, ought to be the common heritage of every educated reader. For a student of literature, to be unversed in the canon is to be culturally illiterate.

7

Implications for Identity

Canon formation is neither as conspiratorial as some fear nor as democratic as others wish. It is the product of collective preferences expressed over time by critics, teachers, editors, publishers, and general readers. Some people manage to exert more influence than others. The biblical canon was determined by an ecclesiastical elite at a particular place and time, but the literary canon develops more gradually and openly, and it is never entirely settled. Otherwise, masterpiece anthologies would not be revised with such startling frequency. Comparison of a compilation of major poets published in 1900, when [19th-century American poet] Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was still in high repute, with one published in 1950, when [17th-century British metaphysical poet] John Donne provided the ambiguity and complexity then thought to be the defining qualities of great poetry, reveal as much change as continuity. Herman Melville [author of Moby-Dick], among others canonized in the 1930’s and 1940’s as geniuses, was unknown a few years earlier. In the last decade of the twentieth century, [Victorian-era New Zealand author] Kate Chopin’s 1899 novella The Awakening became the most widely taught literary text in American universities; it was out of print a few years before. The vagaries of literary reputation ought to give pause to those who either champion or scorn the canon as a permanent body of timeless classics.

8

The Canon in the United States

Within the United States, the controversy over canon has been part of a larger anxiety over cultural identity, which became particularly acute at the conclusion of the Cold War, when, with the end of a common public threat, consensus over national purpose and character eroded. A massive increase in immigration, especially from Asia and Latin America, challenged traditional assumptions about the European cultural heritage of the United States. Divisions over whether Americans could share a common set of values and even a common language multiplied. The canon was a casualty of increasing fragmentation and polarization; if Americans could no longer agree on their histories and principles, it became difficult to identify a body of texts that all could esteem…

9

Readjustments of the canon are a constant sum operation. Absent any miraculous expansion in human capacity, addition of one text to the literary pantheon ordinarily necessitates subtraction of another. Time also continues to add books to the reading list. If the doors are pried open to admit [African-American author] Toni Morrison or [Chinese-American author] Maxine Hong Kingston, which author must be evicted to make room? The question certainly vexes if reading is confined to formal education and formal education is confined to the first three decades of an American’s life. When reading is reduced to a matter of classroom assignments, then it is crucial that the few books that one reads not be trite. Yet it is questionable whether any tidy pack of texts, however magnificent, can carry the burdens of an entire culture…

Source Citation: Kellman, Steven G. “The Literary Canon.” Identities & Issues in Literature, September 1997, pp. 1-3. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lfh&AN=103331INI17230170000300&site=lrc-live

 

Who Gets to Decide What Belongs in the Canon?

By Wesley Morris (2018)

Sometimes, it’s not enough to love something. You have to take that thing — album, author, song, movie, show — and do more than love it. It needs to be placed beyond mere love. You need to take that thing, wrap it in plastic or put it on a pedestal. You need to dome it under a force field so that other people’s grubby hands, opinions and inferior fandoms can’t stain or disrespect it. You need not only to certify it but also to forestall decertification. Basically, you need to make it “canon.”

The phrase didn’t originate on the internet but is of the internet and its wing of anti-discursive discourse. It places a work, a person or an idea beyond reproach. It pre-resolves debate. That is, of course, what a canon is — a settled matter. It’s established rules and norms. It’s the books of the Bible. It’s the approved Catholic saints. It’s Jane Austen, the Beatles, Miles Davis, Andy Warhol and Beyoncé.

Traditionally, the people drawing up our cultural canons have been an elite group of scholars and critics who embraced a work of art and sent it aloft to some deifying realm. That consecration has spread from academia to, say, Reddit, where fans gather around movies, TV dramas, video games and comic books the way the academy threw its weight behind Dostoyevsky, Joyce, Faulkner and Updike. “Battlestar Galactica” and “The Simpsons,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and the DC and Marvel universes — they’re canonical, too. And now “canon” has migrated from noun to adjective, giving the word thunder and muscle and curatorial certitude.

In this sense, “canon” wants to keep something like “Star Wars” heresy-free and internally consistent (so yes, there are canons within canons). The series sprang more than 40 years ago from one man’s mind and a single movie. Now it’s an industrial complex whose thematic integrity desperately matters to its constituents. So when an installment infuriates fans — the way, in December, “The Last Jedi” did, with its apparent warping of the bylaws and powers of the “Star Wars” galaxy (this ISN’T how the Force WORKS!!) — they don’t simply complain. They say, “That’s not canon.” Last winter, a Change.org petition circulated, calling for Disney to “Strike Star Wars Episode VIII from the Official Canon” — as though it were some kind of Taco Bell tie-in, and not, as the title clearly states, the eighth part of a never-ending story — and more than 104,000 people signed on. The receptive response to that not-entirely-serious campaign underscores where we’ve been for some time with “canon”: nervous about the unfixed quality of all kinds of art and unyielding in policing both its meaning and possibilities.

On its face, canon-making is a fairly human impulse: I love this. Everyone else should, too! Over time a single book becomes a library; the library becomes a school of thought; the school of thought becomes a prism through which the world is supposed to see itself. That enthusiasm hardened, through curriculums, book clubs and great-works lists, into something more authoritarian, so that canon became taste hammered into stone tablets.

For many years its Moses has been Harold Bloom, whose “The Western Canon: The Books and School of the Ages” was a best-selling sensation in 1994, for what it argued was — and by way of omission wasn’t — canon. In his introduction, Bloom went so far as to pre-emptively dismiss complaints about his biases as coming from the “school of resentment.” Asked in a 1991 Paris Review interview whom this school comprised, Bloom explained that it’s “an extraordinary sort of mélange of latest-model feminists, Lacanians, that whole semiotic cackle.” These people, he went on to say, “have no relationship whatever to literary values.”

But these people — women, along with nonwhite, non-straight folks — certainly could have shared Bloom’s literary values while also applying prerogatives of their own. Interrogators of both the canon and the canonizers have been dismissed as identity politicians rather than critics or scholars. The old guard claims that they’re missing the point of literature, thrusting morality upon an amoral pursuit, sullying the experience. Often however, they’re arguing not for literature’s restriction but for its expansion — let’s include Kafka, obviously, but also Toni Morrison, Marilynne Robinson and Jhumpa Lahiri no less obviously.

This questioning of the canon comes from places of lived experience. It’s attuned to how great cultural work can leave you feeling irked and demeaned. Bigotry recurs in canonical art. Shakespeare endures alongside analyses of his flawed characterizations of all kinds of races, nationalities, religions and women. Your great works should be strong enough to withstand some feminist forensics.

But resisting these critiques — whether it’s of “The House of Mirth” or the House of Marvel — with an automatic claim of canon, feels like an act of dominion, the establishment of an exclusive kingdom complete with moat and drawbridge, which, of course, would make the so-called resenters a mob of torch-wielding marauders and any challenge to established “literary values” an act of savagery. Insisting that a canon is settled gives those concerns the “fake news” treatment, denying a legitimate grievance by saying there’s no grounds for one. It’s shutting down a conversation, when the longer we go without one, the harder it becomes to speak.

Canon formation, at its heart, has to do with defending what you love against obsolescence, but love can tip into zealotry, which can lead us away from actual criticism into some pretty ugly zones. Our mutual hypersensitivities might have yanked us away from enlightening, crucial — and fun — cultural detective work (close reading, unpacking, interpreting) and turned us into cultural cops always on patrol, arresting anything that rankles.

Morris, W. (2018, May 30). Who Gets to Decide What Belongs in the ‘Canon’? Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/30/magazine/who-gets-to-decide-what-belongs-in-the-canon.html

SMART tutorial

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Lesson 10 SMART Tutorial Speedback Assignment

First, complete the SMART tutorial at http://net.lib.byu.edu/tutorial/smart/

Then take the quiz. Mark the Correct answer to Red color.

1.  According to the SMART tutorial what is the third step in the research process?
 
  Locate background information
  Write the paper
  Evaluate and select the best possible materials for your paper
  Develop and narrow topic
  Find research materials

 

 

2.  Scholar Search is a:
 
  A help desk in the library
  A study place in the library
  A search tool on the library webpage
  A writing and research lab

 

 

 

3.  When evaluating a source, asking yourself “Is the information objective?” helps you determine which of the following?
 
  Credentials of the author
  Bias of the source
  Evidence the author uses to support their claims
  Most current information

 

 

 

4.  In order to get help finding information for your research paper, you must do which of the following?
 
  Make an appointment
  Know who you need to talk to
  Go to the online chat service, visit a help desk, or use the drop-in writing and research service

 

 

 

5.  According to the SMART tutorial what is the second step in the research process?
 
  Evaluate and select the best possible materials for your paper
  Develop and narrow topic
  Find research materials
  Write the paper
  Locate background information

 

 

 

6.  Using information found through Google for academic research is which of the following?
 
  Always recommended
  Never recommended
  Recommended when appropriately evaluated and selected

 

 

 

7.  Please choose the best answer for the following statement: “I can find scholarly materials for my research paper by _________”
 
  searching Google Scholar.
  talking to a subject librarian.
  using Academic Search Premier.
  All of these

 

 

 

8.  In the module “finding sources,” what is the best library page to help you narrow your topic?
 
  Subject guides
  E-Reference
  Background resources
  Digital Collections

 

 

 

9.  According to the SMART tutorial what is the fourth step in the research process?
 
  Find research materials
  Develop and narrow topic
  Evaluate and select the best possible materials for your paper
  Locate background information
  Write the paper

 

 

 

10.  According to the tutorial, a source that has an abstract, detailed research by an expert, and an extensive bibliography is a(n) _________
 
  encyclopedia.
  scholarly article.
  website.
  magazine article.

 

 

 

11.  According to the SMART tutorial what is the first step in the research process?
 
  Write the paper
  Evaluate and select the best possible materials for your paper
  Locate background information
  Develop and narrow topic
  Find research materials

 

 

 

12.  According to the SMART tutorial what is the last step in the research process?
 
  Locate background information
  Find research materials
  Develop and narrow topic
  Evaluate and select the best possible materials for your paper
  Write the paper

 

 

 

13.  When evaluating a source, asking yourself “Who wrote the article?” helps you determine which of the following?
 
  Evidence the author uses to support their claims
  Bias of the source
  Credentials of the author
  Most current information

 

 

 

  For the next four questions, use the following two citations:

#1: Hessl, Amy E. “Pathways for climate change effects on fire: Models, data, and uncertainties.” Progress in Physical Geography 35.3 (2011): 393-407. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 29 Aug. 2011.

#2: United States. Environmental Protection Agency. “Greenhouse gas emissions overview.” Climate Change. Web. 29 Aug. 2011.
   

 

 

14.  Please identify the title of the article that was published by a government agency.
 
  Pathways for climate change effects on fire: Models, data, and uncertainties
  Progress in Physical Geography
  Climate Change
  Greenhouse gas emissions overview

 

 

 

15.  Please identify the database where the article in the first citation was found.
 
  Academic Search Premier
  Progress in Physical Geography
  Web
  EBSCO

 

 

 

16.  Please identify the author of the article located in a scholarly journal:
 
  Climate Change
  United States. Environmental Protection Agency
  Progress in Physical Geography
  Hessl, Amy E

 

 

 

17.  Please indicate which article is NOT peer-reviewed.
 
  United States. Environmental Protection Agency. “Greenhouse gas emissions overview.” Climate Change. Web. 29 Aug. 2011.
  Hessl, Amy E. “Pathways for climate change effects on fire: Models, data, and uncertainties.” Progress in Physical Geography 35.3 (2011): 393-407. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 29 Aug. 2011.

 

 

 

 

Lesson 10 Library Virtual Tour Speedback Assignment

First, complete the library virtual tour at http://net.lib.byu.edu/tutorial/hbll/. Then take the quiz.

1.  Where do you return regular library materials that you have checked out at the Circulation desk on level 3?
 
  Circulation desk, level 3
  Security desks at the library entrance, level 3
  Reserve desk, level 3
  Information Commons desk, level 3

 

 

2.  Where would you go if you needed help finding an atlas of France?
 
  Science/Maps Reference desk, level 2
  Social Sciences/Education Reference desk, level 1
  Humanities Reference desk, level 5
  Humanities bookshelves, level 5

 

 

 

3.  Where should you go to view a newspaper published on the day Abraham Lincoln was born?
 
  Media Center, level 4
  Humanities desk, level 5
  Family History/Religion, level 2
  Information desk, level 3
  Social Sciences/Education Reference desk, level 1

 

 

 

4.  Where are subject-specific reference materials located?
 
  Library Atrium, level 3
  Near that subject’s reference desk
  In the subject librarian’s office
  Information desk, level 3

 

 

 

5.  Where would you go to use periodical indexes and read specialized encyclopedias about an endangered animal species?
 
  Social Sciences/Education Reference desk, level 1
  Humanities Reference desk, level 5
  Information Commons desk, level 3
  Science/Maps Reference desk, level 2
  Family History/Religion Reference desk, level 2

 

 

 

6.  What department’s main purpose is to teach students how to conduct effective research?
 
  Library Instruction and Information Literacy, level 2
  Social Sciences/Education Reference desk, level 1
  Media Center, level 4

 

 

 

7.  You have to write a paper on Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa, but you are completely stuck. Where can you go to get help?
 
  Humanities Reference desk, level 5
  Periodicals Room, level 2
  Science/Maps Reference desk, level 2
  Music and Dance Library, level 4

 

 

 

8.  Where would you go if you want to look at a diary written by an early Mormon pioneer? You know this item cannot be checked out of the library.
 
  Family History/Religion bookshelves, level 2
  Special Collections, level 1
  Social Sciences/Education Reference desk, level 1
  Interlibrary Loan desk, level 3

 

 

 

9.  Your biology class has been assigned to watch a film on spiders. Where should you go to view it?
 
  Reserve desk, level 3
  Media Center, level 4
  Special Collections, level 1
  Humanities Reference desk, level 5

 

 

 

10.  The library’s open study areas have:
 
  Wireless Internet service
  A quiet atmosphere.
  Tables wired with electricity and an Ethernet connection
  Individual desks
  All of these are correct

 

 

 

11.  If the library doesn’t have the book or article you need, what can you do?
 
  Request it at the Information Commons desk
  Find another one. You’re out of luck
  Request it through Interlibrary Loan

 

 

 

12.  One of your classes requires you to listen to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony while following along in the music. Where can you find the score?
 
  Music and Dance bookshelves, level 4
  Interlibrary Loan, level 3
  Humanities, level 5

 

 

 

13.  Where can you check out digital cameras and edit home videos?
 
  Multimedia Lab
  Information Commons desk, level 3
  Family History/Religion, level 2
  Music and Dance Library, level 4

 

 

 

14.  Which is true about the floor directories?
 
  They are located on every floor
  They show the locations of group study rooms
  They show the locations of reference desks and other library services
  They show the locations of call numbers
  All of these are correct

 

 

 

15.  Which of the following is true about Special Collections?
 
  You cannot photocopy any items
  You can check items out
  You can view items in the reading room

 

 

 

16.  Which is true about the Information Commons area (3rd floor)?
 
  It has multimedia editing stations
  It has computer workstations available for group work
  It contains the No “shhhhhhh” zone
  All of these are correct

 

 

 

17.  The undergraduate checkout period for most library materials is which of the following options?
 
  Two weeks with a one-week grace period
  Three weeks with a one-week grace period
  Two weeks with no grace period
  Three weeks with no grace period

 

 

 

18.  If you wanted to read an issue of National Geographic Magazine from 1970, where would you look for it?
 
  Juvenile Literature, level 4
  Science/Maps bookshelves, level 2
  Periodicals, compact shelving, level 2
  Social Sciences/Education Reference desk, level 1

 

 

 

19.  In order to respect the rights of other library users and to preserve library materials, we encourage you to
 
  Return books to the return shelves after you use them if you are not going to check them out
  Limit talking to group study areas only
  Refrain from eating or drinking in the library outside of designated areas to avoid damaging library materials
  Refrain from writing in library materials
  All of these are correct

 

 

 

20.  You are doing a report on the effectiveness of preschool in preparing children for formal education. Where would you look for information?
 
  Periodicals room, level 2
  Social Sciences/Education, level 1
  Humanities Reference desk, level 5
  Juvenile Literature, level 4
  Science/Maps Reference desk, level 2

 

 

 

 

 

Lesson 11 MLA Speedback Assignment

 

1.  When listing a selection from an edited book in print, you must include the page numbers for the selection.
 
  true
  false

 

 

 

2.  Multiple answer. Choose all of the following in-text citations that are correct:
 
  A good rule of thumb with email is to “never do anything electronically that you would want others to do to you in person” (Shipley and Schwalbe 53).
  As Shipley and Schwalbe argue in Send, “never do anything electronically that you would want others to do to you in person” (53).
  Some commentators have argued that when it comes to email, there are still some things more appropriately performed face to face (Shipley and Schwalbe 53).

 

 

 

3.  Which of the following works cited entries is correct?
 
  Shipley, David, and Will Schwalbe. Send: Why People Email So Badly and How to Do it Better. Rev. Ed. NY: Knopf, 2008. Print.
  Shipley, David and Will Schwalbe. Send: Why People Email So Badly and How to Do it Better. Rev. Ed. NY: Knopf, 2008. Print.
  Shipley, David and Will, Schwalbe. Send: Why People Email So Badly and How to Do it Better. Rev. Ed. NY: Knopf, 2008. Print.
  Shipley, David, and Will Schwalbe. Send: Why People Email So Badly and How to Do it Better. Rev. Ed. NY: Knopf, 2008.

 

 

 

4.  If there is more than one author, you MUST add et al. after listing the first.
 
  false
  true

 

 

 

5.  What is the name of the video game Rebecca Moore Howard uses as an example of how to cite video games on your works cited page?
 
  Portal 2
  Donkey Kong Country Returns
  Rock Band 2
  Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

 

 

 

6.  When should you “block” a quote (that is, “omit the quotation marks, and indent the entire quotation one inch from the left margin of your text”)? (Hint: Look in chapter 17 for the answer to this one.)
 
  When quoting three or more lines.
  Whenever you feel like it.
  When quoting Shakespeare.
  When quoting four or more lines.

 

 

 

7.  Which of the following works cited entries for a blog post is correct?
 
  Carr, Nicholas. Rough Type. “E-Textbooks Flunk an Early Test.” 12 May 2011. Web. 4 June 2011.
  Carr, Nicholas. “E-Textbooks Flunk an Early Test.” Rough Type. 4 June 2011. [http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2011/05/etextbooks_flun_1.php]
  Carr, Nicholas. “E-Textbooks Flunk an Early Test.” Rough Type. 12 May 2011. Web. 4 June 2011. http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2011/05/etextbooks_flun_1.php
  Carr, Nicholas. “E-Textbooks Flunk an Early Test.” 12 May 2011. Web. 4 June 2011.

 

 

 

8.  Consider the following passage from Reading in the Brain by Stanislas Dehaene:

“Although we now know that reading acquisition systematically converges onto the same region of the cortex, the reason for this precise localization is still shrouded in mystery.”

Which of the following passages from a student paper is NOT patchwritten by the student?
 
  Though the experts know that reading acquisition converges in an orderly manner on the same area of the cortex, it is mysterious why this localization takes place (Dehaene 164).
  Cognitive neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene points out that though we know from neuroimaging the exact location in the brain where letters, words, and sentences are comprehended, we still don’t know why it happens there (164).
  Cognitive neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene writes that although we know that reading converges in the brain in the cortex, the reason for this is still enveloped in mystery (164).
  It is not yet clear why reading acquisition systematically consolidates onto one region in the brain—specifically, the cortex (Dehaene 164).

 

 

 

9.  Which of the following in-text citations has an effective signal phrase?
 
  In a recent blog post, web critic Nicholas Carr argues convincingly that “schools have long had a tendency to buy first and ask questions later” (Carr).
  Sometimes educators get so excited about new technology that they “buy first and ask questions later” (Carr).
  Some say that when it comes to new technology, “schools have long had a tendency to buy first and ask questions later” (Carr).
  When it comes to new technology, “schools have long had a tendency to buy first and ask questions later” (Carr).

 

 

 

10.  Which of the following represents the correct order in which you put information for a scholarly journal article accessed through a database?
 
  Surname, First name. Database. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume.issue (year): pages. Access date. Medium of publication.
  Surname, First name. (year). “Article Title.” Journal Title volume.issue: pages. Database. Medium of publication. Access date.
  Surname, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume.issue (year): pages. Database. Medium of publication. Access date.
  Surname, First name. “Article Title.” Journal Title volume.issue (year): pages. Access date. Medium of publication.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lesson 14 Design Principles Speedback Assignment

 

1.  According to Howard, to create a “softer, more harmonious look” with the color blue, which color combination would you want to use? Choose all that are correct.
 
  Red-violet
  Blue-green
  Green
  Red-orange
  Blue-violet
  Yellow
  Yellow-green
  Orange

 

 

 

2.  You do not need to cite images if you cut and paste them from Google Image.
 
  false
  true

 

 

 

3.  Which typeface would be inappropriate to use on a printed funeral program: Comic Sans MS or Garamond?
 
  Comic Sans MS
  Garamond

 

 

 

4.  Type and font are not the same thing, though they are often used as synonyms.
 
  true
  false

 

 

 

5.  You should use 3-D effects when making charts or graphs.
 
  true
  false

 

 

 

6.  The cardinal rule of design is always remember your audience.
 
  false
  true

 

 

 

7.  What does multimodality mean?
 
  Composing an argument using more than alphabetic text.
  The ability to write with both hands.
  Composing an argument using a popular mode.
  Composing an argument with more than one reason.

 

 

 

8.  What is the complementary color for red? ___________________
 
  Yellow
  Green
  Blue
  Orange

 

 

 

9.  Which of the following are sans-serif fonts?
 
  Cambria Math
  Verdana
  Arial Narrow
  Times New Roman

 

 

 

10.  What color is analogous with red? Choose all that are correct.
 
  Red-violet
  Orange
  Violet
  Yellow-orange
  Red-orange
  Blue-violet

The Iris Center’s “Measuring Behavior.”

/in /by
Ashford 7: – Week 6 – Final Project

Case Study: Mark

Read the case study of Mark, located in Level A, Case 1 of The Iris Center’s “Measuring Behavior.” Using this case study, create a plan that addresses the following:

  1.  Justify Mark’s behavior with supporting evidence using a Behavior Theory.
  2.  Examine the one behavior you would target for change, explaining your decision with supporting evidence.
  3.  Analyze the best Differential Reinforcement strategy to positively reinforce Mark’s appropriate behavior, using resources to support your decision.
  4.  Create a data collection procedure for determining if the behavior plan is successful.
  5.  Create a plan to fade the Differential Reinforcement as Mark’s behavior improves and a plan if his behavior regresses.
  6.  Strategize ways to generalize Mark’s positively modified behavior outside the classroom.

Written Expectations

    • Must be six to nine double-spaced pages in length (not including title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
    • Must include a separate title page with the following:
      • Title of paper
      • Student’s name
      • Course name and number
      • Instructor’s name
      • Date submitted
    • Must use at least four scholarly sources in addition to the course text.
    • Must document all sources in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
    • Must include a separate reference page that is formatted according to APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.

Carefully review the Grading Rubric for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.

iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu or iriscenter.com

Serving: Higher Education Faculty • PD Providers • Practicing Educators Supporting the preparation of effective educators to improve outcomes for all children, especially those with disabilities, birth through age 21

THE

IRIS CENTER

with Instructors Guide

Measuring Behavior

CASE STUDY UNIT Created by

Sara C. Bicard, PhD, Auburn University at Montgomery David F. Bicard, PhD, Behavior Analysis of Central Alabama, LLC

020415

 

 

 

Measuring Behavior

IRIS@VU • Modules and Materials Development Naomi C. Tyler, PhD • Co-Director Vanderbilt University Phone: (615) 343-5610 or (800) 831-6134 Fax: (615) 343-5611 Email: iris@vanderbilt.edu

IRIS@CGU • Technical Assistance and Training Deborah D. Smith, EdD • Co-Director Claremont Graduate University Phone: (909) 607-8982 or (866) 626-IRIS [4747] Fax: (909) 607-0959 Email: iris@cgu.edu

The contents of this case study were developed under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education, #H325F010003. However, those contents do not necessarily repre- sent the policy of the U.S. Department of Education, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government. Project Officer, Shedeh Hajghassemali.

Contents: Page Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . i

Case Study Level A, Case 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Case Study Level A, Case 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Case Study Level B, Case 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Case Study Level B, Case 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Case Study Level C, Case 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Case Study Level C, Case 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

STAR Sheet: Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

STAR Sheet: Frequency/Event Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

STAR Sheet: Interval Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

STAR Sheet: Duration Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

STAR Sheet: Latency Recording . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Instructors Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

To cite this case study unit:

Bicard, S. C, Bicard, D. F., & the IRIS Center. (2012). Measuring behavior. Retrieved on [month, day, year] from http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu/ wp-content/uploads/pdf_case_studies/ics_measbeh.pdf

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nTable of ContentsTable of Contents

For an Instructor’s Guide to this case study, please email your full name, title, and institutional affiliation to the IRIS Center at iris@vanderbilt.edu.

 

 

Measuring Behavior Introduction

Data collection is an objective method of measurement that can be used to shape and guide professional judgment. It enables teachers to verify that their behavior management plans or instructional methods are producing the desired outcomes and can also be used to identify and end the use of ineffective teaching practices based on current fads or ideologies rather than on evidence. Teachers who do not use frequent measurement are vulnerable to two types of preventable errors:

1. Continuing an ineffective behavioral or academic intervention when no real improvement in performance has occurred

2. Discontinuing an effective behavioral or academic intervention based on a subjective evaluation

Operational Definitions of Behavior

Prior to data collection, educators should define the problem behavior (also known as the target behavior) and the desired behavior (also known as the replacement behavior).

When a problem behavior is to be decreased, it is a good idea to select an incompatible replacement behavior. For example, consider a case where a student’s problem behavior involves cursing when the teacher asks him a question during class. The replacement behavior could be that the student will use appropriate language when responding to a question during class.

Educators must operationally define the target and the replacement behaviors—this is, they must state them precisely in observable and measurable terms. When a behavior is described in observable terms, it can be easily seen and documented. When it is stated in measurable terms, the behavior can be quantified in some way (e.g., counted, timed). Examples of good and poor operational definitions can be found in the table below.

Behavior Observable? Measurable?

Target behavior: Anna is not prepared when class begins 8 8 Replacement behavior: Anna will be prepared when she comes to class. 8 8 Target Behavior: Anna waits until after the bell rings to place her pencil and notebook on her desk. ✓ ✓

Replacement behavior: Anna will have her pencil and notebook on her desk when the bell rings. ✓ ✓

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lIntroduction

 

 

Resources… Baer, D. M., Harrison, R., Fradenburg, L., Petersen, D., & Milla, S. (2005). Some pragmatics in the valid and

reliable recording of directly observed behavior. Research on Social Work Practice, 15(6), 440–451.

Bushell, Jr., D. & Baer, D. M. (1994). Measurably superior instruction means close continual contact with the relevant outcome data revolutionary! In R. Gardener, III, D. M. Sainato, J. O., Cooper, T. E. Heron, W. Heward, J. W. Eshleman, & T. A. Grossi, (Eds.), Behavior analysis in education: Focus on measurably su- perior instruction (pp. 3–11). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/ Cole.

Heward, W. L. (2003). Ten faulty notions about teaching and learning that hinder the effectiveness of special education. Journal of Special Education, 36(4), 186–205.

FYI After several observations it is easy to drift from the operational definition. To reduce the likelihood of observer drift, educators should review the operational definition frequently. When observing a student’s behavior, the educator should record only what is directly observed instead of interpreting the meaning or intent of the behavior.

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s

Measuring Behavior Level A • Case 1

Background Student: Mark

Age: 12

Grade: 6th

Scenario Mark has been diagnosed with a learning disability. He reads at a second-grade level and his math performance is deficient. He is outgoing and is often described as the class clown. Mark has many friends but often makes them the butt of his jokes. Recently, during reading class, Mark said to Felecia, “Do you think old man McGreevy changed his underwear today?” Two other friends of Mark heard him and started laughing. Felecia laughed, too, but felt kind of uncomfortable. Mr. McGreevy heard the laughter and asked the class to quiet down. A few minutes later when Mr. McGreevy was attending to other students, Mark made a loud noise simulating flatulence. The class burst out laughing. Mr. McGreevy looked at Mark, but Mark said, “I didn’t do anything.” Mr. McGreevy warned Mark that any further interruptions would lead to his being sent to in-school suspension for the rest of the class. Mark feigned indignation and got back to work, but failed to finish his assignment.

The next day, when Mr. McGreevy stepped out of the classroom for a moment, Mark put on eyeglasses and imitated the teacher’s manner. Everyone began to laugh and talk very loudly. Encouraged, Mark continued to cause a commotion. By the time Mr. McGreevy returned, a full-scale ruckus had broken out. Mr. McGreevy sent Mark to the office, the twelfth time he had done so in that school year, and it was only November.

Mr. McGreevy is worried that Mark’s inappropriate behavior will escalate as the winter holidays draw closer. He needs to determine a method that will help him collect information on Mark’s disruptive comments.

Possible Strategies • Event recording • Interval recording

! Assignment 1. Read the STAR Sheet Overview and the STAR Sheets for the two strategies listed above. 2. Define each strategy. 3. Describe why each strategy is an appropriate way to measure Mark’s disruptive comments.

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Measuring Behavior Level A • Case 2

Background Student: Theresa

Age: 10

Grade: 4th

Scenario Theresa rarely finishes her class work. How could she? She’s up, she’s down, she’s wandering all around. Her teacher, Ms. Lowe, seems always to be asking her to return to her desk and begin working. Theresa almost never has her book or her pencil out, and during class transitions she is the last to be ready. Ms. Lowe believes that Theresa’s out-of-seat behavior and procrastination are contributing to her poor grades. She needs to assess the situation and determine which of these behaviors is the most problematic.

Possible Stragegies • Duration recording • Interval recording • Latency recording

! Assignment 1. Read the STAR Sheet Overview and the STAR Sheets for the three strategies listed above. 2. Define each strategy. 3. Describe why each strategy is or is not appropriate to measure Theresa’s out-of-seat behavior. 4. Describe why each strategy is or is not appropriate to measure Theresa’s procrastinating behavior.

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Measuring Behavior Level B • Case 1

Background Student: Johnny

Age: 6

Grade: Kindergarten

Scenario Johnny is a young boy with autism who receives most of his education in an inclusive classroom. He speaks in one- and two-word utterances and can say, “book,” “food,” “more,” “hi,” and “drink.” However, his main mode of communication is a picture-exchange system.

Although Johnny has demonstrated that he really enjoys group activities, he has lately begun biting his fellow students. He seems to pick on Stephen the most. As if this weren’t enough, Johnny has begun pinching his teacher during one-on-one instruction. After he engages in one of these behaviors, he yells, “It hurts!” and starts laughing.

A behavior analyst has conducted a structured interview as part of a functional behavior assessment. The teacher and parents’ responses indicate that the function of Johnny’s aggressive behaviors is to seek attention. However, the analyst needs to directly assess the behavior.

Possible Strategies • Event recording • Interval recording

! Assignment 1. Read the STAR Sheet Overview and the STAR Sheets for the strategies listed above. 2. Operationally define the problem behavior. 3. Select the most appropriate observation method from the possible strategies listed above to measure the

behavior. a. Explain why you chose this method. b. Explain how you would use this method to measure the problem behavior.

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Measuring Behavior Level B • Case 2

Background Student: Alex

Age: 16

Grade: 10th

Scenario Alex has been diagnosed with a learning disability. He reads at an eighth-grade level. Although he is a star athlete, he is not very popular with his classmates. He does not cause much trouble in class, but he rarely finishes his work or turns in homework. He seems to have the capacity to do the work, but gets by with C’s. Mr. Cashman, Alex’s math teacher, spoke to Alex one day about these concerns, to which Alex responded, “I don’t need to work hard. In a few years, I’ll be set because I’m going to be a pro baseball or basketball player.”

Mr. Cashman often lets students work together to finish assignments. During math instruction, Alex works with another student on independent seat-work. One day, Alex looked at Sports Illustrated for thirteen minutes instead of helping with the assignment. When his partner asked him to lend a hand, Alex said, “Man, I don’t get this stuff. Just help me out.” The student continued working. When Mr. Cashman noticed what was going on, he told Alex to put the magazine away and to get to work. Alex complied, but five minutes later he got out the magazine again. On another day, Alex fell asleep and had to be woken up by his partner. Alex frequently asks to go to the bathroom. Each time Mr. Cashman lets him go.

Mr. Cashman needs to determine the amount of time that Alex spends off-task during class.

Possible Activities • Duration recording • Interval recording

! Assignment 1. Read the STAR Sheet Overview and the STAR Sheets for the strategies listed above. 2. Operationally define the target behavior. 3. Operationally define a replacement behavior. 4. Select the most appropriate observation method from the possible strategies listed above to measure the

behaviors. a. Explain why you chose this method. b. Explain how you would use this method to measure the problem behavior.

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Measuring Behavior Level C • Case 1

Background Student: Howard

Age: 8

Grade: 3rd

Scenario Howard is showing significant signs of reading and math difficulty. Ms. Anderson—a first-year teacher—has referred him to the office six times in four months for “insubordination.”

When the bell rings, Ms. Anderson instructs the class to begin working on the math problems on the chalkboard. Instead, Howard begins to talk loudly about the rims on his dad’s car. Another student, Davis, comments, “Aw, your daddy has a hooptie and those rims are wack.” Howard responds, “Well, at least we have a car. I saw you waiting for the bus.” Other students begin to laugh, and Davis tells Howard to shut up. At this time Ms. Anderson intervenes, telling the students to quiet down. She reprimands Howard and Davis, tells them to go sit down, and reminds them of their assignment. She then returns to her desk. Howard and Davis continue to discuss their parents’ cars. After a moment, Ms. Anderson again reprimands them for talking. Howard then sharpens his pencil, gets a new piece of paper, and walks back to his seat using the longest route possible. After about fifteen minutes, the students appear to have finished their math problems and Ms. Anderson begins class. After class, Ms. Anderson looks at Howard’s paper and realizes that he only completed a few questions.

Howard has several behaviors that Ms. Anderson feels are contributing to his incomplete work, but she is most concerned about him starting his assignments when told to do so. So, the next week, Ms. Anderson collects event data on Howard’s appropriate and inappropriate comments and latency data on how long it takes him to begin his work each day (see next page).

! Assignment 1. Do you agree with Ms. Anderson’s data collection choices? Explain your answers. 2. Complete the forms below by calculating the latency and frequency of Howard’s behaviors. Next, analyze

Howard’s data. a. Are Ms. Anderson’s concerns about Howard’s latency behavior justified? Why or why not? b. Are Ms. Anderson’s concerns about Howard’s inappropriate comments justified? Why or why not?

3. Based on the scenario above, do you think there is other information that Ms. Anderson should collect? If so, list the behaviors that she might want to measure and explain possible data collection methods.

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Latency Recording Form

Student: Howard Date: 12/1/xx – 12/5/xx

Class/ Teacher: Math/ Ms. Anderson

Observer: Ms. Anderson

Target behavior: After the class is told to begin solving the math problems on the board, Howard delays beginning his assignment for 60 seconds or longer.

Replacement behavior: After the class is told to begin solving the math problems on the board, Howard will start his assignment within 60 seconds.

Date Time Howard was instructed to begin work Time behavior was

initiated Latency

12/1/xx 8:35:00 am 8:35:33 am

12/2/xx 8:35:09 am 8:37:14 am

12/3/xx 8:36:01 am 8:36:29 am

12/4/xx 8:35:02 am 8:36:33 am

12/5/xx 8:36:30 am 8:37:14 am

Average

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s

Event Recording Form

Student: Howard Date: 12/1/xx – 12/5/xx

Class/ Teacher: Math/ Ms. Anderson

Observer: Ms. Anderson

Target behavior: After the class is told to begin solving the math problems on the board, Howard talks with his peers about topics other than the lesson.

Replacement behavior: After the class is told to begin solving the math problems on the board, Howard will work quietly and make only lesson-appropriate comments.

Date Time Tally

(Appropriate Comments)

Total Rate Tally

(Inappropriate Comments)

Total Rate

12/1/xx 8:35–8:50 / //// ///

12/2/xx 8:35–8:50 //// //// //

12/3/xx 8:35–8:50 // //// //

12/4/xx 8:35–8:50 / //// ////

12/5/xx 8:35–8:50 ///

Average Average

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Measuring Behavior Level C • Case 2

s

Background Student: Rachel

Age: 17

Grade: 11th

Scenario Mr. Smith co-teaches an inclusive biology course at Hamilton High School with Mrs. Patel, a special education teacher. Because the students have a wide range of reading abilities, one of the teachers frequently reads a paragraph from the text aloud and then asks listening comprehension questions. During this question-and-answer period, students are required to raise their hands and wait to be called on.

Rachel, a new transfer student, frequently talks to peers and writes notes to friends during this activity. When she does respond to questions, she blurts out the answer without waiting to be called on. Though her answers are always correct, the teachers are frustrated with her behavior. Mr. Smith reprimands her several times before sending her to the office. Upon being sent to the office for the fourth time, Rachel complained, “You’re always picking on me!” Mr. Smith spent the next two minutes explaining how fair he is with his students. Concerned about this pattern of behavior, Mrs. Patel has collected the following data (see next page).

! Assignment 1. Do you agree with Mrs. Patel’s data collection choices for each target behavior? Explain your answers. 2. Complete the forms below by calculating Rachel’s rate of calling out and her occurences of off-task

behavior. Analyze Rachel’s data. a. Are the teachers’ concerns about Rachel’s calling-out behavior justified? Why or why not? b. Are the teachers’ concerns about Rachel’s off-task behavior justified? Why or why not?

3. For each behavior listed below, identify an alternate method of data collection and explain how Mrs. Patel would collect the data.

a. Calling-out behavior b. Off-task behavior

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Event Recording Form

Student: Rachel Date: 2/11/xx – 2/15/xx

Class/ Teacher: Biology 7th period/ Smith, Patel

Observer: Mrs. Patel

Target behavior: During reading and comprehension activities, Rachel

blurts out answers to questions without waiting to be called on.

Replacement behavior: During reading and comprehension activities, Rachel

will wait to be called on before answering a question.

Date Time Tally (Blurting out) Total Rate Tally

(Waiting to be called on)

Total Rate

2/11/xx 2:15–2:25 /// /

2/12/xx 2:16–2:26 //// //

2/13/xx 2:16–2:26 //

2/14/xx 2:15–2:25 //// / //

2/15/xx 2:17–2:27 //// /

Average Average

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H

Interval Recording Form

Student: Rachel Date: 2/11/xx

Class/ Teacher: Biology 7th period Smith/Patel Observer: Mrs. Patel

Time/ length of observation: 2:15–2:25 pm Length of interval: 10 seconds

Problem behavior: Rachel is talking to friends and writing notes during reading and comprehension activities.

Desired behavior: During reading and comprehension activities, Rachel will look at assignments, write class notes (when necessary) and make appropriate comments (questions and answers) related to topic, use the assigned materials, and follow teacher directions.

Codes: + problem behavior did occur during some portion of the interval (off-task– talking to friends, writing notes)

— problem behavior did not occur (listening, answering when called on, etc.)

Note: Used partial interval recording

Interval Behavior Interval Behavior Interval Behavior Interval Behavior

1 + 16 + 31 — 46 + 2 + 17 + 32 — 47 + 3 + 18 + 33 — 48 — 4 + 19 + 34 — 49 — 5 + 20 + 35 — 50 — 6 — 21 + 36 — 51 + 7 + 22 + 37 — 52 + 8 + 23 — 38 + 53 + 9 + 24 — 39 — 54 + 10 — 25 — 40 + 55 + 11 — 26 — 41 — 56 + 12 — 27 + 42 + 57 + 13 + 28 + 43 + 58 + 14 + 29 + 44 + 59 + 15 + 30 + 45 + 60 +

TOTAL/ % occurrences

TOTAL/ % nonoccurrences

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Measuring Behavior Overview

H

H What a STAR Sheet is… A STAR (STrategies And Resources) Sheet provides you with a description of a well-researched strategy that can help you solve the case studies in this unit.

Data collection can serve as a way to gather evidence to help improve student behavior. Teachers should choose a data collection method that provides the most accurate picture of student performance in the classroom. When they select a data collection method, teachers can refer to the flowchart below:

Regardless of the data collection system implemented, students sometimes behave differently if they know they are being observed or when a new person is in the classroom. Some ways to reduce this reactivity are to observe other students as well so that the target student does not feel like he or she is being singled out, to practice observing a few times so that the student gets used to the observer before official data collection begins, and to try to be discrete to reduce the likelihood that the student will notice that he or she is being observed.

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STAR Sheet H

 

 

H

H What a STAR Sheet is… A STAR (STrategies And Resources) Sheet provides you with a description of a well-researched strategy that can help you solve the case studies in this unit.

Measuring Behavior Frequency/Event Recording

What It Is Frequency or event recording is a way to measure the number of times a behavior occurs within a given period.

What the Research and Resources Say • Event recording can be used if the goal is to increase or decrease how often the behavior(s) occur (Special

Connections, n.d.). • Event recording is best for behaviors with a distinct beginning and end (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007). • Event recording has been used in classrooms to measure behaviors such as:

◦ Task initiations and protests to task demands (Dibley & Lim, 1999) ◦ Inappropriate sitting and littering (Wheatley et al, 2009) ◦ Correct and incorrect academic responses (Heckaman, Alber, Hooper & Heward, 1998) ◦ Tardiness (Johnson-Gros, Lyons, & Griffin, 2008)

• Teachers have used event recording to measure their own behaviors, such as: ◦ Praise statements (Kalis, Vannest, & Parker, 2007) ◦ Response opportunities provided to students (Moore, Partin, Robertson, Maggin, Oliver, & Wehby,

2010) • Event recording is best for behaviors that occur with enough time in between to distinguish between the end

of one response and the onset of another (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007).

Tips for Implementation • Comparing event or frequency data across observations allows teachers to determine whether the behavior

is increasing, decreasing, or showing no change. For this reason, it is helpful if the observa-tion periods are the same length.

• To discretely document the number of times a behavior occurs (i.e., the frequency), try one of the following procedures:

◦ Place tally marks on paper. ◦ Put a piece of masking tape on your arm and place tally marks on the tape. ◦ Purchase a small, inexpensive handheld tally counter. ◦ Put a handful of small items such as pennies or paperclips in one pocket and move one item to the

other pocket each time the behavior occurs. Add the items to determine how many times the behavior occurred.

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STAR SheetH

 

 

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• When it is not possible to observe the student’s behavior for the same length of time for each observation period, calculate the rate of the behavior for each observation and compare across observations. To calculate the rate of a behavior, use the following steps.

1. Note the time the observation begins. 2. Record each occurrence of the behavior. 3. Note the time the observation ends. 4. Calculate the length of time for the observation. 5. Calculate the rate by counting the total number of times the behavior occurred and dividing by the

length of the observation.

 

 

H

Event Recording Form

Student: _______________________________

Class/ Teacher: _________________________ Observer: ______________________________

Time/ Length of Observation: ____________________________________________________

Behavior: ____________________________________________________________________

Instructions: Make a mark each time the behavior occurs. To calculate rate1, divide the total number of occurrences by the length of the observation.

Date Time started Time

ended Total time Tally

Total occurrences Rate

11/14 Ex.:8:30 am Ex.: 8:45 am 15 min.

//// //// //// /// 18

18/15 min. =

1.2/min.

Additional comments:

1 If the observation periods are the same length, rate calculations might not be necessary.

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• When using event recording for academic skills, count both correct and incorrect responses for a more complete evaluation of learning. Evaluating only correct responses can be misleading, especially if incorrect responses increase over time or are more frequent than correct responses.

Keep In Mind • The teacher’s actions might influence a student’s behavior. For example, if a teacher asks a student to

respond ten times during one lesson, but only three times during another, the frequency data will reflect that action rather than the student’s behaviors.

• It may be appropriate to count the subcomponents of a complex task instead of the completion of the task itself. For example, if the desired behavior is to complete ten double-digit multiplication problems during independent seat-work, the teacher might give each problem three tally marks—one for completing the ones digit column, one for completing the tens digit column, and one for completing the problem.

• Event recording provides more accurate information than does interval recording (described on Page 18).

Resources Bicard, D. F., Horan, J., Plank E., & Covington T. (2010). May I take a message? Using general case

programming to teach students with disabilities to take and give phone messages. Preventing School Fail- ure, 54(3), 179–189.

Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2007). Applied behavior analysis (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Dibley, S., & Lim, L. (1999). Providing choice making opportunities between and within daily school routines. Journal of Behavioral Education, 9(2), 117–132.

Heckaman, K. A., Alber, S., Hooper, S., & Heward, W. L. (1998). A comparison of least-to-most prompts and progressive time delay on the disruptive behavior of students with autism. Journal of Behavioral Education, 8(2), 171–201.

Johnson-Gros, K. N., Lyons, E. A., & Griffin, J. R. (2008). Active supervision: An intervention to reduce high school tardiness. Education and Treatment of Children, 31(1), 39–53.

Kalis, T. M., Vannest, K. J., & Parker, R. (2007). Praise counts: Using self-monitoring to increase effective teaching practices. Preventing School Failure, 51(3), 20–27.

Moore Partin, T. C., Robertson, R. E., Maggin, D. M., Oliver, R. M., & Wehby, J. H. (2010). Using teacher praise and opportunities to respond to promote appropriate student behavior. Preventing School Failure, 54(3), 172–178.

Special Connections (n.d.). Event recording. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from http://www.specialconnec- tions.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat=assessment&section=main&subsection=ddm/ event

Wheatley, R. K., West, R. P., Charlton, C. T., Sanders, R. B., Smith, T. G., & Taylor, M. J. (2009). Improving behavior through differential reinforcement: A praise note system for elementary school students. Education and Treatment of Children, 32(4), 551–571.

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Measuring Behavior Interval Recording

H

H What a STAR Sheet is… A STAR (STrategies And Resources) Sheet provides you with a description of a well-researched strategy that can help you solve the case studies in this unit.

What It Is Interval recording is a method of documenting whether a behavior occurred during a brief time periods (e.g., 10 seconds), refered to as intervals. At the end of each of these intervals, the observer records whether or not a behavior has occurred. There are two types of interval recording:

• Whole-interval recording – yields data on the total duration of the behavior. When utilizing whole-interval recording, an observer indicates whether the behavior occurred for the entire interval.

Example: A student worked on an assignment for an entire thirty-second interval.

• Partial-interval recording – yields data on the proportion of the observation period that the behavior occurred. When utilizing partial-interval recording, an observer indicates whether the behavior oc-curred at any point during the time interval.

Example: A student worked on an assignment for fifteen seconds of a thirty-second interval.

What the Research and Resources Say • Interval recording is used for continuous behaviors or for those behaviors whose onset and end are difficult

to distinguish because the behaviors occur at such high rates (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007; Special Connections, n.d.).

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THE

IRIS CENTER

STAR Sheet H

 

 

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The table below highlights research using both whole- and partial-interval recording.

Tips for Implementation • Consider using a prompt to signal the beginning and end of intervals, such as:

◦ Audio recording with beeps (headphones should be used!) ◦ Electronic device that vibrates ◦ Cellphone apps

• To use the interval recording method, use the steps outlined below: 1. Schedule the observation period at times during which the behavior is most likely tooccur. Typically,

observations last between ten minutes and an hour, although it is more accu-rate and less burdensome to use shorter periods.

2. Divide the observation period into equal intervals. These intervals are usually between five and fifteen seconds long. a. Whole interval: Record with an “x,” plus sign, or check-mark if the behavior occurred throughout

the duration of the interval (e.g., if using ten-second intervals, the behaviormust last the entire ten seconds). If the behavior did not occur for the entire interval, then record the nonoccurrence of the behavior with a minus sign or 0.

b. Partial interval: Record with an “x,” plus sign, or check-mark if the behavior occurred at any point during the interval (e.g., if using ten-second intervals, the behavior mustoccur at least once during that particular interval). If the behavior did not occur during the interval, record the nonoccurrence of the behavior with a minus sign or 0.

3. Count the number of intervals during which the behavior occurred. Divide this number by the total number of intervals and multiply by 100 to determine the percentage of intervals during which the behavior occurred.

Behavior Studied Type of DataMeasurement Interval Length Citation

On task: Sitting at desk, working on assignment quietly, asking for help appropriately

Whole interval 30 second Wood, Umbreit, Liaupsin, & Gresham, 2007

Appropriate play with computers, books, toys; passivity; stereotypical behaviors

Whole interval 5 second Longano & Greer, 2006

Off-task behavior Partial interval 5 second

Tincani, Ernsbarger, Harri- son, & Heward, 2005

Problem behaviors: Verbal refusal statements, aggression, destruction Partial interval 10 second

Peterson. Frieder, Smith, Quigley, & Van Norman, 2009

On task: Sitting in seat; eye contact while talking to teacher Partial interval 10 second

Haydon, Mancil, & Van Loan, 2009

Teacher behaviors: Disciplinary actions Partial interval 10 second

Grskovic, Hall, Montgomery, Vargas, Zentall, & Belfiore 2004

 

 

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Interval Recording Form

Student: Merrit Date: 9/26/XX Class/ Teacher: Ms. Knowles Observer: Mr. Fisk Time/ Length of Observation: 10 mins. Length of Interval: 10 secs. Target Behavior: Merrit engages in off-task behavior (e.g., daydreaming, walks around classroom during independent seatwork)

Codes: Example: √ or + for occurence of behavior; 0 or — for non-occurence of behavior

Interval Behavior Interval Behavior Interval Behavior Interval Behavior

1 ✓ 16 ✓ 31 O 46 ✓ 2 ✓ 17 ✓ 32 O 47 O 3 O 18 O 33 ✓ 48 ✓ 4 O 19 O 34 ✓ 49 ✓ 5 ✓ 20 ✓ 35 O 50 ✓ 6 O 21 O 36 ✓ 51 O 7 ✓ 22 ✓ 37 ✓ 52 O 8 O 23 ✓ 38 O 53 ✓ 9 ✓ 24 ✓ 39 O 54 ✓ 10 ✓ 25 O 40 ✓ 55 O 11 O 26 O 41 O 56 O 12 O 27 ✓ 42 O 57 O 13 ✓ 28 ✓ 43 O 58 O 14 O 29 ✓ 44 ✓ 59 ✓ 15 O 30 O 45 ✓ 60 O

TOTAL

%

30

50 5

.5

60 30 x 1

00 50

 

 

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• Only one behavior at a time should be observed when using whole-interval recording, due to the necessity of observing during the entire interval. Multiple behaviors can be observed during partial-interval recording because an observer only has to document whether a behavior occurred at all during an interval.

• If an observer is not sure whether the behavior occurred (e.g., a student walks behind a bookshelf or room divider where he or she cannot be seen), the inability to observe should be documented on the observation form, rather than attempting to guess what is occurring.

• Because whole-interval recording requires the observer’s constant attention, it can be difficult too bserve and record simultaneously. When using whole-interval recording, you might need to alternate intervals during which you observe and record (e.g., observe for ten seconds, record for five second, observe for ten seconds, record for five seconds). This gives you time to record your observation before the next observation interval. (Note: Whole-interval recording is not practical if the teacher is the observer.

Keep In Mind • Interval recording provides an estimate of behavior.

◦ Whole-interval recording typically underestimates the overall duration of the behavior because if a behavior occurs—but not for the entire interval—it is not recorded or documented as occurring.

◦ Partial-interval recording typically overestimates the overall duration and underestimates the rate of the behavior because if a behavior occurs multiple times during an interval, it is still documented as occurring only once.

The graphic below illustrates this tendency.

• If you need an accurate measure of the rate of behavior, event recording should be used. Interval recording does not provide this type of data.

• The shorter the intervals, the more accurate the recording.

Whole- Interval

Recording

Partial- Interval

Recording

Time

Duration of the

Behavior

behavior occurrencebehavior non-occurrence

0

0 1 0 0 0 0

1 1 1 1 0 1

17%

47%

83%

5 10 15 20 25 30 min.

3 min. 8 min.

10 min.3 min. 3 min. 3 min.

 

 

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Resources Alberto , P. A., & Troutman, A. C. (2006). Applied behavior analysis for teachers (7th ed.). Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Pearson.

Baer, D. M., Harrison, R., Fradenburg, L., Petersen, D., & Milla, S. (2005). Some pragmatics in the valid and reliable recording of directly observed behavior. Research on Social Work Practice, 15(6), 440-451.

Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2007). Applied behavior analysis (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Grskovic, J., Hall, A. M., Montgomery, D. J., Vargas, A. U., Zentall, S. S., & Belfiore, P. J. (2004). Reducing time-out assignments for students with emotional/behavioral disorders in a self-contained classroom. Journal of Behavioral Education, 13(1), 25–36.

Haydon, T., Mancil, G. R., & Van Loan, C. (2009). Using opportunities to respond in a general education classroom: A case study. Education and Treatment of Children, 32(2), 267–278.

Longano, J. M., & Greer, R. D. (2006). The effects of stimulus-stimulus pairing procedure on acquisition of conditioned reinforcement on observing and manipulating stimuli by young children with autism. Journal of Early and Intensive Behavior Intervention, 3(1), 62–80.

Peterson, S. M., Frieder, J. E., Smith, S. L., Quigley, S. P., & Van Norman, R. K. (2009). The effects of varying quality and duration of reinforcement on mands to work, mands for break, and problem behav- ior. Education and Treatment of Children, 32(4), 605–630.

Special Connections. (n.d.). Partial interval recording. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from http://www. specialconnections.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat=assessment&section=main& subsection=ddm/partial.

Special Connections. (n.d.). Whole interval recording. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from http://www. specialconnections.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat=assessment&section=main& subsection=ddm/whole

Tincani, M., Ernsbarger, S. C., Harrison, T. J., & Heward, W. L. (2005). The effects of fast and slow-paced teaching on participation, accuracy, and off-task behavior of children in the Language for Learning program. Journal of Direct Instruction, 5, 97–109.

Wood, B. K., Umbreit, J., Liaupsin, C. J., & Gresham, F. M. (2007). A treatment integrity analysis of function-based intervention. Education and Treatment of Children, 30(4), 105–120.

 

 

H

H What a STAR Sheet is… A STAR (STrategies And Resources) Sheet provides you with a description of a well-researched strategy that can help you solve the case studies in this unit.

Measuring Behavior Duration Recording

What it is… Duration recording is a method of documenting how long a student engages in a specified behavior.

What the Research and Resources Say… • Duration recording is appropriate for behaviors that have a distinct beginning and end or for those that

occur at such high rates that it would be difficult to get an accurate frequency count (e.g., number of taps during pencil-, finger- or toe-tapping) (Alberto & Troutman, 2006; Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007).

• The table below highlights research using duration recording.

Tips for Implementation • Consider using a digital stopwatch to increase the accuracy of duration recording. A wall clock or

wristwatch can be used but may not be as accurate. • To use the duration-recording method, follow the steps below:

1. When the behavior begins, start the stopwatch. 2. When the behavior ends, stop the stopwatch. 3. Record the length of time that the behavior occurred. 4. Repeat the above steps until the end of the observation period. 5. Calculate the total duration by adding the duration of each episode during the observation period.

(Note: Some digital stopwatches will automatically calculate the total time.)

Behavior Studied Citation On-task: Looking at the assignment, writing and asking questions related to the topic, using assigned materials, and following teacher directions

Ramsey, Jolivette, Patterson, & Kennedy, 2010

Compliance to task demands Wehby & Hollahan, 2000

Academic writing tasks Athens, Vollmer, & St. Peter Pipkin, 2007

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STAR Sheet H THE

IRIS CENTER

 

 

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STAR Strategy Duration Recording Form

Student: __________________________ Date: _____________________________

Class/ Teacher: _____________________ Observer: __________________________

Time/ Length of Observation: _____________________________________________

Behavior: _____________________________________________________________

Time Start Time End Duration

Example (digital stopwatch) 00:00 04:27 4 minutes, 27 seconds

Example (wall clock) 8:30 08:57 7 minutes

TOTAL/ AVERAGE

Additional comments:

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• Video or audio recordings may be used to collect duration data—and viewed or listened to later—if it is impractical to collect duration data during class.

• Consider collecting frequency data for the target behavior in combination with duration data to provide a more accurate picture of the student’s behavior. It is quite different for a student to engage in five episodes of screaming that last ten minutes each than to engage in one episode that lasts fifty-five minutes.

Keep In Mind • You might also want to report duration data in terms of the average duration per observation period (total

duration / number of occurrences) if the observation period is consistent. For example, the stu-dent has five minutes at the end of a class each day to work on his homework. The student works on his homework for a total of fifteen minutes across five days. To calculate the average duration the student worked on his homework, divide fifteen minutes by five days. The average is three minutes.

• If the observation periods vary in length (e.g., the class has twenty minutes in the library the first week of the month and fifteen minutes the second week of the month), the percentage of time the student engaged in the behavior can be calculated by dividing the total minutes of the behavior’s duration (e.g., 20 minutes) by the number of minutes in the observation period (e.g., 60 minutes) and multiply-ing by 100.

Total minut

es eng aged in

behav ior

Total minute

s obs erved

20 60

33% of time

engage d in ta

rget

behavio r

= .333 X 100

= 33 %

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Resources Alberto , P. A., & Troutman, A. C. (2006). Applied behavior analysis for teachers (7th ed.). Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Pearson.

Athens, E. S., Vollmer, T. R., & St. Peter Pipkin, C. C. (2007). Shaping academic task engagement with percentile schedules. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 40, 475–488.

Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2007). Applied behavior analysis (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Special Connections. (n.d.). Duration recording. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from http://www. specialconnections.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat=assessment&section=main& subsection=ddm/duration

Ramsey, M. L., Jolivette, K., Patterson, D. P., & Kennedy, C. (2010). Using choice to increase time on task, task completion, and accuracy for students with emotional/ behavior disorders in a residential facility. Education and Treatment of Children, 33(1), 1–21.

Watson, T. S., & Steege, M. W. (2003). Conducting school-based functional behavior assessments: A practitioner’s guide. Guilford Press: NY.

Wehby, J. H., & Hollahan, M. S. (2000). Effects of high-probability requests on the latency to initiate academic tasks. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 33, 259–262.

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Measuring Behavior Latency Recording

H

H What a STAR Sheet is… A STAR (STrategies And Resources) Sheet provides you with a description of a well-researched strategy that can help you solve the case studies in this unit.

What It Is Latency recording is a method of documenting the time between when a direction is given and when the student complies.

What the Research and Resources Say • Latency recording is appropriate when the teacher wants to measure how much time passes between when

an instruction, cue, or prompt is provided and the behavior begins or ends (Cooper, Heron, & Heward, 2007; Special Connections, n.d.).

• The table below highlights research using latency recording.

Tips for Implementation • Consider using a digital stopwatch to increase the accuracy of latency recording. A wall clock or wrist

watch can be used if a digital stopwatch is unavailable. • To use the latency recording method, follow the steps below:

1. Start the stopwatch when the prompt, directive, or instruction is provided. 2. Stop the stopwatch when student complies. 3. Record the number of seconds or minutes that elapsed between the end of the direction and the onset

of the compliance. 4. Repeat the above steps until the end of the observation period. 5. Calculate the average latency of the behavior by dividing the total latency (e.g., 60 seconds) by the

number of occurences (e.g., 3 directions).

Behavior studied Citation

Time delay between a statement/question and the student’s attempt to communicate

Mancil, Conroy, Nakao, & Alter, 2006

Lapse between instructions and compliance with task Lee et al., 2006

Time delay between being shown a word and pronouncing it Bosman, Gompel, Vervloed, & Van Bon, 2006

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Latency Recording Form

Student: ___________________________ Date: ______________________________

Class/ Teacher: ______________________ Observer: ___________________________

Time/ Length of Observation: ______________________________________________

Behavior: ______________________________________________________________

Time of request or cue Time behavior was initiated Latency

Examples (regular clock) 11: 30 am (digital stopwatch) 00:00

11:35 am 05:49

5 minutes 5 minutes, 49 seconds

TOTAL/AVERAGE

Additional comments:

Total Latenc

y

Numbe r of

Occur ences

60

=

20

3

Averag e laten

cy is 2 0 secs

.

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Keep In Mind • When calculating average latency, it is easier to convert minutes to seconds. After you’ve performed your

calculations, you can convert the data back into minutes if you prefer.

Resources Bosman, A., Gompel, M., Vervloed, M., & Van Bon, W. (2006). Low vision affects the reading process

quantitatively but not qualitatively. Journal of Special Education, 39(4), 208–219.

Cooper, J. O., Heron, T. E., & Heward, W. L. (2007). Applied behavior analysis (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ.

Lee, D. L., Belfiore, P. J., Ferko, D., Hua, Y., Carranza, M., & Hildebrand, K. (2006). Using pre and post low-p latency to assess behavioral momentum: A preliminary investigation. Journal of Behavioral Education, 15, 203–214.

Mancil, G. R., Conroy, M. A., Nakao, T., & Alter, P. J. (2006). Functional communication training in the natural environment: A pilot investigation with a young child with autism spectrum disorder. Education and Treatmentof Children, 29(4), 615–633.

Special Connections. (n.d.). Latency recording. Retrieved December 1, 2009, from http://www.specialcon- nections.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat=assessment&section=main&subsection=ddm/ latency

27http://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.eduhttp://iris.peabody.vanderbilt.edu

Crimes That Harm Business Versus Crimes Committed By Business

/in /by

PLEASE DO DISCUSSION BELOW AND REPLY TO EDWARD AND QUENTIN:

DISCUSSION:

Which do you believe presents the greatest threat to civil society: a  corporation that commits crimes (e.g., murder, environmental crimes, or  bribery), or persons who commit crimes that harm businesses (e.g.,  embezzlement, fraud, or larceny)? Defend your response, using at least  one example from current events.

Guided Response: Respond to at least two of your  fellow students’ posts in a substantive manner. Some ways to do this  include the following, though you may choose a different approach,  providing your response is substantive:
Review the posts made  by your peers.   In response to your peers, first identify a  non-traditional or creative way in which a corporation might be punished  for committing a crime. Then discuss the consequences of implementing  that punishment to the example used by your peer.

REPLY TO EDWARD:

 

I believe that the individuals who commit crimes against the business  present a higher threat to society, because they are tampering with the  products and services that are sold to consumers. This can cause  businesses to spike their prices and put customers information at risk  of getting used such as their banking information. A lot of identity  theft and computer hacking has been going on lately where companies’  financial system gets broken into and all the customers get their credit  card and checking account information stolen. Most of these individuals  picked up computer tampering skills through information technology by  way of school and on their job.

Some would even believe that people who kill, rob, and conduct  unlawful sexual acts are the ones who spend years in prison because they  are violent crimes. However, nonviolent crimes such as fraud can be  considered a “first-degree felony: Punishable by death or imprisonment  from 15 years to life, or by a fine of up to $250,000” (Seaquist, 2012,  p. 6.2). About 2 months ago, there was an Equifax breach that uncovered  millions of consumers identity and fiscal information. “That means that  the personal information— Social Security numbers, credit card numbers,  addresses, driver’s license numbers, and birth dates—of roughly half of  the U.S. population was likely compromised.” (Grau, 2017, p. 16). The  victims of these crimes get their bank accounts wiped out and their  credit ruined, making it hard for them to survive.

References

Grau, D. (2017). Equifax was hacked. Now what? Journal of financial planning, 30(11), 16-19.

Seaquist, G. (2012). Business law for managers. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/ (Links to an external site.)

REPLY TO QUENTIN:

 

Crime  is one thing that has always been and probably will always be. Seaquist  defined crime as “A wrong as defined by state or federal statute”  (Seaquist, 2012, Glossary). Crime is categorized into three separate  classes: felonies, misdemeanors, and violations. Crime has existed in  civil life and business life. To answer the question as to which is the  greatest threat, I would say that crime committed by businesses ranks  highest. Business crimes include fraud of any kind, electronic hacking,  murder, embezzlement, bribes, and business larceny, money laundering,  etc. to name a few. The reason as to which business crimes are greater  in intensity is because they affect more people. People who commit  crimes, once caught, will be reprimanded for their actions and the  crimes will more than likely cease, although the effects are still  evident and have to be resolved. The crimes end up costing businesses  extra money due to fraud. The government is able to investigate these  crimes and punish as the law permits. Although no company is exempt from  this type of crime, but companies can be proactive and maintain a  strong controls department and proper training to identify fraud.

Caterpillar, heavy machinery maker, did not fully comply with the tax  and finance reporting of the USA. They failed to report their profits  of close to 8 billion from Switzerland but rather reported them as  loans. The result was “Caterpillar shares were down 3% in premarket  trading following The Times’ report” (Oyedele, 2017, para. 6). Tax  evasion and fraud seem to be one of the most common crimes by  individuals and companies, maybe for the ease of it. Who knows!

Oyedele, A. (2017). Caterpillar slides following a report that accused it of tax and accounting fraud. Business Insider. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/caterpillar-tax-accounting-fraud-law-report-2017-3

Seaquist, G. (2012). Business law for managers [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu/