Incredible Years teaching programme gets results

‘Positive Classrooms, Positive Children’ a new research report shows the Incredible Years (IY) Teacher Classroom Management programme can have a positive impact on how teachers cope with behaviour problems in Irish classrooms.

'Positive Classrooms, Positive Children’ is the second report from the Incredible Years Ireland Study a national evaluation of the Incredible Years Series in Ireland commissioned by Archways and led by NUI, Maynooth. The report will be launched by Prof. Tom Collins, President NUI Maynooth, on Tuesday March 1st in the Clock Tower, Dept. Of Education and Skills, Marlborough Street, Dublin. Also speaking at the launch will be: Noreen Flynn, Vice President of the Irish National Teacher Organisation; Gerry Murphy, Deputy President of the Irish Primary Principals Network; and Dr. Sinead McGilloway, Principal Investigator, Incredible Years Ireland Study, NUI Maynooth.

Irish classrooms have seen a steady increase in social, emotional and behavioural issues. Without adequate intervention, research indicates these behaviours can lead to academic failure, early school leaving, and a cycle of antisocial behaviour which can continue into the teenage and adult years.  However, practical training in classroom management, of the sort recommended by the OECD, can help to alleviate and eliminate these difficulties. The use of such proven classroom strategies has, therefore become centrally important for those who work with children in Ireland.

The IY Teacher Classroom Management programme is a proven and empirically supported intervention designed to support teachers, strengthen their behaviour management strategies, promote children's positive behaviour and school readiness whilst also reducing conduct problems in the classroom. Additionally the programme focuses on ways teachers can effectively work with parents to support home-school cooperation.

This report found that the teachers who took part in the research felt the programme was effective, easy to implement and led to an improvement in classroom atmosphere. Teachers who participated in the evaluation reported a reduction in disruptive behaviour, and felt that the programme benefited the relationship between home and school. Moreover these teachers also reported a significant decrease in children’s emotional symptoms and significantly reduced their negative classroom management strategies (e.g. threats, shouting). Teachers also noted a significant reduction in the level of stress they experienced. Overall teachers felt that the IY TCM programme helped to create more relaxed, manageable and positive classroom environments and a better learning experience for children.

Aileen O’Donoghue, CEO of Archways, said: “This research shows that the Incredible Years Teacher Classroom Management is a highly effective programme for teachers in Irish classrooms. There is an increasing need for programmes that provide support to teachers to deal with social, emotional and behavioural problems in the classroom. Hundreds of teachers have already accessed TCM training through Archways and we hope that more get the support they need through the provision of proven and cost effective programmes like Incredible Years.”

Archways is a national organisation promoting and researching the use of evidence based programmes as an intervention for children and young people experiencing social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD). The organisation was established in 2007 to promote the roll out and evaluation of the Incredible Years (IY) series in Ireland. The team in Archways work closely with other service providers, parents, carers and teachers to enable them to meet the needs of these children and young people.

The Incredible Years (IY) Teacher Classroom Managment programme is a group-based programme developed by Prof. Carolyn Webster-Stratton in the University of Washington, USA. The programme is guided by the principles of behavioural and social-learning theory. The Teacher training programme comprises 6 full-day workshops at 3-4 week intervals during the school year and is delivered by two trained facilitators. The 3-4 week interval between each teacher training day provides teachers with an opportunity to implement new classroom management strategies and to practice/try out any new skills learned.

Read about research options in NUI Maynooth.