Premack+Principle

The ‘Premack Principle’ or ‘Grandma’s Rule’ can be used to motivate students to complete set work that they find uninteresting, undesirable or difficult. Most people have heard of the saying “if you eat your vegetables then you can have dessert”, however this idea can also be applied to an educational setting. The key principle is that activities an individual enjoys to do can be used contingently as positive reinforcers for activities that they find to be less pleasurable (Krause, Bochner, Duchsne & McMaugh, 2010). This strategy can be used with all students of any age, but may be particularly useful with additional needs students that have behavioural issues, such as ADHD. According to the National Institute of Mental Health (2011) children with ADHD often have difficulty remaining focused on tasks and can become easily distracted unless they are doing something that they find enjoyable. For this reason, the idea of completing a task that a student likes directly after tasks that they do not enjoy may be enough of an incentive to spur them on and help them to remain on task. According to Krause, Bochner, Duchsne & McMaugh (2010) this strategy can also increase the consistency of their performance on these unenjoyable tasks. However, for this strategy to be implemented successfully, the reasons for the reward must be clearly explained to students (Foreman, 2008).
 * __Appling the Premack Principle as a form of reinforcement in the classroom __**

This strategy is a type of reinforcement, as the activities individuals enjoy can be given or taken away depending on their behaviour. However, as stated by Krause, Bochner, Duchsne & McMaugh (2010), it may be beneficial that students with an intellectual disabilities are given primary reinforcers, such as food, as they are effective in establishing new behaviours rapidly. In this case the food or activity they enjoy can then be paired with a secondary reinforcer, such as praise and attention, so that eventually the praise alone becomes an effective reinforcer in increasing the likelihood of positive behaviour occurring (Krause, Bochner, Duchsne & McMaugh, 2010).

**__References __**
 * Foreman (2008). //Inclusion in action: second edition.// Centage Learning, Melbourne, Victoria.
 * Krause, K., Bochner, S., Duchesne, S., & McMaugh, A. (2010). Educational Psychology: For Learning & Teaching (3rded). Melbourne, Victoria. Cengage Learning Australia Pty Limited.
 * National Institute of Mental Health: Transforming the understanding and treatment of mental illnesses through research (2011). Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Retrieved from http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder/complete-index.shtml