Article Citation:
Keith C. Radley,
Evan H. Dart, and
Roderick D. O'Handley (
2016) The Quiet Classroom Game: A Class-Wide Intervention to Increase Academic Engagement and Reduce Disruptive Behavior. School Psychology Review: March 2016, Vol. 45, No. 1, pp. 93-108.
General Issue
The Quiet Classroom Game: A Class-Wide Intervention to Increase Academic Engagement and Reduce Disruptive Behavior
Keith C. Radley ,
Evan H. Dart , and
Roderick D. O'Handley
The University of Southern Mississippi
Please address correspondence regarding this article to Keith C. Radley, Department of Psychology, University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Dr, Ste 5025, Hattiesburg, MS, 39406; e-mail:
Article accepted by previous Editor
Keith C. Radley is an assistant professor in the School Psychology Program at the University of Southern Mississippi. His research focuses on the application of behavioral interventions to address classroom behavior and social skills.
Evan H. Dart is an assistant professor in the School Psychology Program at the University of Southern Mississippi. His research focuses on peer-mediated behavioral interventions and school-based consultation tactics.
Roderick D. O'Handley is a graduate student in the School Psychology Program at the University of Southern Mississippi. His research interests include compliance training, social skills training, and treatment integrity in applied settings.
Associate Editor: Amanda VanDerHeyden
The current study investigated the effectiveness of the Quiet Classroom Game, an interdependent group contingency using an iPad loaded with a decibel meter app, for increasing academically engaged behavior. Three first-grade classrooms in the southeastern United States, identified as displaying high levels of noise and disruptive behavior, were included in the study. A multiple-baseline design with an embedded ABAB condition sequence was used to evaluate the effect of implementation of the Quiet Classroom Game on academically engaged behavior, disruptive behavior, and classroom decibel level. Implementation of the intervention resulted in large increases in academically engaged behavior, moderate to large reductions in disruptive behavior, and large decreases in classroom noise. Results of social validity checklists administered to teachers and students indicated acceptability and utility of the intervention. Findings of the study suggest that the Quiet Classroom Game may be an effective method for increasing the academically engaged behavior and decreasing the noise and disruptive behavior of first-grade students in a general-education setting.
Received: June 17, 2014; Accepted: January 12, 2015;
Copyright 2016 by the National Association of School Psychologists