MANUAL

RESEARCH PROJECT

B.Ed (1.5 Year / 2.5 Year)

Course Code: 8613
Name: Iqra Riaz

Roll No: BZ642842

Registration No: 13PMH06029

Semester: Autumn 2020

Region: DG khan

Theme: Promoting children's well being

Sub-theme: Self control

Topic: Self-control in children for promoting well-being among 5th grade

students
 COURSE TEAM

Chairman: Prof. Dr. Nasir Mahmood

Dean / Chairman
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
Course Coordinator: Dr. Syed Nasir Hussain
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
Members:
1. Dr. FazalurRehman
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
2. Dr. Muhammad Athar Hussain
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
3. Dr. RahmatUllah Bhatti
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
4. Dr. Syed Nasir Hussain
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
5. Ms. MubesheraTufail
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
6. Mr. Salman Khalil
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
Reviewers: 1. Dr. FazalurRehman
Early Childhood Education and Elementary Teacher Education
Department
2. Dr. Afshan Huma
Educational Planning, Policy Studies and Leadership Department
3. Dr. Tanvir Afzal
Secondary Teacher Education Department
4. Dr. Muhammad Zafar Iqbal Mir
Secondary Teacher Education Department
Editor:

Designer:

Composing:
 1. Course Description

Pre-service teacher education in Pakistan has been criticized for being heavily content-ridden

on the cost of ignoring practical aspect. No doubt, theoretical knowledge should be linked with

classroom practices to make the teacher education programs more effective. The Higher

Education Commission Pakistan suggested some radical changes in the teacher education

programs. In wake of the transformation, Allama Iqbal Open University is trying to equip its

student-teachers with skills based on practical works under the supervisions of experienced and

highly qualified teachers. Research Project is one of such offerings to the students which will

provide them some basic skills for being an effective classroom teacher. It is designed to

provide them with critical approach, scientific attitude and reflective thinking. In the previous

semesters, the students were offered ‘Research Methods in Education’, ‘Critical Thinking and

Reflective Practices’ and ‘Teaching Practice-I’. The experiences from these courses will help

the students to build their narrative and complete this research project.

We have already learnt that action research is a way of solving local problems by adopting

steps of scientific method. It is not uncommon that a teacher faces many problems of different

nature during teaching and at workplace. Action research provides more valid and reliable

solutions of the problems faced by them at classroom and institution level. So, mastering action

research can be an important step in becoming a more effective teacher. Keeping in view the

importance of action research in the professional life of the teachers, universities of the

developed countries have made action research a part of teacher education programs. For

setting higher standards of pre-service teacher education in Pakistan, Allama Iqbal Open

University has also made it mandatory for B.Ed students to conduct an action research and

write a report. As action research targets learning teaching through researching teaching and

based on some practical work, it provides an opportunity to change student-teachers’ beliefs

based on practical experiences. It will help the students understand how scientific method is

used to solve classroom problems.

One the most important considerations in action research is ‘context’ – that’s why we are not

bothered about the generalization of the results. It is conducted in the context of the researcher

and the problem relates to the personal context. The critical question of an action research is

mostly narrated in personal pronoun i.e. ‘I’ and ‘My’. For example, “How can I improve

reading skills at primary level?” or “How can my teaching develop higher order thinking among

students at elementary level?” Sticking to one’s own context provides another benefit. It

provides an insight into the classroom and the institutional practices as a whole. The other

major consideration of Action Research is the ‘reflection’ of the student-teacher. Action

research at this level should be something meaningful to a student-teacher – lessons which can

be carried with as a professional teacher to make you a wiser, smarter and more effective

teacher. Once a student-teacher gets through action research, he/she gets to know and handle a

scientific method to solve his/her professional problems rather than always looking for trial

and error method.

2. Course Learning Outcomes

At the end of the course, the student-teacher will be able to:

● Identify an educational problem within the classroom / institution

● Review the literature related to the identified problem

● Develop a scientific plan to solve it

● Execute an intervention to achieve the objectives

● Collect data about the problem with the help of a research instrument

● Analyze the data

 ● Draw conclusions based on the analysis of the collected data

● Use APA manual in writing and formatting a research report

3. Introduction to Research Project

The purpose of research project is to engage student-teachers in action research process. Action

research helps student-teachers to begin a cycle of posing questions, gathering data, reflection,

and deciding on a course of action. Research project helps to understand a particular problem

or phenomenon along with strengthening their comprehension of research process. They

discover first-hand knowledge about (a) how the steps of the research process are interlinked,

(b) develop an understanding and appreciation of how knowledge evolves, and (c) adds a

contribution to the existing body of knowledge.

The purpose of action research project is either to solve a problem or to improve a practice in

education within local settings. The output of an action research project may provide immediate

solution to a problem at classroom or school level.

What is NOT an action research?

● Action research is not a library project where we theoretically learn about a topic that

interests us.

● Action research is not an attempt of trying to find out what is wrong; rather it is a quest

for knowledge about how to improve a particular practice/situation.

● Action research is not about doing research on or about people, or finding all available

information on a topic looking for the correct answers. Action research involves people

working to improve their skills, techniques, and strategies.

 ● Action research is not about learning why we do certain things. But it is about how we

can do things better. It is about how we can change our instruction to impact students’

learning.

Selection of Topic

The Dean, Faculty of Education will provide a theme and a set of sub-themes. The Director

Regional Services will disseminate this list to all regional centers and the concerned Regional

Director will be responsible to convey it to all supervisors at the time or before the workshop

of the course ‘Research Project’. This practice will be followed every semester as for each

semester new theme and the sub-themes will be provided by the Dean, Faculty of Education.

The selection of the sub-theme – the topic of the research project for each student is up to the

mutual understanding of the student and his/her supervisor. The supervisor is responsible to

give almost equal weightage to each sub-theme. It means that if a supervisor is going to

supervise the work of 25 students and there are 08 sub-themes given, every sub-theme should

be selected by at least 03 students. In simple words, divide the number of students by the

number of sub-themes; and in this way, equal weightage to each sub-theme should be ensured.

Writing Project Report

You must consider the following points at the time of writing your project report:

● Write you report concise and brief. You are supposed to write your report on the given

space as it is not permitted to attach extra sheets by your own.

● The report must be written in English language ONLY. A report written in any language

other than English will be awarded zero marks.

● Do not copy your report from some other student. If two or more reports are found to

be similar, all such reports will be awarded zero marks.

 ● If you are already a practicing teacher, use your classroom to conduct this action

research. And if you are not a teacher, you can conduct your research during Teaching

Practice-II (CC-8608).

Dear student
You are required towriteyour response on the given blank space ONLY in the manual
issued by the department. Write brief and concise; keep in view the space specified for
a particular portion. Don’t use extra sheets. Only handwritten responses will be
accepted. Don’t write in any language other than English.

DECLARATION
(To be filled and signed by the student and retained by the Controller of Examination)

I _Sumaya Akhtar_ Daughter of _Muhammad Akhtar__

Roll No. __BY673481___ Registration No. __13PMH01690__, a student of B.Ed Program

(1.5 Year / 2.5 Year) at Allama Iqbal Open University do hereby declare that the research

project entitled ___Self-control in children for promoting well being__ submitted by me in

partial fulfillment of B.Ed (1.5 Year / 2.5 Year) program is my original work and has not been

submitted or published earlier. I also solemnly declare that it shall not, in future, be submitted

for obtaining any other degree from this or any other university or institution.

I also understand the zero tolerance policy against plagiarism of the university and the

HEC and if my work is found to be plagiarized or copied from someone other’s work at any

stage, even after the award of the degree, the work may be cancelled and the degree confiscated.

_________________________________
(Signature of the Student)
Date: _25-02-2021_ ______Sumaya Akhter_______
(Day-Month-Year) (Name of the Student)

Name of the School(where the action research was conducted):

_________________________________________________________________________

Overall background of the participants of the project; area / school: (socio-economic

status, occupation / profession – earning trends of majority of the parents, literacy rate,

academic quality, and any other special trait of the community where the school is

situated)(10 marks)

I selected government girls primary school mochiwala tehsil and district muzaffargarh for

my project. The participant of my research was 5TH Grade students. Before starting my

research it was necessary for me to know the overall background information of the

students. So for this purpose I made a performa to collect the overall background

information of the students.

● Firstly School is situated at the corner of village Mochiwala (Khangarh). This School

is very old. This School offered primary classes.

● SOCHIO-Economic Status /Occupation Profession: I adopted Grade 5in

GGPS Mochiwala (Khangarh).Students with different background lives within this

area, in which poor middle and also upper class included. As a trainee teacher I

observed that every student represent her/his family background .Because each have

different stories I observed that many complications come from different status ,in

same society .

● Occupation/profession and Earning trend: That was a rural area most

people attached with agriculture where 25% parents of the students were attached

agriculture , 5% in teaching profession and 15% were labour and servants etc.2%
 parents were in office and were well educated jobs in army and police department.

Few have their poultry farms and animal farms. Each parenthas different method of

earning .Mostly people grow wheat, cotton and sugar cane crops. Children help their

parents in work.

● Literacy Rate and academic quality: I noted that the literacy rate of the

village it was not so bad. Literacy rate of urban area is 15% but it was good other than

around the village. Parent’s meetings were held in the school then I observed the

literacy rate of the village almost 10% parents were well educated and 5% were

belong to average family and other parents were illiterate. Mostly students’ parents

were Matric pass.

● Special Trait of community: The community where the school is situated, in

which people have good hobbies. Like greenery, plantation, playing cricket and also

playing football. Student and other villager boys participate and then go on high level.

Many people migrate rural to urban areas for children study and career. Some private

schools were present in the areas that provide best education for students.

Theme: Promoting children's well being

Sub-theme: Self control

Topic: Self-control in children for promoting well-being among 5th grade students

_____________________________________________________________________

1. Why did you select this specific sub-theme and topic? Relate it to your experience /

problem in your classroom / institution.(10 marks)

(Give the background and rationale of the study)

Reason behind the selection of sub-theme:

During my experience I deeply noticed that most of the activities are controlled by

one’s own self either these activities involve reading, behaving, learning and even

gaming. Among the students this factor is more common than the adults and elders. I

got an idea that if we could promote self-control among the students of even lower

grade then it may results in improving their all the activities related to self under

controlled level of emotions. Basically everybody has emotions equally but how that

one show those emotions, it matters a lot. So, it’s a great requirement to teach how to

control emotions and this is the only way which may proceed students all the

activities to their great accomplishment even it could enhance their IQ level which

results in high grades achievements.

Reason behind the selection of topic:

As long as my observation concerns, I liked to select average age students for my

research purpose. I selected 5th grade students for my keen observation, because I

think it’s the age at which the minds of a children is” like a slate”, we can write or

erase anything which we want. As a nation builder, a teacher should keep in mind that

his/her student should be proved as a great citizen with all the morals, values and

great achievements, but not only citizen he/she should be a great human as well.

That’s why it’s an important and far most factor to create self-awareness among the

students that they could recognize what’s good or what’sbad. For this purpose they

should have the ability of self-control, when a teacher become able to teach students

how to control their emotions even at the most critical and worst conditions then those

students will become the great human being in future because they have the ability to

do each and everything with great care and thinking instead of being hyper. They will

be mentally as well as physically active and responsive as they avoid hypertension

and know how to overcome it.

 Rather than these students the children who don’t have self-control they are like

destroying asset of a nation without any proper physical factor.

So I selected this specific topic to put forward students towards well-being. I think it’s

a great and most important topic for discussion and should be evaluated for the

improvement of learning behavior of students.

_____________________________________________________________________

2. What was your discussion with your colleague / friend / senior teacher or supervisor

regarding the problem?(05 marks)

(Provide your discussion with your colleague or supervisor for better understanding

of the problem and alternate solutions)

Discussion with Colleagues:

When I selected the topic of my interest, I think over its pros and cons then I was

satisfied about my selection. In order to get more satisfaction I discussed it with my

colleagues named as “Teacher Saima” and “Teacher Rabia”.

Teacher Saima asked me “why I have selected the topic about self control?” I said it’s

a common factor to be discussed and I think it’s an innovative idea so I selected it.

She more said: “Do you think it’s easy to do research on it?” I said its really valuable

question and I know it’s a pretty tough task but I have to work on it because it’s

important to work on it, toughness does not matter for me but the thing matters is that

self-control is to be promoted among students in order to enhance their achevements,

behavior, mental relaxation, well-being, morals and a great human being ranked on

highest progress.

Then Teacher Rabia Said: “No doubt, your passion is appreciated able and I am

totally agreed with your valuable thoughts but what about the parents of the students

in rural areas?
 I said I will organize different awareness campaigns and will do my best to convince

the parents about this topic that how important it is to be promoted among their

children, Moreover I said in this campaign I will need your help as my supporter.

Both of my colleagues agreed with my point of view and wish me more success in

this project.

Discussion with supervisor:

Then I discussed my topic with my supervisor, she said “it’s really innovative idea

and need to be discussed in detail. you must go forward with it”.

No doubt it was a great and valuable discussion.

_____________________________________________________________________

3. What did you find about the problem in the existing literature (books / articles /

websites)? (10 marks)

(Explore books and online resources to know what and how has been already done
regarding this problem)

Psychology Teacher Network | December 2014

Self-control: Teaching students about their greatest inner strength

Share the benefits of effective willpower and discipline with your class.

By Nathan DeWall, PhD

What is self-control?
Self-control is the capacity to override an impulse in order to respond appropriately. We use
self-control when we eat carrots instead of Krispy Kreme donuts, when we forgive instead of
freak out and when we pay attention instead of paying someone short shrift.
Self-control helps us manage motivational conflicts (Baumeister & Vohs, 2007).
A motivational conflict is when motivations clash in ways that prevent action. People
have many motivations, most of which benefit themselves and society. Our motivation to eat
arises out a natural concern to ensure our own survival, whereas the motivation for sexual
 intercourse arises out of a natural concern to pass our genes to the next generation. Motivations
to seek affiliation and to protect ourselves and loved ones from harm also offer examples of
basic, fundamental motivations that promote individual and collective well-being.
Yet, self-control can prevent us from engaging in motivated behaviors. People have natural
motivations to survive by eating, but they use self-control to resist their temptation to eat
unhealthy foods (or not to eat at all). Natural motivations to reproduce through sexual
intercourse must be overridden through the use of self-control in order to follow standards for
appropriate sexual behavior. And motivations to harm transgressors are overridden through
self-control because forgiving others fosters individual, social and cultural well-being.
Self-control has three main parts:
● Monitoring involves keeping track of your thoughts, feelings and actions. In one study, first-
year female college students who weighed themselves every day, compared with those who did
not, were buffered from the typical weight gain that accompanies the first year in college
(Levitsky et al., 2006). The same is true when it comes to our money. Keeping track of how
much we save and spend relates to having more money.
● Standards are guidelines that steer us toward desirable responses. Our standards originate
from society and culture. Think of the speed limit sign that tells you how fast to drive or the
laws that tell you to pay your taxes. Follow the rules, and you’ll be fine. Break the rules, and
there will be consequences. We also have personal standards that govern our behavior. If I have
certain religious beliefs, I might think that it is inappropriate to eat certain foods, think certain
thoughts or feel certain emotions.
● Strength refers to the energy we need to control our impulses. Numerous factors affect our
self-control strength, such as mental exhaustion and stress.
Effective self-control hinges on all three ingredients working together. Without monitoring,
you know what you need to do and have the energy to do it, but you struggle to accomplish
much because you do not keep track of your progress. A world without standards is a recipe
for chaos. And chronically depleted self-control strength can leave people with the knowledge
of what they should do without giving them the energy to do it. Like a three-legged stool, kick
off one self-control ingredient and the odds are that your self-control will topple over.
Why should we study self-control?
It’s easy to sound preachy when we teach students about self-control. They might think they’re
the only ones who struggle to get up in the morning, eat healthy foods or get enough
exerciseSelf-control improves life in three ways:
● Individualwell-being:
Self-control relates to better health. Physically, self-controlled people sleep better, experience
fewer physical sickness symptoms and live longer lives. They also enjoy better mental health.
Self-control relates to lower anxiety and depression. Behaviors that relate to mental health
problems, such as substance use and suicide, are less common among self-controlled people.
● Relationships:
Beyond wealth or good looks, people want self-controlled relationship partners. We want to
spend our lives with people we can trust, who follow through on their promises and who will
override their impulse to leave or lash out when things get tough. Self-controlled people are
forgiving and react to conflict with benevolence rather than violence.
● Societies:
Self-control helps societies flourish. Self-controlled people, compared to their less-controlled
counterparts, earn more money. Not only do self-controlled people enjoy greater wealth, they
behave more generously. They override their selfish impulses and go out of their way to help
others. On a broader level, societies that have clear-cut standards for appropriate behavior tend
to function better than do societies in which people do as they please. Societies also benefit
from monitoring how their citizens behave.
When I teach, I ask students to think of examples of how self-control influences individual,
relationship and societal well-being. Working with a partner, they generate a list of real-world
examples that demonstrate how high and low self-control can help and harm people,
relationships and societies. The good news is that it is easy to improve self-control.
Isn’t self-control the same as IQ?
Sometimes, it is hard to convince students that intelligence and self-control are not two sides
of the same coin. They are related, but they aren’t the same thing. But talk is cheap. Let’s look
at what the scientific data tell us.
In a glorious study, Angela Duckworth and Martin Seligman (2005) recruited a bunch of
adolescent students at the beginning of the school year and asked them to complete measures
of intelligence and self-control. Then Duckworth and Seligman waited… and waited… and
waited some more. At the end of their patient waiting period, Duckworth and Seligman
collected the students’ grade point averages (GPA).
What did they find? Self-control was over twice as important as intelligence in predicting end-
of-year GPA. That’s right: Self-control outdid IQ 2-to-1 in predicting academic achievement.
This result breathes fresh air into students’ lives. IQ often doesn’t budge, but self-control does.
If our students want to get better grades, they need to stop trying to boost their IQ. Their success
depends on how hard they work, how much they persist in the face of failure and how well they
overcome temptation.
Different flavors of self-control
Don’t let students think that self-control is an amorphous blob of goodness. It has many forms
and flavors. One influential model splits impulsivity (self-control’s close sibling) into four
distinct parts:
Urgency is when you act rashly when you feel upset. You might get drunk, engage in risky
sexual behavior or slug your romantic partner. Urgency also has an optimistic twin: positive
urgency — or the tendency to act impulsively when we feel good. Ever wonder why some
people can’t resist the urge to set a car ablaze when their team wins the Super Bowl? Or how a
work promotion causes some people to visit a bar and do things they later regret? That’s
positive urgency.
(Lack of) Premeditation: Ready, shoot, aim — that’s how people who score highly on this
type of impulsivity navigate their environment. To act before we think is a clear path to fizzled
goals.
(Lack of) Perseverance: The 1980s singer Billy Ocean said it best, “When the going gets
tough, the tough get going.” To illustrate, I tell students a story about one of my favorite
lawyers.
Before he became a lawyer, he tried his hand at business. He failed. Forced to declare
bankruptcy, he handed over his last two assets (one of which was a horse). Next, he tried his
hand in politics. Wanting to start small, he campaigned to join his state’s general assembly. He
failed again. Sometime later, he set his sights on higher office: the U.S. Congress. His luck
didn’t change. Three failed attempts later, he switched his focus to the U.S. Senate. But he
came up short again, losing two elections.
Two patterns capture students’ attention. First, this guy appears to delight from failure. Over
and over, he strives to achieve goals that his experience tells him he can’t achieve. That’s where
most people stop. But I encourage students to focus on the second, and more important, part of
the story: his perseverance. Beaten down by repeated financial and political failure, he kept at
it. He remained laser-focused on achieving his goals and overrode his natural impulse to quit.
He showed confidence that someday his efforts would pay off. He was right. He went on to
become the 16th president of the United States, widely regarded as the greatest president of all
time. His name was Abraham Lincoln.
Sensation-seeking : Ever feel driven to do things because they give you a buzz? We all do,
but people high in sensation-seeking behave for the buzz more than others do. Some behaviors
might have disastrous consequences, such as skydiving, base jumping or taking drugs. Other
actions carry risk but immense rewards, such as risking one’s life to explore space and land on
the moon.
PSYCHOLOGISTS

_____________________________________________________________________

4. What were the major variables / construct of your project? Give definitions /

description from literature. (05 marks)

(What are the key terms in your topic or study? what do you mean of these terms?

What particular meaning you will attach to the term when used in this project?)

Motivation of well-being:

People have many motivations, most of which benefit themselves and society. Our

motivation to eat arises out a natural concern to ensure our own survival, whereas the

motivation for sexual intercourse arises out of a natural concern to pass our genes to

the next generation. Motivations to seek affiliation and to protect ourselves and loved

ones from harm also offer examples of basic, fundamental motivations that promote

individual and collective well-being.

Improving grades:
Self-control was over twice as important as intelligence in predicting end-of-year grades.
That’s right: Self-control outdid plays important role in predicting academic achievement.
This result breathes fresh air into students’ lives. IQ often doesn’t budge, but self-control does.
If our students want to get better grades, they need to stop trying to boost their IQ. Their success
depends on how hard they work, how much they persist in the face of failure and how well they
overcome temptation.
Boosting inner strength:
Self control plays important role in order to make someone strong internally as well as
externally.If a person has the ability to control over his/her emotions he/she can compete in any
situation and reamin calm and peaceful mentally as well as socially.

_____________________________________________________________________

5. What did you want to achieve in this research project? (05 marks)

(Objective / purpose of the study; what was the critical question that was tried to be

answered in this project)

Objective of the Study:

What is the key to health, wealth and success?

Many students want to know. But educators sometimes sidestep or ignore these

questions. We don’t want to pigeonhole ourselves as self-help gurus. We focus on

what we know. We doggedly pursue our teaching mission: Provide students with

knowledge and experiences that will help make them well-rounded, informed and

critically thinking adults.

How can students and educators have their cake and eat it, too?

We can teach students about the scientific study of an inner strength that helps them

lead healthy, productive and accomplished lives. We can teach them about self-

control.

During my experience in classrooms, I found many activities of students related to

their uncontrolled emotions. Some of these examples are given below, I observed:

● A student lost his notebook and for this he was shouting on his classmate,

while the classmate doesn’t concern with his notebook.

● A student was mentally upset and remain out of sense during the class, when I

investigated I found her parents quarrel was the reason behind her such

emotions.
 ● Two students got hyper because they could not manage the test timing and

their test was being collected, they got shouted and demanded for extra time

and became angry.

● A student got confused during classroom presentation because other students

were laughing at his small height.

● A student got hyper because another class’s student blamed him for the

mistake committed by himself.

When I observed such an activities at that time I made my mind to work on it and my

objective was to create apeaceful friendly environment where all the student live

like a family and they have courteous discussions with each other so that learning

become an interesting and valuable task for them, In this way they can help each other

in solving their problem with humble discussion and guidance towards goodness. No

doubt it is very important for their well-being so that they may create great social

relations among themselves.

_____________________________________________________________________

6. Who were the participants in your project? (05 marks)

(Give details of the individuals or groups who were focused in this project e.g. the

early-grade students whose handwriting in Urdu was not good or the students of

class VIII who did not have good communication skills)

Participants in my Project:

My research was mainly focused on 5th grade students. So these students were my

participants. There were many categories of the students involved in my research:

● 15% students were those who could not manage their test timing and when test

is collected from them they become hypered.

 ● 50% students were with good enough handwriting and do work on time. But

some of these get emotional on little tasks in classroom.

● 15% students were with passion about to learn and they pick each and every

point discussed in classroom activities but they don’t concern with other

classmate either they are angry or sad.

● 10% students become concentrated towards gaming activities more than class

room activities.

● 5% students were mentally upset due to parent quarrels and had distorted

mental condition but sometime not all the time.

● 5% students were those who compare themselves with other and lose their

emotions on criticism by other class’s students and take stress which lessens

their learning abilities.

_____________________________________________________________________

7. How did you try to solve the problem? (10 marks)

(Narrate the process step-wise. Procedure of intervention and data collection)

basically I want to boost inner strength of children by promoting self-control.

My aim was to solve the problem arising from lack of self-control.

Problem Abstract:

I wanted to solve the problem of uncontrolled emotions among the 5% grade students.

So that once they got full perception about promoting self-control they will get

extraordinary achievements in every field of their life academically, personally as

well as socially.

Observations:

I started to have a look at children’s every activity, and then I observed different

students involving activities showing uncontrolled emotions. For example

● I saw a student was anxious and not responding normally in the class was

this doesn’t happen with other students; I found is there something

controlled over that student’s emotions.

● Another student could not ,manage time during test conduction then he

got shouted when he get zero marks in test instead of admitting his

mistake he blamed on teacher for that and miss behaved due to lack of

self-control.

Data Collection:

In order to find more information about this problem I started data collection.

For this purpose I arranged meeting for parents and discussed the daily

whole-day routine of their children and the whole data I collected, stored in

my laptop in the form of a chart and tables. Then the next day I arranged

interviews of every student making sure in a friendly environment and I do

this through a game activity so that students feel free to discuss about their

habits and issues( it proved very useful ) I collected a lot of information

including the causes of their happiness as well as sadness.

I added this data in my previously collected data.

Then I read different articles related to self-control and picked some points to

apply on my students according to my collected data.

Findings:

My important findings were following:

● Family behavior affects the child’s well being

 ● Parent’s quarrel create stress and anxiety among children

● Inequality among the students by teacher causes the students self-

respect killed and they got out of control.

● Lazy nature causes loss in time management during class room

activities

● The students which have proper time table to follow at home as well

as at school are more advanced towards progress than others who

don’t have any time table to follow.

______________________________________________________________

8. What kind of instrument was used to collect the data? How was the instrument

developed? (05 marks)

(For example: observation, rating scale, interview, student work, portfolio, test, etc.)

I used keen observation and interview the students of both controlled group and

experimental group in order to know how good my observations and my thoughts

about those student’s activities are.

To keep safe all my collected data I also used laptop. I drew some tables and flow

chart diagrams in order to observe student’s activities on daily basis and comparing

them with controlled group students. After complete collection of data I analyzed it by

myself.

According to my collected finding I introduced game activity in classroom to relax

students for some time and it gave me extra ordinary results; it makes the lazy

students active, all the students become responsive during the whole class.
 I suggested them to follow a proper time table in home as well as school activities and

in this way I got good results in their grades. I organized weekly 15 minutes lecture

on self-control and inspiration towards bright future.

_____________________________________________________________________

9. What were the findings and conclusion? (Provide instruments and analysis as
appendix)(10 marks)

My findings were following:

Four ways to improve self-control

Students enjoy learning practical strategies that they can use now. Here are four tips they can
use to improve their self-control.
1. Become a mental energy accountant. Many students plan how they spend their time.
Few students plan how they spend their limited self-control energy. Teach students about
timetable to follow. Encourage students to spend the next week considering what they will
do and how much self-control energy they will need to do it. Being mindful of when to spend
and when to conserve their mental energy will help students navigate their environment and
achieve their goals.
2. Build self-control strength. Self-control relies on an all-purpose energy resource. You
can strengthen your self-control by doing seemingly unrelated self-control tasks. For two
weeks, encourage your students to use their non-dominant hand to complete everyday tasks
(e.g., cleaning, brushing their teeth). Research indicates that this simple exercise increases
self-control in other domains, such as reducing aggression (Denson et al., 2011).
3. Play offense against your environment. In their book “Willpower,” Roy Baumeister
and John Tierney (2011) argue that self-controlled people take control over their
environment. If they’re motivated to lose weight, they do not bring junk food into the house.
If they are driven to write 2,000 words a day, they block their email to prevent distractions.
Encourage students to identify one way they can change their environment to help them
achieve a specific goal. Ask them to implement the change for three days. Later, ask students
 to share their experiences about how the environmental change influenced their ability and
motivation to achieve their goal.
4. Take the mind out of the middle. Self-control hurts because we have to battle against
ourselves. Should I exercise now or later? Should I have zero, one, two or 10 doughnuts? A
solution is to take the mind out of the middle by setting up a mental contract, what
psychologist Peter Gollwitzer and colleagues call implementation intentions (Gollwitzer
& Sheeran, 2006). To achieve an academic goal, students might say, “When I get home from
class, I will read Chapter 5.” Now the decision-making is done. They know when they will
study. It sounds simple, but it works.

Conclusion:
How can psychology educators accomplish our educational mission while also giving students
the practical information that can help them achieve their goals? Self-control might seem
stodgy, but it is our job to show students that self-control will contribute to their success more
than their smarts or family background. Self-control levels the playing field. It puts the keys to
achievement in students’ hands. By showing students what self-control is, how it works and
why it is important, we will provide them with knowledge that can help them achieve their
goals and have happy, productive and meaningful lives.
____________________________________________________________________
10. Summary of the Project(05 marks)
(What and how was the research conducted – main objective, process and findings)

__Self-control can be construed as a competition between two opposing forces: The

motivational force that compels an impulse to be expressed in thought, feeling, or behavior
(impulse strength) versus the person's inner capacity to control impulses (self-control strength).
The strength model of self-control focuses exclusively on the control side of this competition,
and numerous studies have found that exercising self-control temporarily reduces self-control
strength.Exercising self-control also increases impulse strength, with a particular emphasis on
approach-motivated impulse strength. We consider the implications of increased impulse
strength for understanding the ego depletion effect and for the strength model of self-
control._If you have given yourself permission to be reactive for a long time, it will be a
challenge to practice self-control. However, the positive consequences, especially the way you
feel about yourself, will reinforce your efforts. It is important to work toward increasing your
awareness about how you respond and what choices you can make in responding in a more
effective manner. Consider the following steps for achieving self-control.

1.Stop to think
2. Pay attention to how you feel inside and what you need to do to be in the best frame of
mind to make a good choice

3. Decide whether you are losing self-control. In other words, learn and decide on what
appropriate behaviors are

4. Think about your choices

5. Relax and calm yourself

6. Make a choice

7. Do not react to another person’s response

8. Review in your mind whether you made the best choice for you

9. Learn from every experience of practicing self-control.

10. Be honest with yourself and feel good about your efforts.

Empirical Studies
Self-control therapy was first examined in a series of six studies conducted by Rehm and his
colleagues. The first two studies conducted were traditional outcome studies, in which self-
management therapy was compared to a control group. In 1977, C. Fuchs and Rehm randomly
assigned depressed female community volunteers to 6 weeks of self-control therapy,
nonspecific group therapy, or a wait-list control condition. Self-control therapy was found to
be the most effective treatment for alleviating symptoms of depression. In a second study in
1979 Rehm, Fuchs, D. Roth, S. Kornblith, and J. Romano assigned depressed women from the
community to 6 weeks of self-control therapy or a behavioral assertion skills training program.
Self-control therapy was found to be more effective than the assertion skills training program
with regard to improving self-control and reducing symptoms of depression, whereas the
assertion skills training program more effectively improved assertiveness. One year follow-up
data on participants in these two studies, reported by Romano and Rehm in 1979, indicated that
treatment gains were maintained over time. However, differences between the self-
management and other active treatment conditions were no longer significant. Individuals in
the self-management condition did report fewer additional depressive episodes and less severe
recurrences of depression.
Poor self-control, also termed ‘disinhibition’ or ‘behavioral undercontrol,’ is based on a core
of related characteristics. For example, impatience is the tendency to want everything as soon
as possible; impulsiveness is the tendency to respond to situations quickly, without giving
much thought to what is to be done. Irritability (e.g., ‘There are a lot of things that annoy me’)
is sometimes included as part of this complex. It should be recognized that poor self-control is
not simply the absence of good control; the two attributes tend to have different antecedents
and different pathways of operation. Poor self-control is related to less involvement in school
and seems to be a strong factor for bringing on negative life events. In later adolescence, poor
control is related to perceiving substance use or sexual behavior as useful for coping with life
stresses, an important factor in high-risk behavior (Wills et al. 1999a). Good self-control has
been found to buffer the effects of poor control, so level of poor control by itself is not as
predictive as the balance of good and poor control systems (see Health: Self-regular).

Self-control desensitization is a modification of systematic desensitization, as originally

developed by Joseph Wolpe. It relies on an active, mediational, coping skills model of change
rather than a passive counter-conditioning model. It utilizes coping skills such as relaxation as
alternative responses to an anxiety response in the presence of anxiety-producing stimuli. A
hierarchy of anxiety-producing situations is often used although research and clinical
observation have shown that it is not as necessary as was once thought. Rather than terminate
the scene as soon as anxiety is felt, clients are encouraged to remain in the situation and relax
away the anxiety. In vivo practice in actual anxiety-producing situations is encouraged. It is
similar in many ways to other self-control anxiety reduction techniques such as applied
relaxation and Anxiety Management Training. Research has shown that self-control
desensitization is effective for a variety of anxiety disorders but is not more effective than other
cognitive or behavioral techniques.

The present research explored whether self-control is associated with the perception of
meaning in life. A week-long daily diary study (Study 1) showed trait self-control (but not daily
experiences of self-control failure) to be positively associated with a general sense of meaning
in life and daily experiences of meaning. This association was robust against controlling for
life satisfaction, positive and negative affect. Study 2 tested two potential mechanisms
underlying the association between trait self-control and meaning in life: Successful goal
progress and experience of structure in life. While self-control was positively associated with
both, only the experience of structure predicted meaning: Self-control was positively related to
the perception of one’s life as having a clear sense of structure and order, which in turn
predicted a stronger perception of meaning. Study 3 replicated the mediation path via the
experience of structure and showed it to be stronger for individuals high (vs. low) in the
personal need for structure. The present findings add to the emerging literature on trait (and
state) self-control and dispositional determinants of meaning in life.

11. How do you feel about this practice? What have you learnt? (self-reflection)(10
marks)_

_In my research of self contro I gain a lot of new experiences and the importanceof the self
control . I learned about its values in the behaviors of the students . Some important points I
leaned are as follow __It’s easy to sound preachy when we teach students about self-control.
They might think they’re the only ones who struggle to get up in the morning, eat healthy foods
or get enough exercise. I always tell them about one elegant study, which showed that people
are not perfect when they try to control their impulses (Hofmann et al., 2012). They fail about
20 percent of the time. Self-control is difficult.
Self-control improves life in three ways:
● Individual well-being .
Self-control relates to better health. Physically, self-controlled people sleep better,
experience fewer physical sickness symptoms and live longer lives. They also enjoy
better mental health. Self-control relates to lower anxiety and depression. Behaviors
that relate to mental health problems, such as substance use and suicide, are less
common among self-controlled people.
● Relationships
Beyond wealth or good looks, people want self-controlled relationship partners. We
want to spend our lives with people we can trust, who follow through on their promises
and who will override their impulse to leave or lash out when things get tough. Self-
controlled people are forgiving and react to conflict with benevolence rather than
violence.
● Societies
● Self-control helps societies flourish. Self-controlled people, compared to their less-
controlled counterparts, earn more money. Not only do self-controlled people enjoy
greater wealth, they behave more generously. They override their selfish impulses and
 go out of their way to help others. On a broader level, societies that have clear-cut
standards for appropriate behavior tend to function better than do societies in which
people do as they please. Societies also benefit from monitoring how their citizens
behave.
When I teach, I ask students to think of examples of how self-control influences individual,
relationship and societal well-being. Working with a partner, they generate a list of real-world
examples that demonstrate how high and low self-control can help and harm people,
relationships and societies. The good news is that it is easy to improve self-control.
Four ways to improve self-control
Students enjoy learning practical strategies that they can use now. Here are four tips they can
use to improve their self-control.
1. Become a mental energy accountant: Many students plan how they spend
their time. Few students plan how they spend their limited self-control energy.
Encourage students to spend the next week considering what they will do and how
much self-control energy they will need to do it. Being mindful of when to spend and
when to conserve their mental energy will help students navigate their environment
and achieve their goals.
2. Build self-control strength: Self-control relies on an all-purpose energy
resource. You can strengthen your self-control by doing seemingly unrelated self-
control tasks. For two weeks, encourage your students to use their nondominant hand
to complete everyday tasks (e.g., cleaning, brushing their teeth). Research indicates
that this simple exercise increases self-control in other domains, such as reducing
aggression (Denson et al., 2011).
3. Play offense against your environment : In their book “Willpower,” Roy
Baumeister and John Tierney (2011) argue that self-controlled people take control
over their environment. If they’re motivated to lose weight, they do not bring junk
food into the house. If they are driven to write 2,000 words a day, they block their
email to prevent distractions. Encourage students to identify one way they can change
their environment to help them achieve a specific goal. Ask them to implement the
change for three days. Later, ask students to share their experiences about how the
environmental change influenced their ability and motivation to achieve their goal.
4. Take the mind out of the middle: Self-control hurts because we have to battle
against ourselves. Should I exercise now or later? Should I have zero, one, two or 10
 doughnuts? A solution is to take the mind out of the middle by setting up a mental
contract, what psychologist Peter Gollwitzer and colleagues call implementation
intentions (Gollwitzer&Sheeran, 2006). To achieve an academic goal, students
might say, “When I get home from class, I will read Chapter 5.” Now the decision-
making is done. They know when they will study. It sounds simple, but it works.
12. What has it added to your professional skills as a teacher?(05 marks)__

How can psychology educators accomplish our educational mission while also giving students
the practical information that can help them achieve their goals? Self-control might seem
stodgy, but it is our job to show students that self-control will contribute to their success more
than their smarts or family background. Self-control levels the playing field. It puts the keys to
achievement in students’ hands. By showing students what self-control is, how it works and
why it is important, we will provide them with knowledge that can help them achieve their
goals and have happy, productive and meaningful lives. How important is self-control in your
day-to-day life? A survey conducted by the American Psychological Association (APA) found
that 27% of respondents identified a lack of willpower as the primary factor keeping them from
reaching their goals.

Whether your goal is to lose weight, earn a college degree, or quit smoking, it is easy to believe
that achieving a goal is simply a matter of controlling your behaviors. The majority of people
surveyed believe that self-control can be both learned and strengthened. Researchers have also
identified a number of different factors and strategies that can help people improve their self-
control.

Researchers have found that people who have better self-control tend to be healthier and
happier.

In one experiment, students who exhibited greater self-discipline had better grades, higher test
scores, and were more likely to be admitted to a competitive academic program. The study also
found that when it came to academic success, self-control was a more important factor than IQ
scores.4

The benefits of self-control are not limited to academic performance. One long-term health
study found that people who were rated as having high levels of self-control during childhood
continued to have high levels of physical and mental health in adulthood
 13. List the works you cited in your project (follow the APA manual – 6th Edition). (05
marks)

I always tell them about one elegant study, which showed that people are not perfect when
they try to control their impulses (Hofmann et al., 2012). They fail about 20 percent of the time.
Self-control is difficult.
Self-control helps us manage motivational conflicts (Baumeister & Vohs, 2007).

Related APA Resources

● Newsletter Article (385)

● Web Page (145)
● Web Article (65)
● Book/Monograph (39)
● Newsletter (34)
References
● Hofmann, W., Baumeister, R. F., Förster, G., & Vohs, K. D. (2012). Everyday
temptations: An experience sampling study of desire, conflict, and self-control. Journal
of Personality and Social Psychology, 102, 1318-1335.
● Levitsky, D A., Garay, J., Nausbaum, M., Neighbors, L., & DellaValle, D. M. (2006).
Monitoring weight daily blocks the freshmen weight gain: A model for combating the
epidemic of obesity. International Journal of Obesity, 30, 1003-1010.
● Baumeister, R. F., & Tierney, J. (2011). Willpower: Rediscovering the greatest human
strength. New York: Penguin.
● Baumeister, R. F., & Vohs, K. D. (2007). Self-regulation, ego depletion, and
motivation. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 1, 115-128.
● Denson, T. F., Capper, M. M., Oaten, M., Friese, M., & Schofield, T. P. (2011). Self-
control training decreases aggression in response to provocation in aggressive
individuals. Journal of Research in Personality, 45, 252-256.
● Duckworth, A. L., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2005). Self-discipline outdoes IQ in
predicting academic performance of adolescents. Psychological Science, 16, 939-944.
● Gollwitzer, P. M., & Sheeran, P. (2006). Implementation intentions and goal
achievement: A meta-analysis of effects and processes. Advances in Experimental
Social Psychology, 38, 69-119.