Pre-post Personal Meaning Mapping of children with disruptive behavior and a proposed program: The case of elementary pupils in Dasmariñas City, Philippines

Behavior problems can be challenging, especially to those dealing with primary school children because pupils may not always fully comprehend their situation. This study is a pre-post intervention assessment of elementary school pupils with disruptive behavior, using the Personal Meaning Mapping approach. Three types of intervention used were: (a) heart-to-heart talk (b) focused group discussion and (c) watch a documentary film. Thereafter, a program was designed where the environment of the pupils was considered, i. e., home, school and community. Respondents of the study were Grade VI pupils of four elementary schools in Dasmarinas City, their parents, classroom teachers and guidance counselors. The study found: changes in attitudes and behavior of pupils towards a positive direction; the children were manageable in the post-assessment stage; and, the pupils gained insights of their disruptive behavior. All three interventions were effective in bringing about attitude and behavior changes. In the designed program, the pupils maybe encouraged towards leadership, flexibility, creativity and other skills. The study may be used by policy-makers in improving educational policies; and by environmental planners when planning for academic institutions. Keywords - Pupils , disruptive behavior, attitude change, personal meaning mapping, Philippines