Reinforcement is anything that strengthens the behavior. It can be positive or negative. Positive reinforcement is when the behavior is strengthened because a desired stimulus is presented, such as candy or a good grade. Negative reinforcement is the strengthening of a behavior by removing an unwanted stimulus or consequence. An example of this is having a movie day as a reward because it is taking away the aversive situation for the students of otherwise having to do homework.
Reinforcement can follow a continuous schedule or an intermittent schedule.
Continuous reinforcement is applying reinforcement after every response. One possible technique for the use of reinforcement is the idea of shaping. The concept of shaping involves reinforcing behavior after every step in a series of steps. Shaping can help to provide reinforcement for those students whose end product is not quite what is desired. By breaking down the situation and then reinforcing each step, students can effectively learn to produce the end product.