Every day, Mrs. Markle gives her second graders a math worksheet to fill out. The worksheet consists of five addition or subtraction problems. Mrs. Markle noticed that Jake completes all five problems on his worksheet only once or twice a week. She wanted Jake to complete all five problems every day. She decided that she would use shaping with Jake to achieve this goal. What is the problem with this application of shaping?

Mrs. Markle needs to 1st determine if shaping is the most appropriate procedure. If the person as evident in the case of Jake already engages in the target behaviour atleast occasionally their is no need to utilize shaping. She can simply use differential reinforcement to increase the frequency of the target behaviour i.e to ensure Jake completes all five problems on the worksheet every day. Shaping is best used to reinstate a behavioural pattern that a person does not currently exhibit.

Explanation: