Kevin Murdock Hillsborough County Public Schools

User-Friendly Approaches Can Increase

Behavioral Applications in Schools

Goals

• Identify reasons why ABA approaches are avoided by some educators• Share methods to simplify various

tasks and save precious time• Stimulate research into much-

needed areas

Hillsborough County Public Schools (HCPS)

8th largest district in nationTotal schools: 279

• Elementary schools : 159 • Middle schools : 50 • High schools : 40 • Other : 30

Full-time teachers: 13,269Total Students: 190,814

(first day count, projected 20 day count: 205,000)

HCPS Behavior Analyst Supports• Functional Assessment Consultant Team (FACT) -

8 BCBAs + 2 BCaBAs - part-to-full time consulting with school teams to support Tier 3 processes

• Behavior Coaches - 9 10 BCBAs and BCaBAs providing part-to-full time specialized support to schools and classrooms primarily to reduce restraint-seclusion events– ESE General Director created this team!

• 20 pending BCBA exam – school-based assignments• 3 BCBAs, 6 BCaBAs, and 11 inactive BCaBAs –

school-based assignments

HCPS Demand > Supply

• Approximately 1 to 10,000 ratio of active certified behavior analysts to students– In comparison, the national recommended ratio for

School Psychologists is 1 : 1,500 students. • If only 2% of HCPS students required a new or updated

FBA-PBIP each year, this would require:– 195 FBA-PBIPs per year, or – More than 1 per workday.

• FACT and Behavior Coaches serve less than 1% of students, primarily ESE

Impact of Behavior Coaches

• More than 99% of students not directly served by behavior analysts

• Ideally, these involve less intensive behaviors such as:– common minor disruptive behavior– “off task” – “non-compliance”

Competing Demands and Stressors for Educators

• Student academic progress expectations– Complex teacher evaluations (e.g., rubrics, “value added”)– Salaries, school grades and other issues impacted

• Teaching to the “middle of the class” • Wave after wave of new requirements and initiatives –

not sure which are priorities or what will continue/fade• If Women are from Venus and Men are from Mars,

Educators are from Earth, and Behavior Analysts are from the 6th Dimension (in Andrew Houvouras’ words): They don't think like us, talk like us, or act like us.

Educators Want “Fast & Easy”

• Less focus on behavioral problem solving/RtI• Rushed FBAs, skimpy BIPs (technically

inadequate) – Paper compliance– No or poor linkage of function to intervention– Reliance on:• Topography-based intervention “cookbooks” • Popular or peer-recommended interventions (e.g., Love &

Logic, Conscious Discipline)• Customary or personally favored interventions (e.g., time

out, red-yellow-green sticks)

Educators Want “Fast & Easy”

• Avoid consultation• Rely on indirect measures (likert-style rating

scales)• No or limited use of intervention fidelity checks,

or use of weak measures (e.g., adherence checks – The student was in the intervention setting for the designated time period)

• Rely on old methods, such as mentalistic explanations & the refer test place model

Educators Want “Fast & Easy”

• But… “fast and easy” can sacrifice precision and produce undesirable outcomes.

• However, behavior analysts sometimes contribute to complicating the assessment and intervention process:– 20-50 page FBA-BIPs– Technical jargon– Complex data recording forms and continuous data

recording (every minute of the school day)

How Behavior Analysts Can Make Applications of ABA

More User-Friendly for Educators

Include what is essential – trim the rest

• Avoid excessive use of descriptive FBAs, with:– Multiple interviews– Use of screening tools– Lengthy naturalistic observations

• Resulting interventions are more likely to fail– Weak function-to-intervention linkage

• Educators become frustrated with slow process or lack of positive outcomes

• Avoidance of ABA approaches increases

• Promote increased use of hypothesis testing (functional analysis):– Limited interview using open-ended tools (e.g., Greg

Hanley)– Limited observation– Quickly develop hypothesis and test it• When feasible, conduct classroom trial-based functional

analyses (refer to Sarah Bloom’s research)• When a skill deficit is identified, teach the skill and test the

outcomes

developed by Patrick McGreevy and Troy Fry,

with assistance from Colleen Cornwall and Janine Shapiro

• Communication, behavior, and functional skillsassessment, curriculum, and skill-tracking instrument

• for both children and adults with moderate-to-severe disabilities, including autism. – Especially useful for learners with limited communication

repertoires, limited daily living skills, or severe problem behavior.

• for developing long-term goals and short-term objectives for IEPs or support plans

• for tracking skill acquisition and problem behavior

behaviorchange.com

Essential 8 Skills

Improve Assessment and Intervention Plan Readability

• Behavior analysts often write in a technical style for an audience of other behavior analysts– Much jargon– Lengthy documents– APA style– Pages filled with text, limited illustrations

Improve Assessment and Intervention Plan Readability

• Write for educators and parents (lay-persons)• General public prefers: Conversation style with

intended benefits added(Rolider, Axelrod, and Van Houten, 1998; Rolider

and Axelrod – in Heward et al. “Focus on Behavior in Education”)

• Reduce technical jargon• Ask for feedback on readability • Measure readability:

www.readabilityformulas.com

Improve Assessment and Intervention Plan Readability

• Construct “Job Aids”– APBA Newsletter – December 2008 - Practitioner's

notebook - Acknowledging the Multiple Functions of Written Behavior Plans - James E. Carr

• Use diagrams and flow charts• Use checklists

• Supports training and integrity monitoring• Standard practice in other professions (surgeons, pilots,

military)• Atul Gawande – “Checklist Manifesto”

Improve Training Methods

Avoid:• Basic awareness level PowerPoint presentations• One-shot in-services or multi-day training institutes

– Not sufficient in generalizing knowledge to using new practices

Promote skill-based training strategies including:• role play and modeling• job-embedded activities in a wide variety of settings• coaching and performance feedback• linking of practices to student outcomes• ongoing support

(Fixsen et al. 2005; Joyce & Showers, 2002; Shellady & Stichter, 1999; Van Acker et al., 2005 – in Tier 3 Blueprint)

Dispel Myths – Correct Misinformation About ABA

• Mechanistic… kids just need unconditional love• M & M therapy• Bribes kids into behaving• Destroys intrinsic motivation• Turns kids into robots• Only effective with developmentally disabled

Dispel Myths – Correct Misinformation About ABA

• Myths may be contacted in college experiences and textbooks

• Myths may be shared by peers • Educators need greater access to user-friendly

sources of : – Factual ABA knowledge– Stories of successful FBAs and BIPs with students

Rolider and Axelrod – in Heward et al. “Focus on Behavior in Education”

BehaviorCanChange.comTwo printable tri-foldbrochures:* What You Need to Know About Effective Autism Treatment * What You Need to Know About Improving Your Child's School Performance

Needs updating and more content

Other recommendations

• Brochures• Newsletter articles• Pro bono presentations• Revitalize and expand on the BALANCE

initiative (Joe Wyatt et al.)

HCPS Training Approaches

• FBA/PBIP 101 Primer - Online 3 hour course• FBA/PBIP 101 Course – Lecture-style 6 hour course• FBA/PBIP 201 Hybrid Course – Self-study online

materials and team meetings – Practice selecting function-based interventions for common behaviors

• BCBA coursework - Cooperative professional development project with USF ABA Masters program– Reduced tuition costs due to HCPS providing instruction on

school property – minimized actual expenses for USF• Basic Skill Coaching in Classrooms

Share Tools That Support Linkage of Function to Intervention

• interventioncentral.mysdhc.org/FBA-BIP

Share Tools That Support Linkage of Function to Intervention

• interventioncentral.mysdhc.org/FBA-BIP• Chandler and Dahlquist textbook – several

chapters that link behavior function to practical evidence-based ABA interventions

Functional Assessment: Strategies to Prevent and

Remediate Challenging Behavior in School Settings

3rd Edition

Chandler and Dahlquist

Pearson paperback $63Amazon paperback $50

CourseSmart e-book $25

Now in 4th Edition

Share Tools That Support Linkage of Function to Intervention

• interventioncentral.mysdhc.org/FBA-BIP• Chandler and Dahlquist textbook – several

chapters that link behavior function to practical evidence-based ABA interventions

• Cipani and Schock – excellent text that links behavior function to practical evidence-based ABA interventions – somewhat technical for educators with limited ABA training

Functional Behavioral Assessment, Diagnosis, and

Treatment A Complete System for

Education and Mental Health Settings

2nd Edition

Cipani & SchockSpringer paperback $75Amazon paperback $58

e-book $55

Promote Assessments and Evidence-Based Interventions for Academic Concerns

• Connect Academics and Behaviors !!!

• Performance deficit (won’t do)? or Skill deficit (can’t do)?

• Functional assessment approach to problem-solving

• A Model for Conducting a Functional Analysis of

Academic Performance Problems • By Daly, Edward J., III; Witt, Joseph C.; Martens,

Brian K.; Dool, Eric J. School Psychology Review, v26 n4 p554-74 1997

• Functional Assessment of Academic Behavior (FAAB)By Sandra Christenson and James E. Ysseldyke

• Academic Skills Problems,

Fourth Edition: Direct Assessment and InterventionBy Edward S. Shapiro

• Curriculum-Based Evaluation: Teaching and Decision Making By Kenneth W. Howell and Victor Nolet

Promote Efficient, Precise Direct Observation Behavior Measures

• “Observation windows” to get representative samples (e.g., rate recording 10am-11am on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays)

• Use of external observers• Time sampling• Interval recording• Low-tech methods (record on masking tape on back of teacher’s

hand, slide beads on a lanyard; move rubber bands from one arm to another)

http://interventioncentral.mysdhc.org/measure

• Apps for smartphones and mobile deviceshttp://interventioncentral.mysdhc.org/documents/DataRecordingTools.pptx

Communicate When and How to Get Support from a Behavior Analyst

• Set conditions on use of streamlined methods (triage-based decisions):– Not severe or high risk (e.g., pica, elopement)– Single, not multiple behaviors of concern or

intervention settings – Not multiple or unidentified hypotheses– Not persistent (short history of reinforcement)– Not resistant to consultation– Not multiple failed interventions (poor RtI)

Communicate When and How to Get Support from a Behavior Analyst

• Set limits on short-cuts (“Isn’t there a 1 page FBA form?”)

• Frequently promote when and how to get help with FBA-BIPs

• Promote easy access to behavior analysts via brochures, newsletters, and emails

• Maintain close connections with ESE and ASD staff, School Psychologists, and others to identify urgent referrals – regular meetings and presentations

Finally…

• Offer pro bono training and services to build rapport

• Promote Awards of Excellence for teachers or teams using ABA

• Be patient• Share resources and training across districts• Network !!!– Join the FABA Education SIG, now on Facebook!

• Contact me: Kevin.Murdock@sdhc.k12.fl.us