Review of School-wide Positive Behavior Support

Maryland PBIS Summer Institute

July 13,2004Teri Lewis-Palmer

Purpose

• To describe features of a systems approach to positive behavior support

Themes

• Consider school as unit of analysis

• Emphasize role of educators individually and collectively

• Build multi-level continuum of behavior support

• Give priority to agenda of primary prevention

Big Idea

• Goal is to establish host environments that support the adoption and sustained used of evidence-based practices (Zins & Ponte, 1990).

Why are school important places for investing?

• Regular, predictable, positive learning & teaching environments

• Positive adult & peer models

• Regular positive reinforcement

• Academic & social behavior development & success

Four Challenges

• Educating increasing numbers of students who are more different than similar from each other

• Educating students with severe problem behavior

• Doing more with less

• Creating “host environments” or systems that enable adoption & sustained use of effective practices.

“141 Days!”

Intermediate/senior high school with 880 students reported over 5,100 office discipline referrals in one academic year. Nearly 2/3 of students have received at least one office discipline referral.

5100 referrals =

51,000 min @10 min =

850 hrs =

141 days @ 6 hrs

“Works for me”

In one school year, Jason received 87 office discipline referrals.

“Works for me”

In one school year, a teacher processed 273 behavior incident reports.

“Da place ta be”

During 4th period, in-school detention room has so many students that overflow is sent to counselor’s office. Most students have been assigned for being in hallways after the late bell.

Typical responses

• “Get Tough”

• “Train-n-Hope”

Individual response..Get Tough

• Increase monitoring for future problem behavior

• Clamp down on rule violators

• Re-re-re-review rules & sanctions

• Extend continuum of aversive consequences

• Improve consistency of use of punishments

• Establish “bottom line”

System’s response…Get tougher

• Zero tolerance policies

• Security guards, student uniforms, metal detectors, surveillance cameras

• Suspension/expulsion

• Exclusionary options (e.g., alternative programs)

Reactive responses are predictable

When we experience aversive situation, we select interventions that produce immediate relief by

– Removing student– Removing ourselves – Modifying physical environment– Assign responsibility for change to student

&/or others

But….false sense of safety & security!

• Fosters environments of control

• Triggers & reinforces antisocial behavior

• Shifts accountability away from school

• Devalues child-adult relationship

• Weakens relationship between academic & social behavior programming

2001 Surgeon General’s Report

• Risk factors associated with increasing # of antisocial behaviors

– Antisocial peer networks– Reinforced deviancy

• Recommendations (rearrange contingencies…..prevention)

– Establish “intolerant attitude toward deviance”• Break up antisocial networks…change social context

• Improve parent effectiveness

– Increase “commitment to school”• Increase academic success

• Create positive school climates

– Teach & encourage individual skills & competence

“Train & hope”…..NO!

1. React to identified problem

2. Select & add practice

3. Hire expert to train practice

4. Expect & hope for implementation

5. Wait for new problem….

What is the greater challenge?

• The greater challenge is arranging opportunities for schools to achieve the ability to...

– Respond efficiently, effectively, and relevantly to range of problem behaviors observed in schools

– Engage in data-based problem solving– Adopt, fit, & sustain empirically-based practices– Give priority to unified agenda of

activities/initiatives

What is PBS?

PBS is a broad range of systemic & individualized strategies for achieving important social & learning outcomes while preventing problem behavior.

PBS is the integration of (a) valued outcomes,(b) science of human behavior,(c) validated procedures, and (d) systems change.

SYST

EMS

PRACTICES

DATASupportingStaff Behavior

SupportingDecisionMaking

SupportingStudent Behavior

PositiveBehaviorSupport OUTCOMES

Social Competence &Academic Achievement

Nonclass

room

Setting S

ystems

ClassroomSetting Systems

Individual Student

Systems

School-wideSystems

School-wide PositiveBehavior Support

Systems

Academic Systems Behavioral Systems

1-5% 1-5%

5-10% 5-10%

80-90% 80-90%

Intensive, Individual Interventions•Individual Students•Assessment-based•High Intensity

Intensive, Individual Interventions•Individual Students•Assessment-based•Intense, durable procedures

Targeted Group Interventions•Some students (at-risk)•High efficiency•Rapid response

Targeted Group Interventions•Some students (at-risk)•High efficiency•Rapid response

Universal Interventions•All students•Preventive, proactive

Universal Interventions•All settings, all students•Preventive, proactive

Designing School-Wide Systems for Student Success

Implementation Levels

Student

Classroom

School

State

District

Goals of PBS

• Select & adapt technologies that are most effective, efficient, & relevant than reactive practices

• Arrange opportunities to teach & practice evidence-based practices

• Remove conditions that occasion & maintain undesirable outcomes

• Increase conditions that occasion & maintain

desirable practices

• Remove aversives that inhibit desirable practices

• Establish environments & routines that support

continuum of positive behavior supports

Features

• Create continuum of behavior supports from a systemic perspective

• Focus on behavior of adults in school as unit

• Utilize effective, efficient, relevant data-based decision making

• Give priority to achievable success

• Invest in research validated practices

• Arrange environments for “working smarter”

– Do less, but better– Do it once, but for a long time– Invest in clear outcomes– Invest in a sure thing