Creating Connections: Healthy Schools, Successful Students

March 18, 2014

Delaware Positive Behavior Support

Debby BoyerCenter for Disabilities Studies

University of Delaware

For our Time Together

• Overview of DE-PBS and important data• What is PBS?• What are the elements of implementing SW-

PBS – Integration with SEL– Bullying Prevention

• Action Steps

The Delaware Positive Behavior Support Project (DE-PBS) is a collaboration between

the DE Department of Education, the University of Delaware’s

Center for Disabilities Studies, and Delaware Public Schools

The Challenge• Students with the most challenging behaviors in school need

pro-active comprehensive and consistent systems of support• School-wide discipline systems are typically unclear and

inconsistently implemented• Educators often lack skills to address significant problem

behavior• Pressure on schools to incorporate multiple initiatives. Many

often have clear defined outcomes without structures to reach or a framework for deciding what should be implemented when, for whom, and to what degree

Typical school response to problem behavior = “punishment” of misbehavior and/or seek out alternative placements.

The Danger….

“Punishing” problem behaviors (without a proactive support system) is associated with increases in (a) aggression, (b) vandalism, (c) truancy, and (d) dropping out. (Mayer, 1995, Mayer & Sulzar-Azaroff, 1991, Skiba & Peterson, 1999)

The Good News…

Research reviews indicate that the most effective responses to school violence are (Elliot, Hamburg, & Williams, 1998;Gottfredson, 1997; Lipsey, 1991, 1992; Tolan & Guerra, 1994):

• Social Skills Training• Academic Restructuring• Behavioral Interventions

“If a child doesn’t know how to read, we teach.”

“If a child doesn’t know how to swim, we teach.”

“If a child doesn’t know how to multiply, we teach.”

“If a child doesn’t know how to drive, we teach.”

“If a child doesn’t know how to behave, we…

...teach? …punish?”

“Why can’t we finish the last sentence as automatically as we do the others?”

Tom Herner (NASDE President ) Counterpoint 1998, p.2

School-wide Positive Behavior Support

SW-PBS is a broad range of systemic and individualized strategies for achieving important social and learning outcomes while preventing problem behavior

OSEP Center on PBIS

Delaware PBS Project Vision

The vision of the project is to create safe and caring learning environments that promote the social-emotional and academic development of all children.

Key Features of PBS in Delaware

• Recognize that a positive and safe school climate promotes not only positive behavior, but also academic, social, and emotional development.

• Recognize that ALL students benefit from positive behavioral supports. This includes students with and without behavior problems or disabilities, and requires sensitivity to individual and cultural differences.

• Recognize the critical importance of developing self-discipline.

– Schools teach such social and emotional competencies as positive peer relations, empathy, resisting peer pressure, conflict resolution, and social and moral responsibility.

Tier 1/School-wide/Universal School-Wide Assessment

School-Wide Prevention Systems

Check-in Check-out (CICO)

Groups with Individualized Features

Brief Functional Behavior Assessment/Behavior Intervention Planning (FBA/BSP)

Full FBA/BSP

Person Centered Planning

ODRs,Credits, Attendance, Tardies, Grades, DIBELS, etc.

Daily Progress Report (DPR) (Behavior and Academic Goals)

Functional Assessment Interviews or checklists

Relationship and Skill Building Groups

Positive Behavior Supports:Multi-tiered Model of Support

Adapted from Illinois PBIS Network, Revised Aug. 2013 Adapted from T. Scott, 2004

Tier 2/Secondary

Tier 3/Tertiary

Inte

rven

tio

nAssessm

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Individual Student Data collection

DE-PBS SW Implementation• Program Development & Evaluation

– Problem-Solving/Leadership Team– Data– Professional Development & Resources

• Developing SW and Classroom Systems to Prevent Problem Behavior– Expectations, Recognition and Teaching– Positive relationships

• Correcting Problem Behaviors– Consistent and clear procedures– Disciplinary encounters used as learning opportunities to

teach problem solving strategies • Developing Self-Discipline

SWPBS is

Framework for enhancing adoption & implementation of

Continuum of evidence-based interventions to achieve

Academically & behaviorally important outcomes for

All students

Why Use SW-PBS?

• Research has demonstrated:– Reduction of problem behavior, discipline

referrals, and suspensions – Increase in math and reading scores – Improvements in overall school climate

(Lassen, Steele, & Sailor, 2006; Lewis et al., 2002; Luiselli, Putnam, and Sunderland, 2002; Todd et al., 1999)

System Development is Key!

Dean Fixsen, Karen Blase, Robert Horner, George Sugai, (2008)

• To scale up interventions we must first scale up implementation capacity

• Building implementation capacity is essential to maximizing the use of Positive Behavior Support and other innovations

Adapted from the Illinois PBIS Network

+ If many students are making same mistake, consider

changing systems ... not students

+ START by teaching, monitoring & recognizing success

…before increasing PUNISHMENT

Why is School Climate Important?• School Climate is linked to a wide range of

academic, behavioral, and social-emotional outcomes for students, including:– Increased academic achievement – Increased academic motivation and positive personal

attitudes – Higher attendance and decreased school avoidance– Lower rates of behavior problems, delinquency,

victimization – Greater sense of emotional well-being

School Climate is also important to Bully Prevention

Problematic school climate contributes to negative outcomes including:

• Bullying victimization• Attendance and school avoidance• Depression and self-esteem

NASP, 2/19/14

And School Climate is a federal focus

• USDOE Released in January 2014:

“Guiding Principles: A Resource Guide for Improving School Climate and Discipline from U.S. Department of Education”

http://www2.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/school-discipline/index.html

High Suspension and Expulsion Rates Driven By Ineffective School Policies and Practices, not “Bad Kids”

“Far from making our schools safer or improving student behavior, the steadily increasing use of suspension and expulsion puts students – especially students of color and other targeted groups – at an increased risk of academic disengagement, dropout and contact with juvenile justice,”

Russell J. Skiba, director of Discipline Disparities Research-to-Practice Collaborative

Recommendation to eradicate disparities in school discipline

• Problem-solving approach to discipline– Understanding the context – Why the student is engaging in behavior and

understanding the teachers response– Providing opportunity for reflection and restoration– Providing additional interventions or services for students

with complex support needs

Our Data Sources

• School Climate• Suspension• ODR• Self-assessment• External Evaluation• Achievement

Subscales of Delaware School Climate Surveys 2013

Student Survey Teacher/Staff

Survey Home Survey

Part I : School Climate

Teacher-Student Relations

Teacher-Student Relations

Teacher-Student Relations

Student-Student Relations

Student-Student Relations

Student-Student Relations

Respect for Diversity Respect for Diversity Respect for Diversity

Clarity of Expectations Clarity of Expectations Clarity of Expectations

Fairness of Rules Fairness of Rules Fairness of Rules

School Safety School Safety School Safety

Student Engagement School-wide

Student Engagement School-wide

Bullying School-wide Bullying School-wide

Teacher-Home Communications

Teacher-Home Communications

Staff Relations

Total School Climate Total School Climate Total School Climate

Parent Satisfaction

Part III: Bullying & IV: Engagement (Individual Level)

Student Survey Teacher/Staff

Survey Home Survey

Bullying Victimization1

Physical Bullying   Physical Bullying

Verbal Bullying Verbal Bullying

Social/Relational Bullying

Social/Relational Bullying

Cyberbullying2

Student Engagement

Cognitive & Behavioral

  Cognitive & Behavioral

Emotional Emotional

1 Grades 6-12 only for the printed version. Optional for grades 4-5 with computer version. 2 Grades 6-12 only.

Summary of School Climate Results• In general, school climate is viewed favorably by

students, teachers/staff, and parents, but especially teachers/staff and parents. And school climate improved statewide from 2012-2013.

• Survey results also indicated some areas of concern:– Student perceptions of school climate decrease

markedly from elementary to middle school. For example, whereas 3/4ths of elementary school students like school, only half of middle school students and less than half of high school students like school.

– This decrease coincides with student perceptions of teachers/staff using more punitive techniques and fewer positive and SEL techniques.

Summary Continued– Relations among students is an area of particular

concern. Over half of all students report that bullying is a problem in their school and less than half agree that students get along with one another. Perceptions of student relations are most negative among African Americans.

– Perceived fairness of rules is another concern, especially among middle school and high school students.

Positive Behavior Supports• Application and extension of basic elements of applied behavior

analysis• Three-Tiered Prevention Model:

– Universal (all students in the environment)• 3-5 positively stated rules that are actively taught – applies to all students in

non-classroom areas– Targeted (for students for which tier one was not adequate to address

their behavior needs)• Group based supports, e.g., social skills instruction, check-in/check-out• Goal to prevent student’s behavior from becoming disruptive to the learning

environment– Intensive (students whose behavior is chronic)

• Functional behavior assessment maybe conducted• Implement a function-based intervention• May provide wrap around services

Emphasis on Prevention at Each Level• School-wide

Reduce new cases of problem behavior• Targeted

Reduce current cases of problem behavior• Intensive

Reduce complications, intensity, severity of current cases

Tier 2 Overview

– Interventions are efficient• Continuously available so students can receive support

quickly (optimally-within 2-3 days)– Minimal time commitment required from classroom teachers– Required skill sets needed by teachers easily learned– Aligned with school-wide expectations– Emphasis on intervention designed to support multiple

students simultaneously (e.g. Check-In/Check-Out, Social Skills Groups, etc.)

• Consistently implemented with most students, some flexibility

– Intervention selected matched to function of student behavior

Adapted from Rose Iovannone, Brief PTR

Tier 3 Overview

• Team formed which include those who have knowledge of the student• Systematic problem solving process is foundation• Target behaviors identified and defined• Antecedents (predictors) of problem behavior occurrence• Consequences/responses of others following problem behavior• Hypothesis generated by data• Function-based understanding of behavior• Multi-component intervention plan built and linked with hypothesis• Progress monitoring plan established• Fidelity measurement of intervention implementation developed and

scheduled• Follow-up meeting to make data-based decisions

Tier 3/Tertiary Interventions 1-5%•_____________________•_____________________•_____________________

1-5% Tier 3/Tertiary Interventions• ___________________________• ___________________________• ___________________________

Tier 2/Secondary Interventions 5-15%•___________________________•___________________________•___________________________•___________________________•___________________________•___________________________

5-15% Tier 2/Secondary Interventions• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________

Tier 1/Universal Interventions 80-90%•________________________•________________________•________________________•________________________

80-90% Tier 1/Universal Interventions• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________• ____________________________

Reflecting on your school tiers

Data and Support Staff

Tiered Supports / Practices

Adapted from Illinois PBIS Network, Revised May 15, 2008. Adapted from “What is school-wide PBS?” OSEP Technical Assistance Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports. Accessed at http://pbis.org/school-wide.htm

Reflecting on your school tiers

Strategic Use of Praise and Rewards

• Use strategically to recognize and reinforce social and emotional competencies that underlie prosocial behavior – E.g., students routinely recognized with praise and rewards

for demonstrating empathy, caring, responsibility, and respect

– Pair reward with verbally labeled praise – Shoot for 3 to 1 ratio of positive to corrective feedback

Peg Dawson, Ed.D.

Effective Praise:1. is delivered immediately after the display of positive

behavior;2. specifies the particulars of the accomplishment (e.g., Thank

you for cleaning off your desk right away after I asked you); 3. provides information to the child about the value of the

accomplishment (e.g., When you get ready for the first activity quickly, it makes the morning go so smoothly!);

4. lets the child know that he worked hard to accomplish the task (e.g., I saw you working hard to control your temper!); and

5. orients the child to better appreciate their own task-related behavior and thinking about problem-solving (e.g., I like the way you thought about that and figured out a good solution to the problem).

Peg Dawson, Ed.D.

Use incentives to augment instruction.

Incentives make both the effort of learning a skill and the effort of performing a task less aversive.

Furthermore, putting an incentive after a task teaches delayed gratification.

Peg Dawson, Ed.D.

Simple Incentives• Give the child something to look forward to

doing when the effortful task is done (we call that Grandma’s Law).

• Alternate between preferred and non-preferred activities (use simple language: First…then, e.g., First work, then play).

• Build in frequent, short breaks (depending on the child’s attention span, breaks could come every 10 minutes and last 5 minutes).

• Use specific praise to reinforce the use of executive skills.

Positive Behavior Referral

Positive Relationships

Recognize the critical importance of preventing behavior problems. This is evident throughout school policies and evidence-based practices, especially in preventive classroom management, clear school-wide expectations, and school-wide teaching and recognition of positive behaviors. It also is seen in

• positive teacher-student, • student-student, and • school-family relations.

The Research on Positive Relationships

• Teachers with a more relational approach to discipline have less defiant behavior in their classrooms – which is explained by adolescent’s trust in authority (Gregory & Ripski, 2008)

• Teachers who show sensitivity, empathy and praise are most likely to establish strong relationships with students (Rey et al., 2007)

Relationship Building Reduces Problem Behaviors

• “teachers … trained using precorrection, reinforcement (catch them being goods) for appropriate behaviors, and active supervison … resulted in a 42% reduction in problem behaviors” (Oswald et al., 2005).

Activities for staff and student relationship building

• Supporting everyday relationship building:– Finding/asking about student interests/extracurricular

activities – Students providing 1-minute reports on areas of their

interest (i.e. sports, drama)– Attending extracurricular events– Highlighting student talents (i.e. bulletin board with

newspaper articles)

Activities for staff and student relationship building

• Community and service learning activities• Pep rallies• Students earn the chance for staff to do silly things• Staff and student team challenges

– Fund raisers– Hallway decorating– Sporting event attendance

Disciplinary encounters: 2-part problem solving process

• Part 1 focuses how the student might think and act differently

– Student centered: Guided by problem solving with student.

• Part 2 focuses on what the teacher or school should do, beyond punishment, to prevent the problem behavior from recurring and to foster self-discipline.

– Teacher (or school) centered: Guided by changes in the student’s environment.

PBS Key Feature

• Schools recognize the importance of developing self- discipline, implementing evidence based programs in character education and social and emotional learning, and/or infuse lessons throughout the curriculum that teach social-emotional competencies

2 Common School Approaches

Components of Comprehensive

School Discipline

TraditionalSWPBS

SEL

Developing the social and emotional

competencies of self-discipline

Weakness Strength

Preventing behavior problems

Strength (more so for immediate environment)

Strength (more lasting effects)

Correcting behavior problems (short-term

goal)

Strength Weakness

Addressing Tier 2 and 3 Needs

Strength Weakness

What does the research say regarding integrating the two approaches, providing a more comprehensive approach?

• Best for achieving compliance • Best for promoting self-discipline and

resilience• Best for effective prevention and

correction• Best for school climate• Best for preventing bullying

What is Self-Discipline?

Consists of 5 key Social and Emotional Learning skills:

• Self-management skills • Social awareness and empathy • Social connectedness and relationship skills• Responsible decision making • Positive sense of self

Self-Discipline and School Climate, Part I, 11/08/11

Points to Ponder

Easy to change moral knowledge - - - - difficult to change moral conduct

• To change moral conduct . . . – Adults must model moral behavior– Students must experience academic success– Students must be taught social skills for success

(PBIS.org)

Incorporating Self-Discipline in Your SW PBS Program

– Relationship building– Schoolwide policies and activities – Student decision making– Social and Emotional Curriculum– Executive Functioning Skills

Self-Discipline & Expectations

Self-discipline is emphasized in behavioral expectations and rules. At the schoolwide and classroom levels, the importance of self-discipline is highlighted, such as the importance of regulating and accepting responsibility for one’s actions, respecting others, helping others, and exerting one’s best effort.

Strategic Use of Recognition to Develop Self-Discipline

When using praise and rewards, do so strategically such that you maximize their effectiveness in improving behavior

and developing self-discipline.

• Link the behaviors to underlying thoughts, emotions, and dispositions that that you hope to develop and to attributions of self-discipline.

– feelings of pride– empathy – autonomy – responsibility– caring, kindness, trustworthiness, and so forth

• Most of all: Avoid teaching students that the only, or most important, reason to act in a morally and socially responsible manner is to earn rewards or to be praised.

Impact of SEL on Achievement

• Findings from a meta-analysis of 213 school-based, universal social and emotional learning (SEL) programs involving 270,034 kindergarten through high school students. Compared to controls, SEL participants demonstrated significantly improved social and emotional skills, attitudes, behavior, and academic performance that reflected an 11-percentile-point gain in achievement.

• Results from this review add to a growing body of research indicating that SEL programming enhances students’ connection to school, classroom behavior, and academic achievement (Zins et al., 2004)

School Climate’s

Relationship with

Bullying (and Self-Discipline)

is RECIPROCA

LThus, improving school climate is likely to reduce bullying and

develop self-discipline, and vice versa.

NASP, 2/19/14

“Bullying is a relationship problem that requires a relationship solution.”

National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments, Training Toolkit for Creating a Supportive Classroom Climate

10 Tips for Preventing and Reducing Bullying

1. Focus on the two key aspects of effective classroom management: Structure/Demandingness and Support/Responsiveness.

2. Respond immediately to all acts of bullying (verbal, physical, social, and cyberbullying).

3. Build and maintain positive and supportive relationships, including teacher-student, student-student, and family-school relationships.

4. Have clear, consistent school-wide and classroom rules and policies against all forms of bullying.

5. Teach “bystanders” important roles they can play in preventing bullying by not supporting it and actively stopping it (where appropriate and when it is safe to do so).

6. Teach students (including bystanders) how to respond when bullied.

7. Teach specific lessons on bullying including its effects on victims, bullies, and the general school climate.

8. Increase supervision and monitoring in places where bullying most often occurs, such as the playground, hallways, cafeteria, and bus.

9. Provide individual and small-group services and supports to bullies and their victims.

10. Overall, work toward establishing school-wide and classroom norms that prevent bullying.

Summary

• Systems support effective interventions. Each school must develop a system unique to their school community

• School Climate relates to numerous important outcomes.

• Your relationship with students impacts overall school climate and individual outcomes for students.

• We must teach behavior and SEL skills just as we teach academics.

Resources

• Delawarepbs.org• PBIS.org• http://www2

.ed.gov/policy/gen/guid/school-discipline/index.html

• CASEL.org• Stopbullying.gov• http://rtpcollaborative.indiana.edu/

– Discipline Disparities Research to Practice Collaborative

Questions?

www.delawarepbs.org

Debby Boyer: dboyer@udel.edu

Thank you!

NASP, 2/19/14