BEHAVIOR SUPPORTS IN

THE CLASSROOM

Elizabeth Fogaren, M.S., CAGS

May 10, 2013

What is Behavior?

Any observable act

Anything someone says or does

All behaviors serve a

purpose

Behavior itself is not a problem

Behaviors are seen as

problematic due to the effects

they have on the people

involved

When Does Behavior Require Intervention?

Behavior is adversely affecting the individual or

others

Consider the 5 D’s of Behavior

Dangerous

Destructive

Disruptive

Disgusting

Developmentally Inappropriate

What’s the best way to

reduce a problem behavior?

What is Positive Behavior Support?

Preventative, positive approach to eliminating

challenging behaviors and promoting prosocial skills

3-tier model (not specific program)

Can be implemented school or class-wide

Purpose is to establish a climate in which appropriate

behavior is the norm

Involves introducing, modeling, and reinforcing positive

social behavior

Based on behavioral theory

Main Features of PBS

Research-based

Preventative rather than

reactive

Defines universal expectations

Focus on environmental causes

of behaviors

Systematically teaches and

acknowledges positive behavior

Benefits of Positive Behavior Support

PBS is effective in promoting positive behavior in

students and schools

Increased academic engagement and improved academic

performance

Reductions in office discipline referrals of 20-60%

Research indicates a 90% reduction in problem

behavior in over half of the studies and complete

reduction of problem behavior in 26% of the studies

Multi-Tiered Supports

Tier I

School/Classroom Systems

Tier II

Targeted Group

Tier III

Individual Supports

Three Tiers

School-Wide and Classroom Supports

Tier I

School/Classroom Behavior Supports

Create clear expectations and reinforce them

consistently

Consistently implement a classroom management system

Create an organized learning environment

Teach weekly social skills/Positive Behavior Support

concepts

Increase ratio of positive to negative, teacher to student

interactions/comments (4:1)

Increase active engagement

Classroom Rules

Purpose:

Make expectations clear

Allow the teacher to catch a student being good

3-5 rules per situation

Positively stated and concise

Posted in the classroom

Ideally, students take part in developing the rules

Taught and reviewed regularly

Examples of Rules

Classroom Organization

A disorganized classroom is

an antecedent for student

disruption

Advantages to organized

classrooms:

Minimize noise

Encourage academic

engagement

Allow students to better

navigate the room

Classroom Management System

Most important to be clear and

consistent

Students should be able to predict the

consequences

Aim of consequence is learning

Should be rewards for following

expectations

Flexible card/clip systems are

preferred

Seating Arrangement

Advantages and

disadvantages to all types

of seating arrangements

Ideally want room to move

around, room to pull small

groups, and a quiet work

station

Seating arrangement

should allow for classroom

management system

Transitions

Manage transitions

Provide active supervision

Use visual schedules

Prime students for the next activity

Provide a signal or use a count down system to let

students know how much time they have before and

during the transition

Provide a calm environment during transitions (music)

Use positive reinforcement for appropriate transitions

Weekly Social Skills

Goal is to reduce maladaptive behaviors by increasing replacement behaviors

Creates a common language for the classroom

Social Thinking concepts

Examples:

Assembly expectations

Hallway expectations

Problem Solving

Reporting versus tattling

Bullying

Social Thinking

Perspective taking approach to teaching social skills

Good social thinker = person who is able to think

about others and adapt his/her behavior based on

the perspectives of others and the context

Target audience:

3 - adult

Mild/Moderate SDC and general education students

www.socialthinking.com

Expected behavior: things

we do or say that give

people good thoughts and

make them feel comfortable

Unexpected behavior:

things that we do and say

that give people

uncomfortable (weird)

thoughts about us and make

them feel bad

Core Concept

Preschool

Meet Thotso, Your Thought

Maker by Rachel Robb Avery

K-1

The Incredible Flexible You by

Ryan Hendrix, Kari Zweber

Palmer, Nancy Tarshis and

Michelle Garcia Winner

Social Thinking for Preschool- 1st Grade

2nd-5th grade

You Are a Social Detective

by Michelle Garcia Winner

and Pamela Crooke

3rd – 5th grade

Superflex by Michelle

Garcia Winner and

Stephanie Madrigal

Social Thinking for 2nd – 5th Grade

Superflex

Uses comic books to teach social

thinking

Superflex is a social thinking

superhero who helps students

defeat the Team of Unthinkables

(bad guys who stand for different

unexpected behaviors)

Middle School

Social Fortune or Social Fate: A Social Thinking Graphic Novel Map for Social Quest Seekers by Pamela Crook and Michelle Garcia Winner

High School

Socially Curious and Curiously Social by Michelle Garcia Winner and Pamela Crooke

Social Thinking for 6-12

Active Engagement

Increase Active Engagement

Academic engagement is inversely related to maladaptive behaviors

Increase opportunities to respond

White boards

Manipulatives

Choral responding

Peer share

Decrease wait time

Targeted Group

Tier II

Targeted/Small Group Supports

Re-teach skills and expectations

Daily check in/out system

Social skills groups

General positive supports

Token economy

Parent communication sheet

Visual schedule

Seating change

Behavior contract

Check In/Out System

Goal is to reduce behaviors by:

Identifying behaviors

Providing consistent rewards and

consequences

Giving frequent feedback

Increasing home-school

communication

The Behavior Education Program

(BEP)

Token Economies

A behavior change system consisting of 3 components

A specified list of behaviors

Tokens or points that the individual receives for

emitting that behavior

A menu of back up reinforcers

Reinforcer survey or preference assessment http://www.pbisworld.com/tier-3/forced-choice-reinforcement-survey/

http://files.solution-

tree.com/pdfs/Reproducibles_BY/BehaviorInterviewandReinforcementsu

rvey.pdf

Examples of Token Economies

1 2 3 4 5

When I reach Patrick, I get ______________

HELP SPONGEBOB REACH PATRICK

Draw a line to connect a dot when you _______________

Visual Schedules

Visual schedules prime expected behavior, ease anxiety, and help facilitate transitions

Offer a means to provide reinforcement for shifting between tasks

Create a script for handling a new situation

Helpful for mainstreaming

Behavior Contracts

Involve the student in creating the contract

Clearly list student behaviors that are to be

reduced or increased

Define the minimum conditions under which the

student will earn a reward or token

State the conditions under which the student will be

able to redeem the specific rewards

Consider using a response cost or a bonus

Include an area for signature of the student,

teacher, and parent

Increase Parent Communication

Individual & Intensive Intervention

Tier III

Individual and Intensive Supports

Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA)

Behavior Support Plan (BSP)

Individual counseling/ intensive supports

Modified day

Further evaluation

Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA)

The process of determining the cause or function of

a behavior before developing an intervention or

behavior support plan

Steps:

Indirect measures: interviews and rating scales

Direct and systematic observations

Manipulate the environment to see how behavior

changes

Involves evaluating the antecedents, behaviors, and

consequences

What Influences the Behavior?

The ABC Contingency

Antecedent- the cue, signal, request, or condition that

influences the occurrence of a behavior

Behavior- an observable act that a person does

Consequence- the outcome and/or feedback that

occurs following a behavior

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

ABC Contingency

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Teacher gives

direction to

start assignment

Student is

removed

from

classroom

Student puts

head down

ABC’s of Behavior

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Reinforcements and Punishments

Reinforcers are anything that increase or maintain a

behavior

Punishers are anything that decrease or extinguish a

behavior

There are two types of Reinforcers and Punishers

Positive reinforcers, negative reinforcers

Positive punishments and negative punishments

Positive= TO ADD

Negative= TO TAKE AWAY

Reinforcement

Reinforcement- Anything that INCREASES the likelihood of

the behavior happening again in the future

Positive Reinforcement- Procedure of adding a stimulus that

results in an increase of that behavior

For Positive Reinforcement to be effective, it must be:

In a state of deprivation

Immediate

Sizeable

Contingency based

Negative Reinforcement- Procedure of removing an aversive

stimulus that results in an increase of that behavior

Punishment

Positive Punishment: Procedure in which an

aversive stimulus is added that results in a

decrease of that behavior

Negative Punishment: Procedure in which a

stimulus is removed or prevented that results

in a decrease of that behavior

Time-out: The immediate removal of access to

a reinforcer resulting in a decreased frequency

of the response

Response Cost: The loss of previously earned

reinforcers producing a decrease of the

frequency of behavior

Anything that DECREASES the likelihood of the behavior happening again

Overcorrection

Positive Practice

The individual is required to repeat a

correct form of the behavior multiple

times

Restitution Overcorrection

The individual is required to repair the

damage and then engage in additional

behaviors to bring the environment to a

condition that is better than it was prior to

the misbehavior

Extinction

Extinction burst: initial increase in frequency/intensity of the undesired behavior that is put on extinction

Spontaneous recovery: an increase in the frequency of behavior whose frequency had been previously been reduced

Aggression induced by extinction: aggressive behavior may accompany a burst

Procedure in which reinforcement for a previously-

reinforced behavior is stopped

Four Functions of Behavior

Attention Seeking (AS)

Task Avoidance/Escape (TA)

Access to Tangibles, etc. (AT)

Self-Stimulatory Behavior (SS)

Attention Seeking

Maintained by positive

reinforcement

Reinforce or increase

frequency by providing

attention

Decrease frequency of

behavior by ignoring

behavior

Attention Seeking

Do:

Place behavior on extinction (planned ignoring)

Shift body and head away from individual

Reinforce other behavior (absence of behavior) or

alternative behavior by having the individual request

attention in a socially acceptable manner

Do Not:

Provide attention to the behavior (even by saying, “no”)

Ask the individual what is wrong

Task Avoidance/Escape

Maintained by negative

reinforcement

Increase frequency by

allowing escape from task

Decrease frequency by

following through with the

task

Task Avoidance/Escape

Do:

Provide visual schedule as antecedent control

Redirect individual back to task

Utilize an If Then diagram

Provide increased reinforcement upon starting unfavorable task

Give breaks (planned)

Provide the individual with easier task initially to produce behavioral

momentum

Don’t

Allow the individual to escape even momentarily

Provide positive reinforcement

Give a timeout /break

Access to Tangibles/Activities

Maintained by positive

reinforcement for child and

negative reinforcement for adult

Increase frequency of the

behavior by allowing access to

item or activity

Decrease frequency of the

behavior by not allowing access

to the behavior or activity

Access to Tangibles/Activities

Do:

Use a visual schedule (antecedent control) so the

individual can see when he/she can gain access

Teach the individual an alternative means to gain the

item

Remind the individual of the contingency

Don’t:

Give the individual the item or allow access to the item

to calm him/her

Self Stimulatory Behaviors

Maintained by automatic

reinforcement

Increase frequency of the

behavior by allowing it to occur

Decrease frequency of the

behavior by finding an

appropriate replacement

behavior

Self Stimulatory Behaviors

Do:

Find a replacement behavior that serves the same

function and is more appropriate (ideally incompatible)

Find an appropriate time to engage in the behavior

Fade the behavior

Don’t:

Allow the behavior to continue

How Do We Determine the Function?

Observe the behavior and take data

Provides baseline information

Provide detailed information about what is happening

before and after the behavior to make a hypothesis

about the function

Record the behavior after intervention to see if it

increases, decreases, or stays the same

Remember to allow for extinction burst

Behavior Tracking: ABC Forms

Antecedent Behavior Consequence

Frequency, Duration, Intensity

Frequency- How often does it

occur?

Duration- How long does it

last?

Intensity- What is the

seriousness?

Scatter Plots

Used for behaviors

that occur frequently

but do not last for

long periods of time

Helpful in creating

behavior plans

Behavioral Strategies across the Tiers

Emotion Rating Scale

Rating Examples of Problems

5 I have a serious injury and need to be

rushed to the hospital

4 I have a very sick family member

3 Another kid is calling me names even

after I asked him to stop

2 I have a test and forgot to study

1 I have a substitute teacher

Match the Reaction to the Problem

Rating Problem Rating Reaction

5 5

4 4

3 3

2 2

1 1

Older students need to compress the size of their emotions

Emotional consequences

Emotional Compression

Rating Problem Rating Reaction

5

4

3 3

2 2

1 1

Social Behavior Mapping

Developed by Michelle Garcia Winner

www.socialthinking.com

Teaches students the expected and

unexpected behaviors in different

environments

Develops the understanding that context-

specific behaviors are defined as expected

or unexpected by others

Teaches the concept that consequences occur

because of the impact of the behaviors on

others

Social Behavior Mapping (SBM)

Behavioral

chain

reaction

Child’s behavior

Emotions of others Consequences

Emotions of child

Define How You Feel about Yourself Based on How People Treat You

Define How You Feel about Yourself Based on How People Treat You

Social Behavior Map

References

Carr, E. G., Horner, R. H., Turnbull, A. P., Marquis, J. G., McLaughlin, D. M., McAtee, M. L., Smith, C. E., Ryan, K. A., Ruef, M. B., Doolabh, A., & Braddock, D. (1999). Positive behavior support for people with developmental disabilities: A research synthesis. Washington, D.C.: American Association on Mental Retardation.

Heumann, J., & Warlick, K. (2001). Prevention research & the IDEA discipline provisions: A guide for school administrators. Available: www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/OSEP/adminbeh.web.pdf.

Horner, R. H., Crone, D. A., & Stiller, B. (2001, March). The role of school psychologists in establishing positive behavior support: Collaborating in systems change at the school-wide level. Communiqué, 29(6), 10-12.

Skiba, R. J. (2000, August). Zero tolerance, zero evidence: An analysis of school disciplinary practice. (Policy Research Rep. No. SRS2).

Sugai, G., & Horner, R. (2001, June). School climate and discipline: Going to scale. The National Summit on the Shared Implementation of IDEA, Washington, D.C. Available at: www.ideainfo.org

U.S. Department of Education. (2000). Applying positive behavioral support in schools: Twenty-second Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals with Disability Act. Washington, D.C.: Author.

Walker, H. Colvin, G., & Ramsey, E. (1995). Antisocial behavior in public school: Strategies and best practices. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.