STRICTLYPOSITIVE–EXPERIENCESWITHSTUDENTSUPPORTIN

JAMAICA

STRICTLYPOSITIVE–EXPERIENCESWITHSTUDENTSUPPORTINJAMAICA

R.Tortello

WebconferenceonViolenceandDevelopment-DevelopmentConnectionsandFundacionIdeaborn-2015

BRIEFBACKGROUNDONJAMAICA

  WhileschoolenrolmentinJamaicaishigh,withpre-primaryenrolmentat99.7percent,primaryat92.1percentandsecondaryat94.5percent,thesestatisticsmaskhugegapsintheeducationsystem.

  Onallnationaltests,boysshowlowerachievementthangirls,especiallythoseboysfrompoorercommunities,reflectingahighlevelofdisengagementamongboys,specificallymaleadolescents.Scoresofboysdropoutofsecondaryschoolearlyheadedforafuturewithscarcechancesfortertiaryeducationandgainfulemployment.

   Disparitiesbetweenattendanceratesforboysandgirlsexistinbothurbanandruralareas,withboysatadisadvantage,especiallyforsecondarylevelschool.Evenwhenchildrenareattendingschool,theydonotalwaysfeelsafethere.

   Eight(8)outof10childrenaged2-14yearsexperiencessomeformofviolentphysicalpunishmentasdisciplinewhetheratschoolorathome.

EXTERNAL BASELINE DATA NATIONAL COUNCIL ON DRUG ABUSE (MOH) SOURCE- JAMAICA NATIONAL SCHOOL SURVEY 2006

70%

3.10%

24% 27%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

Alcohol Cocaine/crack Marijauna Tobacco

EXTERNAL BASELINE DATA JAMAICA CONSTABULARY FORCE (MINISTRY OF

NATIONAL SECURITY)

3671

201

2361

1109

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

Anti-social behaviours Arrested Cautioned Monitored

EXTERNAL BASELINE DATA CHILDREN TREATED IN THE EMERGENCY ROOMS WITH INTENTIONAL INJURIES – SOURCE ESSJ 2012

155

425

2,366

169 263

2,199

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

Birth - 5 years 6-9 years 10-19years

Boys

Girls

MULTIPLEPARTNERSHIPSINCREASING-2012

Males;60.5%

Females:19.4%

CASEFORSTUDENTSUPPORT

  Researchdemonstratesthatstudentswhoreceiveconsistentsocial-emotionalsupportandpreventionservicesperformbetteracademically.

  Schoolleaderswhorecognizetherelationshipbetweenstudentsuccess,effectiveteachingandlearningstrategies(pedagogy),andpsychosocialsupport,throughcomprehensiveschoolhealthprograms(includingattentiontostudents’mentalhealth)willmorelikelyimprovestudentandschooloutcomes.

  Schoolswitheffectivestudentsupportsystemsarestudentcentred/childfriendly

MOEPOLICYPRIORITYANDSTRATEGICOBJECTIVE:

  PolicyPriority-Accesstocomprehensivestudentsupportservicesthatpromotepsychosocialhealthandpro-socialbehavioursacrosstheeducationsystem  StrategicObjective-Enablealllearnersintheeducationsystemtomanagechallengesandachievetheirdevelopmentalgoalstobecomewell-adjustedhealthyandsecureindividualsthroughintegratedcurriculumofferingsandsupportservices.  SWPBIS=keycomponent

EDSISYSTEM

Implementasystemfor:  EarlyDetection  Supportand   Intervention

Inlinewiththismovementtoensurestudentshavethebestopportunitiestolearnanddevelopintopositivecitizens,UNICEFpartneredwiththeMinistryofEducationin2014tobeginimplementingthekeycomponentoftheEDSI-School-widePositiveBehaviourInterventionandSupport(SW-PBIS)frameworkina3yearpilotprojectin56primaryandsecondarylevelschoolsnationwide.In2015,thetrainingsandimplementationmonitoringcontinuedacrosstheislandandteacherscollegesandMOEseniorstaffwereincludedforsustainabilitypurposes

EARLYDETECTIONISKEYTOSUPPORT

Allactivitiesaimedatimprovingthecapacityofschoolspersonneltoprevent/identifytheonsetoffactorsthatplacestudentsatrisk.

“An at-risk student is a student who, by virtue of their circumstances, is statisticallymorelikelythanotherstofailacademically”(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/At-risk_youths).

Risksincludebutnotlimitedto:   Learningdisabilities   Developmentalissues   Socialandemotionalissues   Behaviouralproblems   SexualandReproductiveHealthissues

SWPBIS…

Useofacomprehensiveframework:   forimplementingmanagementsystems,projectsand

programmesthatwillsignificantlyimprovestudentbehaviourandoverallschoolclimate;

   forguidingfacultyandstafftoactivelyteachpositive

behaviourthroughmodellingexpectedbehaviours,andrewardingpositivebehaviourssuchas:-academicachievement,followingadultrequest,andengaginginsafebehaviours.

GOALS:

   Expandaccesstostudent-friendlysupportservicesthatfosterwholesomestudentdevelopment.

   Provideschoolpersonnelwithoptionsformanagingemotional,educational,behavioural,andsocialchallengesamongstudents.

   Minimizemaladaptivebehavioursthatcouldresultindisruptionofstudents’education.

   Facilitatethestrengtheningofparental, familyandcommunityparticipationininterventionsforstudents’holisticdevelopment.

WHATISSCHOOLWIDEPOSITIVEBEHAVIORINTERVENTIONANDSUPPORT

   Itisasystemsapproachforestablishingthesocialcultureandindividualizedbehaviouralsupportneededforschoolstoachievebothsocialandacademicsuccessforallstudents

   Proactive,team-basedframeworkforcreatingandsustainingsafeandeffectiveschools.

   Emphasisisplacedonpreventionofproblembehaviour,developmentofpro-socialskills,andtheuseofdata-basedproblemsolvingforaddressingexistingbehaviourconcerns.

   SWPBISincreasestheschools’capacitytoeducateallstudents,usingresearch-basedschool-wide,classroom,andindividualizedinterventions.

HISTORYOFSWPBIS

   1980s:ResearchconductedbyUniversityofOregonshowedmoreeffortshouldbedirectedtowardsprevention,data-baseddecisionmaking,evidence-basedpractices,explicitsocialskillsinstruction,team-basedimplementationandstudentoutcomes

   1990s:theNationalCenteronPositiveBehaviouralInterventionsandSupportswasestablishedbytheUniversityofOregon

   2000s:theCenterhasshapedtheSWPBISframeworkandhasprovidedtechnicalassistancetoover16,000schoolsintheUnitedStates

EVIDENCETOSUPPORTSWPBIS

q IntheUnitedStates,SWPBISimplementedin16,000schools:ü 3statesinmorethan60%schoolsü 9statesinmorethan40%schoolsü 16statesinmorethan30%schools

q Numerousstudiessince1980sdocumentingeffectivenessofSWPBIStoaddressbehaviouralproblems

q SchoolswhicheffectivelyimplementSWPBIShave:ü Morethan80%ofstudentsandstaffabletoindicatethedesiredpositivebehaviouralexpectationsforagivenschoolsetting

ü Highratesofpositiveacknowledgementforcontributingtopositiveandsafeschoolclimateü Over70-80%ofstudentsnotexperiencingreferraltoofficefordisciplinaryruleinfractionü Studentswhorequireintensivesupportcanbeidentifiedü Systemsforregularreviewofschool-widedatatoguideactionplanninganddecisionmaking

TRADITIONALDISCIPLINEVSSWPBIS

  TraditionalDiscipline:-Focusedonthestudent’sproblembehavior

-Goalwastostopundesirablebehavior,throughtheuseofpunishment

  PositiveBehaviorInterventionSupport:

-Replacesundesiredbehaviorwithanewbehaviororskill

-SWPBISaltersenvironments,

teachesappropriateskills,andrewardsappropriatebehavior

SWPBISLEVELS

  School-wide:Proceduresandprocessesintendedforallstudents,staff,inspecificsettingsandacrosscampus

  Classroom:Processesandproceduresthatreflectschool-wideexpectationsforstudentbehavior,coupledwithpre-plannedstrategiesappliedwithinclassrooms

  TargetGroup:Processesandproceduresdesignedtoaddressbehavioralissuesofgroupsofstudentswithsimilarbehaviorproblemsorbehaviorsthatseemtooccurforthesamereasons(i.e.attentionseeking,escape)

   IndividualStudent:Processesandproceduresthatreflectschool-wideexpectationsforstudentbehavior,coupledwithteam-basedstrategiestoaddressproblematicbehaviorsofindividualstudents

TIER1

  Itisbasedonthepremisethatallstudentscanbenefitfromwellimplemented,evidence-basedpracticesforimprovingstudentbehaviour.

  Itprovidesapositivefocustoencouragingdesirablestudentbehaviours.Asetofuniversalexpectationsforbehaviourpositivelystated,areestablishedforallstudentsinalllocationsoftheschool.

TIER1=6ELEMENTS

   1.Identificationofthreetofiveuniversalbehaviourexpectationsfortheschoolthatarepositivelystated.

   2.Directinstructioninhighprioritypositivebehaviourexpectations.

   3.Highlevelsofpositivereinforcement,includingpositiveteacherattentiontostrengthenthosebehaviours.

   4.Enforcementofpredictableconsequencesconsistentlyandfairly.

   5.Preventionofproblemsbymodifyingsituationsthatareknowntoproducehighlevelsofproblembehaviour.

   6.Useofdisciplinedatatoplan,evaluate,andimprovetheSWPBISimplementationprocess.

SAMPLESCHOOLEXPECTATIONSMATRIX

EXISTINGIN-SCHOOLPROGRAMMESTHATLINKTOSWPBIS

   HealthandFamilyLifeEducationProgramme

   CivicsProgramme

   ValuesandAttitudes   GuidanceandCounsellingProgramme

   ValuablePathwaystoPeace

   PreventionEducationProgramme(PEP)

   HIV/AIDSProgramme

   CriticalIncidentManagement

TIER2

   WhentheuniversalsupportofTier1isfundamentallyinplaceforallstudents,itformsthebaseforimplementingTier2strategies.

   Tier2oftheSWPBIStrianglemodelprovidesadditionalinterventionstosupportthatsmallerpercentageofstudentswhodonotsufficientlyrespondtoTier1strategies.

   StudentsatTier2maybeatriskfordevelopingchronicproblembehaviour,butdonotneedthehighintensityinterventionstypicalofindividualizedbehaviourplansatTier3.

   Atargetedgroupinterventionwithtenormorestudentsparticipating,istypicalofTier2.

EXISTINGTEIR2SUPPORTS

SomeexistingInterventions:   IndividualandGroupCounselling(In-School)   Homevisits

   ParentingSupport   HealthyLifestyleClub  MentorshipProgramme

   PeerEducationProgrammes

   HealthPromotingSchools(pilot)

   Dream-a-World(pilot)

TIER3

  WhenTier1andTier2ofschool-wideSWPBISarefundamentallyinplace,thefoundationforimplementingTier3supportsisestablished.  Tier3ofthetrianglemodelfocusesontheindividualneedsofstudentswhoexhibitongoingpatternsofproblembehaviourandtypicallyrequireintensiveintervention  Tier3interventionshouldbeconsideredwhenproblembehaviouris:v Chronic/frequentv Dangerousv Highlydisruptivev Impedinglearningv Resultinginsocialoreducationalexclusion

TIER3CONSISTSOF:

  Functionalbehaviourassessmentandindividualbehavioursupportplans.

  Parentcollaborationandeducation.   Intensivesocialskillsandreplacementbehaviourinstruction

  Collaborationwithstudent’sphysicianormentalhealththerapist.

SUCCESSATTIER1–JONESTOWNPRIMARY

Closeto300youngchildren,agessixtotwelve,areenrolledinJonesTownprimary–aschoolsurroundedbylow-incomehousingtypicalofaninner-citycommunityinKingston.

JonesTownhasahistoryofviolence.

TheSWPBISteamnotedthatstudentsbringthevaluesandlifestylestheylearnathometotheschoolenvironment.BeforetheSWPBISpilotbegan,teachersandguidancecounsellorshadtobreakupahostofdailyconflicts.Manyofthesetookplaceduringlunchbreak,whenstudentsfromallgradeshadlunchtogether:

“Therewasalotofextortionandname-calling,”saysGrant.“Olderstudentswouldbullytheyoungeronesandtaketheirlunch.Andrespectforauthoritywasverylow.”

.

SWPBISTEAM

   \Vice-Principal,aseniorteacher,thecoordinatoroftheHealthandFamilyLifeEducationcurriculum,arepresentativeoftheParent-TeacherAssociation&oneoftheschool’ssecurityguards.

   Together,theyhavebeenexperimentingwithamenuofinterventionstomeetthegoalsofSWPBIS–usingawhole-schoolapproachtoimprovepositivevaluesandbehaviours,leadingtoreducedviolence

INTERVENTIONS

StaggeredthelunchbreakforGrades1-3andGrades4-6androsterteachersforsuper

- Introducedtheuseofplacemats

- StoppedservinglunchinStyrofoamboxes.

- Reinforcedbasicdiningetiquette

- Mountedsignsinthelunchroomandaroundtheschooltopromotetheseandotherpositivebehaviours,includingpropergarbagedisposal

MOREINTERVENTIONS

-Studentsinfusedtheirmottoinanewmantrawhichallstudentsnowrecitedaily–“togetherwebuildapositiveschoolenvironment.”

-  Createdasmallpeacegarden,whichthechildrenhelptocultivate,asavisualreminderoftheimportanceofavoidingconflict.

-  Createdanawardssystemforstudentswhodisplayhonesty.TeachersarenowencouragedtosendstudentstothePrincipal’sofficetobecommendedforpositivebehaviour,notjustnegative.

-  Teachersnowhabituallygreetstudentsastheyentertheschool,givinghigh-fivesandencouragementforthedayahead.A

-  Fieldtrips-theschooltookasetof25highlydisruptivestudentstovisitanotherschoolfortwodays–toobserveexpectedbehaviours

RESULTS

SchoolmonthlyreportsshowadecreaseinthenumberoffightsbetweenstudentssinceSWPBISstarted.

Teachersalsonoteimprovementsinrespectforauthority.

Bullyingandextortionhavereduceddramatically.

Theschoolalwayshadapolicyagainsttheuseofcorporalpunishmentintheclassroom–SWPBIShasservedtostrengthenit.

WAYFORWARD

   SWPBISteammeetsmonthlytoreviewandadjusttheiractionplan.

   Classicalmusicwillbeintroducedduringlunch.

   Theschoolisdevelopingitsfirstcodeofconducthandbook,outliningexpectedbehaviours,whichstudentswillberequiredtosign.

   Acolour-codedcardsystemisbeingcreated,inwhichstudentscanaccumulategreencardstobeawardedforpositivebehaviour,andtoeliminateredcardsaccumulatedfornegativebehaviour.

   ParentSupportgrouphasbeenformedandaimstoincreaseparentalparticipation

   “TheSWPBISprogrammehashelpedustobemorethoughtfulinhowwetreatthechildrenatourschool,”saystheVice-Principal,NicolineBlackwood.“Inparticular,ithashelpedteacherstoacknowledgenotonlytheself-worthofstudents,butofthemselves–becausetheyarethefacilitators.Theyaretheoneswhoaremodelingthepositivebehaviour.”

WAYFORWARDNATIONALLY

  Original20pilotschoolsmoveontoTier2andtier3andtheadditional36beginTier1

   UNICEFJamaicasupportedtheMinistryofEducation’sGuidanceandCounsellingUnit’sprocurementofscreeningtoolsfortheidentificationandreferralofstudentsforpsychosocialsupportservices-astheybegintomovetotiers2and3

   Trainingpackages(includingvideobasedlearningmaterials)arebeingdevelopedtofurtherequipteacherswithtechniquesforeffectivelyrespondingtostudents’socialandemotionalissues.

   EvaluationofthepilotisbeingcompletedtoidentifychallengesanddevelopanongoingMandEsystemforSWPBISwithintheMOE