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THEJOURNALOFTEACHERACTIONRESEARCH 30

JournalofTeacherActionResearch- Volume3,Issue2,2017,<practicalteacherresearch.com>,ISSN#2332-2233©JTAR.AllRights

DATAONTHEDATA:AMETHODFORIMPROVINGTHEFIDELITYOFOFFICEDISCIPLINEREFERRALCOMPLETION

PaulGavoni

IndianRiverStateCollege

W.AlexEdmonds

NovaSoutheasternUniversity

TomD.Kennedy

NovaSoutheasternUniversity

TomGollery

SoutheasternUniversity

AbstractAsbehaviorproblemsincreasewithinpublicschools,attemptsatinterventionaremosteffective

whenaccuratedataareavailableforplanningandassessment.Thecurrentinvestigationexaminedthe

relationshipbetweenpredictivevariablesimpactingthecompletionofofficedisciplinereferrals(ODRs);

moreover,thisinvestigationsoughttodemonstratetheeffectivenessofacodingsystemdevelopedbythe

researchersasamethodofmeasuringandimprovingthefidelityofthecompletionofODRsinaschool

utilizingSchoolWidePositiveBehaviorSupport(SWPBS).Thesefindingsshedlightonthe“coding”processas

apotentiallyviabledatasource.

Keywords:behaviormanagement,discipline,referrals,positivebehaviorsupport,officedisciplinereferrals



Introduction

Safeandorderlyschoolsandclassroomsprovidestructurethatiscriticaltoimproving

studentachievement.Studentmisbehaviorisdisruptivetothelearningenvironmentand

impactsstudentperformanceascriticalinstructiontimeprovidedbyteachersisredirected

towardbehaviormanagement(Musti-Rao&Haydon,2011).Wresting(2010)suggested

“theremaybenogreaterhurdleinpublicschoolstodaythanthatpresentedbystudents

whoexhibitchallengingbehavior”(p.48).

Asaresult,theneedforschool-wideproactiveandsystematicbehaviormanagement

systemssuchasschoolwidepositivebehaviorsupport(SWPBS)hasemerged(Childs,

Kincaid,George,&Gage,2015).Thus,aspartofacontinuedimprovementprocessfor

promotingapositivelearningenvironment,schoolsmustestablishconsistentpracticesof

collectingandmonitoringdata.Assuch,accurateofficedisciplinereferrals(ODR)dataisa

keycomponenttothesuccessfulapplicationofSWPBSinterventions(Kincaid,Childs,

Wallace,&Blasem2007).

TheoreticalPerspective

ConstructsfundamentaltoSchoolWidePositiveBehaviorSupport(SWPBS)andthatare

knowntoinfluenceateacher’scompletionofaformalwrittenofficedisciplinereferral

(ODR)aregroundedinthetheoryofappliedbehavioranalysis(ABA;Skinner,1953).

Behavioranalysisisusedtoimprovesociallysignificantbehaviors(Morris,Smith,&Altus,

2005).

SWPBSissystematicframeworkforteachingandreinforcingadaptivebehaviorwithinthe

schoolsetting(Flannery,Fenning,Kato,&McIntosh,2014).WithintheSWPBSsystem,

evidenced-basedstrategiesandinterventionsareselectedbasedonstudentoutcomes

withinathree-tieredframeworktoproblemsolveandreducethefrequencyofmaladaptive

behavior(Bradshaw,Mitchelle,&Leaf,2010).

LiteratureReview

OfficeDisciplineReferral.Officedisciplinereferrals(ODRs)areatypicalsourceformeasurementofschool-widebehaviorandtheimpactofprimaryinterventionsinschools

utilizingSWPBS(Bradshawetal.,2010).ODRsareusedtoreportstudentviolationsto

administration(Irvin,Horner,Ingram,Todd,Sugai,Sampson,&Boland,2006).Aspartofthe

SWPBSdisciplineprocedures,teachersarerequiredtodocumentanODRforeachinstance

astudentisremovedfromtheclassroomasaresultofpreviouslydefinedmisbehaviorthat

hasbecomeunmanageableintheclassroom,orwhatSWPBStermsofficemanaged

behavior(Irvinetal.,2006).

ResearchershavefoundthatstudentswhoreceiveanODRloseapproximately45minutes

ofinstructionperreferral(Muscott,Mann,&Lebrun,2008).However,researchhasshown



thatschoolsthatuseODRstoimplementSWPBSinterventionsconsistentlylowerstudentmisbehavior(Childs,Kincaid,George,&Gage,2015).Thus,ODRdatacanplayacriticalroleinidentificationandremediationofissueswhichimpactsstudentachievement.

SomeresearchersrecognizeODRsasanefficientandincreasinglystandardsourceofdatacollectionformonitoringSWPBS(Flannery,Fenning,Kato,&Bohanan,2011).However,otherresearchershavecitedavarietyoflimitationsthatresulteitherintheunderestimationoroverestimationofremediation(i.e.ineffectivedataentry,inconsistentODRsubmission,teacherbiasand/ortoleranceofmisbehavior,over-reportingofminorities;etc.)andsuggestadditionaldatasourcesshouldbeused(Childs,Kincaid,George,&Gage,2015;Martinez,McMahon,&Tregor,2015;Rusby,Taylor,&Foster,2007;Sugai,Sprague,Horner,Walker,&Hill,2000).

SchoolWidePositiveBehaviorSupport.Schoolwidepositivebehaviorsupport(SWPBS)interventionprogramputsintoplaceasupportsystemtoaidbehavioralchangeofstudentswhodisplaynegativebehaviors.ThereisawealthofresearchthatshowstheuseofSWPBShasapositiveimpactonreducingproblembehaviorintheclassroomandinincreasingstudentachievement(Mcintosh,Bennett,&Price2011).

ThereisevidencethatsupportsthevalidityofBenchmarksofQuality(BOQ)asafidelitymeasurebasedonaSWPBSteamsestimationofimplementation(Childs,George,&Kincaid,2011),aprimarymeasureforassessingSWPBSandtheimpactonstudentbehaviorcontinuestobetheuseofODRs.However,whiletoutedasanefficientdatasource,Sugaietal.(2000)cautionedthattheaccuracyoftheODRcollectionandmonitoringsystemsiscriticaltotheapplicationofODRsasaneffectivemeasureforinformingschool-basedintervention.

ResearchQuestions

Thepurposeofthestudywastosearchforworkablesolutionstomoreaccuratelymeasurestudentbehavioralissuesandtheimpactofinterventionswithintheschoolsetting.Inaddition,thisinvestigationsoughttoexaminetherelationshipbetweenpredictivevariablesimpactingthecompletionofofficedisciplinereferrals.Thefollowingresearchquestionsdrivethestudy:

1. Whatisthefrequencyofteacherswhoformallydocumentofficedisciplinereferralforms?

2. WhatistheaverageratioorpercentageofteachersubmissionsofabehavioralinfractioncodetoactualODRwrittendocumentation?

3. Towhatdegreedoesone’steachingexperience,traininghoursinbehavioralmodificationandeaseofcoding(covariates)correlatewiththeteachers’documentationofstudent’smisbehaviorinwrittenformusingtheofficedisciplinereferralform?



4. Whichcovariates(teachingexperience,traininghoursand/oreaseofcoding)is

statisticallysignificantinpredictingaparticipant’slikelihoodofformally

documentinganODR.

Methodology

Design.Aparticipatoryaction-researchapproachwasutilizedforthisstudy.Thistypeofdesignprovidestheframeworkforapplyingasystematicapproachinordertostudya

problemwhenseekingtoaugmentperformancewithinthecontextofspecificeducational

settings.However,participatoryactionresearchissmallscaleandnotgeneralizableeven

thoughitisoftenusedbyeducatorstoidentifyaproblem,collectdata,analyzethedata,

anddevelopanactionplantosolvetheproblem(Stringer,2013).

SettingandParticipants.Thestudytookplaceinamid-sizedcentralFloridaTitleI

elementaryschoolinapredominantlylow-incomearea.Theparticipantswere40female

classroomteachers.Theaverageageofparticipantswas38.4years(Range:22–63),the

averageyearsteachingwas10.2(Range:1–43),theaveragehoursofuniversitycoursework

enrolledinbyparticipantsthatpertainedtobehaviormanagement,96.0(Range:0–384),

andtheaveragehoursoftrainingwithwhichparticipantswerecreditedpost-university

graduationpertainingtobehaviormanagementwas23.6(Range:3–150).

TrainingReceived.Atthebeginningandmiddleoftheschoolyear,staff(teachers,office

secretaries,counselors,schoolpsychologist,andadministrators)receivedtrainingabout

both1)behavioralmanagementand2)howtorequestadministratorassistance.Callingfor

anadministratorwascommonpracticewithinthetargetedschoolandmostelementary

schoolswithinthedistrictwhenteachershadstudentbehavioralproblemsthatcouldnotbe

handled.Duringthebehavioralmanagementportion,staffreceivedinformationaboutthe

importanceofeffectiveclassroommanagementaswellastherangeofdifferentiated

strategiesthatcouldbeusedforrespondingtostudentmisbehavior,suchaspraising

studentsontaskandignoringinconsequentialbehavior(Reinke,Herman,&Sprick,2011).

Duringthesessionwhereteacherslearnedtocallforadministratorassistance,theylearned

abouttheSWPBSplan,aswellas:(a)school-wideexpectations,(b)rules,(c)reward

systems,and(d)disciplinereferralprocessandprocedures.Teachersweretaughttheonly

purposeof“callingacode”wastoobtainassistancewithmanagingsevereorrepeated

instancesofdisruptivebehavior,ortoobtainassistancewithmedicalemergencies;itwas

nottobeusedasathreattothestudent(e.g.,“StopthatorelseIwillcallacode”).In

addition,teachersweretaughtthecodingproceduresdevelopedbytheinvestigatorsand

toldtorequestassistancefromadministratorswhenbehavioralproblemsescalatedtooffice

managedbehaviorsbyusingthefollowingthreecodes:

1. Code1:ContinuousAggressionorSelf-InjuryorHighIntensityPropertyDestruction.

Identifiedanemergencysituationwherethestudentpresentedanimmediate

physicaldangertoselforothers.



2. Code2:ContinuousHighMagnitudeDisruptionorLowIntensityProperty

Destruction.Identifiedasituationwhereastudentwascontinuouslydisruptingthe

classroomenvironment.Lowermagnitudebehaviorswereidentifiedastalkingout

whilehighmagnitudebehaviorswasyellingandphysicalcontact.

3. Code3:OutofAssignedArea.Identifiedasituationwhereastudentintentionallyleft

theirassignedareaorhadtakenflightfromtheschool.

CollectingData.Theofficedisciplinereferrals(ODRs)weretheunitofanalysistodeterminethepredictiveabilityofvariablesinfluencingateacher’scompletionoftheODR

forms.AstructuredsurveyrecordingapproachwasusedtoobtaindatafromtheODRsand

wasexaminedusingthethreepredictorvariables:(a)yearsteaching,(b)codes;code/ODR

ratio,and(c)traininghoursfocusedonstudentbehaviormanagementanddiscipline

processes.

Thecodes,talkedaboutinthetrainingsectionabove,wereonlynecessaryfortheofficeto

knowhowtomanagethe“callforhelp.”Allcodeswererecorded(i.e.,time,location,code,

student,staffcallingthecode,staffresponding,andthestaffloggingthedata)bya

designateddispatcherintoanExceldatabase.Thedispatcher,whowasthefrontdeskclerk

whoroutinelycommunicatedrequestsforassistancefromtheteachertotheadministrator,

wastrainedtoobtainverbalconfirmationthatanadministratorwasresponding.

Toensurefidelitywiththecodingprocedures,theprimaryinvestigatormonitoredtheradio,

verifiedthecodewasloggedonceassistancewasrequested,providedconstructive

feedbacktocorrecterrors,andverballypraisedthedispatcherforimplementingthe

procedurecorrectly.Thisprocesswasrepeatedforthebackupdispatcher,andthenfaded

torandomcheckstwiceweekly.Sinceofficemanagedbehaviorrequiredthecompletionof

anODRasacriticalelementofSWPBS,eachcodecalledwasrequiredtobeaccompaniedby

areferral.Inaddition,teacherswereresponsibleforcontactingtheparent/guardianand

documentingthecontactontheirclassroomparentcontactlogaspartoftheschool’sand

district’sexpectation.

DataAnalysis.Toreviewandanalyzedata,theinvestigatorsusedexistingODRdatafrom

thedistrictdatabaseinputbyteachers,codedatainputintotheschool’sExcelprogramby

thefrontdeskclerk,anddatafromthesurveydistributedtoteachersatanall-staffmeeting

bytheprimaryinvestigator.TheODRdatasourceutilizedtheSkywardSystem,alicensed

privatesoftware,toexaminedata.TheSkywarddisciplinedatabasewascustomizedto

allowschoolstheabilitytocaptureandgraphaggregatedatanecessaryforassessingand

problemsolvingwithinaSWPBSstructure.ODRdataaggregatedwithintheSkywardSystem

alloweduserstotrackmajorbehaviorinfractionsandresultingdisciplinereferralsweekly,

monthly,andyearlybyindividualstudents,targetedgroups,orschool-wide.



Thefirsttworesearchquestionswereaddressedbyanarrayofdescriptivestatisticsfor

comparativepurposes.Measuresofcentraltendency,variability,andpercentageswere

utilizedtoillustratethenatureanddistribution.Researchquestionthreewasanalyzedby

thePearsonProduct-MomentCorrelationCoefficient(r)employedtodeterminethe

strengthofrelationshipbetweenthepredictorvariablesandthecriterionvariable.The

fourthquestion,whichfocusedonthepredictiveabilitiesofthepredictorsonthecriterion,

wasdeterminedbyamultipleregression.

Results

ResearchQ1andQ2.TheratioofODRwrittendocumentationinstancesperparticipant

registeringofbehavioralinfractioncodeswas34%.Inotherwords,approximatelyonethird

ofteacherscallingincodestotheofficealsocompletedtheODR.Therangeofratioswith

the40participantswas0-100%,withthemostoccurringat0%(n=14;35%ofthetotalparticipantgroup).Moreover,thevariabilityofcoderegistrationdatatosubsequent

writtenODRdataamongthe40participantswasstatisticallysignificant(t=5.45;p<.000).

ResearchQ3.Thecorrelationcoefficientsforthepredictorvariablesof“YearsTeaching”and“HoursofTraining”representveryweak,inverserelationshipswiththecriterion

variable(WrittenODR).Moreover,bothcorrelationswerenotstatisticallysignificant(p=.229;p=.402).Therelationshipbetweencodesformallyregisteredbyparticipantsandthe

criterionvariableofwrittenODRismoderatelyhigh(r=.535),andstatisticallysignificant(p<.000).

Table1:MatrixofRelationshipsAmongThreeVariables

CorrelationsODR

write-up

Teaching

years

Codes

registered

Pearson

correlation

ODR 1.000 -.121 .535

Teach -.121 1.000 -.106

Codes .535 -.106 1.000

Training -.041 .178 .034

Sig.(1-tailed)

ODR . .229 .000

Teach .229 . .258

Codes .000 .258

Training .402 .136 .417



Ingeneral,whentwovariablesunderinvestigationyieldcorrelationcoefficientsof.70and

beyond,itisthoughttocomplicatetheprecisemeasurementandpredictivepowerofeach

individualvariableintheMultipleLinearRegressionanalysis.Collinearitystatistics(VIFMean=1.032;ToleranceMean=.969)affirmtheavoidanceofcollinearityissuesthatmay

haveaffectedthecurrentmodelofmultiplepredictors(Menard,1995).Table1showsthe

correlationcoefficientforthethreevariablesunderinvestigation.

ResearchQ4.Participantformalregistrationofabehavioralinfractioncodewasthemost

robustandonlystatisticallysignificantpredictorofthelikelihoodofformalwrittenODR

documentation(B=.072;t=3.76;p<.001).Theothertwopredictorvariables(YearsofTeaching;TrainingHours)werenotstatisticallysignificantpredictorsofthelikelihoodof

participantwrittendocumentationofanODR(B=-.019;t=-.390;p=.699andB=-.006;t=-.341;p=.735).

Thefocusofthisinvestigationexaminedthepredictiveabilitiesofthreepredictorvariables

thoughttoimpactateacher’slikelihoodofdocumentinganofficedisciplinereferral(ODR)in

writtenform.Theresultsrevealedthatfollow-throughinthewrittendocumentation

processwerelargelyinconsistent.Moreover,thevariabilityofparticipantratioofcodingto

writtenODRwasstatisticallysignificant(p<.000).

Theconsequenceofthislackofactiononthepartofmanyparticipantsis,attheveryleast,

counter-productivetotheprocessofinitiatingmeaningfulinterventionasaresultof

unreliabledata.Itwastheresearchers’contentionthattheclosertheratioofformal

writtenODRsistotheregisteredbehavioralinfractioncodes,thegreatertheprobability

thattimelyandeffectualremediationofrespectiveissuesofmisconductwillbeenacted.

However,participantsmanifestedaratioofslightlyoveronethird(34%).Thedatashows

theneedforformalizedfollow-uptrainingontheimportanceofteachers’consistentuseof

formalwrittenODRdocumentationinthewakeofregisteringabehavioralinfractioncode

toenhancethefidelitybetweenthetwoactions.Ideally,theratioshouldbeascloseto

100%aspossibleifmeaningfulinterventionandpositivechangeistotakeplaceinthe

redirectionandameliorationofmaladaptivebehavior.

TotesttheratioofODRstocodes,acombinationofBinaryLogisticRegressionandROCCurvestatisticaltechniqueswasused,inaposthocfashion,toassessthepredictiveprowessoftheratiowithregardtothelikelihoodofateacher’sregistrationofaformallywritten

ODR.Resultsfromthisexploratoryposthocanalysisconfirmedthenotionthattheratioof

registeredinfractioncodestoactualwrittenODRmayrepresentanevenmorecritical

datumthantheactualregistrationofthecodeitself.Thisinformationiscriticalfor

administrativestafftounderstandtherelationshipbetweenthesevariablesandultimately

howitaffectstheclassroomdynamics.The“Ratio”isastatisticallysignificantpredictorofa

teacher’sprobabilityofformallywritingtheODR(p<.001;R²=.81).Froman“OddsRatio”



or“ExP(B)perspectivewithregardtotheBinaryLogisticregressionanalysis,aonepercentageincreaseintheratiopercentageincreasestheprobabilitythatateacherwillformallywriteanODRby10%.Thisin-turnincreasestheprobabilitythatthebehavioralincidentwillbeaddressed.

TheCode/WrittenODRratiorepresentedtheonlystatisticallysignificantpredictorofateacher’slikelihoodtoregisterawrittenODR(p<.002)whencomparedtogetherintheregressionmodel(model=p<.000;R²=.828;Hosmer&Lemeshow=.723).

ReceiverOperationCharacteristics(ROC)CurveAnalysis.TheROCcurveanalysisisperformedwhenaresearcherwishestoheightenthe“sensitivity”and“specificity”ofprediction.Inthecurrentinvestigation,ROCcurveanalysisconfirmedthefindingsofthebinarylogisticanalysis,furtherassertingthepredictiveprowessoftheratioofcoderegistrationandwrittenODRwithregardtoateacher’slikelihoodofcommittingtothewritingofaformalODR(AreaUndertheCurve/AUC=.973;p<.000-allotherpredictorvariablesAUCrangingfrom.515to.615).

DiscussionandImplications

Themajorareaofemphasisofthecurrentstudyinvolvedtheidentificationofpredictorvariables(covariates)thatmightaccuratelypredictthelikelihoodofateachercompletingformalwrittendocumentationofanODR.Itwastheresearchers’contentionthatoncevariablesareidentifiedthatmayserveasaccuratepredictorsofthewrittenODRconsiderableeffortcouldthenbedevotedtoprofessionaldevelopmentactivity.Yearsofteaching,hoursofpost-universitytrainingintheareaofbehaviormanagement,andteacherregistrationofformalbehavioralinfractioncodeswereselectedastheprimepredictorvariables(covariates)inthestudy.AnadditionalvariablethoughttobeapossiblepredictorofwrittendocumentationofanODRwastheageoftheteacher.However,toensureclarityanduniquenessofpredictioninthestudy,wechosetoomitthevariable"age"duetoitshighlevelofrelationshiptothevariableofyearsintheteachingprofession(r>.70).

Resultsoftheregressionanalysisconductedonthethreeselectedpredictorvariableshighlightedthesuperiorpredictiveabilityofateacher’sregistrationofabehavioralinfractioncode(B=.072;t=3.762;p<.001).TherelationshipbetweenthecodingandtheactualresultofawrittenODRwaspositive,approaching"strong"(r=.54,p<.001).Yearsofteachingandhoursofpost-universitytrainingincludedinthestudyforpredictivepurposesmanifestedaveryweakrelationshipwiththewrittenODR,thuswerenotveryeffectualaspredictorsofateacher’slikelihoodofproducingawrittenODR.TheMultipleLinearRegressionanalysisresults,alongwithrelevantdescriptivedataobtainedinthecurrentstudy,strengthenthecasefortheimportanceoftherolethattheactualregisteringofbehavioralinfractioncodesplaysintheseriesofeventsthatprecedeactualinterventionand,inturn,bringclarityindefiningtheprocessitself.Itwouldappear,fromtheresultsofthecurrentstudy,thatprofessionaldevelopmentenergieswouldbebestdedicatedtoinstructingandnurturingteacherawarenessanddisciplineincommittingtogreaterlevelsof



fidelityinregisteringbehavioralinfractioncodesandfollowingthatactioncloselywith

writtendocumentationofanODR.

Limitations

Therewereseverallimitationsinherentinthisinvestigation.Onelimitationconcernedself-

reportinginrelationtocollegecreditsandtraininghoursearnedinclassroomorbehavior

management.Ifparticipantsdidnotprovideaccurateinformationinregardtotheirtraining

history,outcomesmaynotbereflectiveoftheactualrelationbetweenthecovariates.To

minimizethisthreat,teacherswereprovidedtheirdocumentedtraininghoursloggedinthe

districtsdatawarehouse.Additionally,thequalityofprofessionaldevelopmentandits

design–suchas,job-embedded,conductedoveraperiodoftime,andincludingpractice,

observations,andfeedback–or“one-shot,sit-and-get”presentations–werenotpartofthestudy.Notall“training”forteachersonbehaviormanagementtechniquesisequallyuseful.

Anotherlimitationdealswithhistoricschoolgoalsinrelationtoreducingmisbehaviorthat

mayhaveimpactedtheresults.Theschoolofstudyhadbeenprovidedadditional

behavioralsupportslikethedevelopmentandtrainingincallingcodesthatlikelyimpacted

thefidelityofSWPBSimplementation.Inaddition,teacherswereawarethatODRswere

closelymeasuredthroughthecodingprocess,whichmayhaveimpactedteacherbehaviorin

regardtoODRdocumentation.

Conclusion

Giventheincreaseinevidenced-basedpracticeswithinpubliceducationoverthelast

decade,valuabledisciplinedatacontinuetobeaggregatedandanalyzedtosupportstudent

needsandgrowth.Asaresult,theeffectivenessofSWPBS,whenimplementedwithfidelity

(Mcintosh,Bennett,&Price2011),cannotberepudiatedasobjectivedataareusedtodrive

decision-makingprocesses(Bradshawetal.,2010);however,additionalresearchisneeded

toincreasethevarietyofaccessiblemeasuresusedwithintheSWPBSsystems.Martinez,

McMahon,andTreger(2015)recommendedincreasedresearchtoexaminethedifferences

inODRratesbyteacherasrelatedtoteachertrainingandothercontextualinfluences.This

investigation,whileseekingtobridgethegapinliterature,hashighlightedaprocessbeyond

theBOQ(Childs,George,&Kincaid,2011)asameasureofthefidelityregardingthe

documentationofODRs.Consideringtheimportanceofdataassessmentandevaluation

measurestodistrict-basedadministrators,principals,teachers,andparents,increasingthe

breadthofdataresourcesoffersanopportunityforschoolsanddistrictstocontinuerefining

theirprocessesbyembeddingthecodingprocessutilizedwithinthisinvestigation.While

researchexiststhatdemonstratesthemodestvalidityandreliabilityoftheODRprocess

(Irvinetal.,2006),aquestionarisesastowhetherthisprocessisconsistentlythebest

measuretosupporttheSWPBSprocess.Useofthecodingprocesshasthepotentialto

increasethereliabilityofODRdata.Asof2016,noresearchhasinvestigatedpredictorsof

ODRcompletionordemonstratedapotentialsourceofdataandmeasureoffidelityas

reflectedinthisstudythroughthecodingprocess.



LessonsLearned.Aftertheinvestigation,followingthepremiseofactionresearch,code

datawasusedbytheassistantprincipaltomeasureODRdocumentationandprompt

teacherstocompletionwhennecessary.Specifically,teacherswhoseODRdataparalleled

thecodedataweresentemailspraisingthemforinputtingtheODR;teacherswhohada

coderecordedbutdidnothaveacorrespondingreferralwerepromptedthroughanemail

toinputanODR.Thisprocessresultedina100%completionofODRsasmeasuredbythe

recordedcodes.AlthoughtheimmediateimpactonthecompletionofODRsisoutstanding,

toascertainthelong-termimplicationsofthis,afollow-updataanalysisisrequired.

Thecurrentinvestigationwasapreliminaryendeavortoaugmenttheexistingbodyof

SWPBSliteratureforthepurposeofinformingassessmentandevaluationmethodsof

practitionerswhoimplementSWPBS.Researchonschool-widebehaviormanagementhas

demonstratedthatstudentswhoreceiveanODRloseapproximately45minutesof

instructionperreferral(Muscott,Mann,&Lebrun,2008).Thecorrelationbetweenlost

academictimeandbehavioralissuesdeservesincreasedfocusinanenvironmentwherethe

needforreducingtheachievementgapisatthevanguardofeducationalinitiatives.Since,

ideally,theratiobetweenODRsandcodingprocessdemonstratedinthisinvestigation

shouldapproximate100%asmuchaspossible,useofcodeswithinschoolswhereteachers

callforassistanceor“studentpick-ups”whenofficemanagedbehavioroccursmayprovide

averyefficientyethighlymeaningfuldatasourcetosupporttheSWPBSprocess.

Asaresultofthefindingsandfeedbackmodel,wehavedevelopedthekey“take-aways”

thatwillbeusedintheschool:

1. Teacherswillbetrainedtocallcodesforstudentswhomeetofficemanaged

behavior.

2. Officestafforthosewhoacknowledgecallsforassistancewillbetrainedto

logdatainadatabase.

3. Administratorsordesigneeswillbetaughttocomparethecodedatawith

ODRdata.

4. AdministratorsordesigneeswillbetaughttopraiseorpromptODRinput

basedontheODRtocoderatio.

FutureResearch.Futureresearcheffortsrelevanttothetopicofthecurrentstudyshouldbeengagedinfurtherdevelopmentofacomprehensiveprofileofbehavioralinfraction

codingandwrittendocumentationofanODR.Onesuggestionforcontinuedresearch

effortsmightcenteronabroader,morestratifiedsampleofparticipants.Thecurrentstudy

wascomprisedofparticipantsteachingatTitleIschools.StudentsenrolledatTitleIschools,

onaverage,tendtomanifestmorebehavioralinfractionsthanregulargeneraleducation

environmentsandarenotreflectiveofa“normal”distribution.

Anotherresearchpaththatmaybetakeninlightoftheimportanceofbehavioralinfraction

codingcouldinvolvetheestablishmentofinternalreliabilitybenchmarksandmeasuresof



theaccuracyofthecodingitself.Themagnitudeandvariabilityofcodingisanareathatwas

notaddressedinthecurrentstudy,butwarrantsattentionfromresearchersinthetime

ahead.

Fromaphenomenologicalperspective,futureresearchmightaddressapossiblechangein

participantbehaviorinthecoding/ODRprocessrelatedtoformalobservationby

researchers.Isreactivityaconsiderationinestablishingthevalidityofparticipantresponse,

andifso,doesittendtoincreaseordecreaseparticipantresponseinthecoding/ODR

process?

Futureinvestigatorsmightseektousequalitativedatabyinterviewingthoseteacherswho

didwriteformaldisciplinereferralsandthoseteacherswho“calledthecode”butwhodid

notwriteformaldisciplinereferrals.Thisinsightfulqualitativedatamaypotentiallyhelp

researchersmakegreatersenseoftheirquantitativedata.

Lastly,andperhapsthemostmeaningfulofresearchpathsthatmightbetakenonthetopic

ofthecurrentstudywouldinvolveaninvestigationofpredictorvariablesthatmayhavea

mediatingormoderatingeffectinregressionanalysisuponthelikelihoodofateacher’s

engaginginthewrittendocumentationofanODR.Thefocusofthecurrentinvestigation

wastheinitialidentificationofpredictorvariablesthatmightserveasaccuratepredictorsof

thatlikelihood.However,itwouldbehelpfultodetermineifaspecificpredictorvariableor

varietyofvariableshavebeenplayingasignificantroleinthewrittendocumentationofan

ODRorthedecisionnottodoso.

AbouttheAuthors

PaulF.Gavoni,EdD,BCABA,is anexpertinhumanperformanceandorganizational

leadershipwhohas over20yearsofexperience ineducationandhumanservices

primarily focusedonbringingoutthebestinpeople. AsanAdjunctProfessoratIndianRiverStateCollegeandFloridaAtlanticUniversity,Paul ispassionateaboutengagingandempoweringhisstudentsbyhelpingthemdevelop,analyze,and

successfully apply knowledge. PaulholdsaDoctorateofEducationwithaconcentrationinOrganizationalLeadershipfromNSU,aSpecialistofEducationwithaconcentrationin

EducationalLeadershipfromNSU,andaMastersofSocialWorkwithaconcentrationin

ChildrenandFamiliesfromBarryUniversity. Beyondhisworkineducationandhuman

services,Paulisalsoahighlyrespectedstrikingcoachincombatsports.In1992,Paul beganboxinginSouthFloridaandwentontowinaFloridaGoldenGlovesHeavyweightTitlein

1998.Sincethen,Coach"PaulieGloves,"asheisknownintheMMAcommunity,hastrained

manychampionsandUFCvetsusingtechnologiesrootedinthebehavioralsciences. Afeaturedcoachinthebook Beast:Blood,Struggle,andDreamsatheHeartofMixedMartial



Arts,CoachPaulieisalsoanauthorwhohaswrittenforonlinemagazinessuch

as Scifighting, LastWordonSports,MMASucka,andBloodyElbow.

W.AlexEdmonds,PhD,BCB,iscurrentlyanassociateprofessorofresearchatNovaSoutheasternUniversityinDavie,Florida.HegraduatedfromFloridaStateUniversityand

receivedhisdoctoraldegreeinEducationalPsychologywithaminorinStatisticsand

Measurement.Overtheyears,Dr.Edmondshasappliedhisknowledgeofresearchdesign,

measurement,andassessmentinbothfieldandlaboratoryexaminations.Hehaspublished

extensivelyinavarietyofareassuchaspsychophysiologyandeducationalpsychology.His

primaryinterestrevolvesaroundapplyinguniquemethodologicalandstatisticaltechniques

asameanstoexploringtherelationshipbetweenemotions,physiologyandperformancein

avarietyofdomains.Healsohasover10yearsofexperienceinapplyingbiofeedbackin

fieldandresearchapplications.Whileingraduateschool,heconductedhisfieldworkwith

thetrackandfieldteamatFloridaStateandstartedusingbiofeedbackforresearchand

practiceduringthistime.Hehasutilizedbiofeedbackextensivelywithvarioustypesof

athletesforperformanceenhancement,aswellasstress-regulationtechniquesfor

individualswithtypetwodiabetesandpainmanagementforpatientssufferingfromchronic

pain.Dr.EdmondsiscertifiedthroughtheBiofeedbackCertificationInternationalAlliancein

generalbiofeedback.

TomD.Kennedy,PhD,BCB,iscurrentlyanassociateprofessorofresearchatNovaSoutheasternUniversityinDavie,Florida.HereceivedhisPhDinCounselingPsychology

fromtheUniversityofMiamiandhisMAinClinicalPsychologyfromSouthernMethodist

University.HehasbeenafacultymemberatNSUforfiveyearswherehehasdevelopedand

taughtresearchandstatisticscourses.HeistheInstitutionalReviewBoardrepresentative

fortheSchoolofEducation.Hisclinicalexperienceconsistsofprovidingneuropsychological

assessments,behavioralmedicineinterventions,andgrouptherapyininpatientand

outpatientsettings,includingthefollowing:theUniversityofTexasSouthwesternMedical

Center,UniversityofMiamiMailmanCenterforChildDevelopment,JacksonMemorial

Hospital,UniversityofMiamiInstituteforIndividualandFamilyTherapy,andtheDallas

CountyJail.Hisresearchinterestsincludetwoconvergenttracks,onefocusingonat-risk

childrenandadolescentsandtheotherexploringbiofeedbackandothercomplementary

andalternativemedicineinterventions.Hehasbeentherecipientofmultiplegrantsand

providesevaluationandgrantwritingservicesforvariousorganizationsinsouthFlorida.He

haspublishedandpresentedintheareasofjuvenilecrime,psychophysiology,andresearch

methodology.Dr.KennedyisalicensedpsychologistPY8307andiscertifiedthroughthe

BiofeedbackCertificationInternationalAllianceingeneralbiofeedbackandmaintainsa

smallprivatepracticeforchildrenandadolescence.



TomGollery,EdD receivedanMADegreeinCounselingfromAppalachianStateUniversity,

andanEdDemphasizingbothspecialeducationandeducationalleadershipfromthe

UniversityofFlorida. Withmorethan25 yearsasaschooladministrator, Tomiscurrentlya

professorofgraduatestudiesintheCollegeofEducationatSoutheasternUniversity. Tom

primarilyfunctionsasaquantitativeresearchmethodologistforthedoctoralprograminthe

CollegeofEducationatSoutheastern. Hisresearchinterestsinclude:assessmentofstudent

achievement;educationalprogramevaluation;institutionaleffectiveness;and

interdisciplinaryresearch.



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