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.