PBS Intensive Interventions Robert F. Putnam Ph.D. BCBA May Institute September 5, 2005

1. PBS IntensiveInterventions Robert F. Putnam Ph.D. BCBA May Institute September 5, 2005 1

2. Goals of Workshop • The participants should be able to describe • the purpose and context of intensive services • what is and how an intensive team functions • an intensive assessment process and procedures • appropriate intensive interventions 2

3. Putting The Pieces Together • Intensive Interventions in Context of PBS • Key Features • Examples • Supporting teams Key Features Examples Supporting Teams 3

4. Tertiary Prevention: Specialized Individualized Systems for Students with High-Risk Behavior CONTINUUM OF SCHOOL-WIDE INSTRUCTIONAL & POSITIVE BEHAVIOR SUPPORT ~5% Secondary Prevention: Specialized Group Systems for Students with At-Risk Behavior ~15% Primary Prevention: School-/Classroom- Wide Systems for All Students, Staff, & Settings ~80% of Students 4

5. Individualized, Function-Based Behavior Support Plans • Intensive Academic Support • School-based Adult Mentors • Intensive Social Skills Training • Parent Training and Collaboration • Multi-Agency Collaboration (Wrap-Around) • Alternatives to Suspension and Expulsion Intensive (High Risk Students) Individual Interventions 1% - 5% of Students Targeted (At-Risk Students) Individual & Small Group Strategies 5% - 10% of Students • Intensive Social Skills Training and Support • Self-Management Programs • School-Based Adult Mentors (Check-In) • Increased Academic Support and Practice • Alternatives to School Suspension Universal (All Students) School-Wide Systems of Support 80% - 90% of Students • Effective Academic Support • Teaching Social Skills • Teaching School-Wide • Expectations • Active Supervision & Monitoring • in Common Areas • Positive Reinforcement for All • Firm, Fair, Corrective Discipline • Effective Classroom Management 5

6. Summary of PBIS “BIG IDEAS” Systems (How things are done) • Team based problem solving • Data-based decision making • Long term sustainability Data (How decisions are made) • On going data collection & use • ODR’s (# per day per month, location, behavior, student) • Suspension/expulsion, attendance, tardies Practices (How staff interact with students) • Direct teaching of behavioral expectations • On-going reinforcement of expected behaviors • Functional behavioral assessment 6

7. Similarities Across all Three Levels: • Team-based decision-making • Consensus around proactive strategies • Ownership by those closest to kids • Data-based decisions to guide interventions 7

8. Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports Supporting Decision Making Supporting Staff Behavior DATA SYSTEMS PRACTICES Supporting Student Behavior

9. Emphasis on Prevention • Primary • Reduce new cases of problem behavior • Secondary • Reduce current cases of problem behavior • Tertiary • Reduce complications, intensity, severity of current cases 9

10. Discipline Changes 10

11. Decrease in Percentage of “Frequent Flyers” Proportion of Student Population Referred Aug01-Jan02 PBS Year 2 Aug00-Jan01 Initial PBS phase 11 Russo & Rey (February, 2002)

12. Reason for Suspensions Violent vs. Non-Violent Infractions MLK Middle School 12

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14. Individual Student Planning 14

15. Crone, D.A., & Horner, R.H. (2003). Building Positive Behavior Support Systems in Schools. New York: Guilford Press 15

16. Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports Supporting Decision Making Supporting Staff Behavior DATA SYSTEMS PRACTICES Supporting Student Behavior 16

17. Intensive Team • Critical features • Possess specialized behavioral skills within their membership • Allow and encourage contributions from all their members • Have predictable and efficient procedures for doing business and solving problems • Have regular opportunities to access building staff, families, and community agencies to communicate and solicit information 17

18. Intensive Team • Meet the following primary objectives • Manage teacher requests for assistance • Ensure that teachers and students receive support in a timely and meaningful manner • Provide a general forum for discussions and possible solutions for individual student behavioral concerns • Organize a collaborative effort to support the teacher (Todd et. al., 1999) 18

19. Intensive Team • Made up of two teams • Core team for the school • Action teams for each individual student 19

20. Intensive Team • Core team • School administrator • An individual with behavioral expertise • Representative sample of the school staff 20

21. Intensive Team • Principal • Active participant • Reasons for involvement • Courtesy • Valuable input • Spending authority • Administrative influence 21

22. Intensive Team • Individual with competence in behavioral assessment and intervention • Must be a person with expertise in applied behavioral analysis to • Guide decision making • Assessment • Intervention 22

23. Intensive Team • Individual with competence in behavioral assessment and intervention means • Knowledge of behavior theory and application • FBA • Behavioral interventions • Could be a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) or other staff with advanced degree with training and experience in applied behavior analysis 23

24. Intensive Team • Representative sample of school staff • Teachers from grade levels • General and special educators • Nonteaching staff • Paraprofessionals 24

25. Intensive Team • Performance Roles • Conducting FBA interviews and observations • Reviewing academic records and work samples • Reporting FBA data to the larger group • Generating testable hypothesis • Designing and implementing, and evaluating and modifying BSPs 25

26. Intensive Team • Management roles • Coordinator/referral liaison • Critically important to choose a conscientious, responsible member of the team to act as the referral liaison for the entire team • Coordinator should be committed to success of the team • Excellent relationships with other school staff 26

27. Intensive Team • Management roles • Coordinator/referral liaison • Facilitate the FBA-BSP process • Generate an agenda for each meeting (distribute a day in advance • The Team would generate tasks and the coordinator would assure someone is responsible • Note taker 27

28. Intensive Team • Coordinator • Receive referrals • Distribute the referral to one or more core members who will form an Action Team for that student • Follow-up on the progress of the Action Team • Maintain a copy of the assessment data and records generated by the Action Team 28

29. Intensive Team • Action team • One or two members from the core team • Student’s parents • Student’s teacher or the person who made the referral • Other significant staff or persons in the student’s life • Must have an individual with behavioral expertise 29

30. Intensive Team • Action team • If only one team member has expertise in FBA-BSP then this person will lead every Action Team • Team members may prefer to lead a team from their particular grade or department • Rotate responsibilities 30

31. Core Team Initial Meeting (15 minutes) Take and review referral Form Action Team Provide support to Action Team through out process as needed Process and Responsibilities of Core Team and Action Team Process Responsibilities 31

32. Action Team Assessment Conduct simple FBA (30 minutes) Conduct full FBA if recommended (90 minutes) Prepare to report findings Process and Responsibilities of Core Team and Action Team Process Responsibilities 32

33. Intensive Team • Simple FBA interview • Make an immediate contact with the teacher • Verbal report of the problem behavior • Obtain information on the typical setting events, predictors, and consequences of the problem behavior 33

34. Intensive Team • More than a simple FBA interview is needed if • the student is at risk for suspension, expulsion or alternative school placement • we are not confident that the testable hypothesis (generated from the FBA) is correct 34

35. Action Team Second Meeting (60- 90 minutes) Discuss assessment findings Design BSP Implement BSP Process and Responsibilities of Core Team and Action Team Process Responsibilities 35

36. Intensive Team • After assessment data is presented the team needs to determine whether • they are confident that the testable hypothesis is correct • If not correct about the testable hypothesis, would the consequences be severe 36

37. Action Team Third Meeting (30 – 60 minutes) Evaluate effectiveness of BSP Modify BSP as necessary Process and Responsibilities of Core Team and Action Team Process Responsibilities 37

38. Intensive Team • At the followup meeting the team decides • Were the goals of the behavior support plan achieved • Does the behavior support plan need to be modified 38

39. Core Team Support and Follow-Through Follow progress on identified student Provide support as necessary Process and Responsibilities of Core Team and Action Team Process Responsibilities 39

40. Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports Supporting Decision Making Supporting Staff Behavior DATA SYSTEMS PRACTICES Supporting Student Behavior 40

41. Positive Behavior Support Step 1: Setting Goals • Developing a support team • Collaboration • Identifying broad and specific goals • Person-centered planning • The family’s role 41

42. Positive Behavior SupportStep 2: Gathering Information • Understanding the basics about behavior • Functional assessment process • Data collection • The family’s role 42

43. Step 3. Hypothesis Development • A hypothesis statement is an informed, assessment-based explanation of the target behavior. • It is an informed guess about the relationship between environmental events or conditions and student’s target behavior. 43

44. A Sample Hypothesis • When Beverly… • (fast trigger) is not engaged with others or when she’s engaged in activities for 15 minutes or longer (especially during lunch or free time) • (slow trigger) did not get to sleep before 11 p.m. the previous evening or does not feel well, • (the student does) she screams, slaps her face and pulls his hair… • (in order to get) to gain access to teacher attention.” 44

45. Step 4. Designing Interventions • Proactive: change the environment to make problem behavior unnecessary • Educative: teach skills to make the problem behavior inefficient • Functional: manage consequences to make problem behavior ineffective • Lifestyle: support long-term quality of life outcomes for the student 45

46. Step 5. Monitoring and Evaluationof Outcomes • Decreases in problem behavior • Increases in positive behavior • Achievement of broader goals • Durability of behavior change 46

47. Functional Behavioral Assessment • Functional behavioral assessment is a process for gathering information that can be used to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of behavioral support. 47

48. Functional Behavioral Assessment • The intensity of the assessment matches the complexity of the behavior. That is, if less rigorous and easy to implement assessment procedures produce a confident description of the events that predict and maintain a behavior, there is no reason to use more rigorous and precise procedures. 48

49. Assumptions about Functional Behavioral Assessment • Objective of functional assessment is not just to define and eliminate problem behaviors but to understand the function of those behaviors in order to promote effective alternatives and to create environments and patterns of support that make problem behaviors irrelevant, ineffective, or inefficient 49

50. Assumptions about Functional Behavioral Assessment • Making problem behaviors Irrelevant Ineffective Inefficient 50