The sole purpose of conducting a functional behavioral assessment (FBA) is to use the information to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of behavior support plans. There should always be a logical connection between information collected and analyzed during the assessment process and t behavior support plan development. The development of behavior support plans occurs as a result of a team process and subsequently becomes an integral part of a student’s IEP.

Positive behavioral support is an approach to intervention that integrates technical features of applied behavior analysis with person-centered values. It offers a process for designing individualized approaches to support students experiencing behavioral difficulties in school, home, and community environments. The development of effective behavior support plans that are positive in nature (i.e., proactive and educative) relies upon data collected during the functional behavioral assessment process. Behavior support plans are effective when they produce meaningful outcomes. That is, they should result in (a) an increase in the acquisition and use of new replacement skills, (b) decreases in problem behavior, and (c) general improvements in the quality of life of the individual, his/her family, and members of the support team

The information presented in this material discusses how to use the information gathered during the functional behavioral assessment process (Part 1) to develop and implement positive behavioral intervention plans that address both the short- and long-term needs of the student. This material will explore various factors associated with developing a thorough intervention plan and offer some thoughts on possible obstacles to the process. In addition to the individualized process for conducting FBAs and developing effective behavior supports, schools are encouraged to make use of the processes as part of a system-wide program of academic and behaviors supports that better serve all students.

Rationale for Developing Positive Behavioral Interventions

Traditionally, teachers have dealt with student behavior that interferes with classroom instruction by using various kinds of negative consequences (e.g., verbal reprimands, time-out procedures, and suspension). The goal, of course, has been to reduce or eliminate the immediate problem. However, experience has shown that these interventions are not the most effective or efficient means to eliminate problem behavior. “Reactive” approaches--such as punishment--are not only time consuming, but they fail to teach the student acceptable replacement behaviors. Further, they may also serve to reinforce the inappropriate behavior. Thus, many teachers have begun to introduce various programs to teach students more acceptable, alternative responses. For example, social skills programs have been used to teach appropriate interpersonal behavior. However, decisions regarding which social skills to teach are typically based upon the program’s curriculum, without consideration of whether the student knows or does not know the skill or if the student can demonstrate the skill within the context of specific social situations. As a result, understanding why the student misbehaved in the first place is seldom addressed.

Today, there is growing recognition that the success of an intervention hinges on: (a) understanding why the student behaves in a certain way and (b) replacing the inappropriate behavior with a more suitable behavior that serves the same function (or results in the same outcome) as the problem behavior. Knowing what compels a student to engage in a particular behavior is integral to the development of effective, individualized positive behavioral intervention plans and supports.

Generally, the logic behind functional assessment is driven by two principles. First, essentially all behavior serves a purpose: it either allows students to “obtain” or “get” something desirable, “escape” or “avoid” something undesirable, or communicate some other need. Second, behavior occurs within a particular context. It may occur in certain settings (e.g., in the cafeteria), under certain conditions (e.g., only when there is a substitute teacher), or during different types of activities (e.g., during recess). These two principles imply that students will change their inappropriate behavior only when it is clear to them that a different response will more effectively and efficiently accomplish the same thing. For this reason, a functional behavioral assessment must be conducted to identify the causes of a behavior and develop more effective intervention strategies.

Student Problem Behavior as a Team Effort

The role that teamwork plays in addressing student behavior problems cannot be overstated. When conducting a functional behavioral assessment and developing a behavioral intervention plan, education personnel should draw upon a range of communication and interpersonal skills. IEP team members may require special training to develop successful collaboration skills such as time management, group problem solving (including “brainstorming” strategies), active listening, and conflict resolution processes, to mention a few. As with other collaborative efforts, building-level administrative and collegial support is essential to a successful outcome. The value and appropriateness of student and parent involvement in the process also should be carefully considered. Too often their contributions are overlooked when conducting assessment and planning activities.

Development of Positive Behavior Support Plans

After the completion of the functional behavioral assessment, the IEP team typically identifies the likely function of the student’s behavior. The IEP team must now develop (or revise) the student’s positive behavioral intervention plan. This process should be integrated, as appropriate, throughout the process of developing, reviewing, and revising a student’s IEP. The behavioral intervention plan will include, when appropriate: (a) strategies, including positive behavioral interventions, strategies, and supports; (b) program modifications; and (c) supplementary aids and services that may be required to address the problem behavior.

As mentioned previously, students engage in inappropriate, problem behavior for various reasons. To fully understand the motivation behind student problem behavior, it is useful to consider that problem behavior may be linked to either skill deficits (e.g., Charles cannot do double-digit addition) or performance deficits (e.g., Calvin has the ability, but does not comply with the cafeteria rules). In some cases, problem behavior may be related to both skill and performance deficits (e.g., Mary cannot read maps and is unsure how to ask for help during cooperative activities, though she is able to do so during independent seatwork). The material presented in this document \is based on these two overlapping perspectives on school problem behavior. Intervention plans and strategies that emphasize the skills students need in order to behave in a more appropriate manner or plans that motivate students to conform to expected behavioral standards are more effective than plans that attempt only to control behavior. Interventions based upon control often fail to generalize (i.e., continue to be used for long periods of time, in many settings, and in a variety of situations). Many times they serve only to suppress behavior, which may result in a child seeking to meet unaddressed needs in alternative, usually equally inappropriate ways. On the other hand, positive intervention plans that teach new ways of behaving address both the source of the problem and the problem itself.

When an IEP team has determined that a behavioral intervention plan is necessary, the team members generally use information about the problem behavior’s function, gathered from the functional behavioral assessment. A behavior support plan should include these seven components:

· Antecedent and setting event modifications

· Plans for behavioral/social skill acquisition (teaching new skills)

· Plans for reinforcing desired and/or socially appropriate behaviors

· Plans for reducing undesirable behaviors

· Plans for generalizing behavior/social skills

· Supports for team members

· Evaluation plan

The resulting behavioral intervention plan generally will not consist of simply one intervention; it will be a plan with a number of interventions designed to (a) teach the student more acceptable ways to get what he or she wants, (b) decrease future occurrences of the misbehavior; and (c) address any repeated episodes of the misbehavior. Most behavioral intervention plans are designed to teach the student a more acceptable behavior that replaces the inappropriate behavior, yet serves the same function (e.g., ways to gain peer approval through positive social initiations; ways to seek teacher attention through nonverbal signals). Since most plans will require multiple intervention options rather than a single intervention, however, IEP teams may want to consider the following techniques when designing behavior intervention plans, strategies, and supports:

· Teach more acceptable replacement behaviors that serve the same function as the inappropriate behavior, such as asking to be left alone or using conflict resolution or alternative skills, such as self-management techniques, tolerating delay, or coping strategies;

· Teach students to deal with setting events (the things that make the desired behavior more likely to occur), such as the physical arrangement of the classroom, management strategies, seating arrangements, or sequence of academic instruction;

· Manipulate the antecedents (the things that happen before the behavior occurs) to the desired behavior, such as teacher instructions or directions, or instructional materials;

· Manipulate consequences (the things that happen after the behavior occurs) of the desired behavior, such as precise praise or feedback, keeping in mind the principles of shaping and reinforcing incompatible behaviors;

· Implement changes to the classroom curriculum and/or instructional strategies (e.g., multi-level instruction or encouraging oral rather than written responses); and

· Begin interventions that offer reinforcement for appropriate behavior, such as student performance contracts or group motivational strategies.

Using these strategies, school personnel can develop a plan to both teach and support replacement behaviors that serve the same function as the current problem behavior. At the same time, employing these techniques when developing the behavioral intervention plan can yield interventions that decrease or eliminate opportunities for the student to engage in the inappropriate behavior. For example, a student may be physically aggressive at recess because he or she believes violence is the best way to end a confrontational situation and that such behaviors help accomplish his or her goals. However, when taught to use problem-solving skills (e.g., self-control or conflict resolution) to end a confrontational situation and accomplish his or her goal, the student may be more likely to deal with volatile situations in a nonviolent manner (e.g., defusing the situation by avoiding threatening or provocative remarks or behavior).

Using the case study presented in Part 1: The Functional Behavioral Assessment, the following behavior support plan has been developed for Alex.

Alex: Environmental Strategies

General Considerations When Dealing with Attention-Seeking Behavior

The desire for attention is a common reason given for student misbehavior. However, attention is often a byproduct of misbehavior and not the primary function. Students seldom seek forms of attention that could include ridicule, abuse, and assault. It is more likely that students want to be attentive, and for adults and peers to like them and value their work. Most teachers can attest to the fact that students sometimes use inappropriate or problem behavior to obtain the attention of their teacher and/or peers. Attention-seeking behaviors usually results when students are not likely to obtain attention in any other way. Common examples include calling out, swearing, yelling at a classmate or teacher, having a tantrum, or ignoring an adult request.

Once the conditions under which the behavior occurs have been identified, interventions that focus upon teaching the student appropriate ways to obtain positive peer social interactions or receive teacher praise. For example, role-play exercises might be introduced to teach the student appropriate things to say (e.g., “I’m really stuck on this problem.”). Students may need to be systematically taught to tolerate longer and longer wait times. Other intervention options include giving teacher attention contingent upon appropriate student behavior and taking away attention following inappropriate behavior (e.g., ignoring; placing a student in time out, assuming that this procedure does not elicit peer attention). Finally, reprimanding students has proven ineffective in dealing with attention-seeking behavior, because it typically serves to reinforce the attention-seeking behavior.

A more effective intervention plan for attention-seeking behavior combines strategies to:

· Keep the student from engaging in the original problem or inappropriate behavior

(e.g., verbal threats),

· Teach replacement behavior,

· Ensure that the student has sufficient opportunities to engage in the new replacement behavior (e.g., request assistance), and

· Offer opportunities for the student to be reinforced for the new behavior

(e.g., verbal praise from adults or peers).

For the reinforcement to work, it must not only be easier to obtain, it must be a better “pay-off” than the pay-off from the problem behavior. In a later section, we discuss more fully reinforcement of student behavior.

General Considerations When Dealing with Escape-Motivated Behavior

Inappropriate or problem behavior often stems from a student’s need either to escape or avoid an unpleasant task or situation, or obtain something, such as a desired activity or location. Examples of these situations students may include difficult, irrelevant, lengthy or unclear classroom assignments; group work with others whom they do not like; negative peer or adult interactions; or the desire to with friends who are located in another classroom. Behavior that is used to avoid or escape a difficult academic task might be addressed by teaching the student to use a socially acceptable escape behavior (e.g., asking for help, which must be available once the student asks for it).

If the student is unable to complete the assignment because he or she does not have the skills necessary to do so, the original assignment should be replaced with another assignment that is within the student’s skill level, or strategies and supports should be provided to assist the student (e.g., direct instruction, manipulatives, peer-assisted instruction). The IEP team might address behavior that is meant to escape an unpleasant social interaction with an adult by allowing the student to leave only after he or she has made an acceptable bid to leave that situation (e.g., “I want to be by myself for awhile.”). Finally, it may be useful to devise a multi-step plan in which the student is taught and encouraged to make an appropriate verbal request (e.g., ask to be excused for short periods of time during difficult math assignments). An incentive can be used to reward the student for gradually spending more time at the undesirable task. Thus, this incentive would be both time-limited and part of a larger step-by-step plan to promote the desired student behavior.

Other interventions for dealing with escape-motivated behavior include:

· Placing some kind of demand on the student when facing a frustrating task or difficult situation (e.g., using the correct behavior to ask for additional help or to be temporarily excused);

· Using signal responses (e.g., the teacher signals the student to use a predetermined alternative behavior); and

· Making curricular accommodations or instructional modifications to boost student interest in and/or ability to successfully complete the assignment.

Even though time-out procedures have often been used as a consequence for escape-motivated behaviors, in these cases time out might actually be reinforcing because it allows the student to escape or avoid the situation. Time out is, therefore, likely to increase rather than decrease the inappropriate behavior. Sometimes, student noncompliance stems from a need to exert control over a situation--to pressure others to “give up” or “back off” (e.g., when a teacher makes academic demands that the student perceives to be too difficult). Recognizing that the function of the student’s behavior is to escape from this uncomfortable situation by controlling it, the teacher might begin by modifying the assignment, as well as the manner with which he or she interacts with the student regarding the assignment.

Strategies to Address Different Functions of a Student’s Behavior

Readers are cautioned that potential interventions should always be individualized according to the results of the FBA. The purpose of the following information is to provide some ideas and illustrations of how interventions are related to the various forms and functions of behavior. These strategies are not meant to be comprehensive or exclusive of other strategies/interventions. They simply represent a set of preliminary ideas that would be elaborated and modified as the intervention takes place.

Power/Control
Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Offer more choices.	Teach student how to negotiate for his/her needs.
Avoid arguments and power struggles.	Teach student self-control.
	Teach student how to cope with accusations.

Expression of Self
Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Provide opportunities for student to use his/her strengths.	Teach effective communication skills.
Assign tasks that tap into the student’s areas of interest.	Teach prosocial behaviors.
	Teach problem-solving skills.
	Teach self-advocacy.

Justice/Revenge
Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Encourage discussions and dialogue.	Teach conflict resolution skills.
Provide attention and reinforcement for appropriate problem solving.	Teach mediation skills.
Increase the use of cooperative learning opportunities.	Teach prosocial behaviors.
	Teach student how to negotiate for his/her needs.
	Teach choice making.

Escape
Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Remove the need to protest or escape by changing the environment.	Teach other ways to communicate a protest response.
	Teach student to recognize and communicate need.
	Teach independent skills.
	Teach problem solving strategies.

Attention
Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Reduce the need for attention by increasing independence skills.	Teach healthy ways to get attention.
Increase frequency of positive attention for appropriate behavior.	Teach independence skills.
Ignore inappropriate behavior.	Teach student to self-monitor target behaviors.
Reward peers for ignoring inappropriate behavior of student.

Sensory/Gratification
Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Structure and define acceptable places or methods of self-regulation.	Teach more acceptable ways to entertain self.
Honor requests for accessing space appropriately.	Teach independent play.

Educational Implications for Student with Mental Health Issues

Students who have emotional and behavioral disorders often have mental health problems that create significant distress for themselves, their families, and their teachers. As a result of these problems, they experience social and academic failure not only in school, but in their lives. The way in which a student’s disordered behavior manifests itself is quite diverse; most disorders we encounter are mostly a matter of degree. That is, most students with emotional and behavioral disorders exhibit the same kinds of behaviors as other children; however, they may exhibit them more frequently, intensely, and for a longer duration.

This section discusses the educational implications for students who are diagnosed with several types of mental health disorders. Even though these implications are provided in separate categories, it is common that students who are referred for special education or mental health services have more than one mental health diagnosis. For example, a student with a conduct disorder may have a second diagnosis of depression. Therefore, except in extreme cases, it may not be possible to separate diagnostic categories. However, an analysis of the behavior and the function it serves will assist the educator in selecting the appropriate intervention strategy.

A recent publication by the Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health (2001) entitled A Teacher’s Guide to Children’s Mental Health served as the source for the educational implications listed in this section. This guide will provide more complete diagnostic information about these disorders, which is beyond the scope of the manual. The reader is encouraged to obtain a complete copy of the guide by contacting the Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health, 651-644-7333, www.macmh.org.

Anxiety Disorders

Because students with anxiety disorder are easily frustrated, they may have difficulty completing their work. They may worry so much about getting everything right that they take much longer to finish than other students. Or, they may simply refuse to begin out of fear that they will not be able to do any thing right. Their fears of being embarrassed, humiliated, or failing may result in school avoidance. Getting behind in their work due to numerous absences often creates a cycle of fear of failure, increased anxiety, and avoidance that leads to more absences. Furthermore, children are not likely to identify anxious feelings, which make it difficult for educators to fully understand the reason behind poor school performance.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Allow students to contract for a flexible deadline for worrisome assignments.	Teach social skills that relate to increased peer involvement.
Have frequent checks with teachers to make sure that assignments are written down correctly.	Teach organizational skills.
Consider modifying or adapting the curriculum to better suit the student’s learning style.	Consider curriculum based on cognitive behavioral approach.
Post the daily schedule.
Reduce work load when necessary.
Consider the use of technology.

Asperger’s Disorder

Many children with Asperger’s have difficulty understanding social interactions, including nonverbal gestures. They may fail to develop age-appropriate peer relationships or be unable to share interests or show empathy. When confronted by changes in school routine, they may show visible anxiety, withdraw into silence, or burst into a fit of rage. Although students with Asperger’s may often appear to have a large vocabulary, sometimes sounding like “little professors,” they can be very literal and have great difficulty using language in a social context. They may like school, but wish the other children were not there.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Create a structured, predictable, and calming environment.	Use direct teaching to increase social skills.
Foster a climate of tolerance and understanding	Teach self-advocacy.
Consider a peer helper.
Create a standard way of presenting change in advance.
Learn the usual triggers.
Become familiar with resources and supports for parents.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Children with attention deficits may have difficulty staying on task or finishing assignments. They may lose books, supplies, and homework. Students may blurt out answers before teachers can finish asking the question. They may be irritable, impatient, difficult to discipline, clumsy, reckless, and accident-prone. Other children may dislike them. They may come to see themselves as bad and/or lazy, and feel powerless to do any better. This “chain of failure” can lead to depression, low self-esteem, behavior problems, and of course, school failure.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Have student maintain a planner for assignments.	Teach self-monitoring techniques.
Provide consistent structure.	Teach organizational skills.
Give student one or two steps at a time.	Teach student to use secret codes for cues.
Allow for “do overs”.
Allow movement.
Look for positive behaviors and reinforce.
Reduce stress and pressure.

Bipolar Disorder

Students may experience fluctuations in mood, energy, and motivation. These fluctuations may occur hourly, daily, in specific cycles, or seasonally. As a result, they may have difficulty concentrating and remembering assignments, understanding assignments with complex directions, or reading and comprehending long, written passages of text. Students may experience episodes of overwhelming emotion such as sadness, embarrassment, or rage. They may also have poor social skills and have difficulty getting along with their peers.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Provide recorded books as alternative to self-reading.	Teach self-monitoring.
Break assignments into manageable segments.	Teach self-advocacy.
Devise a flexible curriculum that accommodates mood changes.	Teach prosocial skills.
Identify a private place for the student.

Conduct Disorder

Students with conduct disorder like to engage in power struggles. They often react badly to direct demands or statements such as: “you need to …” or “You must…”. They may consistently challenge class rules, refuse to do assignments, and argue or fight with other students. This behavior, work refusal, and frequent absences can cause significant impairment in both social and academic functioning. They work best in environments with high staff-student ratios, one-on-one situations, or self-contained programs. A highly structure program with clearly defined guidelines enhances social and academic outcomes for these students.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Make sure curriculum is at appropriate level.	Teach anger management strategies.
Avoid infantile materials.	Teach conflict resolution.
Praise is important but must be sincere.	Teach self-calming strategies.
Consider the use of technology.	Teach aggression replacement strategies.
Do not argue or engage in power struggles.	Teach the difference between assertiveness and aggression.
Give options and choices.
Establish clear rules that are displayed, taught, and consistently reinforced.
Consider a contract for earned days off.
Consider a contract for deleting assignments.
Consider a contract for alternative credits.

Depressive Disorder

Students experiencing depression may display a marked change in their interest in schoolwork and activities. Their grades may drop significantly due to lack of interest, loss of motivation, or excessive absences. They may withdraw and refuse to socialize with peers or participate in group projects.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Reduce classroom pressures.	Teach student to use realistic and positive statements.
Break tasks into smaller parts.	Consider curriculum based on cognitive behavioral approach.
Reassure students often.
Encourage gradual social interaction.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Fetal Alcohol Effects (FAS/FAE)

Children with FAS need more intense supervision and structure than other children. They often lack a sense of boundaries for people and objects. For instance, they do not “steal” things, they “find” them; an object “belongs” to a person only if it is in that person’s hand. They are impulsive, uninhibited, and over-reactive. Social skills such as sharing, taking turns, and cooperating in general are usually not understood, and these children tend to play alongside others, but not with them. In addition, sensory integration problems are common, which create tendencies to be high strung, sound-sensitive, and easily over stimulated. Other students often find them irritating to be around.

Although they can focus their attention on the task at hand, they have multiple obstacles to learning. Since they do not understand ideas, concepts, or abstract thought, they may have verbal ability without actual understanding. Even simple tasks require intense mental effort because of their cognitive impairment. This can result in mental exhaustion, which adds to behavior problems. In addition, since their threshold for frustration is low, they may fly into rages and temper tantrums.

A common impairment is with short memory, and in an effort to please, students often will make up an answer when they do not remember one. This practice can apply to anything, including schoolwork or behavior. These are not intentional “lies,” they just honestly do not remember the truth and want to have an answer. Since thy live in the moment and do not connect their actions with consequences, they do not learn from experience that making up answers is not appropriate.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Be consistent	Teach pro-social behaviors
Use a lot of repetition	Teach organizational skills
Use multi-sensory instruction	Teach student to ask for breaks and help
Be specific, but brief	Teach anger management strategies.
Increase supervision	Teach conflict resolution.
Model appropriate behavior	Teach self-calming strategies.
Avoid long periods of desk work	Teach aggression replacement strategies.
Post all rules and schedules	Teach the difference between assertiveness and aggression.
Use immediate discipline
Be positive
Ensure the student’s attention

Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

Compulsive activities often take up so much time that students cannot concentrate on their schoolwork, leading to poor or incomplete work and even school failure. In addition, many students with OCD find verbal communication very difficult. Students with OCD may feel isolated from their peers, in part because their compulsive behavior leaves them little time to interact or socialize with their classmates. They may avoid school because they are worried that teachers or their peers will notice their odd behaviors. If asked why they repeat a behavior, many students say, “It doesn’t feel right if I don’t.”

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Educate peers about OCD	Teach stress management skills
Try to redirect behavior	Teach relaxation skills
Allow for late assignments	Teach skills associated with friendship
Post the daily schedule
Consider the use of technology
Avoid punishment

Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

Students with ODD may consistently challenge class rules, refuse to do assignments, and argue or fight with other students. This behavior can cause significant impairment in both social and academic functioning. The constant limit testing and arguing can create a stressful classroom environment.

Environmental Strategies	Skill-Building Strategies
Avoid power struggles	Teach appropriate social skills
Choose your battles wisely
Give two choices when decisions are needed
Establish clear rules
Post the daily schedule
Praise students for positive responses
Make sure work is at appropriate level
Avoid infantile materials
Pace instruction
Consider contract for credit
Consider earned days off
Be consistent with structure and consequences
Select material that encourages interactions
Minimize down times
Allow “do overs”

Skill Deficits and Performance Deficits

Sometimes, a student does not perform the desired appropriate behavior because he or she does not know how to do it (a skill deficit). Other times, a student may have the skills needed to perform the appropriate behavior but either chooses not to do so or cannot perform the behavior due to anxiety, anger, frustration, or a medical condition (a performance deficit). It is also possible that a student may be experiencing both a skill and a performance deficit. This section describes strategies that can be considered for addressing these deficits.

Addressing Skill Deficits: Working With Students Who Lack Skills

A functional behavioral assessment might indicate that the student engages in the inappropriate behavior because she or he lacks the appropriate, alternative skills and/or believes the inappropriate behavior is effective in getting what he or she wants (e.g., allows the student to escape or avoid an unpleasant task or situation). If the student does not know what behaviors are expected, an intervention plan could resolve the confusion by teaching the student to sort positive and negative examples of what is expected. A plan should also include the supports, aids, strategies, and modifications necessary to accomplish that instruction. If the student does not know how to perform the expected behavior, the intervention plan should include instruction to teach the needed skills. Sometimes, it may require teaching both behavioral and cognitive skills and may call for a team member to conduct a task analysis (i.e., break down the skill into its component parts). For example, if the student is to think through and solve social problems, the individual skills may include the following components:

· Recognize the social problem;

· Determine if the problem requires action;

· Observe what is going on and ask:

· “What do the participants want?”

· “What is the conflict?”

· “How might the conflict be resolved?”

· Develop a plan to solve the problem;

· Evaluate the plan by judging its potential for success;

· Implement the plan; and

· Monitor the impact of the plan.

In other instances, a student may be unable to appropriately handle the aggressive verbal behavior of a classmate. The student may need to be taught to recognize those words (or actions) that usually lead to aggression and to discern whether the behavior is or is not provoked by the student. Then, a series of role-playing sessions might teach the student ways to defuse the situation (e.g., avoiding critical remarks or laughing at the other student), along with when to walk away or seek assistance from peers or adults. For example, Helen may be able to accurately read a problem situation, but lacks the impulse control to self-regulate her behavior and respond appropriately. Overt teacher modeling of self-control, along with guided and independent practice (behavioral rehearsal), and individual or small group discussion of “when and how to” strategies may prove effective. Other options include instruction in the use of mnemonic devices that enable Helen to handle a problem situation in a positive manner (e.g., FAST—Freeze, Assess the Situation, Select a response, and Try it out).

Addressing Performance Deficits: Working With Students Who Do Not Use Skills

Sometimes, the IEP team will find that the student knows the skills necessary to perform the behavior, but does not consistently use them. In that case, the intervention plan should include techniques, strategies, and supports designed to increase the student’s use of the behavior. If the FBA shows that the student is engaging in the problem behavior because he or she actually believes that this behavior is more desirable than the alternative, appropriate behavior, the intervention plan should include techniques for addressing that belief. For example, a student might think that acting quickly is best because she values resolution. This belief might be countered by assigning the student to list the additional problems a faulty, but quick, solution can produce.

Sometimes, a student does not perform the behavior simply because he or she sees no good reason to do so. For example, if Trish can avoid feeling ridiculed by threatening or hitting her classmates on the playground, she may not see the advantage of interacting positively with others. Therefore, the behavioral intervention plan may include strategies to increase her use of existing skills to interact appropriately with peers. Finally, because of her aggressive behavior, it may be necessary to prompt classmates to initiate play with Trish, and to reinforce both her and her classmates for engaging in positive social exchanges

Alex: Teaching a Behavioral/Social Skill (Skill Acquisition)

1. Teach outdoor recess games: To integrate more successfully during recess, Alex should be taught the procedures and rules for games played on the playground.

Selecting and Implementing Interventions

As we have stated frequently in our discussion of creating behavioral intervention plans, IEP teams draw upon information collected through the functional assessment process to develop individualized plans. Once this information has been analyzed and a number of possible interventions have been identified, the IEP team needs to select options for the behavioral intervention plan and consider the most effective method of implementation.

Guidelines for Selecting Intervention Options

Once some ideas about positive behavioral interventions have been generated for a student’s behavioral intervention plan, IEP teams should consider carefully a number of questions. Answering the following questions should yield a decision regarding which intervention(s) to adopt.

· Which intervention aligns with the function of the behavior?

· Which intervention is appropriate given the student’s need and current levels of performance?

· Which intervention directly teaches the target behavior?

· Which is the “least intrusive” and “least complex” intervention likely to produce positive changes in student behavior?

· Which aligned intervention (or combination of interventions) is most likely to positively change student behavior quickly and easily?

· Which aligned intervention (or combination of interventions) is least likely to produce negative side effects?

· Which intervention has evidence of effectiveness with the targeted behavior?

· Which intervention is most acceptable to the team member(s) responsible for implementing the plan?

· Which intervention is most likely to be acceptable to the targeted student?

· Which intervention is most likely to promote a replacement behavior that will occur and be reinforced in the natural environment?

· For which intervention is there the most system-wide support?

Putting Interventions into Routine Contexts

Members of IEP teams have learned that incorporating interventions into daily instruction is an effective way to: (a) teach students appropriate behavior before problems arise and (b) promote replacement behaviors. A technique known as curricular integration is useful when teaching a range of academic and nonacademic skills to students. The concept of curricular integration is based on the premise that a skill is more likely to be learned when taught in the context in which it is to be used. The technique involves integrating positive strategies for changing problem behavior into the existing classroom curriculum. For instance, teaching social skills and problem-solving strategies might be incorporated into a history lesson by means of a group activity designed to solve historic problems in nonviolent ways (e.g., Boston Tea Party). Well-structured cooperative learning lessons create opportunities to teach and reinforce a wide range of behavioral objectives while also addressing academic objectives.

Student Supports as Part of the Behavioral Intervention Plan

A commonly overlooked provision in Federal legislation that relates to behavioral intervention plans is the concept of supports. In some cases, an intervention plan is incomplete unless additional supports are provided to help students use appropriate behavior. Though supports and the interventions that have been discussed work in tandem with one another, supports can be thought of differently than interventions. Supports generally are designed to address factors beyond the immediate context in which the inappropriate behavior occurs. The student, for example, may benefit from work with school personnel, such as counselors or school psychologists, to help him or her address academic or personal issues that may contribute to the problem behaviors. Other people who may provide sources of support include:

· Peers, who may provide academic or behavioral support through tutoring or conflict-resolution activities, thereby fulfilling the student’s need for attention in appropriate ways;

· Families, who may provide support through, for example, setting up a homework center in the home and developing a homework schedule, or by positively reinforcing their child for appropriate behavior in school;

· Teachers and paraprofessionals, who may provide both academic supports and curricular modifications to address and decrease a student’s desire to avoid academically challenging situations;

· Language specialists, who are able to increase a child’s expressive and receptive language skills, thereby providing the child with alternative ways to respond to stressful situations;

· Other school staff, including custodians, cafeteria workers, or volunteers with whom students sometimes feel more comfortable;

· Community agency service providers, including mental health, juvenile justice, Big Brother or Sister organizations, or other agency personnel who are involved in providing broad-based and long-term student and family intervention and support. Other community organizations, such as churches, religious groups, cultural/ethnic organizations, YMCA or YWCA, recreation centers, and others, can be quite influential and therapeutic.

It is important to realize that in some instances, for biological or other reasons, a student may not be able to control his or her behavior without supports. Although it is never the place of the IEP team to make medical diagnoses, it is appropriate for the team to make referrals and to obtain medical evaluations so that all support options can be considered.

Reinforcement of Appropriate Student Behavior

A critical component of the intervention plan is the pattern of reinforcement for using the appropriate replacement behavior that the IEP team devises. The team can use information that was collected during the functional behavioral assessment (i.e., baseline data) to determine the frequency with which the problem behavior occurred and was reinforced. Using this information, the IEP team can develop a plan so that the student is reinforced more often for the replacement behavior than he or she was for the problem behavior. As a general rule, school personnel should reinforce appropriate behavior at least twice as often as the problem behavior was reinforced.

For example, data collected on Charles indicate that, on average, he disturbs instruction two times during each 55-minute mathematics class. This indicates that Charles is being reinforced for his inappropriate behavior about every 30 minutes, so his behavior intervention plan should call for a re-arrangement of his instructional environment so that Charles has an opportunity to engage in and be positively reinforced for appropriate behavior at least every 15 minutes. It is important that the IEP team carefully regulate the amount of time between “reinforcers.” Charles should neither get too much reinforcement, nor need to wait too long for reinforcement. Finally, the team should make sure the academic expectations are accurate for his skill level so he can be both academically and behaviorally successful.

When trying to determine the best reinforcer to use in developing a plan, knowledge of student preferences and strengths is useful. We might ask a student what types of things he or she likes (e.g., time on the computer, being allowed to run errands), watch for and record any preferred activities, or use an informal survey of reinforcement preferences (i.e., forced-choice reinforcement menu). It is important to be consistent in the frequency of the delivery of the reinforcer, but it is also good to vary the actual reinforcers routinely, so that the student does not tire or become bored with a particular reinforcer. When developing a plan, it is also important for the IEP team to consider the amount of reinforcement in relationship to the amount of student effort to obtain it. In some cases, it may be necessary to initially offer a student “noncontingent” access to a reinforcer (e.g., with “no strings attached”), especially if the reinforcer is something he or she has never had. Called “reinforcer sampling,” this is one way to let the student know that it is reinforcing. For example, we might allow a student to participate in a highly preferred activity with a classmate (e.g., a computer-based learning activity). If the student enjoys it, access to that activity would later depend on the student engaging in the desired appropriate behavior.

Sometimes, the desired response may call for too dramatic a change in the student’s behavior (i.e., a change the student is unable and/or unwilling to make all at once). If that is the case, the IEP team will need to accept successive approximations or gradual changes toward the desired behavior. For example, Tyrone may not be able to handle the pressure that stems from a highly complex academic assignment, particularly when he has had too little sleep. A first step might be to teach Tyrone to ask politely to be temporarily excused from a particular activity (i.e., replacement behavior that achieves the same outcome as the problem behavior). However, the long-term plan would be for Tyrone to develop increased self-control, to master and complete complex academic assignments, and to solicit peer support (i.e., for desired behaviors). Attempts also should be made to encourage the family to find ways for Tyrone to get more sleep.

A final consideration in using reinforcers is the process of fading or gradually replacing extrinsic rewards with more natural or intrinsic rewards on a realistic or natural time schedule. Of course, fading will only be a consideration once the student has shown an increased ability and willingness to engage in the appropriate, desired behavior. The process of fading may be made easier by pairing the extrinsic reward with an intrinsic reward. For example, when rewarding Donell with points for completing a homework assignment, the paraprofessional could also say, “Donell, you’ve finished all your homework this week, and your class participation has increased because you are better prepared. You must be very proud of yourself for the hard work you have done.”

Ways to Maintain Positive Changes in Student Behavior

The success of any behavioral intervention plan rests on the willingness and ability of the student to continue to use the appropriate behavior without excessive outside support (i.e., the intervention). The most basic way to assure maintenance of behavior change is to be sure that interventions teach the student a set of skills. This will require IEP teams to include strategies in the behavioral intervention plan to teach the student in such a way that promotes the “maintenance” (i.e., lasting over time, even when the extrinsic reinforcers are faded) and “generalization” (i.e., using the behavior in other appropriate settings) of replacement behaviors. One strategy for doing this is to restructure the social environment to benefit from the power of peer relationships to promote positive behavior. These behaviors are then maintained though the natural consequences of having and being with friends. Indeed, there are numerous instances in which students have been taught to encourage or reinforce appropriate behavior and to ignore or walk away from negative provocations of their classmates.

Another way to promote long-lasting behavior change is to use strategies based on cognitive mediation (i.e., thinking through a situation before acting on emotion) and self-management (i.e., using techniques to control one’s own behavior, such as anger or anxiety). For example, students have been taught to apply various problem-solving strategies by engaging in “positive self-talk” (e.g., telling themselves, “I know how to get out of this argument without having to use my fists”) or “self-cueing” (e.g., recognizing that her jaw is clenched, she is getting upset, and she needs to ask to be excused). Students also are taught to:

§ Self-monitor—count the frequency or duration of their own behavior;

§ Self-evaluate—compare the change in their behavior to a certain standard to determine whether they are making progress or not; and

§ Self-reinforce—give themselves rewards when their behavior has reached criteria.

For example, Gloria may be taught to count and record the number of times she appropriately raises her hand and waits to be called on during class discussion. She can then determine whether she has met the daily criteria of at least three hand-raises. She then can look at her record of hand-raises for the week and determine if she is making progress toward her goal or not, and collect points to use at the class store later in the week.

Some interventions should be implemented indefinitely and others will eventually need to stop. For example, Julio is learning to use social problem-solving skills instead of getting into fights on the playground (an intervention that we hope Julio will use forever). He is learning to ask for adult support when he feels like he might get into a fight and his team has decided that he can earn points for the class token economy when he seeks help appropriately rather than fighting (an intervention that must end at some point). Knowing that he cannot get points for the rest of his life, the team has decided to use the technique of fading once Julio has reached criterion. Julio’s teachers will gradually decrease the use of points or other tangible rewards when he asks for help instead of fighting. This could be done in several ways. First, his teacher could increase the amount of time Julio has to remain “fight free” in order to receive a reward. For example he may initially receive rewards daily, but as he reaches criterion it could be increased to every other day, then once a week, and so on. Another way to fade the intervention is for his teacher to award him fewer points until he is receiving no points at all. For instance, Julio could initially earn 50 points per day for not fighting. This could be reduced to 40, then 30, and so on until he earns no points at all. It is very important to note that the social reinforcement should continue and eventually replace the tangible rewards completely. If this process is gradual and Julio is helped to realize the advantages of using appropriate social problems solving, remaining fight free will become intrinsically rewarding to him.

The success of these strategies may depend on providing the student with periodic “booster” training to review the instruction used in the original intervention plan. Some students also may need to receive “self-advocacy training” to teach them how to appropriately ask for positive recognition or appropriately call attention to positive changes in their behavior. This is especially important for students who have such bad reputations that adults and peers do not recognize when their behaviors are changing. Finally, school personnel can support changes in student performance by accepting “barely noticeable differences,” or incremental changes that reflect the fact the student is taking positive steps toward the desired goal.

Special Considerations: Punishment and Crisis Situations

IEP teams should consider two things when creating a positive behavioral intervention plan. First, they should understand the use of punishment as an intervention into problem behavior. Second, they should consider developing a crisis/emergency component of the plan if it seems warranted. Both are discussed in the following sections.

Use of Punishment as an Intervention

Many professionals and professional organizations agree that it is usually ineffective and often unethical to use aversive techniques to control student behavior. Punishments such as suspension should only be considered in extreme cases when the student’s behavior severely endangers her or his safety or the safety of others. In addition, IEP teams should try every possible positive intervention (for an appropriate length of time, remembering that behavior may get worse before it gets better) before considering punishment. If all options are found to be ineffective, and the student’s behavior severely limits his or her learning or socialization or that of others, then a more aversive intervention might be necessary to reduce the behavior. It is important to consider all positive interventions before considering punishment as an option, because punishment often makes behavior worse. Further, because punishment does not address the function of the behavior, generalization of the punishment’s effect does not occur. Punishment may also engage the student (and possibly the teacher) in a revenge-seeking cycle or serve to increase avoidance behaviors. Finally, it is important to remember that a punishment option is only considered a punishment if it serves to reduce the targeted behavior.

When the decision has been made to introduce punishment as part of an intervention, the IEP team should develop a plan to use positive interventions concurrently with punishment and/or a timetable to return to using positive interventions as soon as possible. Because punishment can escalate behavior, its use may necessitate the development of a crisis or emergency component to the behavioral intervention plan.

Crisis/Emergency Component of a Behavioral Intervention Plan

In some cases, it may be necessary for the IEP team to develop a crisis/emergency plan to address a severe or dangerous situation. The plan would be a component of the student’s behavioral intervention plan. This component would still implement proactive and positive interventions to continue to teach the student alternative skills, even in the midst of a crisis or emergency. A crisis can be defined as a situation that requires an immediate, intrusive, or restrictive intervention to: (a) protect staff, the student, or other students from serious injury; (b) safeguard physical property; and/or (c) deal with acute disturbance of the teaching/learning process.

We recommend that teams spell out the conditions under which a crisis/emergency plan can be used. This plan also should include frequent evaluations to limit the duration of any plan that does not produce positive changes in behavior and a schedule for phasing out the crisis/emergency plan. IEP teams also should carefully monitor the crisis/emergency plan and make sure it is in compliance with any district policies or procedures regarding the use of behavior reduction strategies. Crisis/emergency steps are appropriate only when less intrusive or restrictive interventions have been unsuccessful. As with all components of the behavior intervention plan, parental input and approval should be obtained before setting up the crisis/emergency plan

If a crisis/emergency plan is introduced, steps should be taken to minimize and control the amount of time necessary to manage the behavior. The crisis/emergency interventions should be replaced with less intrusive and intensive intervention options as soon as possible. Parents, guardians, and school personnel should be notified regarding any incident that requires the use of the emergency plan. A thorough evaluation should be part of the plan so that the team can assess both the impact and possible negative spillover effects of the emergency plan. Finally, following an incident, the team should write an emergency/crisis report that includes ways to prevent future occurrences of the behavior.

As IEP team members consider all of these elements of a behavioral intervention plan (i.e., strategies to address different functions of behavior, skill and performance deficits, interventions and supports, reinforcement, and special considerations) we refer to the sample forms included in the Appendices.

Alex: Behavior Reduction Strategies/Reactive Strategies

Evaluation Procedures

It is good practice for the IEP team to include two evaluation procedures. One evaluation plan should be designed to monitor the faithfulness of the implementation of the plan and the second should accurately measure behavioral changes

Faithfulness of Plan Implementation

The team should determine a way to monitor the consistency and accuracy with which the intervention plan is implemented. This will be easier if the team precisely spells out the various components of the intervention plan, along with the individuals responsible for implementing each component. A “self-check” or checklist can then be created to correspond with each component. Another option is to develop written scripts or lists that detail the responsibilities of each individual participating in implementation of the plan. The script might specify both verbal and non-verbal responses organized according to setting events, antecedent events, and consequent events. In either case, monitoring should occur about every 3 to 5 days to assess the faithfulness with which the plan is implemented.

Effectiveness of the Behavioral Intervention Plan

The second evaluation procedure that should be developed by the IEP team is one that is sufficiently aligned with the function of the behavior to be used to accurately measure changes in the behavior of concern, itself. For example, the IEP team should measure the behavior (baseline) prior to starting the intervention. This is done through the direct observation stage of conducting a functional behavioral assessment. The team should then continue to measure the behavior (e.g., direct classroom observation of Charles’ disruptive acts) once the intervention has been implemented. These progress checks need not be as detailed as the initial functional behavioral assessment observations, but should be detailed enough to yield information that the IEP team can then use to begin to evaluate the impact of the intervention plan. The team does this by using the baseline information as a standard against which to judge subsequent changes in student behavior, measured through progress checks. Team members may see positive changes, negative changes, or no changes at all. Data on student behavior should be collected and analyzed about every 2 to 3 days; more complex or intrusive intervention plans may necessitate more frequent measurement.

When a severe problem behavior is resistant to change, complex, intrusive intervention packages may be required. The more complicated the intervention plan, the more likely that its impact will go beyond the behaviors the IEP team has identified for intervention. That is, the plan may have an effect on non-targeted behavior (e.g., it could “spill over” and reduce or eliminate other inappropriate or appropriate behaviors). For this reason, it may be necessary to collect information on non-targeted behavior (e.g., positive social interactions with classmates and adults; appropriate classroom behavior). Throughout this process, IEP teams must determine when reassessment will take place and specify the ultimate goal of the behavior change. Finally, it is important to remember that if a student already has a behavioral intervention plan, the IEP team may elect to simply review the plan and modify it.

Modification of the Behavioral Intervention Plan

The 1997 IDEA Amendments state that a behavioral intervention plan should be considered when developing the IEP if a student’s behavior interferes with his or her learning or the learning of others. (For specific requirements, see the Federal Regulations—34 CFR Parts 300 and 303.) To be meaningful, that plan must have ongoing evaluation and must be reevaluated whenever any member of the student’s IEP team feels that a review is necessary.

Circumstances that may warrant such a review include:

· The student has reached his or her behavioral goals and objectives and new goals and objectives need to be established;

· The “situation” has changed and the interventions no longer address the current needs of the student;

· There is a change in placement; or

· It is clear that the original behavioral intervention plan is not producing positive changes in the student’s behavior.

In the end, the process of functional behavioral assessment is complete only when the IEP team produces positive behavioral changes in student performance.

Obstacles to Effective Functional Behavioral Assessment and Behavioral Intervention Plans and Supports

Before concluding, there are possible obstacles to the development and use of effective behavioral intervention plans and supports that should be shared. One or more of these obstacles may sometimes require the attention of school personnel to enable the implementation of a positive behavioral intervention plan and supports.

1. Too vague a definition of the behavior(s) of concern.

2. Incomplete measurement/data collection regarding the behavior(s) of concern and the interventions selected.

3. Incorrect interpretation of the functional assessment data collected by the IEP team or others.

4. Inappropriate intervention (e.g., too weak to deal with the complexity or magnitude of the behavior problem; not aligned with the assessment data).

5. Inconsistent or incorrect application of one or more parts of the intervention plan.

6. Failure to adequately monitor the implementation of the intervention plan, to adjust the intervention plan based on ongoing monitoring and evaluation, and to adequately evaluate the impact of the intervention plan.

7. Inadequate system-wide support to avoid future episodes of the behavior problem (e.g., too many initiatives or competing building-level priorities that may interfere with the time and commitment it takes to develop and implement behavioral intervention plans).

8. The behavior is an issue of tolerance rather than being something that distracts the student or others (e.g., a specific minor behavior, such as doodling).

9. Teachers lack skills and support necessary to teach behavioral skills.

10. Failure to consider environmental issues, cultural norms, or psychiatric issues/mental illness outside of the school/classroom environment that are affecting the student’s behavior.

At a more basic level, IEP teams can be frustrated in attempts to conduct and interpret a functional behavioral assessment because of student absences due to illness, suspension, or expulsion; an inability to meet with key team members or parents; school holidays or school cancellation due to bad weather; and so on. We encourage IEP teams and other school personnel to keep these factors in mind when grappling with the sometimes time-consuming and often complex problem-solving process of conducting a functional behavioral assessment and developing a positive behavioral intervention plan and supports. Finally, IEP teams should keep in mind that differences in behavior may exist that relate to gender, ethnicity, language, or acculturation.

Throughout this series on functional behavioral assessment and positive behavior intervention plans, we have emphasized that IEP teams should develop multi-step programs that capitalize on existing skills and the idea that knowledge of the functions causing the original misbehavior can shape more appropriate, alternative behavior. In that way, emphasis is on building new skills rather than on simply eliminating student misbehavior. Again, it is important to understand that the problem behavior may have “worked” very well for the student for some time. For this reason, IEP team members must exercise patience in implementing behavioral intervention plans and supports.

Summary

Across the country, school personnel are working to better understand the exact conditions under which to implement the various provisions of the 1997 Amendments to the IDEA. Educators and others are looking for ways to transform a process of proven clinical success into quality practices that can be realistically and effectively applied in classroom situations. More and more IEP teams are developing intervention plans that are both effective and efficient in producing positive behavior changes for students with (and without) disabilities. Many times, these interventions flow from either an informal or formal functional assessment of the behavior. At the same time, school personnel are exploring ways to promote long-term classroom and building-level changes that increase the range of academic and behavioral supports for students. In some cases, this means changing both the structure and the culture of schools to accommodate a conceptual framework built upon positive student supports.

As we have discussed, the persons responsible for conducting the functional behavioral assessment may vary from district to district, team to team, and student to student. Some, but not all, behavioral assessment procedures may require persons with extensive prior training and experience. Regardless of who is responsible, we believe that schools should adopt a “best practices” approach to the process of functional behavioral assessment. That means school personnel should seek ways to address minor problems before they escalate and become major behavioral challenges. In contrast to simply attempting to suppress the problem behavior, positive behavioral intervention plans allow school personnel not only to eliminate inappropriate behaviors, but also to encourage appropriate, alternative behaviors so that the student can benefit the most from classroom instruction. School personnel can also address minor behavior problems before they become so persistent or severe that formal action is required. In taking this approach, schools can provide all students with the necessary academic and behavioral supports to be successful in school and beyond.

References

Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice. (1998). An IEP team’s introduction to functional behavioral assessment and behavior intervention plans (1998). Washington, DC: American Institutes for Research.

Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health. (2001). A teacher’s guide to children’s mental

health. St. Paul, MN: Author.

Links to Sites of Interest

Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support

http://www.pbis.org

On-line Academy for Positive Behavioral Support

http://onlineacademy.org/

Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions

http://www.catchword.com/titles/10983007.htm

Center for Evidence-based Practice: Young Children with Challenging Behavior

http://www.challengingbehavior.org

Council for Exceptional Children