Billie Jo Rodriguez

Technical Adequacy of the Functional Assessment Checklist: Teachers and Staff (FACTS) FBA Interview Measure.

With the recent increase in the use of functional behavior assessment (FBA) in school settings, there has been an emphasis in practice on the development and use of effective, efficient methods of conducting FBAs, particularly indirect assessment tools such as interviews. There are both benefits and drawbacks to these tools, and their technical adequacy is often unknown. This article presents a framework for assessing the measurement properties of FBA interview tools and uses this framework to assess evidence for reliability and validity of one interview tool, the Functional Assessment Checklist: Teachers and Staff (FACTS; March et al., 2000). Results derived from 10 research studies using the FACTS indicate strong evidence of test—retest reliability and interobserver agreement, moderate to strong evidence of convergent validity with direct observation and functional analysis procedures, strong evidence of treatment utility, and strong evidence of social validity. Results are discussed in terms of future validation research for FBA methods and tools.

Sustainability of a Targeted Intervention Package: First Step to Success in Oregon

Variables affecting the sustained implementation of evidence-based practices are receiving increased attention. A descriptive analysis of the variables associated with sustained implementation of First Step to Success (FSS), a targeted intervention for young students at risk for behavior disorders, is provided. Measures based on a conceptual model of sustainability were used with personnel from 29 schools from 13 Oregon school districts to describe variables that promote the sustainability of FSS. Results indicate that 28% of the school districts continued to implement FSS up to 10 years after initial implementation. Six critical features were perceived by school personnel to promote sustainability: (a) dedicated resources, (b) training and orientation activities, (c) district-level coordination, (d) selection of students who are a good fit for the intervention, (e) highly qualified coaches, and (f) administrative support. Clinical relevance and future directions for research addressing sustainability are presented.

Training School Personnel to Identify Interventions Based on Functional Behavioral Assessment

Over 15 years after passage of legislation requiring the use of functional behavioral assessment (FBA) to inform the development of positive behavior support plans (BSPs) in special education, schools are still struggling to implement BSPs based on FBA and the function of behavior. A primary concern is that school teams regularly fail to use function of behavior to generate behavioral interventions, even after completing an FBA and receiving training. The current study evaluated outcomes of an efficient 60-min training that taught explicit strategies for using function of behavior and FBA information to identify function-based intervention through modeling, guided practice, and feedback using student vignettes for escape-maintained and attention-maintained behaviors. The training yielded significant, positive results in participants’ ability to identify function-based interventions on behavioral vignettes. Future research and next steps are suggested for expanding the training to address the challenge of extending the science of FBA to guide the implementation of effective behavioral interventions in schools.

Integrating a Social Behavior Intervention during Small Group Academic Instruction Using a Total Group Criterion Intervention.

Total group contingencies, a variation of interdependent group contingencies, provide educators with an efficient and effective mechanism to improve social behavior and increase academic skills. Their utility has not been examined in small educational groups. This is unfortunate as supplemental instruction frequently is delivered in small group settings, and problem behavior may have a deleterious effect on learning. This study evaluated effects of a positive reinforcement total group contingency implemented by instructional assistants across five small groups of kindergarten students receiving supplemental literacy instruction. Results indicated reductions in student problem behavior, increases in adult provision of specific praise statements, and increases in opportunities to respond to academic instruction. Although the intervention focused on student social behavior, we also documented improved fidelity of implementation of the literacy instruction following training and implementation of the total group criterion intervention. The implications for implementing total group contingencies during small group instruction are discussed.

Tier 2 Interventions in Positive Behavior Support: A Survey of School Implementation

As increasing numbers of schools implement Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), schools are looking for and implementing evidence-based practices for students whose needs are not fully met by Tier 1 supports. Although there is relative consistency and clarity in what constitutes Tier 1 behavior support within MTSS, Tier 2 supports may be more varied and less well researched. The current study sought to better understand Tier 2 intervention implementation by surveying school personnel on their Tier 2 data, systems, and practices. Results from 180 school-level respondents are presented that describe differences according to their number of years spent implementing schoolwide positive behavior supports and their school level. Additionally, responses of perceived strengths and limitations of current social skills instructional programs, one type of Tier 2 intervention, are shared. Implications, limitations, and future directions for research and practice are provided.

Building Systems for Successful Implementation of Function-Based Support in Schools.

Supporting the full range of students with behavioral challenges requires that schools build the capacity to implement evidence-based behavioral interventions. Fortunately, a substantive body of research documents behavioral interventions are available to both decrease problem behavior and enhance prosocial skills. To date, however, this intervention technology has not been implemented widely. This article maintains that one reason for limited implementation is schools are missing the systems needed to support high-quality behavioral interventions. This article both summarizes key features of function-based behavioral interventions used to support students with more intense behavior support needs and identifies the systems needed for these interventions to be implemented with efficiency and sustainability. This article provides a case example to demonstrate the systems needed for implementation. Implications are offered for improving the large-scale adoption of function-based behavioral supports in education.

Examination of Critical Features and Lessons Learned for Implementation of a Tier 2 Intervention System for Social Behavior

This article reviews Check-In, Check-Out (CICO; Hawken & Horner, 2003) as an intervention within a multitiered system of support. Although literature has emerged demonstrating successful intervention outcomes for a wide range of students (e.g., Campbell & Anderson, 2011; Hawken & Horner, 2003), insufficient attention has focused on the administrative and organizational systems needed for high-fidelity, sustained adoption of these practices to maximize student outcomes. We address this need by demonstrating how to explicitly and systematically embed CICO into the multitiered system of supports by reviewing data, systems, and practices needed to sustain high-quality Tier 2 interventions such as CICO. One school districts systems implementation data and student outcome data are shared highlighting lessons learned during training, initial implementation, and follow-up related to CICO systems in schools. The article emphasizes the roles of school psychologists as well as the importance of collaboration with other educators in CICO implementation.

Book Review: Prevent Teach Reinforce for Young Children: The Early Childhood Model of Individualized Positive Behavior Support

The book Prevent Teach Reinforce for Young Children: The Early Childhood Model of Individualized Positive Behavior Support (Dunlap, Wilson, Strain, & Lee, 2013) is published by Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company in Baltimore, Maryland. The first purpose of the book is to describe the Prevent Teach Reinforce (PTR-YC) model for supporting social behavior outcomes for toddlers and preschool children with challenging behaviors. The authors state,

Test Review: Classroom Assessment Scoring System Manual: Toddler

The Classroom Assessment Scoring System Manual: Toddler (CLASS-Toddler; La Paro, Hamre, & Pianta, 2012) is published by Paul H. Brookes Publishing Company in Baltimore, MD. The CLASS is an observation instrument designed to examine instructional quality via documentation of effective teacher–child interactions across education classrooms and settings. This instrument’s design includes a common metric and vocabulary for professionals to describe various aspects of teacher–child interactions. Completion of the CLASS-Toddler observation protocol allows one to obtain “standardized information on the quality of classroom environments for young children” (p. 6). The CLASS-Toddler framework purports to build on extensive literature review and the scales used in large-scale classroom observation studies from other versions of the CLASS, particularly the CLASS-Pre-K (www.teachstone.org). The CLASS-Toddler utilizes a common metric and language with context-specific and developmentally sensitive descriptions of what the dimensions look like for toddlers. “The CLASS-Toddler focuses on process quality, examining teacherchild interactions in the context of the unique needs of children (15-36 months)” (p. 1) via observing interactions between teachers and children as well as engagement leading to learning opportunities. The CLASS-Toddler incorporates both structural classroom features (e.g., curriculum, teacher education, ratios, and group size) and dynamic process aspects of the classroom (e.g., teacher and child, peer and peer, curriculum implementation, relationships) as well as practices related to effective teaching (e.g., teacher implementation of curriculum, strategies to maximize student engagement, and chances for students to actively participate during instruction).