How students and parents
benefit when schools implement
positive behavior support
strategies…
Alison Davis, Tonya Ampey, & Laura Cochran
Kirkwood School District
Kirkwood Early Childhood Center
How do students benefit ?????
•This stuff really
works !!!!!
How do students benefit ?????
(universal level)
The biggest change you will see after implementing
sw-positive behavior support is:
•Improved classroom and school-wide behaviors.
Why? Because--students are supported with
clear expectations and have access to quality
prevention, teaching, and reinforcement
strategies across all environments & disciplines.
Additional benefits of PBS for students
(universal level)
•Clear expectations and consistency among
caregivers help children feel safe, valued,
and accepted: they are more likely to
behave in acceptable ways
•When caregivers acknowledge appropriate
student behavior, student’s self-esteem
rises thereby decreasing the need for
bullying or sibling/peer rivalry
The benefits of PBS for
students
(universal level)
•A critical feature of positive behavior
support is the teaching of new
behaviors/social skills. Academics and
social behavior are connected, and a child’s
social behavior can either positively or
negatively affect his/her ability to
perform academically.
The benefits of PBS for students
(universal level)
•Shared goals and expectations foster a
strong sense of community and belonging
This is when you decide to use Tier 2 or
targeted intervention strategies:
•When students display chronic patterns
•When concerns arise regarding students’ behavior
•When universals are not sufficient to impact
behavior
How do students benefit ?????
(Tier 2 or targeted interventions)
•Tier 2 (or targeted group) strategies, benefit students
when they are part of a continuum – they must link to the
school-wide PBS system
•Tier 2 strategies benefit students as they are an efficient
and effective way to identify students in need of more
intense instruction in the area of social skills before they
fail
•Tier 2 strategies benefit students when the intervention is
matched to the presenting problem (social skill deficit) but
not highly individualized
This is when to use Tier 3 or
individual interventions:
•When a student has not made expected gains
after completing 6-8 weeks of tier 2 or
targeted group interventions
•When a classroom team requests a functional
behavioral assessment for a student with or
without an IEP
How do students benefit ?????
(Tier 3 or individual interventions)
•Tier 3 interventions benefit the student that needs layers
of support for disruptive or aggressive behavior
•Tier 3 strategies benefit the student when the intense
intervention is matched to the presenting problem via an FBA
(functional behavioral assessment) and corresponding action
plans across disciplines
The benefits of PBS for Parents
(families)
Naturally, the level of the family’s involvement
in PBS will be proportional to the benefits
that parents/families receive. All
families/parents will benefit from the
implementation of PBS in the school setting
when there is an intentional and planned
family component. The three levels of family
involvement are:
Support
Support-5%
INVOLVEMENT
Involvement-15%
AWARENESS
Awareness-80%
From a Parent Perspective by Meredith Byers
“This school year has been a really challenging one in our house. Our
oldest son, W, started a new KECC class, with new teachers,
therapists, and friends, and we welcomed a new sibling at home. W
was having some trouble adjusting to these changes (transitions
always get us!), and I was also struggling for the right way to help him
(and us) adjust to our new situation. I talked with W's teacher at
KECC, who really responded to my concerns. She told me that when
she needs her class to focus on her, listen to what she is saying, and
follow her directions, she gets down on their level and asks them to
"take care of me" - putting her hand on herself when she says it. The
class knows that is a cue to really pay attention to what she is saying
or doing. So, I tried it at home - when our new baby was crying and W
was doing his best to take my attention away from the baby, I got on
eye level with him and told him, "Please take care of Mommy right
now" - and it worked! Really! While this is a simple solution, it is also
very effective, and even more importantly, it is a consistent solution
that is used at KECC and home. What it taught me is that the
Kangaroo Code and PBS are not just learning concepts or behavior
strategies, but are ways to communicate with our children, teach
them the right way to respond in a situation, and give them tools to
use as they learn and grow both at school and at home.”
Meredith, Shiloh, & Ryder Byers
How do parents benefit?????
•Families feel welcomed and valued when
they are a pare of PBS planning and shared
communication around discipline decisions
•There is a sense of well being and
confidence in a child’s education when they
are provided opportunities for input to
school personnel about matters of
importance including discipline
•Schools then are able to build positive
relationships with families which helps to
bridge the gap when it is necessary to
implement alternative strategies.
How do parents benefit?????
•It is a way to understand that behavior is
communication; and with the words used in
PBS it helps us communicate with our
children & teach them the right way to
respond in a situation,
•It provides consistency between school
and home.
•Parents benefit from continuity of
discipline. seamless implementation of
same/similar expectations for home and
school.
Resources
• How to Raise Emotionally Healthy Children (Gerald Newmark)
http://www.emotionallyhealthychildren.org/
• Parenting with Positive Behavior Support: A Practical Guide to Resolving your
Child’s Difficult Behavior (Meme Hieneman, Karen Childs, and Jane Sergay)
• NH CEBIS- Family Engagement Checklist
http://www.nhcebis.seresc.net/checklists_and_assessments (right side of
page)