DEBUNKING PBIS MYTHS Catherine Shwaery, PBIS Maryland

Appreciation for Contributions from… George Sugai, Ph.D. & Brandi Simonsen, Ph.D. – University of Connecticut – OSEP Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports Tim Lewis, Ph.D. – University of Missouri – OSEP Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports Susan Barrett – OSEP Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions & Supports Michael J. Kennedy, Ph.D. – University of Virginia

We can’t make students learn, but… We can create environments to increase the likelihood that students will learn and behave.

Problem-solving framework Culturally contextualized PBIS is…

SW-PBIS is not... a specific practice, package or curriculum limited to any particular group of students

Person-first Language Soc skills Reading Science Math Horses Spanish

Myth or Fact?

The 4 or 5 people who went to New Team training are the PBIS team for the first few years of implementation. Myth or Fact?

Considerations  Is your team representative of your faculty/community?  Are the responsibilities falling on 1 or 2 people?  Has your school identified outcomes? Are you using your Action Plan and an Agenda to guide your meetings?

We are required to create an acronym for our expectations Myth or Fact?

*RESPECT*RESPONSIBILITY *READY to LEARN

Myth or Fact? By the third quarter, it is typically okay to stop teaching social expectations. Data Decision Rules Stages of learning – Acquisition – Fluency – Maintenance and Generalization Students are ALWAYS learning

Let’s start with positive consequences or responses… What about CONSEQUENCES?

Myth or Fact?

“Rewards are fine for elementary school but are ineffective and inappropriate in high school.” rewards will damage “intrinsic motivation” “Now we have to set up a school store.” SW-PBIS simply will not work if you don’t use powerful “rewards.”

Activity Turn to another person near you and talk about adult acknowledgements at your school.

Opportunities to Respond + Positive Feedback = Engagement Strategy: Providing Multiple Opportunities for Students to Respond Frequency Number of instructional questions, statements or gestures made by the teacher seeking an academic response. Rate of Academic Engagement. Record “+” symbol for on-task/ engaged behavior and “-” for off-task behavior Measureable Goal: Strategy: Positive Feedback Ratio Frequency Specific, positive feedback (BSPS) Negative feedback Ratio of specific, positive feedback to negative feedback Positive : Negative Ratio = Measureable Goal:

Myth or Fact? OK to correct behaviors - the challenge is to a)continue to teach appropriate behavior b)put environmental supports in place to prevent the problem from occurring again Think of student misbehavior as: Learning Errors We are always positive and no longer correct student misbehavior

Instructional Responses to Inappropriate Behavior Proximity Control Signal, non-verbal cue Ignore, attend to other students, praise Re-direct Re-teach Provide choice Student conference, role-play or practice

Myth or Fact? PBIS practice?

Communication System?

Questions to help guide the conversation… 1.Are the same students always on red or losing points? 2.Do potential side effects (e.g., embarrassment, humiliation, isolation) negate the perceived positive effects?

Change your words, Change your world  “Don’t lose track of where we are.”  “Remember, don’t run in the hallway.”  “Why aren’t you looking up here now?”  “Why haven’t you started yet?”  “Don’t even think about it!”

Activity 1.On an index card, write 2 or 3 “No”, “Stop” or “Don’t” statements you have heard in your school given by a teacher to a student, e.g., “no running in the hallway!” 2.Exchange your card with someone you don’t know at another table 3.Re-write their statement to a positive direction. 25

80% faculty buy-in and support is only necessary before New Team Training Myth or Fact?

Sharing data with the team and faculty is only necessary after the first year of implementation. Myth or Fact?

Once we hit 80% or better on the SET, adding Tier II/III systems will be a piece of cake! Are universals matched to intensity of needs? Are teachers anchoring classroom practices to school-wide expectations? Phases of Implementation – Exploration & Trial – Adoption

Data-Based Decision Making Numbers to Keep in Mind 7-15%: Percent of total population expected to need and be supported by Tier 2 interventions 1-5%: Percent of total population expected to need and be supported by Tier 3 interventions 70%: Percent of students (receiving intervention “X”) who should be responding to intervention 29

Myth or Fact? If you want success, you need to implement SW-PBIS exactly like the Gold Award winning schools. Essential features are similar; however, You create your unique path based on your DATA, your RESOURCES, and OUTCOMES that are important to you