Structuring the School Environment for Success

1. Structuring the School Environment for Success Halifax County August 3, 2010 Heather Reynolds, DPI PBIS Consultant Correy Watkins, Region 3 PBIS Coordinator

2. Structuring for Success • Engineer the Physical Environment • Estimate Academic Demands • Establish Behavior Norms • Embed Support for Desired Behavior • Evaluate and Adjust

3. Engineer the Physical Environment

4. Engineer the Physical Environment • Reduce congestion in high-traffic areas • Ensure everyone can see and be seen • Devote some display space to student work • Make teaching materials and student supplies easily accessible

5. Physical Environment Considerations • What type of activities will students typically be doing? • What type of student interaction is desired? • What arrangements will foster these activities and interactions? • Is the arrangement hindering the desired activities and interactions in any way? • What changes to the physical environment might improve functionality?

6. Activity MorningMadness

7. Estimate Academic Demands

8. Effective Instruction Effective instruction increases the likelihood of correct student responses Correct responding is correlated with positive teacher interactions Leading to increased academic achievement of students and positive behavioral exchanges between students and teachers Gunter, Hummel, & Venn, 1998

9. Estimate Academic Demands • Evidence-based instructional practices are utilized • Instructors are enthusiastic • Directions are clear • Instruction is well-paced • Curriculum is taught to mastery

10. What is the single best practice to reduce problem behavior in the classroom? AN EFFECTIVEAND ENGAGING LESSON PLAN!

11. Establish Behavior Norms

12. Students learn appropriate behavior in the same way a child who doesn’t know how to read learns to read—through instruction, practice, feedback, and encouragement.

13. Establish Behavior Norms • Determine & post desired behaviors • Teach explicitly to Fluency • Provide consistent feedback • Create and teach routines based on desired behaviors

14. Determine & Post Desired Behaviors • Annoying vs. Deal-Breakers • Stop vs. Replace • Work Backwards • Observable • Positively Stated

15. Teach Explicitly to Fluency Repeat as needed

16. Two Types of Social Skill Deficits • Skill deficits (cannot do) • Test by providing strong incentive • Direct teaching approach • Coaching, modeling, behavior rehearsal • Performance deficits (will not do) • Test for motivation or discrimination deficit • Motivation deficit if student performs skill following introduction of motivational strategy. • Discrimination deficit if student sometimes performs but is oblivious to social cues or social demands of situation • Incentive-based management approach • Prompting, cuing, reinforcement • Prompted social initiations • Home and school rewards • Individual and group contingencies

17. Teaching Behavior Skills Example: Following Directions/Instructions • Discuss rationale for the critical rule • What would happen if you do or do not follow directions? • If you follow directions, your parents may see you as more responsible and cooperative which could lead to more privileges. • Your teacher will view you as a learner because you follow through. • If you don’t follow directions, an adult might think you are deliberately misbehaving or ignoring them. • Elicit responses from students: when, where & with whom they would use this skill.

18. Teaching Behavior Skills Example: Following Directions/Instructions Teach/describe the skill and skill steps. • Look at the person. • Acknowledge (verbal or nonverbal). • Decide if you need to ask any clarifying questions. • Do the task immediately. • Check back if appropriate.

19. Teaching Behavior Skills Example: Following Directions/Instructions • Model examples and non-examples. • Provide an example from your life when you followed directions. • Provide more examples than non-examples.

20. Teaching Behavior Skills Example: Following Directions/Instructions • Role play / practice with feedback • Students role play scenarios elicited from the group • Students and teachers observing can provide specific feedback • Review and test: Identify a time when you did not follow directions Identify a time when you did follow directions

21. Critical Components of Behavior Instruction • Teach the skill. • Demonstrate the skill. • Provide multiple opportunities for practice with feedback. • Reinforce and encourage when students demonstrate the skill.

22. Key Points • Teach the behavior you want to see • It’s not what they know, it’s what they do • Behavior can be taught • Students need multiple opportunities to practice behavioral skill deficits • Teachers need to reinforce students when they demonstrate targeted skills

23. Establish Procedures Based on Expectations • Teach an Attention Signal • Develop a Schedule • Teach Routines for Repetitive Tasks Let's take a closer look!

24. Teach Attention Signal • Always use a simple, portable cue • Avoid starting instruction until all students are attending • Reinforce students who attend immediately • Provide specific verbal praise to peers to redirect students • Consistency, consistency, consistency!

25. Think, Pair, Share • What are some effective attention signals you have used in the past? • How could you share with your colleagues? • Do you have a school-wide attention signal?

26. Develop Classroom Schedule • Establish predictable schedules • illustrate with icons, time, etc. • Schedule non-instruction time • administration time • personal time • Evaluate the variety and time for each activity.

27. Develop A Schedule...Down Time Causes Problems • Time unscheduled in a classroom is an open invitation to disruptive behavior. • Scheduled time is one of the basic proactive variables that is under teacher control. • 70% of the school day should be scheduled for academic activity.

28. Sample Schedule 10 Min Teacher directed review of previous concepts 5 Min Homework review 20 Min Teacher directed new concepts 15 Min Teacher directed guided practice 30 Min Independent work 10 Min Teacher directed guided practice and review

29. Effective Routines:Why They Help Manage Behavior • Support for transition times and basic activities that happen on a regular basis • Establish predictability • Clear Expectations for Student Behavior • Clear Expectations for Adult Behavior • Plan, post, and teach the routines you value

30. Effective Routines - Rationale The number one problem in the classroom is not discipline; it is the lack of procedures and routines. A vast majority of the behavior problems in the classroom are caused by the failure of students to follow procedures and routines. -Harry Wong

31. Teach Routines • Think through and establish procedures for transition times and basic regularly scheduled activities • Break down each step necessary in sequence • Define what students and teachers do at each step • Teach as you would any other behavior • Practice, Practice, Practice • Reflect: Are procedures working? Why or why not?

32. Effective Routines • Use Think-Pair-Share to brainstorm a list of procedures teachers need to teach • You have 2 minutes • Share your list!

33. Embed Support for Desired Behavior

34. Embed Support for Desired Behavior • Increase Desired Behaviors • Specific Verbal Feedback • Positive Interactions • Reinforcement Strategies • Precorrects • Visual Cues • Decrease Problem Behavior • Active supervision • Techniques to Improve Compliance • Correct Behavior Errors • Consequences

35. Increase Desired Behaviors: Specific Verbal Feedback Providing praise for correct academic responses and appropriate social behavior lead to: • Increases in student correct responses • Increases in on task behavior • Decreases in disruptive behaviors (Sutherland, 2000)

36. Increase Desired Behaviors: Specific Verbal Feedback • Timely and Accurate • Specific and Descriptive • Contingent • Age-appropriate • Given in a Manner that Fits Your Style

37. Increase Desired Behaviors: Positive Interactions • Strive to keep an 4:1 ratio of positive-to-negative statements • Each time you have a negative interaction with a student, tell yourself you owe that student positive interactions • Identify specific times during the day you will give positive feedback • Schedule individual conference time • Scan the room searching for appropriate behaviors • Engage in frequent positive interactions with all students

38. Think, Pair and Share • Think about what you need to do to increase your positive interactions with students • Pair up with another person • One person shares • Listen for signal • The second person shares

39. Increase Desired Behaviors: Reinforcement Strategies • Behavior(s) are determined and taught • Reinforcement is contingent upon appropriate behavior • Be generous with reinforcers at the beginning • Group contingencies or individual systems • “Yes/no” bag • Compliance matrix • Lottery tickets

40. Increase Desired Behaviors: Precorrects/Visual Cues Function as reminders Opportunities to practice Prompt for expected behavior Especially helpful before teacher anticipates behavior learning errors Visual cues offer opportunity to precorrect nonverbally Visual cues especially helpful for non-readers

41. Increase Desired Behaviors: Precorrect Examples “ Remember, before you leave class, collect all your materials, put your papers in the bin, and quietly walk out of the room.” “ Sam, show us how to be respectful and line up quietly for gym.”

44. RE-TEACH! What should be your first strategy to address repetitive student behavior errors?

45. Decrease Problem Behaviors:Active Supervision & Proximity • More than adult presence in vicinity • More adults not automatically more effective • Adults interacting with students • Students less likely to misbehave in close proximity to adults • Provides opportunity to nonverbally prevent and/or correct behavior

46. Decrease Problem Behaviors: Techniques to Improve Compliance • Avoid a question format • Use a quiet voice • Make eye contact • Give them time • Tell them only twice • Give one direction at a time • Tell students what you want them to do (rather than what you don’t) • Verbally reinforce compliance

47. Decrease Problem Behaviors: Correct Student Behavior Errors • “Emotion Free” response • More effective if students have been taught expected behaviors • Minimize attention other than to signal an error has occurred • Praise for appropriate behavior

48. Decrease Problem Behaviors: Correct Student Behavior Errors • Signal that an error has occurred • “What are you doing?” • Check for understanding of the rules • “What should you be doing?" • Provide an opportunity to practice the skill • “Show me what that looks like.” • Provide feedback • "That's much better, thank you for showing respect toward others by walking quietly down the hall.”

49. Decrease Problem Behaviors: Consequences • Meant to teach • Different from punishment • Most effective if natural fit with problem behavior • Avoid producing desired effect of misbehavior • Need to be evaluated for effectiveness; if consequence doesn’t change behavior try something else

50. Evaluate and Adjust