Functional Assessment & Behavior Intervention Planning

1. Functional Assessment & Behavior Intervention Planning Elizabeth M. Boggs Center UMDNJ-RWJMS-Pediatrics sharon.lohrmann@umdnj.edu

2. Overview of the Day • Underlying assumptions of individual student planning for behavioral support • Step by step systematized process to conduct a functional assessment and design behavior intervention plans • Methods of information gathering and data collection • Interpreting data • Designing function based support plans

3. Training Objectives Participants will become familiar with: • the PBS problem solving process for arriving at effective behavior support plans; • the PBS 2 day training curriculum; and • the training activities and practices for delivering the 2 day training.

4. Introduction to Positive Behavior Support

5. What is Positive Behavior Support? • An approach to behavioral support that fuses multiple theoretical orientations including: • Applied Behavior Analysis • Ecological Psychology • Systems Change • Positive Psychology • Cultural Psychology Source: Carr (2006)

6. What is SWPBS? • A research based multi-tiered intervention • Universal interventions for all students, staff, and settings – Let’s get consistent! • Secondary interventions for students with repeated behavior problems – Let’s catch them before they fail! • Individualized interventions for students with the most intensive needs – Let’s promote successful outcomes for all students!

7. Source: Walker, Horner, Sugai, Bullis, Sprague, & Bricker (1996)

8. Focus of this training

9. Guiding Principles of PBS • The student exists within layers of multiple systems

10. The Student Within Systems Family School Activity Setting/ Routine The Student

11. Guiding Principles • The environment, including adult behavior, is expected to change • To understand and effectively intervene on behavior we have to apply a consistent PBS problem solving process • Successful outcomes will depend on the fidelity of the process and the persistence with which it is applied

12. Coordination and Management of the PBS Team

13. Who Makes up the PBS Team? • Facilitator: Special Services Staff (e.g., School Psychologist) • Team Members: • IEP team • People outside of the IEP team who work with the student and are responsible for implementing intervention strategies

14. How Does the PBS Team Function? • The team is led by a facilitator using a PBS problem solving framework • The team should follow Federal/State procedural safeguards as appropriate • The team should meet on an ongoing basis: • Initial meeting to clarify the problem • A summary meeting to develop a hypothesis statement and to develop the behavior intervention plan • Ongoing (brief) monitoring meetings

15. Why Use a PBS Team Approach? • Share the workload • To understand function through multiple perspectives • Support one another through difficult times • Encourage ownership and buy in from staff

16. Who Facilitates the PBS Team? • Anyone who is trained and skilled in the principles of behavioral assessment and intervention including • Data collection and interpretation • Operant learning model • Team facilitation • Antecedent interventions • Alternative skill instruction • Development of incentive systems • Response weakening interventions

17. A PBS Team Facilitator…… • Coordinates the meeting logistics • Leads team discussions • Coordinates the assessment and intervention practices • Provides the team with technical expertise • Acts as a liaison to administrators and other resources

18. PBS Team Members….. • Are ACTIVE in the PBS process including: • Attending meetings • Providing and collecting information • Participating in discussions to understand the function of behavior • Participating in the design of the behavior intervention plan • Carrying out intervention strategies • Participating in/delivering training on the intervention plan • Communicating issues in a timely manner

19. Overview of the PBS Process

21. Products the PBS Team Generates • Functional Assessment Report • The facilitator can use the FBA Assessment Report Worksheet to prepare for the assessment report • Behavior Intervention Plan • The behavior intervention plan is included as part of the IEP

22. What is a Functional Behavioral Assessment?

23. An FBA is… a problem solving process that uses information from a variety of sources collected over time that identifies variables contributing to occurrences of problem behavior and helps us to understand the reasons why problem behavior is occurring

24. An FBA is Not: • A particular tool or assessment instrument • A one shot meeting or observation • Intended to be conducted by a single person

25. Operant Learning Model

26. Consider…. • Not all behaviors need a Functional Behavioral Assessment • An FBA will be most effective in environments that are well managed; and • probably not be effective in environments that are poorly managed; thus • address classroom/setting management issues then determine the need for an FBA

27. Beyond Legal Mandates:Best Practice Guidance for an FBA 1. Is the behavior persistent over time and across environments? If yes, then • Are the environments where behaviors occurring effectively • managed? If yes, then • Is the student responsive to the environmental management • strategies? If not, then a. Does the behavior interfere with the student’s or others’ learning? OR b. Does the behavior place the student or others at risk of harm? OR • Does the behavior place the student at risk of being placed • in a self contained or out of district placement?

28. Group Discussion • When are FBA’s being conducted? • What works about your FBA process? • What does not work about your FBA process? • What obstacles or challenges do you encounter?

29. Facilitation Step 1Setting Up and Preparing for the Initial FBA Meeting

31. Facilitation Step 1 Setting Up and Preparing for the Initial FBA MeetingStep 1aIdentify People to Include on the Team and Schedule the Team Meeting

32. Identify People to Include on the Team and Schedule the Team Meeting Begin with the IEP team and then expand to people who are: • Familiar with the student and the situations in which behavior occurs • Responsible for implementing behavior plan strategies • Needed in order for resources to be allocated

33. Identify People to Include on the Team and Schedule the Team Meeting Schedule a time for the team to meet. Consider: • A time that allows the greatest number of people to attend • That the team will need an hour for their discussion • A location that will allow you to post flip chart paper

34. Facilitation Step 1 Setting Up and Preparing for the Initial FBA MeetingStep 1bConfirm the Meeting

35. Confirm the Meeting • A confirmation letter should include: • Date, time, and location of the meeting • Directions to complete the Functional Assessment Interview Tool (FAIT) • Directions for where to return the FAIT and by when • An advanced organizer of how the meeting will run

36. FAIT Staff Version

38. FAIT – Staff Version Page 2

39. FAIT – Staff Version Page 3

40. FAIT – Staff Version Page 4

41. FAIT Parent Version

42. FAIT Parent Version Page 1

43. FAIT Parent Version Page 2

44. FAIT Parent Version Page 3

45. FAIT Parent Version Page 4

46. Facilitation Step 1 Setting Up and Preparing for the Initial FBA MeetingStep 1cPrepare for the Meeting

47. Prepare for the Meeting • What to bring: • Flip chart with plenty of paper • Colored markers • A summary of the completed FAIT’s • Copies of existing data or discipline referrals • A copy of the FBA Assessment Report Worksheet

48. Prepare for the Meeting • To make the initial meeting as efficient as possible, summarize the FAIT and bring that information to the meeting • Use a blank copy of the staff FAIT to collapse all information into one place • Bring copies of the summarized FAIT for all team members

49. Summarizing the FAIT • Behaviors of Concern • Review the behaviors reported by team members • Look for similar types of behaviors and group them together