How Do We Know Whether Motivation is a Barrier to Learning How Do We Know Whether Motivation is a Barrier to Learning?: Student Motivation Assessment Jim Wright www.interventioncentral.org

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Sources: Witt, J., & Beck, R. (1999). One minure academic functional assessment andinterventions: "Can't" do it…or "won't" do it? Longmont, CO: Sopris West. Witt, J. C., VanDerHeyden, A. M., Gilbertson, D. (2004). Troubleshooting behavioral interventions: A systematic process for finding and eliminating problems. School Psychology Review, 33, 363-381.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 1: Assemble an incentive menu Step 2: Create two versions of a timed worksheet Step 3: Administer the first timed worksheet to the student WITHOUT incentives. Step 4: Compute an improvement goal. 5: Have the student select an incentive for improved performance. Step 6: Administer the second timed worksheet to the student WITH incentives. Step 7: Interpret the results of the academic motivation assessment to select appropriate interventions.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 1: Assemble an Incentive menu Create a 4-5 item menu of modest incentives or rewards that students in the class are most likely to find motivating.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 2: Create two versions of a timed worksheet Make up two versions of custom student worksheets. The worksheets should be at the same level of difficulty, but each worksheet should have different items or content to avoid a practice effect. NOTE: If possible, the worksheets should contain standardized short-answer items (e.g., matching vocabulary words to their definitions) to allow you to calculate the student’s rate of work completion.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 3: Administer the first timed worksheet to the student WITHOUT incentives. In a quiet, non-distracting location, administer the first worksheet or CBM probe under timed, standardized conditions. Collect the probe or worksheet and score.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 4: Compute an improvement goal. After you have scored the first CBM probe or worksheet, compute a ’20 percent improvement goal’. Multiply the student’s score on the worksheet by 1.2. This product represents the student’s minimum goal for improvement. Example: A student who completed 20 correct items on a timed worksheet will have an improvement goal of 24 (20 x 1.2 = 24).

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 5: Have the student select an incentive for improved performance. Tell the student that if he or she can attain a score on the second worksheet that meets or exceeds your goal for improvement (Step 3), the student can earn an incentive. Show the student the reward menu. Ask the student to select the incentive that he or she will earn if the student makes or exceeds the goal.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 6: Administer the second timed worksheet to the student WITH incentives. Give the student the second CBM probe. Collect and score. If the student meets or exceeds the pre-set improvement goal, award the student the incentive.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 7: Interpret the results of the academic motivation assessment to select appropriate interventions. ACADEMIC INTERVENTIONS ONLY. If the student fails to meet or exceed the improvement goal, an academic intervention should be selected to teach the appropriate skills or to provide the student with drill and practice opportunities to build fluency in the targeted academic area(s).

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 7(Cont): Interpret the results of the academic motivation assessment to select appropriate interventions. COMBINED ACADEMIC AND PERFORMANCE INTERVENTIONS. If the student meets or exceeds the improvement goal but continues to function significantly below the level of classmates, an intervention should be tailored that includes strategies to both improve academic performance and to increase the student’s work motivation.

Schoolwork Motivation Assessment Step 7(Cont): Interpret the results of the academic motivation assessment to select appropriate interventions. PERFORMANCE INTERVENTIONS ONLY. If the student meets or exceeds the improvement goal with an incentive and shows academic skills that fall within the range of ‘typical’ classmates, the intervention should target only student work performance or motivation.

‘Motivation Assessment in Advanced Subject Areas’ Activity Brief behavior analysis of motivation (e.g., Schoolwork Motivation Assessment) is most effective for basic skill areas. In your ‘elbow groups’: Discuss ways that RTI Teams could collect information about whether motivation is an ‘academic blocker’ on more advanced academic tasks (e.g., writing a term paper) or subject areas (e.g., trigonometry).

Measuring Student Behavior Jim Wright www.interventioncentral.org

Student Behavioral Assessment: Varied Sources, Multiple Settings (Gresham, 1983) Student behavioral data used for progress-monitoring should come from different sources and across multiple settings to: Track all areas of concern (e.g., academic behaviors; social behaviors; attendance). Control for potential bias from any one source. Collect data of maximal relevance to the student’s educational program. Increase the probability of correctly identifying the underlying ‘driver(s)’ of the student’s problem behavior(s). Reduce the workload on any one person, as multiple staff members can help to collect strands of data. Source: Gresham, F. M. (1983). Multitrait-multimethod approach to multifactored assessment: Theoretical rationale and practical application. School Psychology Review, 12, 26-34.

Extant (Existing) Data (Chafouleas et al., 2007) Definition: Information that is collected by schools as a matter of course. Extant data comes in two forms: Performance summaries (e.g., class grades, teacher summary comments on report cards, state test scores). Student work products (e.g., research papers, math homework, PowerPoint presentation). Source: Chafouleas, S., Riley-Tillman, T.C., & Sugai, G. (2007). School-based behavioral assessment: Informing intervention and instruction. New York: Guilford Press.

Advantages of Using Extant Data (Chafouleas et al., 2007) Information is already existing and easy to access. Students are less likely to show ‘reactive’ effects when data is collected, as the information collected is part of the normal routine of schools. Extant data is ‘relevant’ to school data consumers (such as classroom teachers, administrators, and members of problem-solving teams). Source: Chafouleas, S., Riley-Tillman, T.C., & Sugai, G. (2007). School-based behavioral assessment: Informing intervention and instruction. New York: Guilford Press.

Drawbacks of Using Extant Data (Chafouleas et al., 2007) Time is required to collate and summarize the data (e.g., summarizing a week’s worth of disciplinary office referrals). The data may be limited and not reveal the full dimension of the student’s presenting problem(s). There is no guarantee that school staff are consistent and accurate in how they collect the data (e.g., grading policies can vary across classrooms; instructors may have differing expectations regarding what types of assignments are given a formal grade; standards may fluctuate across teachers for filling out disciplinary referrals). Little research has been done on the ‘psychometric adequacy’ of extant data sources. Source: Chafouleas, S., Riley-Tillman, T.C., & Sugai, G. (2007). School-based behavioral assessment: Informing intervention and instruction. New York: Guilford Press.

Tracking Student Academic & Social Behaviors: A Sampling of Tier I (Classroom-Based) ‘Pulse’ Measures

A Note About Monitoring Behaviors Through Academic Measures… Academic measures (e.g., grades, CBM data) can be useful as part of the progress-monitoring ‘portfolio’ of data collected on a student because: Students with problem behaviors often struggle academically, so tracking academics as a target is justified in its own right. Improved academic performance generally correlates with reduced behavioral problems. Individualized interventions for misbehaving students frequently contain academic components (as the behavior problems can emerge in response to chronic academic deficits). Academic progress-monitoring data helps the school to track the effectiveness of the academic interventions.

Grades

Grades & Other Teacher Performance Summary Data (Chafouleas et al Teacher test and quiz grades can be useful as a supplemental method for monitoring the impact of student behavioral interventions. Other data about student academic performance (e.g., homework completion, homework grades, etc.) can also be tracked and graphed to judge intervention effectiveness. Source: Chafouleas, S., Riley-Tillman, T.C., & Sugai, G. (2007). School-based behavioral assessment: Informing intervention and instruction. New York: Guilford Press.

Marc Risley (From Chafouleas et al., 2007) 2-Wk 4-Wk 6-Wk 8-Wk 10-Wk 12-Wk 9/23/07 10/07/07 10/21/07 11/03/07 11/20/07 12/05/07 Source: Chafouleas, S., Riley-Tillman, T.C., & Sugai, G. (2007). School-based behavioral assessment: Informing intervention and instruction. New York: Guilford Press.

Curriculum-Based Measurement

Curriculum-Based Measurement : Defining Characteristics: ‘Tests’ preselected objectives from local curriculum Has standardized directions for administration Is timed, yielding fluency, accuracy scores Uses objective, standardized, ‘quick’ guidelines for scoring Permits charting and teacher feedback

CBM Techniques have been developed to assess: Oral reading fluency Reading comprehension (Maze passages) Math computation Writing Spelling Phonemic awareness skills

CBM Student Reading Samples: What Difference Does Fluency Make? 3rd Grade: 19 Words Per Minute 3rd Grade: 70 Words Per Minute 3rd Grade: 98 Words Per Minute

CBM Reading Probes: Example

DIBELS Reading Probe: Benchmark 2.1

57 WPM

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Monitoring Student Academic Behaviors: Daily Behavior Report Cards

Daily Behavior Report Cards (DBRCs) Are… brief forms containing student behavior-rating items. The teacher typically rates the student daily (or even more frequently) on the DBRC. The results can be graphed to document student response to an intervention.

Daily Behavior Report Cards Can Monitor… Hyperactivity On-Task Behavior (Attention) Work Completion Organization Skills Compliance With Adult Requests Ability to Interact Appropriately With Peers

Daily Behavior Report Card: James Franklin May 5 Mrs. Williams Rm 108 Daily Behavior Report Card: Daily Version

Daily Behavior Report Card: James Franklin Mrs. Williams Rm 108 Daily Behavior Report Card: Weekly Version 05 05 07 05 06 07 05 07 07 05 08 07 05 09 07 40 60 60 50

Daily Behavior Report Card: Chart

Student Case Scenario: Jim Jim is a 10th-grade student who is failing his math course and in danger of failing English and science courses. Jim has been identified with ADHD. His instructional team meets with the RTI Team and list the following academic and behavioral concerns for Jim. Does not bring work materials to class Fails to write down homework assignments Sometimes does not turn in homework, even when completed Can be non-compliant with teacher requests at times.

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