EBIS Effective Behavioral and Instructional Supports Dr. Wes Dickey Woodland Middle School Euharlee, GA Bartow County School System

Everyone Behaves In School!

Why a behavior program? Research showed that the old way of doing things wasn’t working. Our office discipline referrals were increasing every year. We wanted to do what was best for our kids.

What does this mean for WMSE? In 2005-2006, we had 963 office discipline referrals, the most in our school’s history (7 years). With EBIS, we expected a dramatic decrease in that number.

EBIS is all about… Approaching discipline in a positive, proactive way Paying more attention to the positive behaviors and less to the negative Making the school behavior expectations visible and well-known throughout the school

Key Components Expectations for student behavior are clearly defined. Appropriate student behavior is taught and modeled. Positive behaviors are publicly acknowledged and rewarded. Discipline is implemented consistently. Student behavior is monitored and staff receive regular feedback

How does EBIS work at WMSE…

Expected Wildcat Behaviors CATS Cooperate Act with Appropriate Attitude Take Responsibility Show respect

The Woodland Middle School Matrix Each area of the facility has specific “posted” expectations. Each behavior will be taught, modeled, practiced, and rewarded.

Reward Menu for “Cats Cash” Patio Pass – 10 CC per student Eat lunch with a Friend in Lunchroom – 10 CC Teachers Aid – 15 CC Hat Day Pass – 10 CC Athletic Event Pass – 15 CC Silent Lunch Pass – 10 C Demerit Pass – 20 CC Outside Reward Time – 15 CC Dance Pass – 15 CC Late Homework Pass – 5 CC Pencil Purchase – 2 CC Locker Pass – 2 CC Pay Media Center Fine – 1 CC School Store Items – Varying CC Prize Drawing – 1 CC

Are Students The Only Ones Who Can Be Rewarded? No. Staff can earn “Cats Cash” from administrators. Fellow staff, students, and parents can nominate any staff member by writing down their name and explaining what that person has done to be an exceptional educator. The administration will then issue the “Cats Cash” based on the nominations. Parents may fill out nomination slips in the main office and put them in the designated box there. Staff and students may fill out nomination slips located in the media center and place them in the designated box in that location.

Staff Reward Menu 10 CATS Cash Leave Early Pass (3pm) Duty Free Lunch Pass 20 CATS Cash Two free days from Duty Station Released from an upcoming after-school duty Jeans every Friday for a month Gift Card Drawings $20 drawing each 9-week grading period 5 - $40 drawings during post-planning

Staff Reward Menu 15 CATS Cash Leave Early Pass (3pm) Two free days from Duty Station Jeans every Friday for a month Spirit Wear & Special Drawings Spirit Wear & Item drawings will be held every 9-weeks and during post-planning

After 3 Years of Implementation 2005-2006: 963 Referrals (Pre-EBIS) 2006-2007: 764 Referrals (20%) 199 less referrals x 15 m = 49.75 hours 2007-2008: 635 Referrals (17% / 34%) 129 less referrals x 15 min = 32.25 hours 2008-2009: 633 Referrals (<1% / 34%) Precious time which is better spent!

2009-2010 – 4th Year Implementation (So Far) 97 Referrals (End 1st 9-weeks) Projected? = 388 39% decrease from 2008-2009 (633) 39% decrease from 2007-2008 (635) 49% decrease from 2006-2007 (764) 60% decrease from 2005-2006 (963) This Means? 963 – 388 = 575 (x 15 m) 143.75 Hours Better Spent! (3.5 weeks)

Average Daily Discipline Comparison (2005-Current) ADDR (05-06) ADDR (06-07) ADDR (07-08) ADDR (08-09) ADDR (09-10) August 1.62 1.36 1.33 2.18 0.83 September 3.68 4.35 3.47 4.23 3.10 October 5.25 4.38 3.15 3.57 2.37  November 6.37 5.74 5.43  3.75 December 6.08 5.53 4.29 4.47   January 4.10 3.41 2.83 2.82 February 7.53 4 4.17 2.67 March 5.86 5.38 4.32 2.95 April 6.07 3.2 4.33 3.29 May 6.70 4.16 3.88 3.81

EBIS Committee Meetings (Monthly) How Do We Use Our Data? EBIS Committee Meetings (Monthly) School-wide Meeting Summary E-mail Present data to students as needed (announcements/grade level meetings) Identify students with multiple referrals (Tier II and Tier III Interventions) Tweak (Ever-Changing Beast)

Examples of School-wide Meeting Summaries 43% of the referrals (20 total) took place after 2 pm. The committee would like all staff to notice this and make a conscious effort to acknowledge/reward more positive behavior as we get closer to the end of school to try and counteract this time of high misbehavior. 11 students accounted for 60% of the August referrals. These 11 students account for 1% of our total student enrollment. The committee feels that the program as a whole does not need to be changed just the “nearing the end of the school day” tweaking mentioned above. The committee does feel that teams/teachers who have these 11 students should look at alternate strategies/interventions to try and get this small number of students back on track. This will be discussed more at Wednesday’s Grade Level Meetings.

Examples of School-wide Meeting Summaries (Cont’d) In looking at the attached “Cats Cash Comparison” for August and September we noticed the following: In August we issued 8643 total Cats Cash (508 average per day). In September we issued 8124 total Cats Cash (386 average per day). As a school we issued 24% fewer Cats Cash daily in September compared to August. As a result of issuing and acknowledging positive behavior less frequently our ADDR increased. Coincidence? Please look at the attached “Cats Cash Breakdown” to see how you/we are comparing across the school. Please utilize this data. The number of incidents that took place in the “hallways” increased from 4% in September to 13% last month. Please make sure you are supervising in your doorways so you can view your classroom and hallway during class changes and locker breaks.

Examples of School-wide Meeting Summaries (Cont’d) I have attached the updated Cats Cash distribution data for this year. If you look at the bottom the school gave out approximately 8360 Cats Cash in October. This is 3% more than in September. As a result the % that our Average Daily Discipline Referrals was higher this year compared to last year decreased from 22% in September to 13% in October. If you remember last month the EBIS committee pointed out that in September we (the school) had given out 24% less Cats Cash on a daily basis in September compared to August and we asked each staff member to become more aware of positively acknowledging appropriate behaviors (CATS). Thank you for doing this on top of everything else that is on your plate.

Bottom Line Acknowledging and rewarding “Positive” behavior increases the chance that our students will be in class so that we can then instruct them.

Resources http://www.pbis.org http://ebis.valdosta.edu Dr. Wes Dickey wdickey@bartow.k12.ga.us