Durham Public Schools: District Implementation of Positive Behavior Support Jennifer Snyder November 13, 2006 NASDSE Conference Williamsburg, VA

Presentation Agenda Review Positive Behavior Support (PBS) as evidence-based practice Overview of Durham Public Schools (DPS) History of PBS in DPS District Data & Results Implementation Keys Conclusions Contact Information

Review Positive Behavior Support (PBS) Collaborative process for assessment and development of effective interventions Emphasizes the use of prevention, teaching, and reinforcement-based strategies to achieve meaningful outcomes Aim is to build effective environments in which positive behavior is more effective than problem behavior

Review of PBS as Evidence-based Practice Research studies have demonstrated that when PBS strategies are implemented school-wide: Children with and without disabilities benefit by having an environment that is conducive to learning Children learn more about their own behavior Children learn to work together and support each other as a community of learners ERIC/OSEP Digest #E580 Author: Cynthia Warger September 1999

Overview of Durham Public Schools (DPS) As of the 20 th day of : 46 Schools 2,300 teachers 31,981 students Seventh largest school district in the state

DPS Student Demographics 50% participate in free/reduced lunch program Race/Ethnicity composition of student population: 54.0% African-American 24.3% white 15.7% Hispanic 3.4% multiracial 2.4% Asian 0.2% Native American

PBS in DPS: Timeline Funding Source: State Improvement grant in 2000 Oak Grove and RN Harris Elementary Schools served as pilot sites additional schools showed interest moved to district-wide implementation at elementary level included secondary schools

DPS Results Data Data compares out of school suspension numbers for 6 DPS schools 4 Elementary 2 Secondary All 6 are schools successfully implementing PBS and meet district criteria for “developed” teams

DPS Data Summary Results Schools successfully implementing PBS have gained instructional time for all students (total of 3936 hours) African-American students have gained the most instructional time Next steps in DPS: Continue to support schools in building comprehensive PBS Work to bring all schools on board through training and site based support

PBS in DPS: Implementation Keys Utilize Coaches (12) to implement PBS in the district Role of Coach: Support development of PBS school-based teams Provide training on school-wide PBS, classroom management, and individual behavioral strategies Support schools with data collection and review process

PBS in DPS: Implementation Keys Offer a variety of trainings to best meet the needs of teachers and schools Large district-wide trainings on the three PBS modules to teach school-based PBS teams how to effectively implement and facilitate behavior management processes at their schools Smaller site-based trainings at all schools to provide specific behavior-related in-service opportunities to teachers Individual teacher observation and consultation

PBS Outcomes and Conclusions Proven to effectively reduce inappropriate behavior in schools Reduction of discipline referrals and increase in instructional time Many behavioral barriers to learning are removed and students can focus more on academics Teachers have additional resources for dealing effectively with difficult behavior Positive change in overall philosophy and school climate: Instrumental in creating a more positive learning environment for students and staff

Closing Questions? Comments? Contact information: Jennifer Snyder: SADFS Specialist Joelle Powers: K-12 Director of Student Services