Data Driven Decision Making Positive Behavior Supports Jean Ramirez Positive Behavior Support

Using Data for Positive Behavior Supports SSTAGE Presentation

Positive Behavior Support of Georgia A statewide program that addresses discipline and behavior at each tier of the Pyramid of Interventions Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

It is Not Just About Behavior Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Redesign & support teaching & learning environments that are effective, efficient, relevant, & durable Outcome-based Data-guided decision making Evidence-based practices Systems support for accurate & sustained implementation

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Change social context to break up antisocial networks Improve parent effectiveness Increase academic success Create positive school climates Teach & encourage individual skills & competence 2001 Surgeon General’s Report on Youth Violence: Recommendations

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Students, staff, & community must have means of communicating that is immediate, safe, & reliable Positive, respectful, predictable, & trusting student-teacher-family relationships are important 2006 White House Conference on School Safety

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools High rates of academic & social success are important Positive, respectful, predictable, & trusting school environment/climate is important for all students Metal detectors, surveillance cameras, & security guards are insufficient deterrents Lessons Learned: White House Conference on School Safety

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Teach children social skills directly in real context “Foster respectful, supportive relations among students, school staff, & parents” Support & reinforce positive academic & social behavior through comprehensive systems Precorrect & continue prevention efforts School-based Prevention & Youth Development Programming Coordinated Social Emotional & Academic Learning Greenberg et al. (2003) American Psychologist

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Contexts for teaching & learning environments Interaction between academic & social behavior instruction Data for informed decision making Effective, efficient, durable, & relevant practices & systems What Matters

4 Critical Dimensions of Support SYSTEMS PRACTICES DATA Supporting Staff Behavior Supporting Student Behavior OUTCOMES Data Driven Decision Making Supporting Decision Making Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Agreements Team Data-based Action Plan ImplementationEvaluation GENERAL IMPLEMENTATION PROCESS Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Essential Elements for PBS 1. Invest in Prevention  Teach, monitor and reward before resorting to punishment and exclusion.  Focus first on the social culture of the school 2. Work smarter  Identify clear outcomes  Combine rather than add initiatives  Make decisions based on data Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

3. Create durable “Systems of Support”  Select different systems based on the nature of the problems 4. Prepare an implementation plan to “fit” the unique characteristics of your school  Self-assessment  Different paths -- common outcomes 5. Gather and use information for on-going decision-making Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

School-Wide Systems Establish clearly defined behavior expectations Teach behavior expectations (all staff and all students) Continuum of procedures for encouraging expected behavior and discouraging problem behaviors Acknowledge desired behaviors Procedures for monitoring & evaluating Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Nonclassroom (common areas) Systems Teaching expectations & routines Active supervision –Scan, move, interact Precorrections & reminders Positive reinforcement Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Classroom Behavior management –Teaching routines –Ratio of 4 positive to 1 negative adult-student interaction Instructional management –Curriculum & Instructional design Environmental management Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Main Messages Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Good TeachingBehavior Management STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT Increasing District & State Competency and Capacity Investing in Outcomes, Data, Practices, and Systems

Responsiveness to Intervention Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Continuous progress monitoring Prescriptive problem solving & data-based decision making Assessment-based intervention planning Consideration of all students Response to Intervention

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Let’s Look at a School A middle school with 1400 students The school had ongoing professional learning around quality instruction, co-teaching, and differentiation There was still a concern with the administrators that discipline was a problem The administrative team came up with a set of hypotheses on what they thought the problem areas were at their school Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Their Hypothesis Drove the Data they Looked at They looked at the number of referrals where no previous action was marked on the ODR 6 th Grade-60 7 th Grade-64 8 th Grade-162 Why was previous action not taken or documented? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Number that should have been handled by teacher 6 th Grade 0 7 th Grade 60 8 th Grade 3 Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Do Teachers Have a Clear Understanding of Behavior that Should be Handled in the Classroom?

Number of Referrals Where Grade Level Plan was not Followed 6 th Grade11 7 th Grade92 8 th Grade162 Grade level plan is decided by staff and signed by parents. Why is it not being followed consistently? Are individual teachers changing the plan as they go? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

What would be a better way to ensure the plan is being followed by all staff? At your table discuss these questions Is your school wide and classroom plan being followed consistently by all your staff? How do you know? Is this important information? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

The next step was to look at children with 4 or more referrals The 6 th grade had 4 students –2 have SST’s with Behavior Plans –1 has an IEP –1 had no IEP, no SST, he was a new student who seemed to have difficulty with adjustment This data was after the first semester of school Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

–17 have SST’s –4 have IEP’s –10 of those with an SST or IEP have a Behavior Intervention Plan(less than half) –7 have been placed at the alternative school Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools The 7 th Grade had 65 students with more than 4 referrals

21 students in the 8 th grade have 4 or more referrals 2 have SST’s 1 has an IEP for behavior 3 have been placed at the alternative school What conclusions could you draw? Do you know this information for your school? What other data would you look at? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Individual Teachers Referral Data was also looked at. Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Number of referrals written Cause of referral Previous action taken by teacher If referrals were written for a few students or many

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Largest Number of Referrals Written in Each Grade 6 th Grade Refusal to comply Disrespect Unruly 7 th Grade Off Task Class Disruption 8 th Grade Refusal to Comply They discovered after further investigation that there was not a clear definition of behaviors

Months With Largest # of Referrals Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Number of ISS repeat offenders on different teams Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Teams 6 th 7 th 8th Totals

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools What suggestions do you have for making In School Suspension work ? Is there anything going on in your suspension room that will make a difference to this student and their behavior in the future?

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools A poorly designed ISS program will tend to have the same effect on a student as OSS would. Some characteristics of an ineffective program include: assignments don’t come with the students, little or no time is spent on correcting the behavior that got the student sent to ISS, lack of follow-up tends to allow a student to fall back into old patterns. Consequently, misbehaviors persist, and quite often, students miss instruction just as if they had received an out-of-school suspension (Sanders, 2001).

Additional Data That Was Examined Bus Referrals Administrative Consequence and Consistency OSS Location of Referral Student Grouping for LRE Substitute Teacher Data and ODR’s Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

How Do You Get Started at Your School? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Are the critical features & essential practices of behavior management in your school and classroom settings?

The Goal is to Review the basics for self-assessment Is Behavior –Informal & untaught –Reactive & ineffective Is there a –lack of staff consistency –Lack of durability –Lack of instructional fluency Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

School Wide Positively Stated Behavioral Expectations (3-5) Written Procedure for data collection & practices Evidence Based practices Instructional Support Positive Reinforcement for Implementation Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Teaching Matrix Activity ClassroomLunchroomBusHallwayAssembly Respect Others Use inside voice ________ Eat your own food __________ Stay in your seat _________ Stay to right _________ Arrive on time to speaker __________ Respect Environment & Property Recycle paper _________ Return trays __________ Keep feet on floor __________ Put trash in cans _________ Take litter with you __________ Respect Yourself Do your best __________ Wash your hands __________ Be at stop on time __________ Use your words __________ Listen to speaker __________ Respect Learning Have materials ready __________ Eat balanced diet __________ Go directly from bus to class __________ Go directly to class __________ Discuss topic in class w/ others __________

Good teaching is one of our best behavior management tools that includes: –Active engagement –Positive reinforcement Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools “The academic deficits of these students thus may be exacerbated by the lack of effective academic instruction they receive, which in turn is due in part to their disruptive classroom behavior.” ~Sutherland, Wehby & Yoder, 2002~

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools “Low achievement and problem behaviors go hand in hand” ~Kauffman, 1997

Design Independent work for correct responding Tier One Study showed when independent work was set at “easy” (90% correct responding) versus difficult (less than 70% correct) resulted in more desirable behavior and less problem behavior. (DePaepe et al 1996) Is there a high occurrence of behavior referrals that are reported during seat work? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

If we carefully attend to instruction we may find that: Students learn more and problem behavior is reduced Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

What is differentiation? Differentiation is classroom practice that looks eyeball to eyeball with the reality that kids differ, and the most effective teachers do whatever it takes to hook the whole range of kids on learning. -Tomlinson (2001) Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Teach social skills in the same way you would academic skills –Tell/model/explain –Guided practice –Monitor & assess –Give positive feedback –Adjust & enhance Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Build systems to support sustained use of effective practices –Leadership team to look at and do regular data review –Regular individual & school action planning Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Effective Classroom Managers Team Time 3 minutes (pick recorder & spokesperson) What do effective classroom managers do daily? – 2-3 formal & 2-3 informal strategies Report 2-3 “big ideas” from your team discussion (1 min. reports) Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

The Three Basic Elements Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools 1.Instructional/Curricular Management 2.Environmental Management 3.Proactive Behavior Management

Classroom Design Design room to stimulate learning Design room to accomplish instructional goals and objectives Keep high traffic areas free of congestion Situate high items so that all students can be supervised at all times Make commonly used materials easily accessible Ensure all students can see and hear Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Key Concepts “What you expect is what you get.” Expectations set the stage for learning and behavior control. Expectations need to be taught. Apply standard instructional practices for teaching classroom expectations Extend school-wide expectations to classrooms Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Sample Expectations 1.Do your best 2.Be responsible 3.Cooperate 4.Be respectful Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

How to teach Expectations and Routines A.Elementary Teachers use the same five steps to teach classroom expectations and routines (explain, specify behaviors, practice, monitor and review) B.Secondary Teachers use the same three steps for teaching expectations and routines (remind, supervise and provide feedback) Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Actively supervise at all times – Move continuously – Scan continuously & overtly – Interact frequently & positively – Positively reinforce rule following behaviors Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Increase ratio of positive to negative teacher to student interactions –Maintain at least 4 to 1 –Interact positively once every 5 minutes –Follow correction for rule violation with positive reinforcer for rule following Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Positively interact with more students during a lesson Vary type of contact -Physical, verbal, visual Vary by individual & group Mix instructional & social interactions

Manage minor (low intensity/frequency) problem behaviors positively & quickly – Signal occurrence – State correct response – Ask student to restate/show – Disengage quickly & early Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Be consistent & business-like Pre-correct for next occurrence Follow school procedures for major behavioral incidents Develop individualized plan for repeated incidents Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Follow school procedures for chronic problem behaviors

If your horse dies, DISMOUNT If your intervention doesn't work, stop doing it! DO NOT 1. Stay on the horse. 2. Switch riders. 3. Move the horse to a new location. 4. Buy a stronger whip. Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Get Off the Horse 5. Tighten the cinch. 6. Try a new bit or bridle. 7. Say things like: "We've always ridden our horses this way." 8. Visit other sites where they ride dead horses in different ways. 9. Complain about the state of horses nowadays. 10. Blame the breeding Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Conduct smooth & efficient transitions between activities –Teach routine –Limit the time required for students to be ready –Engage students immediately Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Be Prepared Have filler activities Know desired outcome Have materials Shift phases of learning Acquisition, fluency, maintenance, generalization Practice presentation fluency

A Clear Beginning The student is given a clear explanation of the outcome and the objectives –Provide advance organizer –Create focus or point of reference for assessment Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

What is your favorite way to respond? Give each student multiple ways to actively respond –Vary response type Individual v. choral responses Written v. gestures –Use peer-based assistance Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Engage students in active responding Establish & expect behavioral indicator Write, verbalize, manipulate materials Enable immediate assessment of learning & instructional impact

Monitor Progress and Understanding Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Regularly check for student understanding Vary assessment type Immediate v. delayed Individual v. group Review previously mastered content Check for existing knowledge

Tier One It is only after high quality academic and behavior instruction and interventions are established at both the school wide and classroom levels that schools could conclude there is a need for additional services. Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Tier Two Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Check In/Check Out Social Skills Groups Group Counseling Mentoring In the majority of the cases you will need to provide academic and behavior interventions simultaneously Progress monitoring could include teacher rating scale Data Supports a Student has a Need for Additional Support

Positive Behavior Support for Tier Three Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Action Plan Strategies Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools Build on School Wide System Plan +Use school-wide leadership team +Use data to justify +Adopt evidence based practice + Teach/practice to fluency/automaticity + Ensure accurate implementation + Regular review & active practice +Monitor implementation continuously + Acknowledge improvements

You Have Your Data You Have Your Team Do you have evidence based practice? Are you teaching social skills in the same way you would academic skills? Do you teach/practice to fluency/automaticity? What are your targets for improvement? Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools

Are the critical features & essential practices of behavior management in your school and classroom settings?

Questions If you need further assistance please contact Jean Ramirez Georgia Department of Education Kathy Cox, State Superintendent of Schools