DISCLAIMER: We are Think:Kids certified trainers using this material in collaboration with Think:Kids. These slides were developed by Think:Kids and are the property of Massachusetts General Hospital

When we are finished today, you should:  Understand the foundational philosophy of Collaborative Problem Solving and how it differs from traditional wisdom  Understand the concepts of Assessment (redefining the Functional Behavioral Assessment & Behavior Support Plan) through the CPS Lens ◦ Problems to be solved ◦ Skills to be trained  Be able to identify where and how this philosophy and assessment fit within the framework of PBIS philosophy and systems  Understand why CPS as an intervention addresses the needs of our “red zone” populations  Understand some key concepts to implementation of CPS within a PBIS district

…if they can’t, something is getting in the way. We need to figure out what so we can help.

Your understanding of a problem determines your solution...

The most common over-simplified understanding: Because of poor (passive, permissive, inconsistent) parenting, kids learn to use challenging behavior to get things (e.g., attention) or escape / avoid things (e.g., work).

The most common over-simplified solution: Motivate compliant behavior through intensive, consistent programs of rewards, punishments and ignoring.

 List of Target Behaviors (priority is compliance)  Menu of Rewards and Punishments (differential reinforcement)  Currency System

Can facilitate extrinsic motivation (to perform behaviors one is already capable of consistently performing). But … ◦ If a child does not yet have the skills to behave adaptively, adding incentives is unlikely to accomplish the mission ◦ Motivational programs make the possible more possible, but they don’t make the impossible possible ◦ Motivational programs have side-effects:  The more extrinsic motivation is applied, the less intrinsic motivation the child develops  The more you motivate someone to do something, the more you teach them that they aren’t trying hard enough ◦ It is highly likely that the child is already motivated (not to be miserable) ◦ What does motivate people intrinsically?  a sense of mastery, autonomy and purpose

What Operant Strategies Can Do: - teach basic lessons / information - facilitate extrinsic motivation What Operant Strategies Can’t Do: - help kids stay regulated (they activate the stress response) - facilitate intrinsic motivation (they actually de- motivate kids)

80%- 90% of Children % 1-5% Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports Where does CPS fit? SUPPORT Few Some All Primary Prevention: Nurturing & Positive Relationships *** Supportive Environments *** All students, staff, settings Secondary Prevention: Social & Emotional Teaching Strategies *** Specialized Group Systems *** Students with At-Risk Behavior Tertiary Prevention: Intensive Individualized Interventions *** Students with High- Risk Behavior

 For teaching expectations clearly  For providing consistent acknowledgement to students for efforts (which most students respond very well to).  For reminding staff of the importance of maintaining a positive school climate and increasing the repetitions of positive staff/student interactions  For informing system wide decisions based on data (ie. Informed and thoughtful decisions)

 Some people might say we are teaching skills at the Universal Level…  CPS would say we are teaching expectations, not skills at this level  Skills in the CPS Model refer to crucial cognitive thinking skills that originate in the neural networks of the brain.  Kids who have the skills to learn from clearly taught and reinforced expectations, will do so. Kids who are lagging in development in these areas will not be able to. This is where our traditional interventions are falling short for some red zone students.

 What happens with the students who do not respond to the PBIS structures?  Tier 3 interventions = individualized, more intensive  Definition of Maladaptive Behavior ◦ PBIS (gain or avoid) may be true but over simplified for some Tier 3 youth ◦ CPS = lagging skills

 Both strive to provide a positive, compassionate and constructive school climate.  Both are foundationally based on improving the quality of relationship between student and staff  Both seek to help students develop the ability to experience more success in the school enviornment

 Chronically challenging kids lack skill not will!  Research in neurosciences: these kids are delayed in the development of crucial thinking skills - in areas like flexibility/adaptability, frustration tolerance, and problem-solving -- or have significant difficulty applying these skills when they are most needed

 Lagging skills alone do not cause challenging behavior  Challenging behaviors occur when someone is presented with a situation in which they lack the skills to handle well  It takes two to tango: the pairing of a skills deficit and a problem that those skills would be required to solve

Incompatibility Episodes… Challenging episodes occur when the cognitive demands being placed upon a person outstrip the person’s capacity to respond adaptively. The Clash of the Two Forces = Unsolved Problems Lagging SkillsDemands of Environment Unsolved Problems Ross W. Greene, PhD

Because research has shown that challenging behavior is the byproduct of a learning disability of sorts, the emphasis should be entirely different… ◦ Assessment “raw material”: thinking skills and problems to be solved (ie, unmet expectations, precipitants), not behavior and aftermath ◦ Goals of intervention: teaching thinking skills and solving problems while building relationship, attunement and co-regulation, not teaching adults to be more effective at imposing their will and ensuring that kids have the incentive to comply

Goal of assessment is to create two lists: 1.Problems to be solved / unmet expectations (over what is the child challenging?)  The more specific the problem to be solved, the easier it will be to:  Help figure out which lagging skills explain the problem  Start a problem solving discussion 2.Skills to be trained (why is the child challenging?)  Don’t obsess. Just hypothesize for now to promote a more compassionate view and a collaborative alliance

Behavior Problems to be Solved Unmet Expectations Skills to be Developed

Challenging behavior does not occur out of the blue! ◦ Situational analysis: identify the situations in which the child tends to have the most difficulty  Get specific  Observable behavior is not “problem to be solved” ◦ Also known as: precipitants, antecedents, contexts, demands, unmet expectations, setting events, triggers, issues  Examples at school: circle time, recess, gym, lunch, riding on the bus, getting down to work, staying on task, writing, etc.

Challenging behavior is linked with deficits in the following areas of thinking skill: ◦ Executive skills ◦ Language processing skills ◦ Emotion regulation skills ◦ Cognitive flexibility skills ◦ Social thinking skills  Refer to the Thinking Skills Reference Sheet

Focusing on the lagging skills helps adults get on the same page to: u nderstand maladaptive behavior is a form of learning disability and not intentional, goal-oriented, manipulative, or attention-seeking identify specific skills that need to be trained understand why incentive programs haven’t made things better – and won’t understand why they need a different approach steer clear of dead-end explanations

McMinnville School District Example

You can’t solve a behavior. But you can solve a problem leading to a behavior.

 When the development of the brain is delayed in certain areas, what transpire are Lagging Skills.  CPS as an intervention helps us identify where a child’s skills are, in what situations they are having a hard time applying those skills, and then how to build the skills.  CPS as an intervention helps build new neural pathways in the brain through a relational, repetitive and regulatory process.

Establishing (teaching) clear and realistic expectations is always important – this is something that PBIS is terrific at… ◦ It is hard for a child to meet an expectation that they aren’t aware of! If your expectations are being met, you’re happy! If your expectations aren’t being met, you’ve got a problem and you need a plan ◦ First step is knowing what your options are and what each option accomplishes (or doesn’t!)

1. Pursue high priority expectations 2. Reduce challenging behavior 3. Solve chronic problems so they don’t keep coming up 4. Build skills, confidence (ie, intrinsic motivation) and regulation 5. Create (or restore) a helping relationship

Plan A: Impose adult will Plan B: Solve the problem collaboratively Plan C: Drop it (for now, at least)

Plan A: Impose adult will  What goals ARE being pursued: ◦ Pursuing expectations  What goals are NOT being pursued: ◦ Reducing challenging behavior ◦ Solving problems so they don’t keep coming up ◦ Building skills, confidence, attunement ◦ Creating (or restore) a helping relationship

Plan C: Drop it (for now, at least) Being strategic – not giving in  What goals ARE being pursued: ◦ Reducing challenging behavior  What goals are NOT being pursued: ◦ Pursuing expectations ◦ Solving problems so they don’t keep coming up ◦ Building skills, confidence, attunement ◦ Creating (or restore) a helping relationship

Plan B: Work towards solving the problem in a mutually satisfactory and realistic manner  What goals ARE being pursued: ◦ Pursuing expectations ◦ Reducing challenging behavior ◦ Solving problems so they don’t keep coming up ◦ Building skills, confidence, attunement ◦ Creating (or restore) a helping relationship

GOALSPLAN APLAN CPLAN B Try to get your expectation met XX Reduce challenging behavior XX Build skills, confidence, attunement X Solve problems X Build relationship X

 The Plans aren’t needed unless you have an unmet expectation  Setting an expectation is not the same as imposing your will when your expectation isn’t met  Plan B is not “picking your battles” or the average of Plans A and C  Plan B is not a “technique”  Plan B takes much less time than Plan A

“Any problem/unmet expectation that can be handled using Plan A can also be handled using Plan B.”

EMERGENCY B Takes place in the midst of challenging behavior occurring (yet again) : crisis management/de- escalation PROACTIVE B Takes place well before challenging behavior recurs: (crisis prevention) A prepared adult and a calm child are more likely to understand and solve problems

1. EMPATHY: Clarify child concern 2. SHARE adult concern 3. COLLABORATE: Brainstorm, assess and choose solution

THE GOAL: Gather information to understand the kid’s specific concern or perspective about the problem or issue

THE SCRIPT: Start with a neutral observation like … ◦ “I’ve noticed that…” ◦ “It seems like…” ◦ “It looks as if …” Followed by an inquiry: ◦ “What’s up?”

THE TOOLS: Detective work to clarify concerns requires probing and drilling down using a combination of 4 tools: ◦ clarifying questions ◦ educated guessing ◦ reflective listening * ◦ reassurance * * calming tools

How do you know when you are READY TO MOVE ON? ◦ Do you have a clear understanding of the child’s concern or perspective? ◦ Can you envision some possible alternative solutions? ◦ Have you learned something new?

1. EMPATHY: Clarify child concern 2. SHARE adult concern 3. COLLABORATE: Brainstorm, assess and choose solution

THE GOAL: To make sure the adult’s concern / perspective is on the table

THE SCRIPT: Express your concern by saying something like: ◦ “And the thing is” ◦ “And my concern is” ◦ “And what’s important to me is”

THE TOOLS: clarify your concerns / perspective before initiating the conversation. What specifically are you concerned about: ◦ Health? ◦ Safety? ◦ Learning? ◦ Impact of behavior on others?

How do you know when you are READY TO MOVE ON? ◦ You have two sets of concerns / perspectives on table ◦ Two sets of solutions = a power struggle (“dueling solutions”)

1. EMPATHY: Clarify child concern 2. SHARE adult concern 3. COLLABORATE: Brainstorm, assess and choose solution

THE GOAL: to brainstorm solutions together so as to address both concerns, assess them and choose one to try

 THE SCRIPT: recap the concerns so as to summarize the problem to be solved: “I wonder if there’s a way that” or “I bet we can think of something so that … (insert both concerns). Do you have any ideas?”

THE TOOLS: Think it through together with these questions: ◦ Does it work for you? ◦ Does it work for me/us? ◦ Is it doable / realistic (think skills!)? ◦ If we do it, will it bring up any additional concerns? ◦ When can we talk again to see how it worked? Collaborate: Brainstorm, Assess, Choose

How do you know when you are READY TO MOVE ON? -When you have a mutually satisfactory and realistic solution -And a follow-up plan to enact the solution and revisit the problem if the solution doesn’t work

Video

 Collaborative Problem Solving is skills training!  Skills are taught most effectively through a natural and relational process: 1. The Empathy step trains identifying, clarifying and expressing concerns, separating affect 2. Sharing adult concern trains taking another’s perspective, recognizing impact on others and how one comes across, empathy 3. The Collaboration step trains generation of solutions, anticipating and considering likely outcomes, moving off of original idea  The entire process naturally trains organized, reflective, flexible thinking and problem solving

Regardless of therapeutic modality, the best predictor of success in helping people change is the relationship between helper and helpee Helping is messy and takes time Helping is a working alliance, a two-way collaborative process, a two-person team effort Helping is not something you do to kids; rather, it is a process that adults and kids work through together

Effective implementation of an Evidence Based Practice requires changing behavior of staff and climate, culture and structures of the organization. That’s all!

 Multi-year plan  Assessment of need in district  Allocation of resources  Administrator Support  Adequate training for staff and ongoing coaching  Philosophical shift essential to success

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