Family Involvement and PBIS
Susan Barrett
sbarrett@pbismaryland.org
Sheppard Pratt Health System
Implementer Partner
Center on PBIS
0
Wyoming
Wisconsin
West Virginia
Washington DC
Washington State
Virginia
Vermont
Utah*
Texas
Tennessee
South Dakota
South Carolina*
Rhode Island
Pennsylvania
Oregon*
Oklahoma
Ohio
North Dakota*
North Carolina*
New York
New Mexico
New Jersey*
Maryland
New Hampshire
Nevada
Nebraska
Montana*
Missouri*
Mississippi
Minnesota
Michigan
Massachusetts
Florida Illinois
Maryland*
Maine
Louisiana*
Kentucky
Kansas*
Iowa*
Indiana
Illinois
Idaho
Hawaii
Georgia
Colorado
Florida*
Delaware
Connecticut
Colorado*
California
Arkansas
Arizona
Alaska
Alabama
Schools Implementing School-wide Positive Behavior Support
September 2009: 10,487
1200
North Carolina
1000
800
600
400
200
Overview
• Basic Logic of School-wide PBS
• Connect points between school systems and
families
• Including Families throughout the process
An important feature of SWPBIS
is the practice of engaging families
as partners in schools
(Muscott, 2008).
• Families become recognized as important
members of the school community, increasing
the outcomes for all children.
Italian Proverb
“Between saying and doing is the sea”
Points to Remember about
Engaging Families

Apply PBIS logic to Family Engagement: don’t keep doing
what hasn’t worked up (data?)

If engagement didn’t happen, how would you change your
approach to effectively engage?

professionals don’t get to choose or judge how families
raise their kids.

Always start with a conversation ( not a meeting) with the
family, getting their trust and permission before talking with
others.
SW-PBS
• but IS a decision making framework that
guides selection, integration, and
implementation of the best evidence-based
academic and behavioral practices for
improving important academic and behavior
outcomes for all students.
CONTINUUM OF
SCHOOL-WIDE
INSTRUCTIONAL &
POSITIVE BEHAVIOR
SUPPORT
FEW
~5%
~15%
SOME
Primary Prevention:
School-/ClassroomWide Systems for
All Students,
Staff, & Settings
ALL
~80% of Students
Tertiary Prevention:
Specialized
Individualized
Systems for Students with
High-Risk Behavior
Secondary Prevention:
Specialized Group
Systems for Students with
At-Risk Behavior
Applying the Logic to Families
Tier 3: Intensive, Individual Interventions
Family Liaison-matched with family, needs matched with
community resources
 Individual Skill Building Sessions-
1-5%
Tier 2: Targeted Group Interventions
Support Groups (Military Families, Newcomer Group)
5-10%
Skill Building Sessions (Academic and Behavior)
Tier 1: Universal Interventions
Self Assessments: Family Engagement Checklist, Surveys
Skill Building Series Guest Speaker (Topics Vary- Survey Families)
Newsletter, Resource Library , “Shout Outs”- Mickey Mouse PB
80-90%
Volunteer Opportunities (DOGS- Dads of Great Students)
Teacher Conferences- Goal Setting, Family Vision, Strengths
Discovery
Family Fun Nights throughout the year
School Handbook (Description, Teaching Matrix – promote
common language between school and home)
Lake Ridge Elementary School
Interventions for Parents
Academic Systems
Behavioral Systems
Tier 3
Intensive, Individual Interventions
1-5%
Child Study Meetings
Provide Resources for Parents
Tier 3
Intensive, Individual Interventions
1-5% Child Study Meeting (FBA & BIP)
Guidance Library
Tier 2
Targeted Group Interventions
Tier 2
5-10%
5-10%
 PEP Class (ESOL) - Parents As
Educational Partners
Support Group (Military Families)
Tier 1
Tier 1
Universal Interventions
Targeted Group Interventions
80-90%
80-90%
Universal Interventions
Family Nights for Math and
Reading
STEP Classes (Systematic Traini
for Effective Parenting)
Parent Pride Book Club
(Helping Your Child with
Homework)
Guest Speaker (Helping Kids wi
Anger: Childhood Anxiety)
SW-Positive
Behavior
Support
Social Competence &
Academic Achievement
‫٭‬
OUTCOMES
Supporting
Decision
Making
Supporting
Staff Behavior
Families,
Communities
PRACTICES
Supporting
Student Behavior
Overlapping Spheres of Influence
OUTCOMES
FAMILY
SCHOOL
COMMUNITY
School-wide
1. Common purpose & approach to discipline
2. Clear set of positive expectations & behaviors
3. Procedures for teaching expected behavior
4. Continuum of procedures for encouraging
expected behavior
5. Continuum of procedures for discouraging
inappropriate behavior
6. Procedures for on-going monitoring & evaluation
Family
• Continuum of positive behavior support for all
families
• Frequent, regular positive contacts,
communications, & acknowledgements
• Formal & active participation & involvement as
equal partner
• Access to system of integrated school &
community resources
Family Partnerships:
Families and Shared decision-making
Families and Shared decision-making:
• Families are equal partners in school decisions
• Include families in school decisions, developing leaders and
representatives
• Recruit multiple family members for PBIS teams (who are not employees
or educators)
• Alternate meeting times: morning, afternoon and evening
• Pair new families with veteran families (parent mentors)
• Offer ‘short term participation on the PBIS team, with option to renew
• Plan for care of children during meetings
• Involve families in identifying incentives and celebrations
Universals: Connect Points To Families
• Primary Focus = Awareness
– Information, Information, Information (2-way)
• Educators and parents sharing information across multiple venues
• Involvement
– Parent team member
– Specific activities to partner with families at school
• Clear timelines, what is expected, outcomes
• Support
– Information regarding range of services & supports
– Referral Points
– Strategies for home use
Expectations
Teaching
Matrix
SETTING
All
Settings
Hallways
Playgrounds
Cafeteria
Library/
Compute
r Lab
Study,
read,
compute.
Sit in one
spot.
Watch for
your stop.
Assembly
Bus
Respect
Ourselves
Be on task.
Give your
best effort.
Be
prepared.
Walk.
Have a plan.
Eat all your
food.
Select
healthy
foods.
Respect
Others
Be kind.
Hands/feet
to self.
Help/share
with
others.
Use normal
voice
volume.
Walk to
right.
Play safe.
Include
others.
Share
equipment.
Practice
good table
manners
Whisper.
Return
books.
Listen/watch.
Use
appropriate
applause.
Use a quiet
voice.
Stay in your
seat.
Recycle.
Clean up
after self.
Pick up
litter.
Maintain
physical
space.
Use
equipment
properly.
Put litter in
garbage can.
Replace
trays &
utensils.
Clean up
eating area.
Push in
chairs.
Treat
books
carefully.
Pick up.
Treat chairs
appropriately.
Wipe your
feet.
Sit
appropriately.
Respect
Property
Getting Getting to
up in
school
the
morning
Clean-up
time
Time to
relax
Homework
time
Mealtime
Getting
ready for
bed
R
Y
D
A
Y
H
HELP OUT
O
OWN YOUR
BEHAVIOR
M
MANNERS
COUNT
E
V
E
PBIS Matrix for Home
I am respectful
Listen to my parents
Be truthful to my parents
Play cooperatively
Speak nicely to others
I am responsible
Put away my toys, bike, and equipment
Help with jobs at home
Follow my parents’ directions
Share Thursday folder with parents
I am safe
Play safely with others
Stay in designated areas
Stay away from strangers
Wear bike helmet and equipment
I am prepared
Finish homework and share with parent
•
.
Pack backpack at night for
school
the next day
Go to bed on time
Get up and get ready for school when called
Few positive SW expectations defined,
taught, & encouraged
Involvement
Two Examples
Michigan project
(Ballard-Krishan, McClure, Schmatz, Travnikar, Friedrich, & Nolan, 2003)
• Training teams comprised of educators and
parents to train school teams in school-wide PBS
– Demonstrate respect for each training team member’s
knowledge
– Identifying strengths of each trainer
– Encourage and offer financial resources for training
teams to attend professional development
– Offer on-going mentoring
– Provide all trainers with skills and resources to train
– Clear operational policies
Increasing Family Involvement
Benton Elementary
Lewis
Background
• Title school (high rates of poverty)
• Small population, transient
• Low attendance at school functions, conferences,
volunteering “reluctant families”
• Very small PTA
• Informed about PBS activities weekly through
newsletters
Applying the logic of PBS
• Family Buzz Passport
• Combine family activities with school activities
• Reward: Kids spend time with parents –
parents involved with school – Family enjoys a
pizza!
Outcomes
• Approximately 70 passports validated
• Noted increased attendance at
conferences, PTA, Chili Fun Night, Sock Hop,
assemblies, Family nights, “McTeachers
Night,” lunch at school with kids, volunteering,
school zoo trip
Connecting to the Community
Through Family Involvement
OMMS Business Partner Ticket
6
7
8
Date: ________________
Student Name __________________________________
For Demonstrating: Safety
Ethics Respect
(Circle the trait you observed)
Comments: ___________________________________________
Authorized Signature: ____________________________________
Business Name: ________________________________________
Grand Junction CO 5/06
PBIS.org
Educator Resources To Increase
Involvement
• New Hampshire - Family Engagement
Checklist
• New York PBS Matrix for Family
Involvement
• Tips for Educators to incorporate PBS into
the IEP
Small Group/Targeted:
Connect Points To Families
• Primary Focus = Involvement
– Parent consent/ information meeting
– Parent part of planning
– Follow-up meetings and outcome sharing
• Awareness
– Continuum of supports explained
– Referral points defined
• Support
– Partnership to explore school / home strategies
– Quick easy “generalization strategies” for home use
Individual Intervention more effective within
“host environments” that supports PBS
“Research on parents of children with and
without disabilities repeatedly shows that
parents who benefit the least from parent
training... struggle with one or more of the
following issues: poverty, low SES, social
isolation, single parenthood, marital discord,
and depression or other mental illness” (Singer,
Goldberg-Hamblin, Peckham-Hardin, Barry & Santarelli, 2002, p. 159).
Individual/Intensive:
Connect Points To Families
• Primary Focus = Support
– Partner planning – strengths-based focus using functional behavioral
assessment
– Facilitating interagency programs
– Targeted training/supports for families
• Awareness
–
–
–
–
Information (e.g., IDEA, ADA, Mental Health, District Services)
Accessible referral point (special education / non-special education)
Teacher education RE impact on family
“Science” of behavior for both educators and family
• Involvement
– Family advocacy groups on school/district team
– Parents of children with disabilities on school/district team
12 Key Connections Between
Individual/Intensive & Families
1. Build collaborative partnerships with families and other
professionals who serve the child or youth with a disability.
2. Adhere to family-centered principles and practices throughout
assessment, support plan development, and implementation
support activities.
3. Help families identify and achieve meaningful lifestyle
outcomes for their child with a disability and the family as a
whole.
4. Recognize that problem behaviors are primarily problems of
learning.
5. Understand that communication is the foundation of positive
behavior.
6. Conduct functional assessments to understand the functions of
problem behavior and the variables that influence behavior and
to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of behavior support
plans.
12 Key Connections Between
Individual/Intensive & Families
7.
Develop individualized, multi-component support plans that
help families create effective family contexts in which problem
behaviors are irrelevant, ineffective, and inefficient at
achieving their purpose.
8. Ensure that PBS plans are a good contextual fit with family life.
9. Utilize the family activity setting as a unit of analysis and
intervention that can help families embed interventions into
family life.
10. Provide implementation support that is tailored to family
needs and preferences.
11. Engage in a process of continuous evaluation of child and
family outcomes.
12. Offer support to families, professionals, and other members of
a support team in a spirit of sincerity and humility.
(Lucyshyn, Horner, Dunlap, Albin, & Ben, 2002, p. 13)
A Working Definition of “Family
Involvement”
• Awareness, Involvement & Support mapped to
continuum of supports and defined locally
• Two way street - educators understand needs of
families, families understand realities of the
school day
• Goal = “Partnerships” that lead to outcomes for
children and youth
The Conversation: Data-based
Decision-Making Tools
•
Student Disposition Tool (SD-T)
•
Home/School/Community Tool (HSC-T)
•
Education Information Tool (EI-T)
“Mary Ellen’s Wrap”
Using Data to get to Family Voice
Home, School, Community Tool
“Mary Ellen”
Home, School, Community Tool
Remember what the research says…
A family’s income level does not affect the
family’s level of involvement. Low-income
families are as likely to be involved in their
student’s learning as higher-income families.
Ideas…
1.
Develop a survey for families about behavioral needs or
behavioral expectations in the school.
2. Develop a survey for families to determine what they know or
want/need to know about PBIS. (See sample survey)
3. Develop information for families about PBIS at your school.
4. Help plan and implement school wide celebrations.
5. Evaluate your school to determine if it is family friendly.
6. Write a piece for your school newsletter about PBIS.
7. Help plan a PBIS family night at your school.
8. Contact community businesses to share information about PBIS in
the schools.
9. Talk with teachers and staff about what they think parents need to
know about PBIS and ways families can support PBS in their
school.
10. Create a home PBIS contract with families.
More to do….
11. Send regular notes home about PBIS developed by parents for parents.
12. Send home thank you notes for supporting PBIS in schools. (These can be
sent to parents and/or staff and teachers.) 13.
13. Hold a PBIS day at your school that is planned and coordinated by parents.
14. Recruit parents to develop displays around the school related to PBIS.
(e.g. PBIS student of the week, month etc).
15. Set up a PBIS table during parent-teacher conferences.
16. Create PBIS parent resources. (These could include things such as
behavior management “Tip of the Month” or “Five Ways a Day” to
reinforce good behavior in the home).
17. Develop a PBIS Family Calendar.
18. Family/parent rep. recognizes students, staff, and teachers for reinforcing
behavioral expectations. (At team meetings individuals can be identified
who are exhibiting the behaviors that support PBIS in your school)
19. Skits at half-time of sporting events about PBIS.