Slide 1:
Behavior Management Section III:
Collaboration
Project IDEAL
1
Slide 2: Personnel
DeAnn Lechtenberger — Principle Investigator
Nora Griffin-Shirley — Project Coordinator
Doug Hamman — Project Evaluator
Tonya Hettler—Grant Manager
Project IDEAL is funded through a grant from the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities ($599,247) with match
from Texas Tech University for ($218,725)
The views contained herein do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the funding agency[s]. No official
endorsement should be inferred.
Project IDEAL
2
Slide 3: Understanding Collaboration
The learner will:
 understand the importance of making data-based decisions during collaboration
 be aware of the roles of teachers, administrators, family, and peers in the collaboration process
 evaluate the progress of the student with disabilities and his IEP team
Slide Notes:
Collaborative team planning can be used during many types of group meetings. Groups may meet to plan:
Individual and Family Planning Services (IFSP):
Services for children with disabilities ages birth to 3
Individual Education Plan (IEP):
Educational plan for ages 3 through 21 or graduation for students with disabilities
Includes transition planning for students 16 or older into post-secondary education and employment
Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP):
Project IDEAL
3
Behavior plan for students with specific behavior needs
For more information on these documents, refer to the module on Special Education Law.
Project IDEAL
4
Slide 4: Background
 Behavior is a dynamic interactive process that occurs between a student and the environment.
 The same student can behave differently in various environments.
 Inclusive environments often have greater numbers of transitions which can lead to increases in behavioral
problems for some students.
Slide Notes:
Imagine as a teacher you are sitting in an IEP meeting and looking around the table. Who do you see in the room? At
times, you may have as many as 15 people gathered around the table who share some responsibility for the student’s
academic program. Each person brings his/her own experiences, trainings, points of view, and personalities with them
when they interact with the student.
Upon review of this situation, you can see the number of different people who interact with a student with behavioral
challenges and the variety of learning demands, expectations, and transitions that this student may face across a
variety of environments on a daily or even weekly basis. You are surprised to hear that Mrs. Wallis, the art teacher,
Project IDEAL
5
adores this student; however she has never experienced the aggressive behaviors that Mr. Jones, the Math teacher
observes almost every day.
You ask yourself, “What is it about Mrs. Wallis’ art class that works for this student?” This is an important question to
investigate and answer. Later on in the IEP meeting, you hear that the Speech and Language Therapist uses a different
strategy than the Math teacher for dealing with the student’s aggressive behaviors. Still later, you learn that the child’s
parents use a completely different behavioral management strategy at home. It begins to become clear that the
student sees different responses or feedback to his behavior throughout the day and that there are situations where
his inappropriate behaviors almost never occur.
Project IDEAL
6
Slide 5: Data-based Decisions
 It is important to describe and quantify challenging behaviors in a variety of environments.
 It is also important to describe factors in the environments where the behaviors occur most and least often.
Slide Notes:
In previous sections of the behavior management module, you learned about the importance of quantifying and
describing behaviors. The team in the opening scenario of this section decided to observe Joe in various environments,
record his behavior, and examine the conditions in the environment where the behaviors occurred most and least
often. The team then plans to come together and share the data that they have gathered to create an intervention
plan. Environments where the behaviors occur most often can be changed to look more like environments where the
behaviors occur least often.
Project IDEAL
7
Slide 6: Data-based Decisions
 The “function” of a particular behavior in a particular environment is assessed through observation and data
collection.
 Identifying the function of a behavior helps the team to determine strategies that match the student’s specific
problem behaviors.
Slide Notes:
In other sections of the behavior management module, you also learned that how to determine the “function” or
purpose of behavior. The team can use the function of the behavior during the collaborative process to determine
behavior management strategies that match Joe’s particular problem behaviors. See the section of the behavior
management module entitled, “Changing Behavior,” for specific descriptions and tools to assess problem behaviors. In
our scenario, the team can be most effective by planning to implement the strategies on a consistent basis throughout
Joe’s day. Implementing a behavior support strategy inconsistently or only part of the time will lead to slower or less
successful results.
Project IDEAL
8
Slide 7: Role of Teachers
 Children may interact with many educators throughout the school day.
 All members of the educational team need to be involved in developing, supporting and sustaining the positive
behaviors of children with behavioral challenges.
 Team responses should be pre-planned, coordinated, and based upon effective practices.
 Team responses to frequent challenging behavior should be governed by the outcomes of a functional
behavioral assessment (FBA).
Slide Notes:
As Joe’s team begins to implement strategies in the behavior intervention plan (BIP), it is often helpful to have another
member of the team step in and observe the implementation process. For example, if the math teacher most
frequently sees an aggressive behavior during group instruction, the teacher may request that a staff member with a
free period come in to observe during the anticipated problem time. In this way the team member can see how the
math teacher is implementing the plan that was developed by the team. Taking time to observe another team
Project IDEAL
9
member to offer both feedback and support is another way to “get on the same page” as a team to support a student.
It is often helpful to observe children with challenging behaviors in their homes or community environments.
Respectfully collaborating with family members can strengthen the team by incorporating additional strategies used
outside of school.
Project IDEAL
10
Slide 8: Role of Administrators
 Training sponsored by administrators on the “team” problem solving approach can “set the tone” for practice
on the school campus.
 When administrators budget for release time for educational teams to plan on behalf of students with
behavioral challenges, higher levels of collaboration are possible.
Slide Notes:
Administrators share a great deal of responsibility in supporting students with challenging behaviors by providing
leadership to educational teams. Administrators help implement policy for a school system at various levels. When an
administrator offers both resources and planning time to teams who support children with challenging behavior, they
assist the collaborative effort. Administrators also help greatly with “setting the tone” of expectations for faculty in
regards to serving students with behavioral challenges. When a principal steps in to support a teacher with a student
who has severe behaviors, she is communicating her willingness to problem solve, offer resources, and “make things
work”. When parents are included as partners in problem solving, the administrator is reflecting the intent of the law
Project IDEAL
11
for partnership and collaboration.
Project IDEAL
12
Slide 9: Role of Families
 Family involvement and participation must be facilitated by school teams as recommended by “best practice”
and as required by law.
 Family members and parents are critical to collaborating effectively and to building student success.
Slide Notes:
Imagine you see a student’s parents walk in to an IEP meeting. They have been hearing reports about Alice’s
inappropriate behaviors at school and are looking around the table at the professionals who work with Alice. You may
wonder how the parents are feeling about this process of discussing Alice’s challenging behaviors in front of a large
group of people. The parents may or may not be involved in school activities. They may be highly educated or not
well educated. They may not speak English as their first language or they may be professionals in the field of education
within that school system.
No matter what experiences the parents or family members bring with them to IEP meeting, their role is essential to
Alice’s life.
Project IDEAL
13
The federal government places a great deal of emphasis on supporting parent-professional partnerships and
collaborations with schools. Each state has a “Parent Training and Information” (PTI) center for parents of children
with special needs to offer information and support in collaborating with schools. It is important to recognize that
professionals around the table have received some level of training to educate various students, whereas parents may
not have had the opportunity to receive formal training. It is equally critical to recognize that parents bring a deeply
personal perspective and a rich level of personal experiences with the child and bear the long-term responsibility for
raising the child who is being discussed. Some parents have been blamed by professionals or rejected by other family
members because of their child’s behavioral challenges. It is important to respectfully include parents in the
collaboration partnership to serve the student’s best interest. This too, takes time, consistent communication, and the
reflection of a sincere interest to support and teach the student being served.
Project IDEAL
14
Slide 10: Role of Peers
 Aggressive behavior is affiliated with peer rejection (Rubin, Bukowski, & Parker, 1998).
 Peer rejection due to severe behavioral problems may predict higher rates of academic failure (McDougall,
Hymel, Vaillancourt & Mercer, 2001).
 It is critical to develop activities where peers develop supportive relationships with students with problem
behaviors.
Slide Notes:
Research shows that students with challenging behaviors have more difficulty making and retaining friends. Rejection
by typical peers may result in aggressive behavior and higher rates of academic failure. Teams should include
opportunities for structured peer interaction into the behavior plan developed during the collaboration process.
Project IDEAL
15
Slide 11: Role of Peers (continued)
 Structured activities with typical peers and students with behavioral challenges allow for positive modeling of
appropriate behaviors.
 Friendship clubs can offer students with behavioral challenges the chances to form stronger relationships with
peers.
 Video-modeling is a practice where peers can record and demonstrate appropriate behaviors to some students
with behavioral challenges.
Slide Notes:
The role of typical peers in providing support to students with challenging behavior is an exciting one. Peers have been
shown to be effective models and supporters for students with challenging behavior across a variety of age ranges. For
young children, typical peers have been supported by teachers to demonstrate appropriate responses to frustration,
to increase developmentally appropriate play behaviors, and to offer guidance through transitions. Although it is not
the role of peers to be in a supervisory role or to replace the roles of professional adults, peers offer much in the way
Project IDEAL
16
of natural supports in a learning environment. It may be appropriate for a young peer to prompt a disruptive student
during circle time by saying: “Sit like me.” This same peer may be coached to hold hands with an anxious student
during a transition to a new setting. For older students, it may be helpful for a peer to support a student’s appropriate
behaviors in a structured activity like role playing. Peers have been shown to be less threatening to students and
may provide a different type of motivation for behavioral change. For example, a student may more readily accept
supportive feedback from a peer than from an adult. The role of the adults is to provide support for positive peer
modeling and interaction as well as to provide a safe environment.
Project IDEAL
17
Slide 12: Tools for Collaboration
 Allotted time for team discussion and data sharing
 Team based functional assessments
 Person-Centered Planning (PCP)
(Chandler, Dahlquist, Repp & Feltz, 1999)
(Artesani, & Mallar, 1998)
Slide Notes:
Finding time to organize data, discuss what is working and not working, and involve non-school members of the child’s
team can be challenging. There are multiple examples of schools that made time for collaboration a priority and saw
huge dividends, particularly for students with challenging behaviors. Collaboration can offer a student the intensive
support that she needs early to teach the student new, more appropriate behaviors and prevent major behavioral
episodes in the future. In contrast, there are numerous examples in court case law that reflect a lack of collaborative
planning on the part of the school team.
Team based functional assessments involve a variety of team members across environments collecting and using data
to determine when and why problem behaviors occur. Corroborating data across team members can be a very
Project IDEAL
18
effective way of establishing reliability of what is being observed and planning together on behalf of a student.
Person-centered planning (PCP) and the Wraparound Planning Process are tools used to collectively develop a vision
for the student’s future based upon his/her unique personality, interests, and gifts. From these types of team planning
processes, goals are created that reflect a shared understanding of the student beyond being a student with
disabilities or severe behaviors. The process of developing a PCP or a Wrap Plan can involve any supportive person in
the student’s life in engaging with the school team. This process has been reported to help teams that are “stuck” in a
negative view of the student because of the severity of the challenging behaviors.
Project IDEAL
19
Slide 13: Evaluating Student Progress
Reviewing and analyzing student data on progress towards IEP goals is:
• Required by the law
• Considered to be “best practice” for teaching
• Used to systematically determine if the team’s intervention is working
• Allows for continued collaboration to create and refine the most effective interventions for students
Slide Notes:
In “Using Behavior Components in the Classroom” section of the behavior module, you have seen examples of how to
document the student’s behavioral changes. It is important to review this data with the team, including parents and
administrators, to show what strategies are proving to be effective in which situations. Reviewing data on the
student’s past performance can help the team adjust and improve strategies documented in the BIP. This is called
“data-driven instruction,” a concept that is also used in planning academic instruction.
Project IDEAL
20
Slide 14: Evaluating Team Progress
 It is also important to gather data on the team’s behavioral changes.
 Evaluating the team’s changes may involve:
• Video analysis of teachers using the strategies
• Documenting practices used in team meetings (times of day, note-taking, etc.)
• Team reflections on how the team perceives an intervention for a student
Slide Notes:
Systematic data collection of a student’s team behaviors can be helpful for recognizing and rewarding teams for
collaborative planning. Team members can share examples of what they are doing that is working. For example,
the staff member who comes in to observe the Math teacher may make notes of responses that were particularly
effective to share with members of the whole team. The team may share their perceptions of the collaborative
process by comparing team accomplishments at the beginning of the year to accomplishments at the end of the year.
Social validity is a qualitative measure of a team’s perception of an intervention for a student. It may be valuable for a
Project IDEAL
21
team to share their perceptions on the effectiveness of the intervention and the ease of use for the teachers
implementing the strategies.
Project IDEAL
22
Slide 15: Evaluating Team Progress (continued)
 As student’s behavior changes, so do the roles and responses of team members.
 It is important to evaluate the changes in student’s behaviors and to adapt to new roles to meet the student’s
needs.
Slide Notes:
A student who has shown severe behavioral challenges during the fall may not have the same types of challenges in
the spring. It is important to celebrate the team’s success but also to examine some opportunities to evolve in
supporting adaptive behaviors. For example, students with autism may have made significant progress in reducing
aggressive behaviors but may still need to learn other types of social behavior. As the student learns and adapts, the
team should adapt as well. It may be that different members of the team may be more suited for assessing and
teaching appropriate social behaviors. Collaboration does not end when the challenging behavior is reduced. Instead,
it shifts to meet the student’s new and changing needs. Collaboration allows for effective role shift and adaptation
based upon those needs.
Project IDEAL
23
Slide 16: Evaluating and Sharing Progress
 Documentation from successful collaborations with students can foster success for other teams.
 It is important for teams to share success with others to replicate what worked.
Slide Notes:
Please click on the podcast option that reflects one team’s successful collaboration on behalf of a student with
behavioral challenges. Note the strategies that the team shared which were most successful. Discussion questions can
include:
1. Describe the student’s initial behavioral challenges in terms of frequency, duration, and intensity.
2. Where and when did these behaviors occur?
3. What was the team’s initial response?
4. How did you determine the cause of these behavioral challenges?
5. What strategies were most successful in teaching the student new behaviors?
6. How was collaboration a part of the team’s success?
Project IDEAL
24
7. What advice would you give to other teams who are supporting students with challenging behaviors?
Project IDEAL
25
Slide 17: Contact Information
DeAnn Lechtenberger, Ph.D.
Principle Investigator
deann.lechtenberger@ttu.edu
Tonya Hettler, Grant Manager
tonya.hettler@ttu.edu
Webpage: www.projectidealonline.org
Phone: (806) 742-1997, ext. 302
The views contained herein do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the funding agency[s]. No official
endorsement should be inferred.
Project IDEAL
26