Maryland Coach’s Meeting
Dec. 8, 2009
Dr. Patti Hershfeldt
Johns Hopkins University
Bloomberg School of Public Health
Center for Prevention of Violence Protection
Positive Behavioral Interventions &
Supports (PBIS)
 Whole-school universal preventive
intervention
 Applies behavioral, social learning,
organizational behavioral theories
 Targets general population
 Requires a shift from punitive to preventive
Horner, R. H., Sugai, G., Todd, A. W., & Lewis-Palmer, T. (2005). School-wide positive behavior support. In L. Bambara
& L. Kern (Eds.), Individualized supports for students with problem behaviors: Designing positive behavior plans (pp.
359-390). New York: Guilford Press.
Big Idea
 We often assume green zone is in place everywhere
 But what about the classroom?
 How is PBIS being used in the classroom to prevent
yellow zone behaviors?
 By fortifying the green zone, we can reduce need for
yellow zone
Today’s Questions
• How important is classroom management?
• How do we determine the needs in the
classroom? How can teachers ‘grow the green’?
 Classroom behavior support practices blend with
school-wide systems
 As a team, how will you work to make all classrooms
effective settings?
 As a coach, how can you support classroom teachers in
the development of effective classroom settings?
Question #1
How important is
classroom management?
What the Research Says about Classroom
Management
 Linked with positive student outcomes (academic and
behavior)
 Increased risk of preventing more serious problems among
at-risk kids
 Supports all students in the prevention of possible
current and future behavior problems.
 Strong management signals to kids that the class is a safe
place to learn.
 Well managed classrooms are rated as having more positive
climates.
(Aber et al., 1998; Mitchell, Bradshaw & Leaf, 2009)
What the Research says about Classroom
Management
 Greater student engagement (Morrison, 1979)
 Friendlier peer interactions and helpful behaviors,
more attentive, less aggression (Susman, Husten-Stein &
Friedrich-Coffer, 1980).
 Teachers experience greater efficacy (Woolfolk, 2002)
 Increased student achievement
 Creative and flexible instructional delivery
 Teacher longevity
Evidence based practices in classroom
management

Maximize structure in your classroom.


Routines, Environment
Post, teach, review, monitor, and reinforce a small
number of positively stated expectations.


Teaching matrix for the classroom
Actively engage students in observable ways.


Think beyond the worksheet
Establish a continuum of strategies to
acknowledge appropriate behavior.


Contingent and specific
Establish a continuum of strategies to respond to
inappropriate behavior.

Error correction, planned ignoring, time away from activity
(Simonsen, Fairbanks, Briesch, & Myers Sugai, in preparation)
“Good instruction and effective classroom management
are often viewed as two entirely separate entities when,
in fact, without good instruction, you are making
classroom management much more difficult”
-Wendy Reinke
Question #2
How do we determine the needs in
the classroom? How can we help
teachers ‘grow the green’?
Data is your friend
Use Data to Examine Classroom System
How do you know PBIS is in place?
 Collect data
 Are rules being followed?
 If there are errors,
 who is making them?
 where are the errors occurring?
 what kind of errors are being made?
 Summarize data (look for patterns)
 Use data to make decisions
Resources on Classroom
Management  CHAMPs: A proactive and
positive approach to classroom
management

Sprick, R. Garrison, M., & Howard, L. (1998). Pacific
Northwest Publishing.
 Coaching Classroom
Management: Strategies and Tolls
for Administrators and Coaches

Sprick, R., Knight, J., Reinke, W.M., & McKale, T.
(2006). Pacific Northwest Publishing.
Classroom Check-up
 A consultation model designed to increase behavior
management
 Conduct observations
 Assess critical classroom variables
Positive to negatives
 Number of disruptions per 5 minutes
 Percent of on-task kids
 Provide feedback
 Collaboratively design individualized intervention plan
 Teachers self-monitor/ and are receive ongoing feedback and
support

(Reinke et al., 2008)
Classroom Check-Up Observation Form
Step 1
 Opportunities to respond
 Correct academic responses
 Disruptions
 Ratio of Interactions
 Specific praise
 General praise
 Reprimands
Classroom Check-Up Observation Form
Step 2
For the next 5 minutes, focus on a different student
every 5 seconds.
Record a “+” symbol to indicate on-task or engaged
behavior and a “–” symbol to indicate off-task
behavior. When each student has been observed,
begin the progression again.
Continue until 5 minutes has elapsed.
1
+
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60
+
Divide the number of on-task (+) marks by the total number of marks (60).
Time on task (academic engagement) =__________ percent.
44 /60 = 73%
Sample
CCU Feedback Form
 Calculate your data/tallies
 Fill into the feedback columns (by looking at the
benchmarks)
 Choose ONE goal!
 Watch your students succeed!
 A few notes
 These are determined by ideal research conditions
 Special education considerations
Classroom Management: Self Assessment
Classroom Management Practice
I have arranged my classroom to minimize crowding and distraction
Rating
Yes No
1.
I have maximized structure and predictability in my classroom (e.g., explicit
classroom routines, specific directions, etc.).
Yes
No
1.
I have posted, taught, reviewed, and reinforced 3-5 positively stated
expectations (or rules).
Yes
No
1.
I provided more frequent acknowledgement for appropriate behaviors than
inappropriate behaviors (See top of page).
Yes
No
1.
I provided each student with multiple opportunities to respond and participate
during instruction.
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
I ignored or provided quick, direct, explicit reprimands/redirections in
response to inappropriate behavior.
Yes
No
I have multiple strategies/systems in place to acknowledge appropriate
behavior (e.g., class point systems, praise, etc.).
Yes
No
In general, I have provided specific feedback in response to social and
academic behavior errors and correct responses.
Yes
No
1.
1.
1.
1.
1.
1.
My instruction actively engaged students in observable ways (e.g., writing,
verbalizing)
I actively supervised my classroom (e.g., moving, scanning) during instruction.
Overall classroom management score:
10-8 “yes” = “Super”
7-5 “yes” = “So-So”
# Yes________
<5 “yes” = “Improvement Needed”
Simonsen, Sugai, Fairbanks, & Briesch, 2006
http://www.pbis.org/pbis_resource_detail_page.aspx?Type=4&PBIS_ResourceID=174
Staff Response Form
What did the
student do ?
(Be specific
Measurable
/observable
What, when,
who, )
How do I feel? What do I
usually do?
What do I
say?
What do I
look
like/sound
like?
Student shoved his I feel startled at
book on the floor
first and then I get
in the direction of anxious
his neighbors feet
when I asked the
class to begin
working
independently on
their math
assignments
I usually send him
to the office to
conference w/the
principal. I tell him,
“Go straight there –
do not pass go…”
As a result,
what does the
student do?
What is
maintaining the
behavior?
Why is it
happening?
He spends the
remainder of math
class waiting for the
principal to see him.
AvT
I believe he escaping to
the office to avoid
independent work in
math.
Adapted from Cooperative Discipline- Linda Albert-
AA =Access adult attention; AP =Access peer attention; AC =access to choice; AI
=Access to item; AvP = Avoid peer attention; AvA =Avoid adult attention; AvT = avoid
task
Increasing Positive Interactions
 1 (negative) to 3 (positives)
 Remind yourself of the “debt”
 Specific vs. general praise
 Identify specific times to provide praise
 Before certain lessons – your reminder
 During transitions – students’ reminder
Increasing Positive Interactions
 Use individual conferences to provide specific praise
 “Search” for reinforceable behaviors
 Reduce attention to misbehavior and increase time
rewarding positive behaviors
 Increase positive interactions and use noncontingent
positives
Decreasing Negative Interactions
 Determine if aspects of the environment (physical
setting, schedule, organization, social situation) are
contributing
 Use “pre-corrections” to prevent the misbehavior
 Praise other students for doing things the “right way”
Strategies for Intervening
 Proximity
 Adult presence and supervision
 Gentle verbal reprimand
 Short, very brief disruption, clear
 State positive rather than negative (accusative)
 Discussion
 Most effective if discreet and occurs later

If not, you leave class waiting; misbehaving student can get rewarded;
student will likely be defensive; your own frustration
Strategies for Intervening (cont)
 Family Contact
 Be objective and descriptive, not judgmental
 Suggest that family discuss the situation later and
communicate expectations
 Don’t imply child should be punished
 Create partnership with parent to support child
 Humor
 Best when used selectively with older students
 Avoid sarcasm, embarrassing, or making joke of child or
situation
Strategies for Intervening (cont)
 Praise someone else
 Descriptive praise, but avoid embarrassment
 Best for younger children who are eager to please
 Restitution
 Repair damage but don’t hold grudge
 Reparation is not punishment
 Use sincerity
 How their behavior is affecting others (& you)
 Keep emotions in check
Response cost…
…a procedure in which a specific amount of
available reinforcers is contingently withdrawn
following a response in an attempt to decrease
behavior. Response cost is often used with token
economy programs. The response cost must be
less than the total amount of number of reinforcers
available (i.e., never go in the hole). Response
cost procedures are often referred to as “fines.”
Response Cost-AKA
The Chart!
Top 5 cautions when using ‘the chart’
5. Be sure to build in forgiveness
4. Never let a student get ‘in the hole’
3. Teach the behavior
2. Better to climb for positive behaviors
(not really response cost)
1. PBIS Standards of Practice
 Techniques that do not cause pain or humiliation or
deprive the individual of basic needs
(2007). PBS standards of practice: Individual level. Available for download from
http://apbs.org/whatsnew.html#standards_of_practice.
The Key
Behavior is functionally
related to
the teaching
environment.
Question #3
As a team, how will you work to make all
classrooms effective settings?
As a coach, how can you support
classroom teachers in the development of
effective classroom settings?
The coach-teacher relationship
 Consultation and feedback can be
effective in increasing effective teaching
practices (Sheridan & Welch, 1996)
 Conduct observations of each other

Teacher teams
 Invite feedback (during challenges)
The coach-teacher relationship
 Is there a system in place for teachers to ask for help?
 Through the PBIS team?
 ‘Request for assistance’
 Do teachers know about the system?
 Is it clear to the teacher that coaching is non-
evaluative?
 Is it clear to the teacher that the coach-teacher
relationship is confidential?
The coach-teacher relationship
 Communicate effectively
 Listen more…
 Develop inner silence
 Clarify
 Communicate your understanding
 Practice listening
4 Types of Misbehavior
 Awareness
 Ability
 Attention-Seeking
 Purposeful/Habitual
4 Types of Misbehavior
 Awareness
 Truly unaware that behavior is problematic
Defensive, argumentative
 What to do:
 Provide feedback
 Develop a signal to cue the student about the
misbehavior
 Develop a self-monitoring and evaluation strategy

4 Types of Misbehavior (cont.)
 Ability
 Lacks ability or knowledge about how to behave
 What to do:
 Explore psychological or constitutional factors
 Have capacity for insight?

If yes: Conduct lessons to develop skills and knowledge about
appropriate behavior


Model, reinforce, and provide feedback
If no: Make accommodations
4 Types of Misbehavior (cont.)
 Attention-Seeking
 Engages in behavior to satisfy (unconscious) need for
attention
 Chronic blurting out, excessive helplessness, tattling, minor
disruptions
 What to do:
 Be careful about reinforcing the “problem behavior”
 Planned ignoring
 Provide attention and reinforce positive behavior
4 Types of Misbehavior (cont.)
 Purposeful/Habitual
 Escape/avoidance
 Power/dominance
 Competing reinforcers (substitution)
 What to do:
 Analyze purpose of behavior
 Meet needs in positive way
 Calmly and consistently implement pre-planned
corrective consequences
On-Line Resources
 PBIS
 http://www.PBISMaryland.org
 http://www.PBIS.org
 http://www.pbisillinois.org/
 Interventions Central
 http://www.interventioncentral.org
 JHU Center for the Prevention of Youth Violence
 http://www.jhsph.edu/PreventYouthViolence/Research/index.html
Books
 Coaching Classroom Management: Strategies and Tolls
for Administrators and Coaches
 Sprick, R., Knight, J., Reinke, W.M., & McKale, T. (2006). Pacific
Northwest Publishing.
 Handbook of School-Based Interventions: Resolving
Student Problems and Promoting Healthy Educational
Environments
 Jeffrey Cohen & Marian C. Fish (1993). Jossey-Bass
 CHAMPs: A proactive and positive approach to classroom
management
 Sprick, R. Garrison, M., & Howard, L. (1998). Pacific Northwest
Publishing.