Chapter 9

Principles of Behaviour Support

Cathy Little

Principles and practices of inclusive education

and special education

Collaboration
Attitudes

Effective teaching practices to respond to the

diversity of the classroom
Behaviour support
(whole-school and classroom)
Transitions
Linked scenaria: 2 (Jack) and 4 (Craig)

Keywords Behaviour · Support · School-wide · Positive behaviour support ·

Functional assessment · Classroom behaviour support

Outcomes: After reading this chapter, you will be able to:

• Define behaviour and what constitutes “challenging”.
• Describe the functions of behaviour and identify the steps in completing a
functional assessment.
• Document the processes involved in school-wide systems of support.

Introduction

Student behaviour has been identified as a major concern of teachers today. Many
teachers claim to feeling unprepared for the challenges posed by the adverse demands
of student behaviour and express concern at the loss of instructional time, potential
negative impact on other students, and perceived lack of authority and expertise
that result from time spent dealing with students’ challenging behaviour. Teachers

© Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020 93

I. Spandagou et al., Inclusive Education in Schools and Early Childhood
Settings, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-2541-4_9
94 9 Principles of Behaviour Support

cite dealing with student problem behaviour as a key reason for leaving the pro-
fession (Butler & Monda-Amaya, 2016). Pre-service teachers also claim to feeling
particularly ill-prepared for responding to the unforeseen challenges posed by stu-
dents in classrooms across the country. This chapter will respond to the concerns
raised through a discussion of what is behaviour, why some behaviours are per-
ceived as challenging, and it will provide examples of school-wide, proactive strate-
gies for teachers that can be utilised to identify and respond to perceived behavioural
challenges.
One may ask, why the focus on behaviour? Firstly, as teachers, not only do we have
a legal and moral obligation to support student learning, we also have a professional
responsibility to provide a safe and supportive learning environment for all students.
In order to show compliance with the Australian Professional Standard for Teachers
(AITSL, 2011), No. 4, Create and maintain supportive and safe learning environ-
ments, teachers are required to demonstrate management of challenging behaviour,
within the confines of classroom activities, while maintaining student safety and sup-
porting student participation. For many teachers, even those with years of experience,
this can be a seemingly daunting and oftentimes insurmountable task. Many teachers
claim to not have the skills or the knowledge to respond appropriately or effectively
to the behaviours of their students. As such, students become labelled as “difficult
to teach” or “problem students”, are perceived as less interested in learning, and are
held accountable to lower expectations.
A second motivation for the focus on behaviour has been the recent attention given
to behaviour management in schools and the subsequent need to better equip pre-
service teachers in their support of student behaviour. The 2017 NSW Ombudsman’s
Inquiry into Behaviour Management in Schools (NSW Ombudsman) and the Report
of the Expert Panel on Students with Complex Needs and Challenging Behaviour
(Shaddock, Packer, & Roy, 2015) have both drawn national attention to the need to
review policy and practice for staff in the area of behaviour support in educational
settings.

Make a list of strategies you currently use when responding to students

behaviour. Be sure to include responses to expected behaviours as well as those
that are unexpected and more challenging to deal with. Are these strategies
effective? How do you know?

What Is Behaviour?

Behaviour is defined as “The way in which one acts or conducts oneself, especially
towards others” (Oxford Dictionary online). Behaviour can be classified into types.
Externalising behaviour is behaviour we can see and appears to be directed outward
What Is Behaviour? 95

towards others and/or the environment. Externalising behaviour is often described as

self-injurious, violent, destructive, or disruptive. Internalising behaviour is negative
behaviour that is directed inward. Examples may include anxiety, social withdrawal,
depression, non-engagement, and eating disorders. Many students will present with
a mixture of both externalising and internalising behaviours.

Defining Challenging Behaviour

What then makes a behaviour challenging for teachers? Within the Expert Panel
Report, challenging behaviour is defined as:
Any pervasive behaviour, or set of behaviours, regardless of cause (or even without any appar-
ent or identified cause) which disrupts the capacity of the person, or other persons, to learn
within the school environment, and which requires targeted or personalised interventions.
(Shaddock et al., 2015, p. 11)

Defining what constitutes “challenging” behaviour, however, is difficult for a num-

ber of reasons. Firstly, we have no common frame of reference for what behaviours
are considered challenging. Based on our life experiences, both as a student in the
classroom, as a pre-service teacher on professional experience, and our experiences
outside of education, we bring to our teaching practice a persona, tempered by the
realities and encounters we have experienced. The influence of our experiences serves
to provide a diverse range of opinions on what constitutes a behaviour problem. What
some teachers call disruptive, others may term harmful. Meaningful dialogue in the
area of behaviour requires assurance of a common understanding.
Second, the terms used to describe behaviour can mean different things to dif-
ferent people, again as a result of the experience and life history we bring to the
learning environment. For example, in Scenario 2, Jack is a Year 1 student described
as displaying disruptive and distractive behaviours. His teacher, Ms. Marion Mac-
Gregor, has discussed her concerns with the school’s learning and support team (see
Chap. 8). Different members of the team may not know Jack and will want to know
what these disruptive and distractive behaviours look like. Does he wander around
the classroom, out of his seat roaming around, until directed back to his place by the
teacher, or does he stay in his chair, rocking it back and forth, banging the legs on
the floor and calling out until the teacher comes over to him? Both these behaviours
could be deemed disruptive and distractive based on an individual’s experience and
predetermined understanding of these terms. In order for the School’s support team
to have a shared understanding of Jack’s behaviour, it must be clearly described, what
it looks like and under what conditions it appears, with as much detail as possible.
Once a common frame of reference for his behaviour is clarified by the team, the
process of responding to it can begin.
96 9 Principles of Behaviour Support

Despite the difficulties posed by a lack of a shared vocabulary, teachers agree that
challenging behaviour can be defined as any behaviour or action that (a) interferes
with the student’s learning or the learning of others, (b) hinders positive social inter-
actions and relationships, (c) is harmful to the student themselves, other students, or
members of the school community including family members, and (d) can be located
on a continuum from mild to severe depending on our experience, knowledge, and
life history. Difficulties that arise from a student’s behaviour can affect their abil-
ity to interact with others in the school community and can negatively impact the
development and maintenance of friendships (Little, 2017). Given that school is a
social endeavour, understanding and supporting a student’s social behaviour are of
paramount importance.
Circumstances and events may explain a student’s behaviour, but ultimately, all
behaviour serves a purpose or function. It is a form of communication. It tells you
something. The difficulty for many is ascertaining what the communicative intent of
the behaviour actually is. For example, a student may not use verbal communication,
and their way of communicating they are thirsty may be to scream or bang their
hand on the table. Unless this student is taught a communication mode, such as a
gesture for a drink or using a visual symbol, the intent of this communication may be
missed. How then do we determine what a student is communicating through their
behaviour?

Think about the last time you were in a classroom. Identify an instance of a
student’s behaviour you found challenging. Did you know what the student
was trying to tell you based on their behaviour? How did you know? How easy
was it to tell?

Functional Assessment Process

Functional Behavioural Assessment (FBA) is a systematic process for developing

an understanding of the interaction between a target behaviour and the environ-
ment (Gresham, 2003; O’Neill & Stephenson, 2010). The assumptions of FBA are
that human behaviour has a purpose, is contextually related in specific ways, and
that understanding this relationship can practically inform teaching and intervention
plans. As a problem-solving strategy, it involves basic problem descriptions, infor-
mation gathering, and analysis that lead to planning, monitoring, and evaluation
(Sugai, Lewis-Palmer, & Hagan-Burke, 2000). With its origins firmly rooted in the
field of applied behaviour analysis, FBA is used to support children and adults, with
and without disability, across different settings. FBA, unlike its more clinical coun-
terpart, functional analysis, can be undertaken in educational environments and can
serve as support for a range of outcomes. FBA not only provides an opportunity to
Functional Assessment Process 97

improve education practice but also develops the social, communication, academic,
and vocational outcomes of all students who exhibit problem behaviour, including
those with disabilities. Dunlap and Kern (2018) report that interventions based on
functional assessments are generally associated with noted improvements in student
behaviour.
The process of undertaking an FBA is systematic and undertaken by a team of
invested personnel, including the student whenever possible. The following steps are
a useful guide to conducting an FBA:
1. Define the challenging behaviour—be as explicit and objective as possible and
describe the behaviour of concern exactly as it presents.
2. Collect data on the behaviour—use a range of data collection tools (for exam-
ple, formal assessments, interviews, questionnaires, Antecedent-Behaviour-
Consequence (ABC) records (the antecedent is what occurs immediately prior to
the behaviour, the behaviour is the description of the observed action of concern,
and the consequence is what immediately follows the behaviour) and involve
members of the team in the process. Ensure you record the frequency and intensity
of the problem behaviour and screen the environment for possible triggers.
3. Develop a “hypothesis” about the reason for the behaviour—this is a best guess
as to the possible function of the behaviour based on the data you have collected.
4. Develop an intervention to help change the behaviour—this may be in the form
of an individualised plan, but it must focus on the teaching of alternative skills
the student will need to be able to perform in order to demonstrate the replace-
ment behaviour. The objective of the teaching will be to make the problem
behaviour inefficient and ineffective while at the same time promoting the alter-
ative behaviour to be efficient and effective. Thus, the student will need to be
taught how and when to use the skill and how to generalise it to new environments.
Explicit teaching is essential for effective behavioural support.
5. Evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention—as a team, you will decide on a
timeframe for monitoring and evaluation.
The motivating premise of FBA is that it uncovers the underlying motivation of stu-
dent’s behaviour. Behaviour serves a number of purposes: to gain attention; to escape
or avoid a person, place, subject, peer; to get a tangible or sensory consequence, to
self-regulate, to fill a need (survival, belonging, power/self-worth, freedom, or fun)
(Bambara, Janney, & Snell, 2015; Frey & Wilhite, 2005). For example, a student
who is refusing to follow a teacher’s instruction may be perceived by the teacher
as non-compliant, when in fact they may simply be attempting to assert some sense
of control in their environment. A range of data is needed to best ascertain which
function may be the possible intent of a student’s behaviour.
98 9 Principles of Behaviour Support

What do you think may be a possible function of Jack’s out of seat behaviour?
Why do you think this may be the function?

School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support

In our current management of school environments, school-wide discipline systems

can be unclear and/or inconsistently implemented. Traditional “discipline” methods
frequently do not change behaviour amongst our most difficult students. The students
with the most challenging behaviours need more comprehensive systems of support,
and students are often not provided with opportunities to learn school-based social
skills and to receive feedback on their use. Further, the NSW Ombudsman’s Report
(2017) reported that current school-based behaviour support practices tend not to
be aligned with recommended evidence-based practices. A solution to these chal-
lenges lies in the implementation of a unified, school-wide multi-tiered framework
of positive behavioural support that is based on research-validated practices.
There is growing evidence that behaviour support is best provided through a multi-
tiered system of support, a framework that utilises a continuum of interventions of
increasing intensity (Dew, Jones, Horvat, Cumming, Dillon Savage, & Dowse, 2017).
One example of such a framework is positive behaviour support (PBS) (Lewis &
Sugai, 1999) (see Fig. 9.1). The PBS framework provides a seamless continuum
of behavioural and academic support for all students through a three-tiered model.
Tier 1 is labelled universal or primary prevention, which engages all members of
the school community. For approximately 80% of students, this level of support is
enough to ensure progress both academically and behaviourally. Tier 2 is labelled sec-
ondary prevention and targets students identified “at-risk” in their academic and/or
behavioural progress. Students identified as “at-risk” receive the universal, school-
wide supports as well as specialised small group support. In any school community,
approximately 15% of students would identify in Tier 2. Tier 3, tertiary prevention,
is defined as a targeted, individualised support for students identified as “high-risk”
in terms of their behaviour. The figure approximated for students identified as requir-
ing Tier 3 support is around 5%. Students within this Tier also receive the universal
supports, small group secondary supports and oftentimes, at this level, students will
have a documented behaviour support plan, individualised to their specific needs.
It must be noted however that students may not sit in discrete tiers but can move
throughout the levels given a range of differing factors. Movement could be the
result of the subject matter, the time of the day, even the teacher of the class. For
School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support 99

Fig. 9.1 Graphic representation of the school-wide positive behaviour support framework. Adapted
from: OSEP Technical Assistance Centre for Positive Behavioural Interventions & Supports (www.
pbis.org)

example, in Scenario 4, the teacher, Ms. Sophie Kouka, has observed one of the
students in her Year 7 Maths class, Craig, struggling to keep up with the content.
Craig’s behaviour of making jokes and laughing at incorrect answers of other stu-
dents could be seen as a way of deflecting the attention of the other students away
from the difficulty he is experiencing. We can assume Craig is receiving quality
instruction (i.e. universal intervention, Tier 1), but it appears this is not enough, and
he requires a more specialised level of intervention support. This may be Tier 2 or
Tier 3 depending on his level of difficulty with Maths (Chaps. 6 and 10). But later
in the school day, the class has a physical education practical lesson, and Craig is
an avid and quite talented footballer. In this lesson, Craig may sit within Tier 1 for
both academic and behavioural support as he is confident with both the content and
the behavioural expectations governing the practical lesson. This fluctuation across
the tiers of behavioural support is often more apparent in secondary schools, where
students encounter different teachers, different environments, and different subject
matter multiple times throughout the school day, which sits in contrast to the more
consistent staffing and environments of primary classrooms.
100 9 Principles of Behaviour Support

Positive behaviour support is a collaborative, school-wide enterprise. Expectations

for student behaviour are defined by a school-based team with input from all staff,
students, and families. Positive behaviours are publicly acknowledged, and problem
behaviours have clear consequences. Appropriate student behaviour is taught, and
feedback is given to both staff and students. It is a proactive framework that invests
in the consistent teaching of all students about behaviour. The NSW Ombudsman
Inquiry (2017) reported many good practice examples of positive behaviour support
in government and non-government schools in New South Wales, including proactive
work to identify students at risk and the provision of personalised support. However,
the inquiry also found gaps between what is required to deliver positive behaviour
support and the practice within schools. The impact of this gap between theory and
practice on the students involved can be significant and remains an avenue for further
investigation.

Conclusion

To conclude, the responsibility for student behaviour is not the sole remit of the class-
room teacher; rather, behaviour support is a shared endeavour. Teachers who believe
they do not possess the necessary skill set for supporting challenging behaviour can
draw from the evidence that “Academics and behavior are inextricably linked, and
as such, management of behavior should be considered not as an addition to the
teacher’s repertoire of skills but as an integral foundational component of effective
instruction” (Cooper & Scott, 2017, p. 102). The use of assessment strategies such
as FBA, within a tiered response framework of PBS, serves to provide all members
of the school community with a sense of safety, autonomy, and support (Strickland-
Cohen, Kennedy, Berg, Bateman, & Horner, 2016). Student behaviour support must
be viewed through the lens of shared, school-wide accountability. The input of all
stakeholders including teachers, students, parents, and family members is critical to
the provision of quality, accessible education for all.

References

Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL). (2011). Australian professional
standards for teachers. Carlton, VIC: Education Services Australia.
Bambara, L. M., Janney, R., & Snell, M. E. (2015). Behavior support (3rd ed.). Baltimore, MA:
Brookes Publishing.
Behaviour. (n.d.). Oxford dictionary online. Retrieved from https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/
definition/behaviour.
Butler, A., & Monda-Amaya, L. (2016). Preservice teachers’ perceptions of challenging
behaviour. Teacher Education and Special Education, 39(4), 276–292. https://doi.org/10.1177/
0888406416654212.
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Cooper, J. T., & Scott, T. M. (2017). The keys to managing instruction and behaviour: Considering
high probability practices. Teacher Education and Special Education, 40(2), 102–113. https://
doi.org/10.1177/0888406417700825.
Dew, A., Jones, A., Horvat, K., Cumming, T., Dillon Savage, I., & Dowse, L. (2017). Understanding
behaviour support practice: Young children (0–8 years) with developmental delay and disability.
Sydney: UNSW.
Dunlap, G., & Kern, L. (2018). Perspectives on functional behavioral assessment. Behavioral
Disorders, 43(2), 316–321. https://doi.org/10.1177/0198742917746633.
Frey, L. M., & Wilhite, K. (2005). Our five basic needs: Application for understanding the func-
tion of behaviour. Intervention in School and Clinic, 40(3), 156–160. https://doi.org/10.1177/
10534512050400030401.
Gresham, F. M. (2003). Establishing the technical adequacy of functional behavioural assessment:
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Lewis, T., & Sugai, G. (1999). Effective behaviour support: A systems approach to proactive
schoolwide management. Focus on Exceptional Children, 31(6), 1–24.
Little, C. (2017). Social inclusion and students with an autism spectrum disorder? In Cathy Little
(Ed.), Supporting social inclusion for students with autism spectrum disorders: Insights from
research and practice (pp. 9–20). Abingdon: Routledge.
Ombudsman, N. S. W. (2017). NSW Ombudsman Inquiry into behaviour management in schools.
Sydney: Author.
O’Neill, S., & Stephenson, J. (2010). The use of functional behavioural assessment for students with
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Shaddock, A., Packer, R., & Roy, A. (2015). The [ACT Legislative Assembly] report of the expert
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Additional Readings

Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW. (2014). Classroom management and
students with special education needs. Sydney, Australia: Author.
Crone, D., Hawken, L., & Horner, R. (2015). Building positive behavior support systems in schools:
Functional behavioral assessment (2nd ed.). NY: Guildford.
Queensland Government. (2018). Guided functional behaviour assessment tool. Retrieved from
https://ahrc.eq.edu.au/services/fba-tool.
Victoria Department of Education. (2018). Functional behavioural assessment. Retrieved from
https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/behaviour/student-behaviour/Pages/function-
al-assessment.aspx.