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Screening: Collaborative Practitioner Considerations

Lakshmi Kartik and Amanda Shaver

School of Education and Human Sciences, University of Kansas

SPED 843: Advanced Methods & Assessment: Strategies for Students with Significant Behavior,

Social & Emotional Need

Dr. Irma Brasseur-Hock

February 8, 2023
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Screening: Collaborative Practitioner Considerations

Tier 1 Supports

Schools use interventions and support to identify students with academic and behavioral

needs. Specifically, Tier 1 supports are school–wide supports offered to all students to help

promote positive behavior in and out of the classroom. One highly effective Tier 1 support

program is Positive Behavior Intervention and Support or PBIS. PBIS has been shown to have

highly effective positive social and academic outcomes for students (Bastable et.al., 2021). These

types of support can be as simple as providing visual expectations and high praise for following

expectations. The implementation of Tier 1 practices and data are used to inform decision-

making through team planning sessions to detect students with initial signs of internalizing and

externalizing behavior problems.

To assess how successful Tier 1 supports were in the classroom, we looked at data

provided by Mr. Jones’ third grade classroom. The first set of data analyzed was a fidelity

checklist completed by Mr. Jones and an external observer for evaluating procedures for teaching

and reinforcing, which is a crucial step toward maintaining and improving treatment integrity.

The results of the two evaluation reports indicated that Mr. Jones demonstrated strengths in his

ability to adhere and tailor his instruction to district and state standards for academics. Mr. Jones

also always modeled the behavior expectations stated in the school-wide plan for students during

his lessons. He also refrained from taking tickets away from the student once given to them.

These areas are consistent with his self-evaluation and the observer’s evaluation report. The two

differed in their opinion on Mr. Jones’ use of consistent positive reinforcement; Mr. Jones felt he

was adequately providing praise, support, and positive reinforcement towards students, while the
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observer felt that while he did provide these supports, he was inconsistent in his implementing

them.

Data from screening has highlighted areas for improvement and professional

development (Oakes et al., 2014) in Mr. Jones’ classroom management skills. He needs to be

more consistent in the use of routines in the classroom. These routines should be clearly defined

and provide consistent expectations. He should also include visual support in the classroom

using school-wide and classroom expectations. He needs to be more consistent in acknowledging

students positively (behavior-specific praise, tickets) for prosocial behaviors while discouraging

unwanted behavior through instructions.

Mr. Jones’s inconsistent use of Tier 1 supports has impacted his students’ overall internal

and external behavior. Approximately 45% of the students in Mr. Jones’ class display behavior

problems, negative attitudes, anxiety, and low academic achievement. When students’ social and

behavioral needs are not adequately supported, they can become disruptive and aggressive in

class. The lack of clearly displayed expectations and routines in Mr. Jones’ classroom can make

it difficult for students to access them quickly. Hence, they may not have enough opportunities to

practice and reinforce the desired skills, making learning difficult for the students; this frustration

is the antecedent for unwanted behavior. From the data, we also notice the absence of

differentiated instruction and individual modifications for students with additional needs in Mr.

Jones’ lessons. No starter and closing activities in lessons make lessons incomprehensible,

unengaging, and devoid of opportunities for choice preventing students from becoming self-

regulated learners.

Tier 2 and 3 Supports

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Upon analyzing the data generated from the Student Risk Screening scale for Mr. Jones’

elementary class, out of twenty students, 12 students are at high and medium risk for displaying

externalizing and internalizing behavior, which can be challenging for the teacher. Only one

student in the class has been formally diagnosed with an emotional behavior disorder. The

screening data indicates that Tier 1 support, as currently implemented, is only working for some

of the class, as more than 50% of the class has indicators of at-risk behavior. When deciding

whether to transition students to Tier 2 or Tier 3 supports or refine Tier 1, many factors must be

considered. Screening data, while important, is one of many things to consider. It is also

beneficial to consider how students are performing in reading and math as well as the number of

discipline referrals and absenteeism to obtain a clear picture of the whole child (Lane, 2011).

Research suggests that “Teachers can reduce the occurrence of inappropriate behavior by

revisiting and reinforcing classroom behavior expectations; rearranging the classroom

environment, schedule, or learning activities to meet students’ needs; and/or individually

adapting instruction to promote high rates of student engagement and on-task behavior” (Epstein

et al., 2008, pg. 28). So, using these data at the teacher level to make some vital improvements in

preventative classroom management (Behavior Modification in the Classroom, n.d.) and being

intentional about efficiently threading in these low-intensity strategies (e.g., active supervision,

opportunities to respond, behavior-specific praise, pre-correction- antecedents and consequences)

through our academic instructions to maximize academic learning time for these students

struggling with behavioral issues is the next step towards getting them more engaged and

comfortable in the classroom.

Additional Recommended Supports

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In reviewing the case of Mr. Jones’s, it would be recommended that he be provided with

additional training on implementing PBIS in his classroom with the use of visual support of

classroom and school-wide expectations and reinforcing the daily expectation for behavior using

consistent positive reinforcement. This is the first step in helping Mr. Jones reduces the

unwanted behavior in his classroom. Providing this additional training would improve his

classroom management skills and increase structure in the classroom environment, which will

help ensure that 80% of his students’ behavior needs are being adequately supported at the Tier 1

level. With the support of the school cit3 leadership team, it would be beneficial for Mr. Jones to

attend weekly training sessions on mastering one evidence-based strategy every month while

aligning them with classroom and school-wide expectations (K. Lane, 2011). Time must be

allocated during training for practice sessions (with fellow teachers) to ensure that Mr. Jones has

enough opportunities to reinforce and blend these strategies seamlessly into his academic

instruction and eventually incorporate them one by one into his repertoire. Training sessions can

be set up on weekends, before or after the school day, or even online through zoom.

The next step is to ensure Mr. Jones consistently offers specific, sincere, timely, and

appropriate behavior-specific praise (this skill is not used by Mr. Jones consistently based on

data gathered from the outside observer checklist). Whenever students demonstrate expected

behaviors, as research suggests, it will help foster positive relationships between teachers and

students (Ci3T Framework, 2022). The cit3 leadership team should provide monthly check-ins to

observe Mr. Jones and assess how well he implements the strategies he is learning through his

additional training. Should Mr. Jones still show that he needs help with implementing positive

reinforcement in his classroom, training with the cit3 leadership team should be provided.

During this time, they can model the expectations that should be implemented in the classroom.
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Enabling Mr. Jones’ access to these resources at any point ensures that his ongoing

training needs will always be met (e.g., checklists, videos, infographic, on-site coaches).

Successful delivery of this training heavily rests on the assumption that Mr. Jones (and other

teachers) views this as a safe space where he can discuss, collaborate, and be reassured that no

one is being judged on their knowledge or skills and that everyone is learning and improving

together. Preventative classroom management, intertwined with an effective system of delivering

reinforcement techniques, can build a physically and intellectually safe place for all children,

especially students with problem behaviors.

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References

Bastable, Falcon, S.F., Nese, R., Men g, P., & McIntosh, K. (2021). Enhancing School-wide

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports Tier 1 core practices to improve

disciplinary equity. Preventing School Failure, 65(4), 283-290.

https://doi.org/10.1080/1045988X.2021.1937020

Behavior Modification in the Classroom. (n.d.). LD OnLine. https://www.ldonline.org/ld-

topics/classroom-management/behavior-modification-classroom

Cit3 Framework. (2022, November 29). 2022-2023 Ci3T Project EMPOWER Session 3 Video

(2022 11 15) [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMPuoihSp9I

Epstein, M., Atkins, M., Cullinan, D., Kutash K., and Weaver, R. (2008). Reducing Behavior

Problems in elementary School Classroom: A Practice Guide (NCEE#2008-012).

Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance,

Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education Retreived from

https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/publications/practiceguides.

Kauffman, M.J. & Landrum, J.T. (2023). Characteristics of Emotional and Behavioral

Disorders of Children and Youth (11th Edition). Pearson.

Lane K. (2015). Systematic Screening [Video]. You Tube. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?

list=PLwaztPNsOHbYRBoB3UpuZbWKjISgar9X5

Oakes, W. P., Lane, K. L., Cox, M. L., & Messenger, M. (2014). Logistics of Behavior

Screenings: How and Why Do We Conduct Behavior Screenings at Our School?

Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 58(3), 159–

170. https://doi.org/10.1080/1045988x.2014.895572
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