Date of Award
2003
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Education
Department
Fischler Graduate School of Education and Human Services
Advisor
Betty Boult
Committee Member
Keith Cameron
Committee Member
Barbara Packer
Keywords
academic failure, behavior intervention plans, behavior support team, Challenger Middle School, classroom disruptions, discipline referrals, disruptive behavior, functional behavior assessments, middle schools, regular education, special education, student behavior, teacher education
Abstract
This applied dissertation was designed to develop a systematic procedure for developing student behavior plans that would effectively and efficiently decrease discipline referrals from students that are repeatedly disruptive.
From 1999-2002, 1.9 % of the students at Challenger Middle School (CMS) were responsible for 36% of the school discipline referrals. In an attempt to control students with repeated discipline problems, the CMS administration placed the students with 6-8 referrals on restrictive behavior contracts. Only 29% of the behavior contracts were effective in decreasing disruptive behavior. When the disruptive students did not change their behavior, they were suspended or expelled from school.
The CMS administration developed and trained a behavior support team to conduct Functional Behavior Assessments (FBAs) and implement Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) with middle school students that repeatedly exhibited disruptive problem behaviors. The FBA process included (a) gathering background information, (b) interviewing students and teachers, (c) completing direct observations, (d) developing a hypothesis, (e) creating BIP and interventions, (f) training teachers, and g) working with parents.
The researcher developed a behavior support team at CMS that identified and selected 8 students with habitual patterns of academic failure and classroom disruptions. Individual case studies were completed on each of these students. The researcher used the information gathered from the FBAs to develop BIPs for each student. The BIPs had varying degrees of success. The researcher recommends implementing the FBA/BIP procedures to help improve student behaviors. To improve success one person in the school must be responsible for the entire FBA/BIP program. Consistency in monitoring is the key to success.