Building Positive Behavior Support Systems in Schools: Functional Behavioral Assessment

This indispensable volume presents an up-to-date conceptual model and practical tools for meeting the challenges of severe problem behavior in elementary and middle-school settings. The focus is on developing and implementing team-based support plans for the 1-5% of students who require intensive, individualized behavioral assessment and intervention. Outlined are field-tested procedures that enable the practitioner to evaluate student needs using functional behavioral assessment; transform assessment results into practical, function-based interventions; develop school-wide systems that support the assessment and intervention process; establish clear roles for leaders and members of behavior support teams; and work collaboratively with administrators, teachers, students, and parents. A much-needed resource and text, the book features illustrative case examples, figures, and charts. Also included are reproducible assessment instruments, parent and teacher forms, sample meeting agendas, and other useful materials. Note: A less intensive, prevention-oriented intervention for students with moderate problem behavior is presented in the complementary volume, Responding to Problem Behavior in Schools.

Table of Contents:
Part I: Using Functional Behavioral Assessment in Schools: Contexts and Challenges. Functional Behavioral Assessment in Schools: The Current Context. Changing the Way We Think about Assessment and Intervention for Problem Behavior. Part II: Embedding Functional Behavioral Assessment Within School Systems: Case Examples. Conducting a Functional Behavioral Assessment. Designing a Behavior Support Plan. Evaluating and Modifying the Behavior Support Plan. Part III: Using Functional Assessment Within School Systems: Questions and Considerations. Who Will Be Involved in the Behavior Support Team and What Is Needed from Each Person? How Do You Get the Behavior Support Team to Work Together as a Team? How Do You Build Within - Building Capacity for FBA on the Behavior Support Team? Appendices: A. Request for Assistance Form. B. Functional Behavioral Assessment-Behavior Support Plan Protocol (F-BSP Protocol). C. Functional Assessment Checklist for Teachers and Staff (FACTS). D. Student-Guided Functional Assessment Interview (Primary). E. Assessing Activity Routines Form. F. Brief Functional Assessment Interview Form. G. Functional Behavioral Assessment Observation Form. H. Functional Assessment Observation Form. I. Antecedent/Behavior/Consequence Chart. J. A Checklist for Assessing the Quality of Behavior Support Planning: Does the Plan (or Planning Process) Have These Features?

About the Author :
Deanne A. Crone, PhD, is Assistant Professor of School Psychology at the University of Oregon. Robert H. Horner, PhD, is Professor of Special Education at the University of Oregon and director of Educational Community Supports (ECS), a College of Education research unit.

Review :
"Despite federal mandates for functional behavior assessment and planning, school districts nationwide still lack the capacity to use FBA procedures to help challenging students succeed. This is the first text I have found that provides systemic strategies to embed positive behavioral support into the fabric of school routines and practice. While Crone and Horner emphasize the need for increased training and staff resources, their model respects the time and fiscal constraints facing practitioners. Their suggested continuum of support provides a pragmatic decision tree for adjusting the intensity of behavioral assessment to the complexity of students' behavior problems. I recommend this text for courses on ecobehavioral interventions in schools and for school psychology practica. The text's frank pragmatism and its sensitivity to systemic features of schools make it an excellent choice for the pivotal courses that bridge university recommendations for best practices with school mandates for realistic practice."--Beth Doll, PhD, School Psychology Program, University of Nebraska-Lincoln "A concise and clear exposition of a proven approach to addressing serious behavior problems in schools. Using functional behavioral assessment, the authors offer a step-by-step guide to developing effective positive behavior support plans as required by IDEA 1997. The book is replete with many useful examples, checklists, and forms that facilitate the work of school psychologists, special educators, and counselors. This is a valuable resource for making schools more safe and responsive to children's needs. It is also a suitable text for use in graduate education."--Jonathan Sandoval, PhD, Division of Education, University of California, Davis. "Crone and Horner have put together an incredibly helpful resource for school personnel facing the huge challenges of students with significant behavior problems. This book offers a clear blueprint for leaders and members of behavior support teams, outlining in clear and achievable steps the process of putting together support systems based in functional behavioral assessment. All types of educational personnel, including school psychologists, teachers, special educators, and administrators, will find this an invaluable text for identifying behavior problems and implementing real solutions. The book is replete with helpful examples and practical forms that help move the notion of positive support from idea into action."--Judith J. Carta, PhD, Juniper Gardens Children's Project, University of Kansas "I recommend this book highly to all professionals involved in mental health and behavioural management services to schools, and their administrators."--"Canadian Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry" .,."this book provides behavior support personnel (school psychologists, counselors, administrators, and teachers) a solid system for the purposes of identifying, addressing, and alleviating problem behaviors in schools."--"Education Book Reviews""" "Overall, we think the authors have taken a complicated process and have broken it down into manageable steps. Their approach is facilitated by the conversational writing style employed and [the] resulting easy reading level....A valuable resource for use in creating behavior support teams in schools by practitioners....The authors have provided an excellent framework for successfully implementing IDEA 1997 requirements and recommendations with respect to FBA."--"School Psychology Quarterly"