Behavior Assessment

Student behavior in school can be quite the sticky wicket at times 
Read on for more information about positive behavior in school, school wide behavior systems, and assessing and addressing interfering behaviors

This page contains:

•  information about the process of assessing student behavior, known as a Functional Behavior Analysis (FBA)
• an example of a behavior intervention - Points for Grumpy
• a behavior measurement system that can be used school wide - Social Skills Improvement Rating Scale
• a positive behavior intervention system that is used in schools - Positive Action

Functional Behavior Analysis 

An FBA is conducted to attempt to determine the function of a student's behavior in order to generate a plan to more effectively address the behavior. By basing a behavior plan on the function of the behavior , we can determine what in the child’s environment triggers inappropriate behavior, as well as which replacement behaviors need to be taught to the child so that the child will receive positive results and feedback.

The process of an FBA is generally carried out by the school psychologist but involves the collaboration of an entire team including, but not limited to, the student's primary teacher, the intervention specialist, parents/guardians, the student (if appropriate), the school counselor and possibly other teachers the student interacts with regularly.

What do you mean by the function of behavior??

The function of the behavior is the "why" for the behavior. When a student engages in a behavior, there is almost always a reason for doing so or something that they are getting out of acting in that manner. 

Typically behaviors serve 1 of 4 functions:

escape/avoid: by engaging in a behavior the student escapes from or avoids a task/situation

• A student who frequently gets up and wanders around the room or requests to use the bathroom my be doing so in order to avoid working at their desk

attention: be engaging in a behavior the student gains attention (can be from teachers/adults or peers)

• A student who blurts out answers constantly during group instruction may be attempting to gain attention from the teacher or their peers

access to tangibles: by engaging in a behavior the student gains access to something they desire-a toy, food, favorite item or person

• A student may engage in a variety of behaviors (screaming, stealing, refusing other food/activities) in order to gain access to food, games, or favorite toys

automatically reinforcing: by engaging in a behavior the student in automatically reinforced-typically this occurs with behaviors that either lessen anxiety or pain, increase comfort, or may feel good or create interesting visual/auditory/physical input.

• A student with Autism may flap hands or objects near their eyes because they are seeking visual stimulation
• A student with high anxiety may rub fingers or rock back and forth in attempt to self soothe 

Modifications can be made to the student's environment and to the way instructions or directions are given to increase the likelihood of the student responding appropriately. Investigating the "why" behind a student's behavior allows the team to consider what deficits exist-does the student know what is expected? Is the student able to perform in the way that is expected? If deficits exist, the team can then provide instruction and assist the student in demonstrating more appropriate behaviors.

By determining the function of the behavior, appropriate consequences that do not unintentionally encourage or reinforce the behavior can be implemented if the behavior does occur.

Ok, so behaviors have a function-how do we figure out what it is?

The analysis of a students behavior requires multiple pieces of information and input from a variety of people.

1. The first step is to conduct an indirect assessment
This involves gathering as much information about the student as possible without direct interactions.

• Record Review
• medical history
• previous behavior concerns or interventions

2. Interviews are conducted

• Classroom teacher: gather information about strengths, weaknesses, areas of concern and most importantly: what the teacher's main behavior concern is and how he/she would like it to change
• Parents/guardians:gather information about strengths, weaknesses, areas of concern, if they see similar or different things at home than what is being reported at school, if there have been any changes in the home, any previous medical concerns, any previous behavioral concerns, child's preferences
• Past teacher and/or other adults in the school who spend a significant amount of time with student: this may include specials teachers, reading teachers etc. Anyone who may be able to provide information pertinent to the students current experience in the school

3. A meeting may be held-team members need to come together, review information gathered so far and create a plan for data collection.

• The team needs to come up with the operationalized definition of behavior. This is a description of the behavior of concern that is clear, concise, and measurable. The definition should be something that can be read by anyone and then applied when observing the student. This ensures that the team is on the same page and gives specific parameters to what behavior(s) are going to be included in data collection.

4. Direct assessment

• with an operationalized behavior definition data collection can begin
• the way data is collected will depend on the behavior-may want to gather information about the frequency, duration, or intensity of the behavior
• several observations should be conducted to gather data in order to have a well rounded picture of what the student's behavior looks like overall before any interventions are put in place

5. Review the Data--looking for trends in behavior, what is typically occurring right before the behavior occurs and right after, is there a time of day or particular subject of instruction that behavior tends to occur during, etc.

6. Generate a hypothesis-- take the information gained through the indirect and direct assessment pieces and create a theory explaining the behavior of concern. A hypothesis statement may resemble something like this:

When the behavior occurs, it is usually in the context of ... (addressing the setting)

This behavior is typically preceded by... (addressing what happens right before [antecedents])

The student's response is usually to ... (describe the behavior that occurs)

The result of the student's behavior is usually ... (addressing what happens immediately after the behavior [consequences])

This behavior appears to ... (describe hypothesized function)

A statement addressing if the behavior is likely due to a skill or performance deficit and why should also be included.

Now we have a theory as to why the behavior is occurring-what can we do about it?

Now the team is powered by background information and direct observations and can use this information to create a Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) to address the student's behavior. By assessing the function of behavior we are also able to explore what is maintaining the behavior. Typically if a student engages in a behavior and continues to do so, something that is occurring during or after the episode of the behavior is reinforcing that behavior.

For example, if a student engages in a behavior which seeks attention, such as shouting out during instruction, and after shouting out the teacher tells the student to quiet down or peers laugh or respond to the student, then the student has gained attention, which is what the goal of the behavior was in the first place. It is important to consider the function and what maintains it when developing a plan to address the behavior.

Example of chart used to monitor student behavior plan

A behavior plan should contain:

• the operationalized definition of the behavior
• antecedent modifications
• goal replacement behaviors
• reinforcement procedures
• reinforcement schedule
• plan to fade reinforcement/supports
• skills to be taught
• plan for data collection

The team should all agree on the plan and have a clear understanding of how it will be implemented.

Finally, the behavior plan is implemented and progress is monitored. The team should meet again to review the plan's effectiveness, plans to fade back the plan or increase expectations and review the fidelity with which the plan has been implemented.

Hopefully by addressing the function, providing reinforcement for desired behaviors and teaching where there are areas of deficits the student's interfering behavior will decrease and positive, functional behaviors will increase!

The Ohio Department of Education provides basic forms that can be used to complete the FBA process. The ODE forms are optional and do not go into a lot of detail; school districts may use these forms or may create their own.

• ODE FBA form
• ODE Behavior Intervention Plan form
• ODE Progress Report form (this could be used to communicate student progress on behavior or IEP goals)