April 14, 2025 • 24 mins
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You’ve been looped into a student’s behavior.
The teacher wants it fixed.
Admin wants a behavior plan.
And now everyone’s looking at you.
If you’ve ever found yourself thinking, “I don’t even know where to start,” this episode is for you.
We’re walking through the full behavior intervention process, from collecting ABC data to building a real Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP), so you know exactly what’s involved, what your role should be, and how to stop being the person everyone hands it off to.
You’ll learn:
- What actually makes a behavior plan effective
- Where school counselors fit into the process (and where we don’t)
- How to avoid the “throw spaghetti at the wall” method of intervention
- Why consistency- not quick fixes- is what really moves the needle
This episode won’t give you a one-size-fits-all template.
But it will help you understand the full picture, speak the language of your behavior teams, and start showing up like the professional you already are.
Resources:
American School Counselor Association. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. https://schoolcounselor.org/ethics
Chandler, L. K., & Dahlquist, C. M. (2015). Functional assessment: Strategies to prevent and remediate challenging behavior in school settings (4th ed.). Pearson.
Shahan, T. A. (2022). A theory of the extinction burst. Perspectives on Behavior Science, 45(3), 495–519. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40614-021-00297-z
U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. (n.d.). What Works Clearinghouse. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
So let me guess, this past week you probably got
looped into another conversationabout students' behavior.
The teacher wanted it fixed,your admin wanted it documented
and somehow all of that landedsquarely on your plate and you
(00:20):
want to help.
But the last time somebody said, come up with a behavior plan,
you weren't given a single datapoint.
The students' needs weren'treally even taken into
consideration and the planbecame your full-time job.
Does that sound familiar?
In this episode we're going tobreak down what behavior
(00:43):
intervention plans are reallyabout, what works, what doesn't
work and how you can support theprocess without being
steamrolled by it.
I'm going to walk you throughthe entire behavior planning
process, step by step, and showyou where you fit in as a school
counselor, where you don't, andwhat to do when you're the only
(01:05):
one showing up with a plan thatactually makes any sense.
Let's talk behavior without theburnout.
Hey there, welcome back to theSchool for School Counselors
podcast.
Yes, it is me.
I'm a little raspy and a littlehoarse this week, but bound and
determined to bring you anotherpodcast episode.
(01:28):
I'm Steph Johnson, licensedprofessional counselor, veteran
educator of almost 30 years anda full-time school counselor.
Just like you.
The past few episodes havereally centered on bullying,
behavior intervention and ADHD,the who, the what, the when, the
(01:49):
where or the why, all thethings, why we shouldn't be the
only ones handling these and howto address them.
If we're considered the defaultbehavior interventionist on our
campus, all the things right.
In this episode, I'm going toshift gears just a little bit
and I want to talk aboutbehavior intervention plans.
(02:12):
Now let me say up front, I amnot a board-certified behavior
analyst, I am not a schoolpsychologist, but I do want to
kind of walk you through thegeneral framework as I
understand it, so you can get aclearer picture of what's
involved, because I thinksometimes we assume that if we
(02:33):
just label the behavior or wecome up with one thing to try in
addressing the behavior, thenboom, our job is done and
everything should be resolved.
But, as you probably knowalready, that's not how behavior
change typically works.
So, based on one of my all-timemost popular podcast episodes
(02:53):
back in 2023, we're going torevisit the process of
developing a behavior plan, oran official BIP, which stands
for Behavior Intervention Plan,just as a heads up before we get
started.
Different campuses anddifferent districts might have
their own procedures orprotocols for this, so don't
(03:14):
worry if I describe doesn'texactly match what you've seen
in your setting.
Our goal here really is tounderstand the general process
and how we fit into it.
Okay, so, first up, the initialassessment and observation.
This is where we try to get abaseline on what's really going
(03:36):
on, not just what people thinkis going on.
This step should involve lotsof people who are normally in
the student's environmentthroughout their day.
That could include classroomteachers, paraprofessionals,
even you as the school counselor, depending on the situation.
But the goal is to keep thingsas organic as possible, because
(04:01):
we know, if we put a new personin a classroom with a struggling
student, sometimes they actcompletely differently.
Right, it's like it's showtimeand they put on their best and
we're sitting in the backgroundsaying no, no, no, this is not
real life, right?
We want a real representativesnapshot of their behavior and
(04:23):
not a performance.
We're going to be looking todocument three things the
antecedents, which is whathappens before.
The behavior.
The behavior itself, exactlywhat happens.
And then the consequences ofthat behavior, what happened
exactly after.
And, as I say consequences, Idon't mean punitive consequences
(04:46):
in the classroom.
That's not what I'm talkingabout.
I'm not talking about breakinga rule and getting a penalty for
it.
I'm talking about the fallout.
What did the student get out ofthe behavior?
This process is sometimes calledthe ABC data antecedent,
behavior, consequence.
Get it, and it's a great toolfor understanding what might be
(05:08):
reinforcing the student'sbehavior.
We need to make sure that theseobservations happen across
different settings and differenttimes of the day, and it's not
enough to do this once or twice.
Chandler and Dahlquist 2015recommend collecting at least 10
to 15 data points acrossvarious settings, with a full
(05:32):
week of observation at minimum.
I'm going to be honest with youand I know this is going to
frustrate you to hear how manydata points need to be involved.
It's also going to frustratesome of the folks you work with,
because what they often want isto make you aware of the
behavior and have you swoop inand fix it.
(05:54):
But to create a meaningful plan, we need authentic and
consistent data, and that meanswe've got to get the teachers
invested in the collectionprocess, and y'all if you've
worked on a school campus forany amount of time, you know
sometimes that is easier saidthan done.
(06:16):
You may run into resistance.
Some teachers may feel likeit's not their job that data
collection should fall on yourshoulders.
Other people may just say Idon't have the time and honestly
, y'all they're not wrong.
Educators are maxed out andadding one more thing to their
day can feel insurmountable.
(06:37):
That's where oursolution-focused skills come in.
We have to be able to gentlyshift the narrative from one
more thing on your plate tohere's a small step that will
actually make things easier inthe long run.
Even getting teachers startedwith the super simple one-page
(06:59):
tracker can help.
Let them know it doesn't haveto be perfect.
It doesn't even have to be acertain piece of paper.
Sticky notes, tally marks,check boxes on the margins of a
worksheet it all counts.
The goal is progress and it isnot perfection.
If we walk up to these folksand expect expert-looking, clean
(07:22):
, color-coded graphs, y'all, weare going to lose them before we
even get started.
Help your staff feel successfulfrom the get-go.
Guide them in understandingthat their input is vital, no
matter how it is presented.
(07:44):
So after we've collected thatinitial observation data data,
we may be looking at a formalfunctional behavior assessment.
Typically you're going to seethese done by a behavior
specialist or a schoolpsychologist.
Less often you can see schoolcounselors do them.
It's not ideal, but sometimesthat's just the way things have
to roll.
According to ASCA's ethicalstandards, our primary role is
(08:08):
to support and not replacespecialists like behavior
analysts or school psychs whenit comes to evaluations.
But that being said, you knowand I know we don't often attain
the ideal on our campuses, sowe're going to do the best we
can.
Really, the whole point of thefunctional behavior assessment
is just to determine thefunction or the purpose of the
(08:31):
behavior.
So think back to your gradschool days.
See if you can remember yourfour functions of behavior.
I'll give you a minute.
Are they coming to you?
Okay, here they are, I'll helpyou out.
Escape, attention, tangibleitems, sensory needs.
(08:58):
So escape might look like astudent deciding they need to go
to the nurse every day whenmath starts.
Attention might be the studentthat is calling out in class for
laughs or they're looking for ateacher.
Reaction Tangible could be atantrum when they're denied
(09:19):
access to a preferred object.
Sensory might be humming ortapping or rocking as a way to
self-soothe.
We have to figure out what thepurpose of the behavior is that
the student is showing us in theclassroom.
What are they trying to gainfrom it?
And we're going to collectadditional data to try to
(09:43):
identify the triggers for that,maybe some possible patterns.
We're probably going to betalking with teachers and
parents, and sometimes even thestudent if it's appropriate,
just to gather some moreinformation and develop a full
picture of what the situationreally is.
So that's the second step inthis process, after we've done
(10:05):
our initial observation.
Then we've tried to determinethe function of the behavior.
The function of the behavior.
The next thing that we do is setclear goals and objectives, and
y'all this needs to be a teamapproach.
We have to have our teachers onboard.
(10:25):
If we have behavior specialists, we need to have them on board.
Parents need to be involved andwe need to establish goals for
one specific component ofbehavior.
You remember your SMART goals,right?
Specific, measurable,achievable, relevant and
time-bound.
So as a group, collectively,we're going to determine what
(10:47):
the desired behavior change is.
Keep in mind, this is wherethings fly off the rails so
often.
We cannot change all theproblem behaviors at once.
We cannot start with.
Student will not explode in theclassroom.
That's not going to help.
(11:09):
Instead, we've got to reallyhone in and fine-tune those
goals.
Student will request a breakusing a card or gesture and four
out of five opportunitiesacross two consecutive days.
That's something we can track.
We've got to pinpoint andreally identify on a super
(11:30):
granular level which behavior wewant to change first, and then
we want to make sure that thosegoals are something that we can
measure so that we can determineif we're making progress or not
.
I'll be real I think a lot ofpeople just try to throw any
intervention they can think ofat the student wait a couple of
(11:50):
days and then, if they don't seethe kind of movement they
wanted to see, they say, oh,that didn't work and they go on
to the next thing and they'renot really getting a true
picture of the intervention orthe behavior needs.
So be very, very careful aboutthat, okay.
So then, after we've set thosegoals and objectives, then we're
(12:11):
going to plan the intervention.
After we've set those goals andobjectives, then we're going to
plan the intervention.
We're going to look towardevidence-based interventions and
we're going to tailor those tothe students' needs and goals.
This is not the time for yourteachers pay teachers printables
.
While those may be quick fixesand you feel they're very
convenient, they rarely addressthe root causes of behavior.
(12:33):
Instead, we want to useinterventions that are grounded
in data and in peer-reviewedstudies.
You're probably getting tiredof hearing that from me, aren't
you?
But this is not the time forthose.
We need substantiallyevidence-based interventions.
There are several resourcesonline that you can go to to
(12:55):
start gathering some of those.
One of my favorites is the whatWorks Clearinghouse.
It is not a pretty website but,man, it is effective and we
need to make sure that whateverevidence-based interventions we
select match the function of thebehavior.
If we have someone who isattention seeking, how can we
provide that attention in abetter way?
(13:17):
How can we provide moreconsistent, positive
reinforcement for that studentso that they're not looking for
negative attention in anothersituation?
But far and away.
Again, I'm going to say the mostimportant part of this is that
whatever strategies you select,they need to be supported by
(13:37):
research and best practice.
So you select those strategiesand you create a plan that
outlines how those interventionsare going to be implemented in
different settings.
For instance, we've identifiedthese strategies we want to work
with with regard to thisstudent.
In the math classroom, it mightlook like this.
(13:58):
In the English classroom itlooks like this, and in the
physical education classroom itneeds to look like this.
We can even encourage parentsto buy in and try some of these
things at home.
Highly collaborative, right?
Because everywhere the studentgoes, we want them getting the
same consistent message.
So again, you see why theschool counselor should not be
(14:23):
the lone behavior interventionperson on campus.
It's just not going to work.
Then, after we've done all ofthat, we've done our observation
and collected our data points,we've made an educated guess
about the function or thepurpose of the behavior, we've
determined exactly what thedesired behavior change is and
(14:46):
we've identified evidence-basedinterventions.
To get us there, then we'regoing to implement them.
To get us there, then we'regoing to implement them.
This is going to involveeveryone Teachers, parents,
support staff, pretty muchanybody on campus that has
contact with this student.
We're going to put theintervention plan that you all
(15:07):
collectively wrote into actionand then we, as the school
counselor, can help monitor andencourage so that these
interventions are implementedconsistently.
In my opinion, this is where wemost often drop the ball in
schools.
We really have to make surethat we're being consistent with
(15:28):
this and that everyone who'ssupposed to be providing that
intervention is actually doingit.
Again, that's often a stickingpoint.
You have one or two people thatsay I'm not doing that, that's
not my job.
If they need that, they shouldbe somewhere else.
You ever heard anybody saysomething like that?
Yeah, so you're really going tohave to work hard to get some
(15:50):
of these folks to buy in.
You have to paint a picture forthem about how their life is
going to be easier if they'rewilling to do these things.
You're really going to have toalmost campaign to get this
thing to move and act like acheerleader in the background.
We can help provide clearinstructions to everybody about
how to apply these interventions.
(16:11):
We can check in to make surethey're not having any questions
or concerns through the process, and we can help continuously
monitor the student's progress.
We can identify changes inbehavior, not only positive
changes.
We may also see some negativechanges as well.
One negative change you mightsee is something called an
(16:32):
extinction burst.
You might have heard that termbefore, but just in case you
haven't, an extinction burst iswhen a behavior actually gets
worse before it gets better andyes, this is a real thing.
This is not a sign that yourplan is failing.
It's a behavioral indicatorthat your plan is failing.
(16:57):
It's a behavioral indicator.
Dr Tim Shahan has done a lot ofwork on this and he explains
that when we stop reinforcing abehavior, let's say that when a
student throws a fit, we nolonger remove them from the
classroom.
Their brain isn't just going togive up right away, it's going
to tell them well, this used towork, maybe I just need to try
harder.
And so the behavior is going toramp up before it dies down.
(17:19):
So if you see that kind ofextinction burst, it doesn't
mean that the interventions youselected aren't working.
In fact, a lot of the timesit's a sign that the behavior is
losing power and the student isstill trying it to see if they
can get the same result.
So if you see that spike inbehavior after a new plan is put
(17:40):
in place, hold steady, beconsistent, assure your
coworkers is put in place.
Hold steady, be consistent,assure your co-workers.
The escalation may be part ofthe process and not a reason to
throw the whole thing out.
We need to commit to theseinterventions for at least four
weeks, which is what theliterature recommends, and then,
(18:02):
as we're implementing theseinterventions, we're collecting
the data, we're progressmonitoring.
We need to have some sort of adata system so that we can see
the changes in the targetedbehavior, looking at it
regularly and then adjusting theplan as needed.
Again, it does not have to bepretty, it could be tally marks.
(18:23):
On a sticky note, it reallydoesn't matter, as long as we
have a system for aggregatingthat later and nothing gets lost
in the shuffle.
And then, as we see, new needsemerge, if we see needs
intensify, whatever happens weneed to be sure that we're not
jumping to the next thing tooquickly.
Then we can review and adjust.
(18:44):
We can talk with teachers, ourbehavior personnel, parents,
admin, maybe the student,depending on their age, to
assess how effective the planhas been.
Do we need to adjust anything?
Does anything need to change?
Did it work?
Did it not work?
Do we need more time?
And then we need to schedulesome regular meetings to
(19:07):
continue reviewing the data anddiscussing the progress and then
, if the plan seems to beworking well, we're seeing that
consistent positive progress wewant then as a committee not
just you on your own, but as acommittee it's time to think
about reducing the intensity ofthe interventions.
We can start weaning the studentoff the supports.
(19:30):
This is really importantbecause the goal is not to have
these supports in place forever.
Right, the goal is to help thestudent build enough skills and
independence to not need us asmuch over time.
But weaning supports does notmean pulling the rug out from
underneath them all at once.
It has to be gradual andstrategic.
(19:53):
We could start by fading howoften the student checks in with
an adult, for instance.
Maybe they were checking inevery class period.
Then they weanan down to oncein the morning and once in the
afternoon, then to once a day.
Or we might reduce howfrequently the reinforcement is
delivered.
We might deliver reinforcementevery time we see the desired
(20:15):
behavior to start, but then wewean it down to every third or
fifth time.
This process sometimes is calledfading or thinning the
intervention.
So if you hear some of yourfolks talking about that, that's
what they're talking about.
We can also look at increasingthe student's ownership.
So instead of the teachersaying, hey, friend, looks like
(20:37):
you may need a break, thestudent begins to develop the
ability and capacity toself-monitor and request the
break themselves.
Now keep in mind, as we'relooking at thinning these
interventions, this part of theplan needs just as much
monitoring as the originalintervention did.
We want to make sure that theprogress sticks as the supports
(20:59):
are being pulled back and if westart to see signs of regression
, we adjust and we ramp thingsback up where needed and then we
try again.
And then, just as an aside Ithink this goes without saying,
but it's worth talking about weneed to be making sure that
we're providing ongoing supportand communication.
I've alluded to this, but thisis another place that I think we
(21:23):
drop the ball a lot at schools.
I don't think it's doneintentionally, it just kind of
happens because everybody on theschool campus is running a
million miles an hour.
Amen.
We all have hundreds of thingsto do and not everybody can keep
everything at the forefront oftheir mind all the time.
Sometimes certain situationsjust fall through the cracks,
(21:45):
and so we need to make sure that, as school counselors and
members of this behavior team,that we're maintaining
consistent communication withteachers and parents and support
staff.
We can be the glue that keepseverybody informed about the
student's progress, suggestingresources or identifying ways
(22:08):
that teachers can get trainedfor more support, and sometimes
it's just us giving someencouragement right and letting
the teacher know.
I see you, this is hard and Iget it, but I believe in you and
this is going to pay off.
So I hope that kind of givesyou a better idea of what's
involved with behaviorassessments and drafting
behavior plans.
It's certainly nothing that weare not qualified to provide in
(22:32):
school counseling, but thenagain it's really not something
that we should be expected toprovide not independently.
School counselors can serve asa beautiful addition to the
behavior intervention team.
We have a lot to contribute.
We are great at collaboratingand communicating across campus,
but we do not want to be thedefault behavior interventionist
(22:56):
if we can help it, but just incase you are called to be one,
because sometimes there's justnot anyone to do this kind of
stuff on our campuses.
Hopefully this has helpedclarify for you what's involved
in a behavior assessment anddeveloping a behavior plan.
And I will say, if thisconversation didn't quite check
(23:17):
all the boxes for you, becausethere is so much involved in
this, remember we always haveour School for School Counselors
Mastermind open and ready towelcome you.
You can find out more aboutthat at
schoolforschoolcounselorscom.
Slash mastermind, where we meeteach and every week for support
and consultation, includingbehavior intervention strategies
(23:40):
and building behavior plans.
I also want you to know thatinside the Mastermind we have
our Behavior InterventionPlaybook ready to go.
It is a checklist style one,two, three, four, five of
determining next steps forbehavior that's available
exclusively to our Mastermindmembers and is such a great help
(24:00):
when you're looking to buildthese plans, for giving you a
starting point and next steps.
All right, I'm going to end thisepisode here.
Thank you for pushing throughthis froggy, croaky voice that I
have this week.
I can't wait to get back withyou for the next episode, where
hopefully, I'll be a littleeasier to understand and am
(24:22):
going to have some additionalinsights for you about building
behavior plans and what happensnext.
So keep listening, but in themeantime, I hope you have the
best week.
Take care.
So let me guess, this past week you probably got
looped into another conversationabout students' behavior.
The teacher wanted it fixed,your admin wanted it documented
and somehow all of that landedsquarely on your plate and you
(00:20):
want to help.
But the last time somebody said, come up with a behavior plan,
you weren't given a single datapoint.
The students' needs weren'treally even taken into
consideration and the planbecame your full-time job.
Does that sound familiar?
In this episode we're going tobreak down what behavior
(00:43):
intervention plans are reallyabout, what works, what doesn't
work and how you can support theprocess without being
steamrolled by it.
I'm going to walk you throughthe entire behavior planning
process, step by step, and showyou where you fit in as a school
counselor, where you don't, andwhat to do when you're the only
(01:05):
one showing up with a plan thatactually makes any sense.
Let's talk behavior without theburnout.
Hey there, welcome back to theSchool for School Counselors
podcast.
Yes, it is me.
I'm a little raspy and a littlehoarse this week, but bound and
determined to bring you anotherpodcast episode.
(01:28):
I'm Steph Johnson, licensedprofessional counselor, veteran
educator of almost 30 years anda full-time school counselor.
Just like you.
The past few episodes havereally centered on bullying,
behavior intervention and ADHD,the who, the what, the when, the
(01:49):
where or the why, all thethings, why we shouldn't be the
only ones handling these and howto address them.
If we're considered the defaultbehavior interventionist on our
campus, all the things right.
In this episode, I'm going toshift gears just a little bit
and I want to talk aboutbehavior intervention plans.
(02:12):
Now let me say up front, I amnot a board-certified behavior
analyst, I am not a schoolpsychologist, but I do want to
kind of walk you through thegeneral framework as I
understand it, so you can get aclearer picture of what's
involved, because I thinksometimes we assume that if we
(02:33):
just label the behavior or wecome up with one thing to try in
addressing the behavior, thenboom, our job is done and
everything should be resolved.
But, as you probably knowalready, that's not how behavior
change typically works.
So, based on one of my all-timemost popular podcast episodes
(02:53):
back in 2023, we're going torevisit the process of
developing a behavior plan, oran official BIP, which stands
for Behavior Intervention Plan,just as a heads up before we get
started.
Different campuses anddifferent districts might have
their own procedures orprotocols for this, so don't
(03:14):
worry if I describe doesn'texactly match what you've seen
in your setting.
Our goal here really is tounderstand the general process
and how we fit into it.
Okay, so, first up, the initialassessment and observation.
This is where we try to get abaseline on what's really going
(03:36):
on, not just what people thinkis going on.
This step should involve lotsof people who are normally in
the student's environmentthroughout their day.
That could include classroomteachers, paraprofessionals,
even you as the school counselor, depending on the situation.
But the goal is to keep thingsas organic as possible, because
(04:01):
we know, if we put a new personin a classroom with a struggling
student, sometimes they actcompletely differently.
Right, it's like it's showtimeand they put on their best and
we're sitting in the backgroundsaying no, no, no, this is not
real life, right?
We want a real representativesnapshot of their behavior and
(04:23):
not a performance.
We're going to be looking todocument three things the
antecedents, which is whathappens before.
The behavior.
The behavior itself, exactlywhat happens.
And then the consequences ofthat behavior, what happened
exactly after.
And, as I say consequences, Idon't mean punitive consequences
(04:46):
in the classroom.
That's not what I'm talkingabout.
I'm not talking about breakinga rule and getting a penalty for
it.
I'm talking about the fallout.
What did the student get out ofthe behavior?
This process is sometimes calledthe ABC data antecedent,
behavior, consequence.
Get it, and it's a great toolfor understanding what might be
(05:08):
reinforcing the student'sbehavior.
We need to make sure that theseobservations happen across
different settings and differenttimes of the day, and it's not
enough to do this once or twice.
Chandler and Dahlquist 2015recommend collecting at least 10
to 15 data points acrossvarious settings, with a full
(05:32):
week of observation at minimum.
I'm going to be honest with youand I know this is going to
frustrate you to hear how manydata points need to be involved.
It's also going to frustratesome of the folks you work with,
because what they often want isto make you aware of the
behavior and have you swoop inand fix it.
(05:54):
But to create a meaningful plan, we need authentic and
consistent data, and that meanswe've got to get the teachers
invested in the collectionprocess, and y'all if you've
worked on a school campus forany amount of time, you know
sometimes that is easier saidthan done.
(06:16):
You may run into resistance.
Some teachers may feel likeit's not their job that data
collection should fall on yourshoulders.
Other people may just say Idon't have the time and honestly
, y'all they're not wrong.
Educators are maxed out andadding one more thing to their
day can feel insurmountable.
(06:37):
That's where oursolution-focused skills come in.
We have to be able to gentlyshift the narrative from one
more thing on your plate tohere's a small step that will
actually make things easier inthe long run.
Even getting teachers startedwith the super simple one-page
(06:59):
tracker can help.
Let them know it doesn't haveto be perfect.
It doesn't even have to be acertain piece of paper.
Sticky notes, tally marks,check boxes on the margins of a
worksheet it all counts.
The goal is progress and it isnot perfection.
If we walk up to these folksand expect expert-looking, clean
(07:22):
, color-coded graphs, y'all, weare going to lose them before we
even get started.
Help your staff feel successfulfrom the get-go.
Guide them in understandingthat their input is vital, no
matter how it is presented.
(07:44):
So after we've collected thatinitial observation data data,
we may be looking at a formalfunctional behavior assessment.
Typically you're going to seethese done by a behavior
specialist or a schoolpsychologist.
Less often you can see schoolcounselors do them.
It's not ideal, but sometimesthat's just the way things have
to roll.
According to ASCA's ethicalstandards, our primary role is
(08:08):
to support and not replacespecialists like behavior
analysts or school psychs whenit comes to evaluations.
But that being said, you knowand I know we don't often attain
the ideal on our campuses, sowe're going to do the best we
can.
Really, the whole point of thefunctional behavior assessment
is just to determine thefunction or the purpose of the
(08:31):
behavior.
So think back to your gradschool days.
See if you can remember yourfour functions of behavior.
I'll give you a minute.
Are they coming to you?
Okay, here they are, I'll helpyou out.
Escape, attention, tangibleitems, sensory needs.
(08:58):
So escape might look like astudent deciding they need to go
to the nurse every day whenmath starts.
Attention might be the studentthat is calling out in class for
laughs or they're looking for ateacher.
Reaction Tangible could be atantrum when they're denied
(09:19):
access to a preferred object.
Sensory might be humming ortapping or rocking as a way to
self-soothe.
We have to figure out what thepurpose of the behavior is that
the student is showing us in theclassroom.
What are they trying to gainfrom it?
And we're going to collectadditional data to try to
(09:43):
identify the triggers for that,maybe some possible patterns.
We're probably going to betalking with teachers and
parents, and sometimes even thestudent if it's appropriate,
just to gather some moreinformation and develop a full
picture of what the situationreally is.
So that's the second step inthis process, after we've done
(10:05):
our initial observation.
Then we've tried to determinethe function of the behavior.
The function of the behavior.
The next thing that we do is setclear goals and objectives, and
y'all this needs to be a teamapproach.
We have to have our teachers onboard.
(10:25):
If we have behavior specialists, we need to have them on board.
Parents need to be involved andwe need to establish goals for
one specific component ofbehavior.
You remember your SMART goals,right?
Specific, measurable,achievable, relevant and
time-bound.
So as a group, collectively,we're going to determine what
(10:47):
the desired behavior change is.
Keep in mind, this is wherethings fly off the rails so
often.
We cannot change all theproblem behaviors at once.
We cannot start with.
Student will not explode in theclassroom.
That's not going to help.
(11:09):
Instead, we've got to reallyhone in and fine-tune those
goals.
Student will request a breakusing a card or gesture and four
out of five opportunitiesacross two consecutive days.
That's something we can track.
We've got to pinpoint andreally identify on a super
(11:30):
granular level which behavior wewant to change first, and then
we want to make sure that thosegoals are something that we can
measure so that we can determineif we're making progress or not
.
I'll be real I think a lot ofpeople just try to throw any
intervention they can think ofat the student wait a couple of
(11:50):
days and then, if they don't seethe kind of movement they
wanted to see, they say, oh,that didn't work and they go on
to the next thing and they'renot really getting a true
picture of the intervention orthe behavior needs.
So be very, very careful aboutthat, okay.
So then, after we've set thosegoals and objectives, then we're
(12:11):
going to plan the intervention.
After we've set those goals andobjectives, then we're going to
plan the intervention.
We're going to look towardevidence-based interventions and
we're going to tailor those tothe students' needs and goals.
This is not the time for yourteachers pay teachers printables
.
While those may be quick fixesand you feel they're very
convenient, they rarely addressthe root causes of behavior.
(12:33):
Instead, we want to useinterventions that are grounded
in data and in peer-reviewedstudies.
You're probably getting tiredof hearing that from me, aren't
you?
But this is not the time forthose.
We need substantiallyevidence-based interventions.
There are several resourcesonline that you can go to to
(12:55):
start gathering some of those.
One of my favorites is the whatWorks Clearinghouse.
It is not a pretty website but,man, it is effective and we
need to make sure that whateverevidence-based interventions we
select match the function of thebehavior.
If we have someone who isattention seeking, how can we
provide that attention in abetter way?
(13:17):
How can we provide moreconsistent, positive
reinforcement for that studentso that they're not looking for
negative attention in anothersituation?
But far and away.
Again, I'm going to say the mostimportant part of this is that
whatever strategies you select,they need to be supported by
(13:37):
research and best practice.
So you select those strategiesand you create a plan that
outlines how those interventionsare going to be implemented in
different settings.
For instance, we've identifiedthese strategies we want to work
with with regard to thisstudent.
In the math classroom, it mightlook like this.
(13:58):
In the English classroom itlooks like this, and in the
physical education classroom itneeds to look like this.
We can even encourage parentsto buy in and try some of these
things at home.
Highly collaborative, right?
Because everywhere the studentgoes, we want them getting the
same consistent message.
So again, you see why theschool counselor should not be
(14:23):
the lone behavior interventionperson on campus.
It's just not going to work.
Then, after we've done all ofthat, we've done our observation
and collected our data points,we've made an educated guess
about the function or thepurpose of the behavior, we've
determined exactly what thedesired behavior change is and
(14:46):
we've identified evidence-basedinterventions.
To get us there, then we'regoing to implement them.
To get us there, then we'regoing to implement them.
This is going to involveeveryone Teachers, parents,
support staff, pretty muchanybody on campus that has
contact with this student.
We're going to put theintervention plan that you all
(15:07):
collectively wrote into actionand then we, as the school
counselor, can help monitor andencourage so that these
interventions are implementedconsistently.
In my opinion, this is where wemost often drop the ball in
schools.
We really have to make surethat we're being consistent with
(15:28):
this and that everyone who'ssupposed to be providing that
intervention is actually doingit.
Again, that's often a stickingpoint.
You have one or two people thatsay I'm not doing that, that's
not my job.
If they need that, they shouldbe somewhere else.
You ever heard anybody saysomething like that?
Yeah, so you're really going tohave to work hard to get some
(15:50):
of these folks to buy in.
You have to paint a picture forthem about how their life is
going to be easier if they'rewilling to do these things.
You're really going to have toalmost campaign to get this
thing to move and act like acheerleader in the background.
We can help provide clearinstructions to everybody about
how to apply these interventions.
(16:11):
We can check in to make surethey're not having any questions
or concerns through the process, and we can help continuously
monitor the student's progress.
We can identify changes inbehavior, not only positive
changes.
We may also see some negativechanges as well.
One negative change you mightsee is something called an
(16:32):
extinction burst.
You might have heard that termbefore, but just in case you
haven't, an extinction burst iswhen a behavior actually gets
worse before it gets better andyes, this is a real thing.
This is not a sign that yourplan is failing.
It's a behavioral indicatorthat your plan is failing.
(16:57):
It's a behavioral indicator.
Dr Tim Shahan has done a lot ofwork on this and he explains
that when we stop reinforcing abehavior, let's say that when a
student throws a fit, we nolonger remove them from the
classroom.
Their brain isn't just going togive up right away, it's going
to tell them well, this used towork, maybe I just need to try
harder.
And so the behavior is going toramp up before it dies down.
(17:19):
So if you see that kind ofextinction burst, it doesn't
mean that the interventions youselected aren't working.
In fact, a lot of the timesit's a sign that the behavior is
losing power and the student isstill trying it to see if they
can get the same result.
So if you see that spike inbehavior after a new plan is put
(17:40):
in place, hold steady, beconsistent, assure your
coworkers is put in place.
Hold steady, be consistent,assure your co-workers.
The escalation may be part ofthe process and not a reason to
throw the whole thing out.
We need to commit to theseinterventions for at least four
weeks, which is what theliterature recommends, and then,
(18:02):
as we're implementing theseinterventions, we're collecting
the data, we're progressmonitoring.
We need to have some sort of adata system so that we can see
the changes in the targetedbehavior, looking at it
regularly and then adjusting theplan as needed.
Again, it does not have to bepretty, it could be tally marks.
(18:23):
On a sticky note, it reallydoesn't matter, as long as we
have a system for aggregatingthat later and nothing gets lost
in the shuffle.
And then, as we see, new needsemerge, if we see needs
intensify, whatever happens weneed to be sure that we're not
jumping to the next thing tooquickly.
Then we can review and adjust.
(18:44):
We can talk with teachers, ourbehavior personnel, parents,
admin, maybe the student,depending on their age, to
assess how effective the planhas been.
Do we need to adjust anything?
Does anything need to change?
Did it work?
Did it not work?
Do we need more time?
And then we need to schedulesome regular meetings to
(19:07):
continue reviewing the data anddiscussing the progress and then
, if the plan seems to beworking well, we're seeing that
consistent positive progress wewant then as a committee not
just you on your own, but as acommittee it's time to think
about reducing the intensity ofthe interventions.
We can start weaning the studentoff the supports.
(19:30):
This is really importantbecause the goal is not to have
these supports in place forever.
Right, the goal is to help thestudent build enough skills and
independence to not need us asmuch over time.
But weaning supports does notmean pulling the rug out from
underneath them all at once.
It has to be gradual andstrategic.
(19:53):
We could start by fading howoften the student checks in with
an adult, for instance.
Maybe they were checking inevery class period.
Then they weanan down to oncein the morning and once in the
afternoon, then to once a day.
Or we might reduce howfrequently the reinforcement is
delivered.
We might deliver reinforcementevery time we see the desired
(20:15):
behavior to start, but then wewean it down to every third or
fifth time.
This process sometimes is calledfading or thinning the
intervention.
So if you hear some of yourfolks talking about that, that's
what they're talking about.
We can also look at increasingthe student's ownership.
So instead of the teachersaying, hey, friend, looks like
(20:37):
you may need a break, thestudent begins to develop the
ability and capacity toself-monitor and request the
break themselves.
Now keep in mind, as we'relooking at thinning these
interventions, this part of theplan needs just as much
monitoring as the originalintervention did.
We want to make sure that theprogress sticks as the supports
(20:59):
are being pulled back and if westart to see signs of regression
, we adjust and we ramp thingsback up where needed and then we
try again.
And then, just as an aside Ithink this goes without saying,
but it's worth talking about weneed to be making sure that
we're providing ongoing supportand communication.
I've alluded to this, but thisis another place that I think we
(21:23):
drop the ball a lot at schools.
I don't think it's doneintentionally, it just kind of
happens because everybody on theschool campus is running a
million miles an hour.
Amen.
We all have hundreds of thingsto do and not everybody can keep
everything at the forefront oftheir mind all the time.
Sometimes certain situationsjust fall through the cracks,
(21:45):
and so we need to make sure that, as school counselors and
members of this behavior team,that we're maintaining
consistent communication withteachers and parents and support
staff.
We can be the glue that keepseverybody informed about the
student's progress, suggestingresources or identifying ways
(22:08):
that teachers can get trainedfor more support, and sometimes
it's just us giving someencouragement right and letting
the teacher know.
I see you, this is hard and Iget it, but I believe in you and
this is going to pay off.
So I hope that kind of givesyou a better idea of what's
involved with behaviorassessments and drafting
behavior plans.
It's certainly nothing that weare not qualified to provide in
(22:32):
school counseling, but thenagain it's really not something
that we should be expected toprovide not independently.
School counselors can serve asa beautiful addition to the
behavior intervention team.
We have a lot to contribute.
We are great at collaboratingand communicating across campus,
but we do not want to be thedefault behavior interventionist
(22:56):
if we can help it, but just incase you are called to be one,
because sometimes there's justnot anyone to do this kind of
stuff on our campuses.
Hopefully this has helpedclarify for you what's involved
in a behavior assessment anddeveloping a behavior plan.
And I will say, if thisconversation didn't quite check
(23:17):
all the boxes for you, becausethere is so much involved in
this, remember we always haveour School for School Counselors
Mastermind open and ready towelcome you.
You can find out more aboutthat at
schoolforschoolcounselorscom.
Slash mastermind, where we meeteach and every week for support
and consultation, includingbehavior intervention strategies
(23:40):
and building behavior plans.
I also want you to know thatinside the Mastermind we have
our Behavior InterventionPlaybook ready to go.
It is a checklist style one,two, three, four, five of
determining next steps forbehavior that's available
exclusively to our Mastermindmembers and is such a great help
(24:00):
when you're looking to buildthese plans, for giving you a
starting point and next steps.
All right, I'm going to end thisepisode here.
Thank you for pushing throughthis froggy, croaky voice that I
have this week.
I can't wait to get back withyou for the next episode, where
hopefully, I'll be a littleeasier to understand and am
(24:22):
going to have some additionalinsights for you about building
behavior plans and what happensnext.
So keep listening, but in themeantime, I hope you have the
best week.
Take care.
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