CPAC Connecticut Parent Advocacy Center
Connecticut's Resource for Children with Disabilities Connecticut Parent Advocacy Center
Connecticut's Resource for Children with Disabilities;
Empowering and Educating Families

Challenging Behavior

What is Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)?

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) can be used for individual students and as a school-wide effort.

PBIS is a comprehensive approach to challenging behavior which attempts to understand the reason or function of the behavior. One of the primary differences between PBIS and traditional approaches to behavior is that in PBIS it is assumed that the student HAS a problem, rather than that the student IS the problem. When we seek to help the student with their problem we can start to reduce the challenging behavior.

In PBIS, a student's behavior is looked at in the situation where it occurs. Many factors are considered when trying to determine the function of the behavior. Some possible issues to be reviewed may include: environment, adult response to the behavior, consequence for the behavior, possible trigger for the behavior, or whether the student has the skills to meet expected appropriate behavior. The study of the purpose of a student's challenging behavior is called a Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) After careful review, interventions should be designed to replace the challenging behavior with more appropriate behavior while still meeting the student's needs. For example, one reason a student may engage in loud disruptive behavior may be for attention. If the student can be taught a more appropriate way to get the attention they need, they would no longer need to engage in a challenging behavior to get that need met. It is essential that the interventions used are done from a positive perspective and are culturally responsive.

For more information on school-wide PBS visit www.PBIS.org

Understanding Challenging Behavior in Young Children

• "Promoting Social and Emotional Competence" Training Modules
  Developed by the Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning
• "Positive Solutions for Families: Eight Practical Tips for Parents of Young Children with Challenging Behavior"
• Technical Assistance Center on Social Emotional Intervention for Young Children
• Center for the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning: What Works Briefs

Additional Resources

For further information on PBIS, please read the following articles, browse the PowerPoint presentations and visit the websites listed below.

Articles

• 2009 Parental Notification of the Laws Relating to Seclusion and Restraint in the Public Schools
• Functional Behavioral Assessment and Positive Intervention: What Parents Need to Know
• Guidelines for In-School and Out-of-School Suspensions
• IES Practice Guide for Reducing Behavior Problems in the Elementary School Classroom
• SPEAK OUT Focus on Behavior
• Response to Intervention (RTI) and PBIS
• Social Skills Instruction
• Teaching Discipline: A Toolkit for Educators on Positive Alternatives to Out-of-School Suspensions
• Teaching Transitions: Techniques for Promoting Success Between Lessons
• What Works for Acting Out Behavior: Lessons from Experimental Evaluations of Social Interventions
• Evidence Base for Positive Behavioral Supports

Websites

• Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL)
• National Technical Assistance Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
• New Hampshire Center for Effective Behavioral Interventions and Supports (NH CEBIS)

Video

• Rights of Special Education Students: Discipline created by CTLawHelp.org