Pennsylvania schools are under pressure to meet academic growth and achievement standards set forth by the Commonwealth. Due to these high-stakes, schools are always looking for ways to improve academics to not only meet the needs of students, but also the expectations put forth at the state level. The proposed research study examined if a…

This study examined the use of a Positive Behavioral Intervention System (PBIS) to promote a positive school culture. PBIS focuses on promoting a positive school culture through behavioral interventions specific to the school, and providing feedback to students to reinforce positive behaviors (Contractor & Staats, 2014). The study focuses on…

This study examined the use of a Positive Behavioral Intervention System (PBIS) to promote a positive school culture. PBIS focuses on promoting a positive school culture through behavioral interventions specific to the school, and providing feedback to students to reinforce positive behaviors (Contractor & Staats, 2014). The study focuses on…

School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) is a multi-tiered system of student support that emphasizes the use of positive behavior strategies for a school's students. Schools are adopting SWPBIS because it gives staff the opportunity to teach desired behaviors to students and emphasizes the enhancement of instructional time…

Many paraeducators have no formal education beyond high school and are provided with minimal training once on the job. Furthermore, as more schools turn to inclusionary practices, the impetus for highly qualified paraeducators becomes more important. However, little research has examined efficient ways to train paraeducators who work in inclusive…

In collaboration with an urban public school, teacher candidates at a nearby university created a social-emotional skills project called Knight Brigade. The author discusses the project planning, implementation, and results as part of this ongoing partnership.

The purpose of this project was to examine the effect of the implementation of the Mystery Motivator intervention as an interdependent group contingency to decrease disruptive behavior in an urban eighth-grade general education science classroom. The study was conducted using an A-B changing criterion design. The effectiveness of the intervention…

Pennsylvania began scaling up high-fidelity implementation of SchoolWide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (SWPBIS) in 2006-2007 due to converging regulatory, legal, ethical, and practical influences. The Pennsylvania Community of Practice on School-Based Behavioral Health adopted Algozzine et al.'s (2010) blueprint to describe and…

Acting out behaviors is a hindrance to learning across the country. The school-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) model is a behaviorally-based systems approach to addressing problem behaviors in our school today. The problem this study is designed to address is the issue that student misbehaviors and disruptions cause a loss of valuable…

Many adolescent disruptive youth in Pennsylvania are removed from traditional school settings for externalizing behaviors including aggression, defying authority, poor relationships with peers and adults, disruptive behaviors, and bullying. Post-school outcomes of adolescent disruptive youth remain dismal, and these students are the most…