Positive behavior support (PBS) has been a dynamic and growing enterprise for more than 25 years. During this period, PBS has expanded applications across a wide range of populations and multiple levels of implementation. As a result, there have been understandable inconsistencies and confusion regarding the definition of PBS. In this essay, we…

This article describes the emergence and influence of evidence-based practice and data-based decision making in educational systems. Increasingly, educators and consumers want to know that resources allocated to educational efforts yield strong effects for all learners. This trend is reflected by the widespread influence of evidence-based practice…

Research suggests that families with children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) experience increased stress and challenges compared with families of typically developing children. We highlight the need for family-centered approaches to reduce family stress, and we elaborate on some of the most central universal needs for families with a child…

This article describes an effective model for employing paraprofessionals to provide behavioral support for students in a general education setting. Behavioral health assistants (BHAs) worked under the supervision of school psychologists and counselors and provided behavioral interventions for students with behavioral goals on their individualized…

As educators move into a new era of educational reform, it becomes imperative that teachers use evidence-based instructional practices shown to be effective for students with disabilities. One area that plays a role in this process is secondary transition. The National Secondary Transition Technical Assistance Center has identified 63…

Several statewide evaluations of Tier 1/Universal Level Positive Behavior Support (PBS) implementation efforts have been conducted, adhering to the evaluation template developed by Horner, Sugai, and Lewis-Palmer in 2005. Building on these examples, Florida's Positive Behavior Support Project developed a comprehensive evaluation system that sought…

The authors discuss how to use economic techniques to evaluate educational programs and show how to apply basic cost analysis to implementation of school-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS). A description of cost analysis concepts used for economic program evaluation is provided, emphasizing the suitability of these concepts for evaluating…

As more and more schools adopt school-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) as a model for school improvement and the success of initial demonstration sites becomes evident, districts are faced with expansion and sustainability issues. Careful planning of these implementation efforts requires district personnel to be familiar with the resources…

The primary goal of this project was to increase schools' resources and staff skills in providing function-based behavior support to individual students with chronic problem behaviors. Over the course of a 3-year period, 10 school teams received training in and on-site consultation on functional behavioral assessment (FBA) and behavior support…

Although there is a substantial empirical foundation for the basic intervention components of behavior analysis and positive behavior support (PBS), the field still lacks a standardized program model of individualized PBS suitable for widespread application by school personnel. This article provides a description of a standardized PBS model that…

The purpose of this article is to describe the development and 10-year implementation of the effective behavior and instructional support model in a midsized northwestern Oregon school district. The district experienced a sustained reduction in students' discipline referral rates, an increase in the percentage of students on track for early…

In positive behavior support (PBS) practices, one critical issue involves helping professionals understand and respect the values of families from culturally diverse backgrounds. This article summarizes embedded cultural values of PBS represented in four key features of the PBS process: collaborative partnerships, functional assessment, contextual…

Even though children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be reliably identified by autism experts at 18 months, and the majority of parents report symptoms before age 2, the average age of diagnosis for children with autism in the United States is 3 to 4 years of age. Early identification is especially vital given the growing amount of…