Missouri Schoolwide Positive Behavior Support (MO SW-PBS), with support from the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), has provided training and support to build local capacity and positively impact student outcomes. Numerous years of descriptive data and a recent peer-reviewed research article both show the effects of…

This evaluation brief describes how a district in receivership (state takeover) invested in PBIS to (a) enhance their systems to support staff, (b) implement evidence-based practices to support students, (c) use data to guide their implementation, and (d) ensure equitable supports for all students, including students with disabilities, to…

A majority of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), particularly those served in alternative educational settings, have a history of trauma exposure before placement. Evidence-based interventions such as Check-In/Check-Out (CICO) may be more effective for these students if the interventions are systematically adapted to include…

Despite the long-term negative outcomes associated with restraining and secluding students, these practices are frequently used in schools, with disproportionate use on students with disabilities. Based on recent guidance from the U.S. Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, misusing these practices violates student rights under the Americans…

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) generally have behavior support plans that are based on a functional behavioral assessment. This article provides educators practical guidelines for conducting a "multiple stimulus without replacement" (MSWO) preference assessment to rank order preferred activities that will align…

Schools that employ evidence-based multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) frameworks, like Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), invest in core system, data, and practice features to support students, families, and educators. A strong framework enables settings to enhance and adjust their implementation to meet the needs of all…

This brief describes how educators use a function-based approach to (a) prevent contextually inappropriate behaviors and (b) teach and encourage social, emotional, and behavioral skills throughout the PBIS continuum of support. In addition, this brief highlights critical features of effective functional behavioral assessment (FBA) and behavior…

This document provides information to contextualize Positive Behavioral Interventions & Support (PBIS) in the classroom for deaf students to better address unique needs and create more effective learning environments. Guided by PBIS core features, "top ten" practices are identified to support and respond to students' social,…

Students with disabilities are more likely to experience exclusionary and reactive discipline practices than students without disabilities. Fortunately, when educators implement positive, proactive, and evidence-based practices within a Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) framework, students with disabilities benefit. In this…

Positive behaviour support and schoolwide positive behavioural interventions and supports (PBIS) emerged in response to the misuse of behavioural theory and ableism in educational systems. Yet even with these advances, inequitable outcomes based on ability and race persist. The purpose of this article is to describe an equity-centred schoolwide…

The COVID-19 pandemic has complicated the identification and delivery of special education services for students across the United States. Many students, regardless of previous disability status, are demonstrating increased academic, social-emotional, and medical needs in school in response to instructional disruptions and other impacts of the…

The most common behaviors eliciting a student referral for special education evaluation related to emotional disturbance (ED) are adult- and peer-targeted aggression. Curiously, the word aggression, which is an externalizing behavior, does not appear anywhere in the federal description of ED. Despite the lack of clarity surrounding definitions, as…

The term positive behaviour support (PBS) is used to describe the integration of the contemporary ideology of disability service provision with the clinical framework of applied behaviour analysis (ABA). Assent, the participation consent of those not legally able to consent, has gained recent popularity in the fields of ABA and PBS. The goal of…

Early childhood education teachers often feel underprepared for addressing behavior challenges in the classroom. This can limit a teacher's ability to teach academic and social skills and lead to interruptions in their educational experience such as suspensions or expulsions. Effective planning can help teachers create and manage positive learning…

Trauma-informed care (TIC) is the practice of consciousness and awareness of trauma that guides educators in developing academic and behavioral support for students with exceptionalities who have experienced trauma. TIC can support students from the lens of Positive Behavioral Intervention Supports (PBIS) and Social Emotional Learning (SEL) within…