Class-wide academic performance can be increased by overlaying existing instructional and classroom management procedures with supplemental interdependent group-oriented bonus rewards. The bonus reward strategies may be particularly effective for under-motivated, low-performing students. When applying supplemental interdependent group-oriented…

A tremendous amount of evidence supports the importance of building relationships between educators and students (Kincaide et al., 2020). Because of this, there is an emerging focus in both research and practice on how student-teacher relationships are assessed, the impact of these relationships on student outcomes, and methods for building and…

Children on the autism spectrum often experience difficulty generalizing social skills across environments and contexts, which can make developing friendships challenging in early childhood. This means that, in addition to initial social skills instruction, children with autism may need specialized supports to promote the generalization of newly…

For all children and youth, language underpins success in academic, social, and behavioral interactions. For students with language deficits, even seemingly simple tasks can be challenging and frustrating. Perhaps not surprising, children with language deficits often exhibit high rates of problem behavior, and children with behavior disorders tend…

Many teachers struggle with effectively managing challenging behavior, which occurs in the majority of classrooms serving young children. Teachers of young children (ages 3-8) commonly cite noncompliance, aggression, disruptive behavior, and poor social skills as being among the most challenging behaviors (Snell et al., 2012). For many of these…

Applied behavior analysis (ABA), or the application of behavioral principles to important social issues, has long served a crucial role in programming for special education students. Its procedures have been well established in the research literature and many deemed as evidence-based practices for students with and without disabilities.…

Effective and engaging instruction is the cornerstone of any well-managed classroom. Even the best behavior support practices will not lead to academic achievement if the academic instruction is ineffective. Specific teacher practices associated with improved student behavior include high rates of opportunities to respond, direct instruction, and…

Food selectivity is the most commonly reported feeding problem in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD.) Schreck et al. (2004) surveyed 472 caregivers of children between 5 and 12 years of age. They found that 72% of those children diagnosed with ASD had feeding difficulties, significantly higher than same-age peers without ASD.…

Disruptive behaviors are some of the most commonly presented concerns in the classroom. Without intervention, such difficulties may lead to higher teacher frustration and a higher rate of negative teacher feedback, and they may interfere with students' learning opportunities and result in poorer academic and life adjustment outcomes (Landrum,…

Schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports (SWPBIS) are an increasingly popular framework for school improvement practices, but many high schools are still lagging behind their elementary counterparts. High school leadership teams can struggle with merging the SWPBIS framework with current operations, and there are limited examples of…

A teacher serves many important roles within a classroom, including an educator and a manager of child behavior. Inattention, overactivity, and noncompliance have long been cited as some of the most common areas of reported difficulty for schools (Axelrod & Zank, 2012; Goldstein, 1995). The evidence-based practice of positive attending (i.e.,…

Check in/check out (CICO) is a secondary-tier intervention implemented within the framework of schoolwide positive behavior interventions and supports (SWPBIS) that uses school-based contingencies to encourage positive behavior. CICO is a five-step cycle which uses daily progress report cards (DPR) to monitor progress toward schoolwide or…

Schools are changing rapidly, and the pressure is on to find ways to effectively support the growing diversity of student needs found in general education classrooms. Urban high schools, which serve students of diverse backgrounds, are in dire need of proactive approaches to discipline that will support student behavior rather than remove them…

Organizational difficulties are major obstacles for many students with learning and behavior problems. These students often neglect to separate notebooks into various subject areas, forget to bring necessary items to class, and stuff assignments randomly into their book bags and pockets. Students' disorganization, including their inability to keep…

Classrooms are dynamic environments in which teachers and students engage in ongoing reciprocal interactions throughout the school day. Classes that include classwide effective intervention practices are likely to have positive teacher-student interactions and to promote student learning and engagement while minimizing problem behaviors. However,…