Faculty: Paul Caldarella

This study investigated the effects of a Tier 3 peer-matching self-management intervention on two elementary school students who had previously been less responsive to Tier 1 and Tier 2 interventions. The Tier 3 self-management intervention, which was implemented in the general education classrooms, included daily electronic communication between the teachers and the children’s parents. Results indicated that this intervention effectively reduced disruptive behaviors and increased total engagement when implemented with integrity; without integrity results were variable.

Dropping out of high school has negative results and implications for individuals and society. The likelihood of dropping out is attributed to both social and academic risk factors. Poor high school attendance, low course completion, and low grade-point-average (GPA) have been identified as three leading indicators that students are at risk for dropout. Early identification of at-risk high school students is critical during the first semester of ninth grade. This study utilized a single case study design with embedded quantitative statistical analyses to understand the characteristics of 416 students transitioning from three middle schools to a large suburban high school. Regression analyses were used to examine the relationship of 12 middle school indicators to ninth grade attendance, course completion, and GPA. Findings indicated that middle school GPA, grades, attendance, and ACT math scores were all strong predictors of ninth grade performance. Using these middle school risk indicators, ninth grade students at risk of school failure may be identified early and provided interventions during their first year of high school.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a multisensory phonics-based reading remediation program with juvenile delinquent poor readers at a residential treatment center. This study employed a pretest-posttest control-group design with random assignment. The treatment group (n = 10) participated in a 30-hour multisensory phonics reading intervention over the course of eight weeks: The control group (n = 10) received standard reading instruction. Both groups completed pretest and posttest norm-referenced reading measures to evaluate gain in reading skills. Results indicated that the treatment group showed significantly greater gains in reading skills as compared to the control group. Students with higher pre-intervention reading scores and those with higher verbal IQ appeared to respond more favorably to the reading intervention. Implications and limitations of this study are addressed.

Comprehensive evidence-based interventions are needed to help early childhood educators manage challenging student behaviors. One such intervention, class-wide function-related intervention teams (CW-FIT), is a multi-tiered behavioral intervention program based on positive behavior support principles, including four main elements: (a) teaching socially appropriate communication skills, (b) using differential reinforcement with an interdependent group contingency, (c) extinguishing or eliminating potential reinforcement for problem behavior, and (d) implementing individual interventions using self-management, help cards, and/or functional assessment. This study implemented CW-FIT with five kindergarten through second grade teachers. Results demonstrated efficacy of the program as early childhood teachers increased their praise rates and decreased their reprimand rates, and students responded with increased on-task behavior and fewer classroom disruptions. Study implications and limitations are addressed.

Literacy coaching, an effective professional development strategy for early childhood teachers, is a respected component in educational reform initiatives. This qualitative case study explored and described interactive processes between literacy coaches and Kindergarten teachers. In particular, this study focused on how established kindergarten teachers in four, diverse, rural impoverished schools in the southeastern United States exhibited initial resistance to literacy coaching. The data suggested that although relationship-focused strategies were important for all teachers, these strategies were essential for low-implementing, initially resistant teachers. Additionally, teachers who were low-implementing, initially resistant required intensive strategies to address cross-cultural challenges and to leverage principal’s support in positive ways. Although building relationships required trust, improving teaching skills required navigating resistance and bridging differences between the coach and teacher.

Although many educators are familiar with a suggested 3:1 or 4:1 praise-to-reprimand ratio (PRR), relatively little research has been conducted on this subject. Three years of data collected across three states in the United States, from 19 elementary schools and 151 classrooms, during a multi-site efficacy trial were used to analyse the effect of teachers' PRRs on their students’ on-task behaviour. Although no PRR threshold (e.g. 3:1, 4:1) was found where behaviour dramatically improved, a positive linear relationship was evident, showing that the higher the teachers' PRR, the higher the students' on-task behaviour percentage. Limitations and implications are discussed.

Classroom management is commonly challenging in middle schools. Class-wide function-related intervention teams (CW-FIT) is a multitiered intervention designed to decrease problem behaviors at the classroom level. It is comprised of evidence-based practices such as teaching classroom expectations, increasing teacher praise, and using positive reinforcement in an interdependent group contingency. CW-FIT has shown promise in a variety of school settings, but it has not been tested in middle school art classrooms. This initial investigation examined the effects of CW-FIT using a single-subject ABAB design in two middle school art classrooms. Results indicated that class on-task behavior increased by more than 25% and teacher praise-to-reprimand ratios more than doubled during CW-FIT implementation compared with baseline levels. Results also indicated that on-task behavior for students identified as at risk for behavioral disorders improved by more than 18% during the intervention. Teachers and students found the intervention to be socially valid. The resulting implications were promising for using CW-FIT in other middle school art classrooms.

Instruction and training in social and emotional learning (SEL) is an important component in addressing the emotional and behavioral needs of students. This study is the first to examine whether Strong Kids, an SEL program, delivered school-wide in all classrooms, could result in decreased internalizing behaviors and increased prosocial behaviors for both at-risk and general education students. This study also evaluated whether teachers could implement Strong Kids as designed and whether they viewed it as socially valid. A non-equivalent control group design was used. The treatment school consisted of 348 student participants and 17 teacher participants in grades K–6. The control school consisted of 266 student participants and 11 teacher participants in grades K–6. Pretest and posttest teacher ratings revealed significant decreases in students’ internalizing behaviors at the treatment school, while these behaviors increased at the control school. Students at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders improved significantly more than those not at risk on ratings of internalizing symptoms and prosocial behaviors, even when the intervention was delivered school-wide in all classrooms. Teachers were able to implement Strong Kids with a high level of fidelity and they held moderately favorable views of the program.

Many teachers resort to using reprimands in attempts to stop disruptive student behavior, particularly by students with emotional or behavioral problems, although this may not be effective. This study examined short-term longitudinal data on teacher reprimands of 149 teachers in 19 different elementary schools across three states, as well as disruptive behavior and classroom engagement of 311 students considered at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. A cross-lag analysis showed that teacher reprimands did not decrease students’ future disruptive behavior or increase their engagement or vice versa. While teacher reprimands may suppress misbehavior momentarily, they do not appear to be effective in decreasing students’ disruptive behavior or increasing their engagement over time. Limitations and implications are discussed.

Professional learning communities (PLCs) are an increasingly popular strategy for improving schools. While PLCs routinely implement universal academic screening, they seldom screen for emotional and behavioral problems. This is unfortunate, as the early signs of emotional and behavioral disorders can be identified and interventions developed. The purpose of this study was to examine the social validity of the Systematic Screening for Behavioral Disorders (SSBD) implemented in three professional development elementary schools in an intermountain state of the U.S. After using the SSBD in their schools for one year, 75 teachers were surveyed, Results suggested that participants (a) valued the SSBD process, (b) considered screening to be feasible and acceptable, (c) expanded their knowledge and skills regarding student emotional and behavioral issues, but (d) needed more training and support for planning appropriate interventions for at-risk students. Implications and limitations of this study are addressed.

Adolescence can be a particularly difficult time for youth as they experience the physical, social, and academic changes that accompany developing maturity. One of the most critical challenges for schools is teaching adolescent students positive social and emotional skills, which are crucial for them to succeed academically and emotionally. Strong Kids is a social-emotional learning curriculum designed to reduce students’ internalizing symptoms. Strong Kids has shown promise in elementary schools; this was the first study to evaluate the newly updated version of the program in a middle school setting. Two general education teachers implemented the curriculum with eight students at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. Researchers used a mixed methods design to evaluate outcomes. Findings suggest that Strong Kids was effective at improving students’ social-emotional knowledge and internalizing symptoms; however, there were no significant changes in their externalizing symptoms.

Adolescents encounter a variety of challenges and risk factors that can result in adversity or unsafe behaviors often associated with mental health problems. However, the attribute of resilience can potentially buffer the effects of such risk factors. Sports participation, a form of activity available to a large number of adolescents through school and community programs, may foster resilience. This study compared the resilience levels of adolescents who participated in sports (n = 214) with the resilience levels of peers not participating in sports (n = 62), as reported by parents. Structural equation modeling was used to answer the research questions. Adolescents who participated in youth sports had significantly higher levels of parent-reported resilience (self-regulation/responsibility, social competence, and empathy) than adolescents who did not participate. High school sports predicted higher self-regulation/responsibility, while sports sponsored by recreation facilities predicted greater empathy and social competence. Finally, results demonstrated a positive relationship between the number of sports played and increased resilience scores. Implications and limitations of this study are included.

During the transition from elementary to middle school, adolescents may become increasingly vulnerable for emotional and behavioral problems. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams for middle school (CW-FIT MS), the independent variable examined in this study, was developed to improve teaching and learning by fostering student engagement. The study’s purpose was to examine the feasibility and effects of CW-FIT MS Tier 1 implementation across nine middle school classes using a single-subject ABAB withdrawal design. Participants were 234 students in grades 6-8, including 23 identified as at risk for emotional behavioral disorders. Results of CW-FIT MS Tier 1 implementation showed significant improvement in on-task behavior for groups as well as individual target students, increased teacher praise-to-reprimand ratios, and decreased target student disruptions. Outcomes of social validity surveys were consistent with earlier studies. Study findings extend previous results by demonstrating positive intervention effects in novel settings with a greater number of participants. Study limitations and areas for future research are discussed.

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) often receive low rates of teacher praise and high rates of teacher reprimands, though they may respond more positively to praise and more negatively to reprimands than their typically developing peers. Teacher praise-to-reprimand ratios (PRRs) are associated with increased student engagement, but more research is necessary to further explore how these ratios affect student behavior, particularly for students with or at risk for EBD. Commonly 3:1 or 4:1 is recommended as a desirable PRR, but students with EBD may need higher ratios to improve their classroom behavior. In our study of 540 students and 149 teachers, we found that as teacher PRR increased the engagement of at-risk students increased, though engagement for typically developing peers did not. A PRR of approximately 9:1 was needed for students at risk for EBD to approximate the engagement levels of their typically developing peers. No effect of PRR on disruption rates was found for either student category.

Classroom management is commonly challenging in middle schools. Class-wide function-related intervention teams (CW-FIT) is a multi-tiered intervention designed to decrease problem behaviors at the classroom level. It is comprised of evidence-based practices such as teaching classroom expectations, increasing teacher praise, and using positive reinforcement in an interdependent group contingency. CW-FIT has shown promise in a variety of school settings, but it has not been tested in middle school art classrooms. This initial investigation examined the effects of CW-FIT using a single-subject ABAB design in two middle school art classrooms. Results indicated that class on-task behavior increased by more than 25% and teacher praise-to-reprimand ratios more than doubled during CW-FIT implementation compared to baseline levels. Results also indicated that on-task behavior for students identified as at risk for behavioral disorders improved by more than 18% during the intervention. Teachers and students found the intervention to be socially valid. Resulting implications were

The Brigham Young University-Public School Partnership (BYU-PSP) has been serving K-12 public schools in Utah for 28 years. The Partnership includes five school districts, BYU’s David O. McKay School of Education, and the seven arts and sciences colleges at BYU that participate in preparing teachers. This paper describes the structure of the Partnership and explains how the nine essential elements of professional development schools are implemented within this partnership agreement The BYU-PSP is unusual among professional development school partnerships due to its size, scope, and longevity. All schools within the BYU-PSP districts are considered Partnership schools, but some participate more fully in the preparation of teachers, school psychologists, and administrators than others. One of the strengths of the Partnership is that it provides over 40 preservice and inservice professional development programs. Insights and lessons learned are shared, with a particular focus on long-term sustainability of school-university partnerships.

Implementing social media in college classrooms can substantially
enhance learning: facilitating teacher-student and student-peer communication; providing access to the professor- and student-posted information along with the resources of the internet, and promoting collaborative and responsive learning in many forms. But the excessive, unwise, or inconsiderate use of social media in the classroom can detract from the learning of the user and her classmates. A population of 447 undergraduate students enrolled in a college of fine arts and communications, completed an online survey created to explore their levels of social media use and their perceptions of how social media were contributing to and distracting from their education. Responses revealed that these students accessed their social media accounts an average of 32 times a day, yet a majority of them did not consider social media important to their formal education, and many found it to be distracting.

Transitioning from elementary to middle school is a time of particular vulnerability for students with behavior problems. This study examined the effects of class-wide function-related intervention teams (CW-FIT) in three middle school classrooms to determine whether this multitiered intervention could help teachers proactively manage student behavior. With a focus on teaching classroom expectations, delivering behavior-specific praise, and providing differential reinforcement within an interdependent group contingency, CW-FIT is designed to teach functional replacement behaviors that support students’ academic engagement. Intervention effects were assessed with seventh- and eighthgrade students from diverse backgrounds. Results, evaluated using a single-subject withdrawal (ABAB) design, indicated improved rates of on-task behavior at both class-wide and individual student levels, with corresponding increases in teacher praise and decreases in teacher reprimands. The positive way in which participants viewed CW-FIT implementation and its accompanying effects on student behaviors was consistent with earlier findings in elementary schools. Study limitations and areas for future research are discussed.

Function-based support (FBS) is an intervention strategy for decreasing problem behaviors and increasing replacement behaviors through the use of functional behavioral assessment and behavior support planning. Although FBS has been demonstrated to facilitate positive outcomes for children in a variety of educational settings, it has yet to be widely adopted by general educators as a pre-referral intervention strategy. This series of single-subject studies reports the ongoing development and validation of a method for training general educators to successfully and independently implement FBS as a pre-referral intervention for at-risk students in their classes. These studies highlight the experiences of one teacher who participated in three training phases and implemented FBS with three at-risk students. Results suggest that training was effective as indicated by knowledge gains regarding FBS principles and procedures, successful mastery and application of FBS practices, positive student outcomes, and favorable teacher and student perceptions of social validity. The implications and limitations of these results as well as future directions for this line of research are also discussed.

This study investigated the effects of varying opportunities to respond when using a behavior management program with three elementary school students with developmental disabilities in a small group special education setting. These students exhibited both academic and behavioral difficulties. With the implementation of Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) with low opportunities to respond (OTR), students increased their active engagement and correct responses, as well as decreased their disruptive behaviors. When CW-FIT with high OTR was implemented, students showed an even greater improvement than CW-FIT with low OTR. Higher rates of OTR resulted in higher levels of active engagement and correct responses and decreases in disruptive behavior for all three students. These results indicate that CW-FIT in combination with high OTR can help elementary school teachers manage students’ behavior and increase students’ correct responding when implemented in a small group special education setting.

Classroom management is a significant challenge for school teachers and administrators, often rated as the primary area of concern for first-year teachers and the most common reason many choose to leave the profession. Recently there has been an increased interest in social and emotional learning and its’ relationship to improved student behavior, academic outcomes, and emotional health, particularly during the early childhood years. This study examined the social validity of Conscious Discipline, a classroom management program which incorporates social and emotional learning. Seventeen early childhood special educators rated the significance, appropriateness, and effects of the program in a preschool setting. Results indicated that the program had high social validity, with ratings positively correlated with both teaching experience and experience using the program. Limitations and implications of this study are discussed.

In the United States, many teachers feel underprepared to manage student classroom behavior positively. Such management is crucial for students to learn effectively, especially those with or at risk of emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Although increasing teacher praise and decreasing teacher reprimands may be research-based practices, more empirical evidence is required for them to be considered evidence based. The current study of 65 elementary school teachers and 239 students across three states contrasted the effects of these teacher behaviors on engagement and disruptions of students who were and were not at risk of EBD. Using structural equation modeling, we examined how the engagement and disruptions of students at risk were more sensitive to teacher praise and reprimand than the behavior of their typical peers. These results support the literature and invite teachers to consider that who they praise and reprimand is just as important as how.

The inclusion of social and emotional learning (SEL) curricula in preschools may help prevent emotional and behavioral problems. This study evaluated the effects of a SEL curriculum, Strong Start Pre-K, on the social and emotional competence of 52 preschool students using a quasi-experimental, non-equivalent control group design. Teachers rated students’ emotional regulation, internalizing behaviors, and the quality of the student-teacher relationship. Results indicated a significant decrease of internalizing behaviors and more improvement in the student-teacher relationship in the treatment conditions. Results also supported the use of the optional booster lessons contained in the curriculum. Treatment integrity and social validity ratings of Strong Start Pre-K were high. Limitations and implications of this study are addressed.

Middle school special education teachers often express concern about challenging student behavior. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT), a behavior management program based on school-wide positive behavior support, has been effective in elementary general education classrooms. The present study, the first to apply it in a middle school special education setting, used an ABAC design to examine effects on student on-task behavior and teacher praise rates in a self-contained special education classroom for students with severe disabilities and their typically developing peer tutors. Results suggested that CW-FIT Tier 1 is associated with improvements in student on-task behavior and teacher praise rates, especially when peer tutors are included in the intervention and when the timer is silent. Both teachers and students reported the intervention to be socially valid. Study limitations and areas for future research are addressed.

This study investigated the effects of school-wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) on middle school climate and student outcomes. Data consisted of over 300 teacher responses and 10,000 student responses in two middle schools in the Western United States. This study used a quasi-experimental (non-equivalent two-group, pretest-posttest) design. One school implemented a SWPBS intervention over a period of four years, while the other served as a control. The SWPBS intervention included school-wide teaching of social skills, praise notes from teachers to students, posting of school rules, proactive screening for students at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders, and referrals of at-risk students for targeted interventions. The treatment school showed statistically significant improvements in teacher ratings of school climate, while the control school tended to stay the same or worsen. Statistically significant decreases were also evident in students’ tardiness, unexcused absences, and office discipline referrals when compared to the control school. Implications and limitations of this study are addressed.

Student mental health problems often emerge in high school; however, such problems frequently go unaddressed. Using a time series design, we evaluated the effects of the Strong Teens social-emotional learning curriculum implemented by three school counselors and two school social workers with 28 high school students identified with internalizing symptoms. Decreases in students’ self-reported levels of internalizing symptoms were statistically significant following the 12-week intervention, indicating moderate improvement. Participants rated the program as socially valid, though they also recommended ways to improve it. Results coincide with past studies indicating that Strong Teens may help reduce adolescents’ self-reported internalizing symptoms.

This qualitative study investigated factors that facilitate and hinder implementation of service learning for novice and veteran teachers. We conducted case studies of three novice teachers and three veteran teachers, using a cross-case analysis within and across groups. Confirming prior research, facilitating factors included teachers’ knowledge of service learning and availability of time for planning and enacting it. Some novel factors contributing to the literature included student characteristics and common core pressures. Findings indicated differing needs of novice and veteran teachers for learning about and implementing service learning. Study implications and limitations are addressed

Disruptive student behavior, a common concern for teachers, presents particular challenges for those who teach art. Class-wide function-related intervention teams (CW-FIT) is a multi-tiered intervention for implementing effective classroom management strategies aligned with school-wide positive behavior interventions and supports. CW-FIT has proven effective in general education classrooms, with its emphasis on social skills instruction, teacher praise, group contingency, and positive reinforcement. This first study of CW-FIT implementation in elementary art classrooms examined its effects on student on-task behavior. The researchers used a single-subject (AB) design in one classroom and reversal designs (ABAB) in two classrooms. Results indicated student on-task behavior significantly improved, and the teacher was able to implement CW-FIT with fidelity as well as increase her praise-to-reprimand ratios. Both teacher and students found the intervention to be socially valid. Study implications and limitations are discussed.

Social skills training is effective in building social skills; however, many programs fail to generalize these skills across settings and time. This study investigated the effects of social skills instruction (SSI) for first and second grade students with or at risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. The intervention combined direct instruction, role-plays, and children’s literature, with peers supporting both the acquisition and generalization of three social skills through positive peer reporting (PPR) in other school settings. Results demonstrated that the SSI package was effective at increasing the acquisition and generalization of social skills across multiple settings. Researchers should continue to examine the use of SSI methods with other populations and in various contexts in order to increase students’ social competence.

Students who experience social withdrawal and anxiety (internalizing difficulties) are often overlooked in schools due to the covert nature of their symptoms. The literature lacks empirically supported preventive approaches for kindergarten students who are socially withdrawn and behind their peers in developing social skills. Furthermore, research suggests that parents often are not adequately involved in interventions during this critical period of social development. In response to this need, a school-based intervention was implemented to increase the positive social interaction of three kindergarten students on the playground. Treatment consisted of (a) social skills training, (b) adult mediation, (c) self-evaluation and reinforcement, and (d) parent involvement through home notes. The effects of this intervention were assessed on the playground during recess using partial interval recording of target students’ positive interactions. During implementation of the intervention, all target students demonstrated improvements in social interaction. Future studies should investigate whether addressing the limitations of this study would yield stronger results with this underserved population.

The present study examined the effects of the Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Team (CW-FIT) program, a group contingency intervention addressing the on-task and disruptive behavior of students with or at risk for emotional behavior disorders (EBD). Twenty-one elementary schools, 155 general education teachers, and 324 students participated in the multisite efficacy trial of CW-FIT over 6 months. Procedures included teaching attending skills, setting goals and awarding points for appropriate behavior, and differential reinforcement and rewards. Students not responding to the primary-level intervention received self-management or help cards as Tier 2 supports. Fidelity of intervention implementation was high across 4 years, with fidelity checks across groups and during baseline conditions. The primary outcome variables of engagement, disruptive behavior, and teacher praise and reprimands were assessed with repeated direct observation. Results confirmed that CW-FIT can be used to increase on-task behavior and reduce disruptive behavior of students with or at risk for EBD.

Students with deficits in social skills have been found to experience both short- and long-term problems, including interpersonal conflicts and academic difficulties. These problems are compounded for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Classwide function-related intervention teams (CW-FIT), a multitiered classroom management program, has been shown to be effective in increasing on-task behavior and decreasing disruptive behavior of students at risk for EBD. The present study examined the effects of CW-FIT on teachers’ ratings of students’ social skills, problem behaviors, and academic competence. A randomized control trial was completed with 160 elementary school teachers located in 19 schools across three states. Teachers completed rating scales on 350 students identified as at risk for EBD, for whom consent had been obtained. After being randomly assigned to treatment or control conditions, CW-FIT was implemented for approximately 4 months in treatment classrooms, after which teachers completed posttest ratings on all students. CW-FIT implementation was associated with significantly improved teacher ratings of social skills and academic competence for students at risk for EBD, but no significant changes in teacher ratings of student problem behaviors were found. Higher fidelity of CW-FIT implementation was associated with improved outcomes. Implications, limitations, and areas for future research are addressed.

The purpose of the study was to conduct a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to demonstrate the efficacy of the Classwide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) program. The study was designed to replicate an initial RCT conducted by the CW-FIT developers in 1 site, with 2 additional research groups not involved in its development. The study was conducted across 3 states, in 21 culturally diverse schools, and with 83 teachers (classrooms) assigned to CW-FIT and 74 teachers (classrooms) assigned to the comparison group. The CW-FIT intervention included teaching prosocial skills and use of differential attention (teacher praise and points) for appropriate behaviors using a group contingency, class teams, goal setting, points, and rewards. Class-wide student on-task behavior improved, teacher praise and attention to appropriate behaviors increased, and reprimands decreased in the CWFIT classes with significantly fewer changes over time for the comparison group.

Adolescents in residential treatment centers (RTCs) often have a severe mental illness as well as significant deficits in their social competencies. Strong Teens is a social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculum designed to decrease internalizing disorders by promoting emotional resilience and social competence. The curriculum has shown promising effects in educational settings. This study is the second to implement Strong Teens in residential treatment with high-risk adolescents. Using a quasi-experimental wait-list control design, therapists implemented Strong Teens with 36 adolescent girls in an RTC during group therapy. The researchers assessed changes in social and emotional knowledge, internalizing symptoms, and resilience using a split-plot repeated measures ANOVA, paired samples t-tests, and effect sizes. Although results indicated that Strong Teens did not affect the girls’ social and emotional knowledge, the intervention did show evidence of reducing their internalizing symptoms and increasing their resilience. In a social validity survey, most group therapists agreed with the goals and procedures of the curriculum but were less certain regarding the outcomes. We recommend that future studies of this population investigate which SEL topics are most suitable, identify the most favorable lesson times for RTC implementation, and explore student perspectives and experiences with Strong Teens.

Social skill instruction and school-wide positive behavior support have been found to be effective in treating students with emotional and behavioral disorders. However, students with internalizing behavior are often overlooked for interventions that could improve academic outcomes and prevent problems that might have serious implications, including social withdrawal, social isolation, and suicidal ideation. In this study, a multiple baseline across participants design was used across two elementary school recess playgrounds to evaluate a “buddy bench” intervention, which utilized peers to help socially withdrawn students to decrease social isolation behavior. Students in Grades 1 to 6 were observed during recess. Results revealed that from baseline to intervention phases the number of students engaged in solitary recess behavior decreased between 19% and 24%. Most students reported positive attitudes towards the intervention, while teachers were more neutral.

School recess, though beneficial to students in many ways, can be a problematic setting due to inadequate supervision, structure, and safety. A peer praise note (PPN) intervention was implemented on the recess playground to address these concerns at a Title I elementary school. Researchers used a single-subject reversal design across all students to evaluate intervention effectiveness. Results included overall improvements in the level, trend, and variability of office discipline referrals (ODRs), especially from reversal to reinstatement of the intervention, and an effect size (percentage of data points exceeding the median; PEM) suggesting that PPNs effectively decreased ODRs. Results from social validity surveys completed by recess aides and students indicated participants’ perceptions that PPNs helped improve student behavior and peer relations, communicate playground rules, extend supervision responsibilities, and offer structured activity to peer praisers. Limitations, future research, and implications are addressed.

Numerous well-validated academic progress monitoring tools are used in schools, but there are fewer behavioral progress monitoring measures available. Some brief behavior rating scales have been shown to be effective in monitoring students’ progress, but most focus only on students’ social skills and do not address critical academic-related behaviors. We conducted a quasi-replication of a study by Brady, Evans, Berlin, Bunford, and Kern examining the Classroom Performance Survey (CPS) by using a multi-step analytic strategy, including confirmatory factor analysis and reliability analysis. Over a period of 3 years, 160 elementary schoolteachers in 19 schools across three states completed a modified CPS on 356 elementary students identified as at-risk for emotional and behavioral disorders. The modified CPS was found to be comprised of two factors (Academic Competence and Interpersonal Competence) and showed evidence of reliability and validity. These results suggest that the CPS shows promise as a brief behavior rating scale for progress monitoring in elementary schools.

Classroom management is a common concern for teachers. Music teachers in particular experience unique behavior challenges because of large class sizes, uncommon pacing requirements, and performance-based outcomes. Positive behavior support (PBS) is an evidence-based framework for preventing or eliminating challenging behaviors by teaching and reinforcing appropriate social skills. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT), a specific PBS intervention involving social skills instruction, positive reinforcement, and group contingencies, has proven effective in elementary schools but has not been evaluated specifically in music classrooms. The present study sought to investigate the effectiveness of CW-FIT in increasing on-task behavior and teacher praise-to-reprimand ratios in a sixth grade music classroom. A single-subject reversal (ABAB) design was used. Results indicated that student on-task behavior increased when CW-FIT was implemented. Teacher praise-to-reprimand ratios also improved. Results suggest the teacher and the students found CW-FIT valuable and enjoyable. Study limitations and implications are addressed.

Challenging behavior in preschool is a serious concern for teachers. Positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) have been shown to be effective in reducing such behaviors. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a specific multi-tiered intervention for implementing effective classroom management strategies using PBIS practices. CW-FIT has been shown to be effective in elementary classrooms but has not yet been evaluated with younger age groups. CW-FIT Tier 1 is a group contingency utilizing social skills training, teacher praise, and positive reinforcement to improve student behavior. The present study examined the effects of CW-FIT Tier 1 implementation on student group on-task behavior and on teacher praise and reprimand rates in four preschool classrooms. A single-subject delayed multiple baseline design with embedded reversals was used to evaluate impact. Results indicated the intervention increased student group on-task behavior and teacher praise to reprimand ratios. Both teachers and children found CW-FIT Tier 1 to be socially valid. Limitations and implications of this study for researchers and practitioners are discussed.

Parents of children with disabilities are at risk for high stress and low marital quality; therefore, this study surveyed couples (n = 112) of children with Down syndrome (n = 120), assessing whether respite hours, stress, and uplifts were related to marital quality. Structural equation modeling indicated that respite hours were negatively related to wife/husband stress, which was in turn negatively related to wife/husband marital quality. Also, wife uplifts were positively related to both wife and husband marital quality. Husband uplifts were positively related to husband marital quality. Therefore, it is important that respite care is provided and accessible to parents of children with Down syndrome.