Behavior Intervention Plans

     The article I read this week is titled "Strategies for Developing and Carrying Out Functional Assessment and Behavior Intervention Planning." This article discusses the framework of building a functional behavior assessment in a typical school. This article was filled with information about functional behavior assessments and behavior intervention plans. I would recommend reading this article if you get a chance!
     Like in our screen casts, the article discussed how the functional behavior assessment is used to help determine the purpose of the problem behavior. Is the student demonstrating the behavior for attention? to escape a task or demand? or maybe for sensory stimuli? Once the purpose of the problem behavior is determined, you can create a behavior intervention plan that will serve the same purpose as the problem behavior. For example, if the student is acting out for the purpose of being able to sit closer to the teacher and for the teacher's attention, the behavior intervention plan may say if the student works well for 5 out of the 7 periods, the student may sit next to the teacher for the last period of the school day. Then, the student's task will increase. Eventually the student will have to work well 7 out of the 7 periods to earn the reward of sitting next to the teacher.
   One thing I found really neat in this article is the discussion about team-based intervention plans. I believe it is so important to have everyone on board with the child's behavior intervention plan. The classroom teacher, resource teacher, and the specials' teachers should all be aware of this plan. Sometimes a student really looks up to one teacher in particular. I had one instance where I had a student who really liked the male Spanish teacher in the building. It was something as simple as having the Spanish teacher stop in for 1 minute in the morning to give the student a little pep talk, and then stopping in at the end of the day to see how many smiley faces this student earned today for completing his work. This simple check in/check out process really helped this student. I also believe that it works so well when the student's parent gets on board. I found, many times, that a behavior demonstrated in my classroom was also a behavior problem at home. In this case, it was very nice to have the parents on board and want the behavior intervention plan in school, as well as, at home. If the student earned an X amount of smiley faces, the student was able to enjoy his IPad for 20 minutes after school. If the student did not earn that amount of smiley faces, the student would not be able to play on their IPad. I felt like having a parent on board was a great experience and it worked so well.
      Overall, I did enjoy reading this article, and I would recommend reading it if you are still unsure and not clear about the functional behavior assessment and behavior intervention plans. The article really does a nice job of explaining the process.

Scott, T. M., Anderson, C. M., & Spaulding, S. A. (2008). Strategies for developing and carrying out functional assessment and behavior intervention planning. Preventing School Failure, 52(3), 39-50.

Transition Planning for Students with Disabilities

     The article I read this week is titled "Career Development: Preparation, integration, and collaboration."  This article discussed the history of career development for adolescents with disabilities, different models of career development, essential components of career development, and how career development can be integrated into academics and the community. This article also mentions ideas for collaborative efforts that help in career development and the transition process.
      The article briefly mentions the history of career development is based off the reasoning that school and education should be connected to the real world. Learning is only meaningful in this way. This outlook on learning greatly impacted the transition process for students with disabilities. There are four themes associated with the transition process. These themes include personal development, personal learning, personal skills, and environmental influences. These four themes come into play when planning a transition for an adolescent with a disability.
     Integrating career development activities into academics is extremely important in the transition process. Students can practice job-related skills in the classroom to better prepare for post school life. It is also important to know and be aware of the accommodations that the student will need in the real world. Will this student be comfortable in a social setting? Will this student need any technological assistance performing a task?  Efforts to promote career development seem to be more successful when introduced early on; before the transition occurs. The earlier students start to work on the skills needed for a career, the easier the transition will become.
      Overall, I did enjoy reading the article. I find the transition process for students with disabilities very important and I enjoy reading about how it could be successful. I wish the article discussed a little more about integration of career development with academics.

Webb, K., Repetto, J., Seabrooks-Blackmore, J., Patterson, K. B., & Alderfer, K. (2014). Career development: preparation, integration, and collaboration. Journal Of Vocational Rehabilitation, 40(3), 231-238. doi:10.3233/JVR-140688