Positive Supports for Behavior and Discipline Resource Database

The guides are based on a 5-point multicomponent intervention described. This guide addresses use of data.

To support educators who are returning to in-person instruction this school year, The TIES Center is refreshing selected articles from the Distance Learning (DL) series. Refreshed articles will be identified as Pivot to In-Person Instruction (PI) articles. This article is an exception, in that it is a new addition, with a specific focus on supporting behavior at this unique time.

Disproportionality in exclusionary school discipline is a longstanding challenge in general and special education. To reduce disproportionality in discipline in a way that produces measurable results, federal law provides a mechanism referred to as Coordinated Early Intervening Services (CEIS). Whether a school district has been cited for significant disproportionality, is out of compliance, or is voluntarily directing funds to reducing disproportionality in discipline, this brief provides background on CEIS and outlines best practices for how state, district, and building administrators can invest these funds most effectively to achieve equity in school discipline.

States and LEAs must report five types of disciplinary removals for children and youth with disabilities. The EDFacts IDEA Discipline Data Infographic visualizes the information from six IDEA Discipline data EDFacts file specification documents in an interactive infographic that outlines the discipline data for children and youth with disabilities ages 3 through 21 that states must include in their annual submission of EDFacts files FS005, FS006, FS007, FS088, FS143, and FS144. Data states report in these files include counts of children and youth with disabilities with in-school and out-of-school suspensions and expulsions; length of and reason for disciplinary removal; and count of disciplinary removals due to drugs, weapons, or serious bodily injury.  

Clip charts have been a common classroom strategy for many years. Once considered an effective tool for displaying behavioral progress and adherence to classroom rules, they may not be as helpful as once thought. In this practice brief, we describe how such strategies are inconsistent with a PBIS approach and, more importantly, can be harmful. We also provide alternative strategies that are evidence based and more likely to improve student behavior while promoting a safe, positive classroom.

This brief describes a school’s transformation from using ineffective and punitive disciplinary practices to implementing effective and proactive responses to behavior by installing the PBIS framework in a unique setting. Specifically, this demonstration highlights the work of the PBIS school leadership team at the American School for the Deaf (ASD) and describes ASD’s use of PBIS strategies in alignment with the Six Core Strategies© to reduce their use of restraint and seclusion.

This document is designed to guide the Program Leadership Team around considerations for supporting young children, families, and staff as they return to the program after a break. The guidance helps program leaders consider the environmental and social-emotional practices that establish predictable, safe, and nurturing classroom environments. The guide includes hyperlinks to 29 practical tools and materials.

This guide is intended to increase the frequency and quality of conversations about race, racism, and current events regarding race in K-12 classrooms to support students and provide voice and self-reflection. It includes recommendations and tips for creating statements of support, preparing for and facilitating constructive classroom discussions, addressing harmful statements, and designing lesson plans and units for ongoing learning.

This field guide outlines an integrated framework to embed equity efforts into school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports (SWPBIS) by aligning culturally responsive practices to the core components of SWPBIS. The goal of using this guide is to make school systems more responsive to the cultures and communities that they serve. This guide is part of a 5-point intervention approach for enhancing equity in student outcomes within a SWPBIS approach.

The purpose of this guide is to provide leadership teams with guidance for implementing coaching within their programs. Leadership teams must develop a plan for three considerations in the implementation of coaching: 1) Getting Ready for Coaching; 2) Enacting Coaching, and 3) Evaluating Coaching.

This practice guide is an updated version of Supporting and Responding to Student Behavior (Office of Special Education Programs, 2015). "Supporting and Responding" summarizes evidence-based, positive, and proactive practices that support and respond to students’ social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) needs in classrooms and similar teaching and learning environments (e.g., small-group activity).

The Pyramid Model Equity Coaching Guide provides the classroom coach with a reflection tool to examine the implementation of Pyramid Model practices through the lens of culturally responsive practices and identification of implicit bias. The Pyramid Model Equity Coaching Guide is used within the collaborative coaching partnership and ongoing coaching activities to identify when there are equity concerns related to practice implementation. The tool provides: reflective questions that the coach uses to identify areas of concern; guidance for identifying the concern and supportive data; links for resources that might be used to address areas of concern and; conversation starters and strategies for supporting the coachee in addressing concerns.

IDC’s Success Gaps Toolkit outlines a process that district and school teams can use to identify and address discipline disparities revealed through the state’s accountability system or through self-evaluation. The toolkit, with its process and materials, provides a manageable and defined way for districts or schools to take a closer look at their educational system to ensure an equitable education for all students. This toolkit is designed for district and school leaders responsible for conducting root cause analyses.

The Behavior Incident Report System (BIRS) is used to collect and analyze behavior incidents in early childhood settings. The system provides an efficient mechanism for gathering information on elements related to behavior incidents that are used to make decisions about providing supports to teachers and children within the program. In addition, the BIRS includes alerts about potential equity issues by calculating disproportionality related to race, ethnicity, IEP status, gender, and dual-language learners

This document provides program leadership teams with guidance to support their efforts to eliminate suspension and expulsion and promote equitable, inclusive and culturally responsive practice in all early childhood settings including public and private schools and child care centers.