Students who require intensive individualized intervention often demonstrate needs in both academic and behavioral domains. However, practices around assessment and development of interventions are often siloed and separate, which can be a barrier to implementing intensive individualized support in an integrated manner to maximize efficiency. In…

For students with severe or complex challenging behavior, incorporating hypothesis testing as a component of functional behavior assessment (FBA) is often warranted. Several hypothesis testing strategies (i.e., functional analysis, antecedent analysis, concurrent operant analysis) can confirm whether and how features of a student's environment…

Students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have vastly different educational needs. Although some students with ASD may perform well across subjects within the general education classroom, other students with ASD may need more individualized support outside of the classroom. Historically, ASD assessments in schools have primarily focused on the…

Social and emotional development is an important area for children, which includes social-emotional learning skills. It is necessary to know that the development and clarification processes of social-emotional learning require an efficacious assessment process. This study aims to reveal how social emotional learning methods of preschool children…

The use of evidence-based practices (EBPs) is a tenant of effective instruction for students with disabilities in general and special education classrooms. In fact, it is essential that teachers use EBPs across content areas as they would benefit all students and maximise opportunities for those with special needs. Often, students with…

In fall 2014, the Council for Exceptional Children's (CEC) Board of Directors approved a proposal from the Professional Standards and Practice Committee (PSPC) to develop a set of high-leverage practices (HLPs) for special education teachers. The CEEDAR Center at the University of Florida, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's…

This article outlines a three-step process to help teachers determine whether or not the function of a student's stereotypical behavior is sensory-based and if so, how to select and monitor an appropriate sensory intervention to promote instructional engagement. In particular, characteristics of students who are seeking to gain sensory input in…

In recent years, there has been a great deal of controversy regarding the definition and independence of Positive Behavioral Supports (PBS) within the context of behavioral intervention. Specifically, behavior analysts have argued over whether PBS is subsumed within Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) or whether it can be considered a separate…

With the recent increase in the use of functional behavior assessment (FBA) in school settings, there has been an emphasis in practice on the development and use of effective, efficient methods of conducting FBAs, particularly indirect assessment tools such as interviews. There are both benefits and drawbacks to these tools, and their technical…

Indirect assessment instruments used during functional behavioral assessment, such as rating scales, interviews, and self-report instruments, represent the least intrusive techniques for acquiring information about the function of problem behavior. This article provides criteria for examining the measurement properties of these instruments…

Although FBA has been a familiar term to those in special education for over 30 years, its formal inclusion into IDEA is relatively recent. Currently, agreement as to the nature, context, and application of the FBA process is, at best, confusing and, at worst, inadequate to direct elective practice in schools. An analysis of the issues that define…

This study surveyed 60 persons involved in research and training with functional assessment procedures concerning use of such procedures with students who have mild disabilities. Results suggested there is little consensus as to the necessary and sufficient procedures for performing functional behavioral assessments with high incidence…

The literature reflects an increasing reliance on functional behavioral assessment (FBA) to, develop support plans for decreasing problem behavior. However, applications with students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), particularly in classroom settings, continue to be limited. The purpose of the present review was to explore the FBA…

This study looks at the utilization of assessments on developing behavior intervention plans (BIPs) and their use in designing actual implementation for the children (elementary through high school) labeled EBD in a mid-sized district in eastern Washington. Files were reviewed to determine the types of assessments used, FBA components addressed,…

The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act mandates the performance of functional assessment for students with severe behavior problems. A functional analysis can be one part of this process but its use has been minimal. This study evaluates whether a paraprofessional could (a) be trained to correctly perform 3 conditions of a functional…