Ensuring effective use of evidence-based practice (EBP) for autism in schools is imperative due to the significantly increasing number of autistic students receiving school services each year. High-quality EBP use has proven challenging in schools. Research indicates implementation climate, or how EBP are supported, rewarded, and valued, and EBP…

This evaluation brief describes how a district in receivership (state takeover) invested in PBIS to (a) enhance their systems to support staff, (b) implement evidence-based practices to support students, (c) use data to guide their implementation, and (d) ensure equitable supports for all students, including students with disabilities, to…

Public programs have been charged with implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) to improve outcomes for children with autism. However, research indicates that scale-up of EBPs poses challenges. This study identifies perceived variables linked to effective statewide scale-up of EBPs in special education by exploring implementation climate…

School climate can be complex to measure and to change, but it is clear that it is a critical component of an effective school. One practice that has been shown to positively influence school climate is Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS). PBIS is a framework of evidence-based practices and its power for initiating change has…

The School Bullying Prevention and Education Grant (BPEG) program has supported Colorado schools and districts in ending bullying since it was first funded in 2016, after having been created by H.B. 11-1254. Administered by the Colorado Department of Education (CDE), as of May 2024, the BPEG program has distributed over $15 million toward this…

Background: Implementation climate is an organizational construct theorized to facilitate the adoption and delivery of evidence-based practices. Within schools, teachers often are tasked with implementing universal prevention programs. Therefore, they are ideal informants when assessing school implementation climate for initial and continuous…

Programming aimed at promoting positive student mental health and reducing or preventing mental-ill health is common within schools in Ontario. A brief, valid, and scalable measure was needed to assess the organizational conditions, or the capacity, readiness, and resources of schools to successfully implement and sustain this programming. In…

This study presents empirical data on the best practice implementation of the Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) Champion Model in schools at each of the three tiers of implementation. The purpose of this study was to identify PBIS best practice evidence indicators for each of the tiers. The design included a review of evidence…

"Implementation in education" refers to active and planned efforts to introduce and sustain an approach in schools. It involves making, and acting on, evidence-informed decisions. There is substantial evidence indicating that quality implementation amplifies the effectiveness of a range of school-based approaches. However, implementation…

There is substantial research evidence for the effectiveness of school mental health strategies across problem areas, developmental levels, and the prevention-intervention spectrum. At the same time, it is clear that the education and mental health fields continue to struggle to apply this evidence at any level of scale. This commentary reflects…

Schools are learning organisations. They continuously strive to do better for the children and young people in their charge. In doing so, they try new things, seek to learn from those experiences, and work to adopt and embed the practices that work best. Implementation is a key aspect of what schools do to improve, and yet it is a domain of school…

Despite great advancements in the development of evidence-based treatments (EBTs) for youth mental health problems, few EBTs have been adopted by or successfully implemented in schools. This is of concern, as schools are the most common entry point for youth mental health services. Modular psychotherapies may be a particularly good fit for the…

This article describes the challenge of engaging educators in professional development (PD) that is timely and relevant to their work, and effective in stimulating instructional changes to improve student learning. The authors highlight the competing needs and goals for PD that create tensions among the external accountability demands, school…

Research focusing on school climate has shown that healthy, safe, and positive school environments are associated with improved psychological, social, behavioral, and academic outcomes for secondary students. For this reason, it is important for schools to understand how to improve perceptions of school climate through effective, evidence-based…

Implementation of evidence-based practice (EBP) for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the education system is a public health priority. Leadership is a critical driver of EBP implementation but little is known about the types of leadership behaviors exhibited by school leaders and how this influences the context of EBP implementation, particularly…