RESOURCES

OVERVIEW

A functional behavioral assessment is a method of looking at behavior to try to decide why the child uses the specific behaviors and how the world around the child affects the child and the behaviors.

During disciplinary removals, as appropriate, or when the behavior is a manifestation of the disability, the IEP team must conduct a functional behavioral assessment and implement a behavior intervention plan for the child.

Steps included in a Functional Behavioral Assessment:

1. identify and define the problem behavior
2. collect information about when the behavior happens through
1. observations
2. data collection
3. interviews with child, parents, and staff
3. identify what happens before the child's problem behavior and what happens after the problem behavior
4. come to an agreement about the purpose of the problem behavior
5. develop a statement that explains why and when the IEP team thinks the child uses the problem behavior

Example of statement or hypothesis:
When the student is given school work which includes writing or work that he sees as hard, he will mumble under his breath, refuse to complete his work, destroy the assignment sheet, and/or push/kick his desk over in order to escape being a school failure in front of the other students.

The IEP team can complete the functional behavioral assessment at the first meeting if there is enough information to decide the purpose of the behavior. Otherwise, the IEP team decides how to get the information and when to meet to complete the assessment. Once the purpose of the behavior is decided, the IEP team develops a behavioral intervention plan for the student. Positive Behavioral Supports

When the IEP is created: if a child has behavior that makes it hard for him or her to learn or for other children to learn, the IEP team should consider including positive behavioral interventions, strategies and supports to help the student improve the behavior.

Positive behavioral interventions, strategies and supports are not punishment. They are designed for the specific child to try to help that child learn to change her or his behavior. They can include any of the following and/or other ideas developed by the team:

1. teaching the child new, replacement behaviors
2. rewarding the child for using good behavior
3. helping the child learn what “triggers” the behavior and how to successfully avoid or get away from the triggers
4. changing what happens around the child to promote good behavior
5. helping the child develop strengths at school
6. teaching the child to identify emotions
7. teaching the child to express emotions in school appropriate ways
8. identifying a caring adult that can give the child positive time at school
9. identifying difficult times for the child and planning for ways to support the child during those times

Behavioral Intervention Plans that are created after completing a Functional Behavioral Assessment should also be designed to help the student change the behavior. The examples above would be useful for intervention plans, also.