General Education Behavior Supports: the Importance of Attitude, Training and Relationships

With more students with disabilities have been placed in mainstream classes over the last 50 years has increased exponentially.  In 1975, while there are no official numbers, it was exceptionally rare to see a child with disabilities being educated with their typical peers.

In 2025, about two thirds of students with disabilities are in general education classes for more than 80% of their school day.

This dramatic increase has not come without significant problems.  A major issue is the training and experience general education staff are provided to work with students who are more likely to display problematic behaviors.

Teachers complain, rightly, that they have been left to fend for themselves, or receive inadequate support, to deal effectively with problem behaviors.

Positive Behavior Interventions and Support (PBIS) is an offshoot of Positive Behavior Support (PBS), which has been used successfully for many years for students with disabilities.  PBIS goes further, with district and school wide programs that involve all students.

It employs a tiered system, with the first two tiers being implanted for all students as needed, and the third tier, which uses PBS methods to assess and intervene more deeply.

Research has consistently indicated that PBS and its “parent”, Applied Behavior Analysis can effectively be adapted to broader populations.

 Resources:

The PBIS tiers

https://www.pbis.org/pbis/what-is-pbis

https://www.pbis.org/pbis/tier-1

https://www.pbis.org/pbis/tier-2

 Article with teacher comments:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9135387/

Summary

The host presents an overview of Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (PBIS), a three-tiered framework for student behavioral and academic support. He discusses each tier’s purpose, from universal classroom practices to individualized interventions, and shares teacher experiences from a study on PBIS implementation with ADHD students. Key takeaways include the importance of teacher attitudes, training, and school-wide philosophy for effective PBIS use.

Key takeaway

PBIS Three-Tiered Framework Overview

PBIS is an evidence-based framework with three tiers for supporting students’ behavioral, academic, social-emotional, and mental health.

The first tier uses daily class-wide organization and positive behavioral practices for all students, such as recognizing appropriate behaviors and responding with instruction instead of punishment.

Students needing further support are addressed in the second tier through group interventions like social skills groups, self-management, and academic supports.

The third tier provides individual support for students with persistent problem behaviors, often involving a functional behavior assessment (FBA) and a formal intervention plan.

Teacher Challenges and Barriers to Implementation

A study found that teachers with more negative beliefs about ADHD are less likely to use evidence-based behavior management strategies, indicating that negative beliefs are a barrier to implementing PBIS.

Teachers reported frustration with the process, such as struggling to praise a student for a small positive action when overwhelmed or feeling it took until January to become proficient.

One teacher noted that getting to know students deeply and being authentic in communication helps them know when praise is meaningful versus generic.

Factors That Enable Successful PBIS Implementation

Teacher belief in the intervention’s effectiveness, as supported by research, helped sustain efforts.

Principal support and alignment with the school’s vision were cited as important; teachers felt supported if they were doing what the principal had envisioned.

Practical strategies included taking deep breaths, stepping away briefly to calm down, using a timer to track time, and developing routines for transitioning to independent work with students who need reminders.

Attending training, receiving refreshers on staff development days, and observing other educators using the interventions were identified as key learning aids.

Thanks to Soundimage.org for the free access to the AI generated music used in this podcast (https://soundimage.org/) 

Transcript

Many studies have been conducted by education researchers about the implementation of what are called “tiered interventions” in general education settings.

Positive Behavior Intervention and Support (or PBIS) is a school or district wide intervention system that can be defined as, “…an evidence based, (3) tiered framework for supporting students’ behavioral, academic, social, emotional, and mental health.”

https://www.pbis.org/pbis/what-is-pbis

The first tier of PBIS is class wide organization and behavioral practices that are used every day for all students. An example is a classroom wide behavior system that uses positive feedback and structures.  Methods like recognizing appropriate behaviors and responding with instruction instead of punishment for low level issues are examples.  

https://www.pbis.org/pbis/tier-1

The second tier focuses on students who need further support to be successful.  PBIS.org describes Tier 2 interventions as, “…support provided often involves group interventions with ten or more students participating. Specific interventions include social skills groups, self-management, and academic supports. 

https://www.pbis.org/pbis/tier-2

The third tier addresses individual students with problem behaviors that don’t respond to tiers one and two.  A Functional Behavior Assessment, or FBA, which looks at the function of the behavior and involves a formal plan to intervene may be used at this tier.

Now let’s look at a few teacher reactions from a study on PBIS implementation and students with ADHD.    

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9135387/

It found that teachers with fewer negative beliefs about ADHD reported greater use of evidence-based behavior management strategies, suggesting that negative beliefs about ADHD are a barrier to teachers using behavioral classroom interventions for these students.

Another pertinent finding is that those teachers who get to know their students well are more successful at implementing the PBIS tiers.

Here are some teacher comments:

“…there were times where I was like, this isn’t working, I’m frustrated. I have so much going on and I can’t compliment her for picking up a pencil off the ground that she threw there.” 

And another, “It takes practice, and I don’t think I got good at (it) until literally January, after (winter) break.

On the positive side:

One teacher said, “Believing that the intervention would be effective 

like the research shows, and this is going to work if I keep doing it.”

Another: “I think the principal helps with support. If. they know I’m doing what they had envisioned, (I know I’ll be supported).”

And “Taking the time to really know your students and what they value and making sure that you are authentic with your communication to the kids.  …they certainly know when praise is generic and meaningful and when it is not.

Another: “I just take deep breaths, or sometimes I’m just like, I need to use the bathroom. I grab a teacher next door so I can calm myself down. Kinda taking a break, just like the kids’ need at times.”

And, “I’m keeping a timer now, which is something new that I started because I was notorious for (not keeping track of time).”  

A participant said“ …it’s a part of my routine. when we transition to independent work, I just know the students who need reminders. I’ve developed the habit through practice.”

And: “I just think practice. Like I was so used to doing it on days where there wasn’t too much craziness that it became like second nature.”

And finally, some factors that assisted with learning how to use the interventions:

A teacher said, “Receiving trainings related to using the interventions: “…my school was very supportive like providing refreshers when we had (staff development) days. 

And observing other educators using the intervention. “I think we all get better by watching someone else do it”. 

This is me again.  As my experience over the years is consistent with the findings of these studies, attitudes and training are key components of any behavior intervention program. Being technically skilled is not enough, schools need to be places that embrace the philosophy of PBS and PBIS to be successful at using it.