Longitudinal disciplinary and achievement outcomes associated with school‐wide PBIS implementation level

Abstract

Positive behavioral interventions and support (PBIS) is a multitiered framework for behavioral support that is being increasingly implemented in schools. Although research has linked PBIS to improved student outcomes, less research is longitudinal and considers both academic and behavioral outcomes. This study examined the relationships between changes in school‐wide (i.e., Tier I) PBIS implementation level and changes in disciplinary and achievement outcomes over a 2‐year period. Participants included 85 Ohio schools with data on PBIS implementation fidelity (from the tiered fidelity inventory, or TFI), out‐of‐school suspensions (OSSs), and statewide achievement tests for the 2015–2016 and 2016–2017 school years. Linear regressions were conducted to examine the degree to which changes in TFI Tier I scores predicted changes in OSS and achievement scores when controlling for school‐level demographic variables that also were related to the outcome variables. Changes in TFI Tier I scores was found to significantly predict changes in OSS per 100 students but not changes in achievement scores.

A meta‐analysis of Tier 2 interventions implemented within School‐Wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports

“…Several studies have shown the correlation between SWPBIS implementation and fewer suspensions and office discipline referrals (e.g., Bradshaw et al, 2010) and improved student prosocial behavior (e.g., Bradshaw et al, 2012). In a recent 2‐year longitudinal study on SWPBIS implemented in 85 schools from 31 Ohio school districts, James et al (2019) found a linkage between Tier 1 implementation fidelity and reductions in student problem behavior (out‐of‐school suspension rate), suggesting that improvement in implementation fidelity was related to reductions in student problem behavior.…”

Technology to Facilitate Progress Monitoring of Infant–Toddler Growth and Development: Measuring Implementation in Community-Based Agencies

“…Sufficiently powered studies with large enough samples of schools/agencies will allow significance testing of factors that facilitate or impede implementation at the school/agency level. Although large implementation studies of widely used education interventions (e.g., Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports; Horner & Sugai, 2015; James, Noltemeyer, Ritchie, Palmer, & Miami University, 2019) are valuable, implementation research of this nature is costly and typically requires resources that schools and intervention developers simply do not have. As web platforms increasingly become an integral component of educational interventions (Kimmons, 2020), evidence of implementation can be stored automatically in database logs of user activity, making implementation studies of this nature more practical.…”

Development of Online Professional Development for Teachers: Understanding, Recognizing and Responding to Bullying for Students with Disabilities

“…The effects of school-wide supports on student outcomes tend to be highest among at-risk or high-risk children (Bradshaw, 2013). Notably, a longitudinal study found disciplinary and achievement outcomes associated with prevention at the school-wide level when schools implemented universal supports with fidelity (James et al, 2019).…”