Integrating school-wide Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports with tier 2 coaching to student support teams: The PBIS<i>plus</i>model

TLDR

Schools are interested in universal PBIS but struggle to integrate tier‑2 supports for students at risk of behavioral or academic difficulties, prompting a focus on coaching and advanced tier implementation. This study introduces the PBISplus model, a tier‑2 coaching framework that tailors training in functional behavioral assessments, student support teaming, cultural proficiency, and evidence‑based practices, and discusses its implications for future research on integrating programs within the three‑tier PBIS framework. PBISplus combines universal PBIS with a tier‑2 coach‑led training program—including Check‑In/Check‑Out—and was implemented in a three‑year group‑randomized controlled trial across 42 Maryland elementary schools. The trial yielded significant improvements in teacher efficacy and student outcomes, notably reduced special‑education service use and higher teacher‑reported academic performance.

Abstract

Schools continue to display an interest in, and efficiency with, the implementation of the universal level of Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), but often struggle to integrate tier 2 supports to address the needs of students at risk for behavioural or academic difficulties. School practitioners and researchers are increasingly interested in optimizing programme implementation through coaching and integrating supports at the more advanced tiers of PBIS. The current paper describes one such model, called PBISplus, which builds on the multi-tiered PBIS model by providing tailored training in the implementation of functional behavioural assessments, the student support teaming process, cultural proficiency, and evidence-based practices (e.g. Check-In/Check-Out) by a tier 2 coach. After describing the process for integrating these core elements with the universal PBIS model and the coaching model developed to facilitate that process, we summarize preliminary findings from a three-year group-randomized controlled trial of the PBISplus model in 42 Maryland elementary schools. Significant effects were observed on teacher efficacy and student outcomes, including rates of special education service use and teacher-reported academic performance. Implications for future research aimed at integrating programmes within the three-tiered PBIS framework are discussed.