WHAT IS PBS?

The letters PBS stand for Positive Behavior Support, and SW-PBS stands for School-Wide Positive Behavior Support (meaning the program is implemented throughout all schools within the district). SW-PBS is a process for creating safer and more effective schools by structuring the learning environment to support the academic and social success of all students. The process supports the adoption and long-term implementation of efficient and effective discipline throughout the school environment. PBS methods are research-based and proven to significantly reduce the occurrence of problem behaviors in schools.

SW-PBS is a proactive approach based on a three-tiered model of prevention and intervention. It provides students with lessons of modeled social skills and behavior expectations, uses consistent systems to discourage inappropriate behavior and reward appropriate behavior, and educates all staff in how to implement and participate in the process. In addition, data is collected and used for effective decision-making regarding the social skills and behavior instruction in our school.

The primary goals of SW-PBS are to prevent the development of inappropriate behavior, reduce ongoing patterns of problem behavior, and to increase the likelihood of improved academic performance of all students through teaching and learning time gained when the numbers of inappropriate behaviors are reduced. Staff members will learn how to consistently embed the teaching and monitoring of appropriate social and behavior skills into the school day and curriculum. They will also learn to anticipate how to structure school environments so that the appropriate skills will be utilized more often. Schools need to actively communicate with families so that they understand and support the SW-PBS process. Families can benefit from learning how to use similar strategies for teaching and supporting their children's appropriate social and behavior skills.

What is PBS Tier 2?

The majority of students will respond to basic school-wide supports, also called PBS Tier 1. These supports include common language, universal rules or a matrix for all settings, and a reward system. On average, roughly 10% of the student population will still need additional supports, these are called PBS Tier 2. The more intensive supports that are involved with PBS Tier 2 is effective for helping students that have academic and/or behavioral concerns. These supports include:

Check In/Check Out: An intervention that provides the student positive specific feedback from adult interaction through the utilization of a behavior tracking sheet.

Check and Connect: A comprehensive, sustained intervention that uses personalized data-based interventions focused on increasing student engagement and learning at school. This requires a long-term commitment from a mentor that regularly checks data and remains engaged with the student’s family.

Small Group Social Skills: An intervention that is applied to instruction in order to teach a new skill, build fluency in a skill or encourage the application of existing skills to a new situation.

First Steps to Success: An intervention that is implemented at school and at home to address noncompliant behavior, improve social skills, and improve study skills.