Sample Functional Behavior Assessment

Student Name: John Anystudent Date of Report Completion: 12/26/09 Review Date: 12/26/10 Methods: The information for this assessment was gathered through: Information gathered from school staff members who work with John. A review of attendance records. A review of discipline referrals. A review of the Social and Developmental Form completed by Johns parents, Mr. and Mrs. Anystudent. An assessment of Johns preferences for reinforcement. Behavioral observations. Teacher responses on the Motivation Assessment Scale. Reason for Referral: John is a 12-year-old student attending the seventh grade at the ABC School District. John was referred for a Functional Behavior Assessment by the Committee on Special Education in October 2009, as a result of the behaviors he demonstrates while in school. John currently receives special education in the area of Other Health Impaired with services identified in his Individual Education Plan, implemented at the beginning of the school year (September 2009). During a recent meeting with John's teachers about his school behaviors, it was discussed that John struggles with self-expression, following directions, and completing given tasks. It was discussed that John engages in behaviors such as yelling and appears to need to get the last word in after being given a directive he does not wish to comply with. It was also discussed that John might have low selfesteem, resulting from possible impairments in his social interactions. John has been a student at the ABC School District since the 2008-2009 school year. Prior to that, John attended XYZ School District, where he displayed similar behaviors in school. A Functional Behavior Assessment and Behavior Intervention Plan is not currently in place. The purpose of this assessment is to assist the school to better understand John and some of the behaviors he may engage in while in school. This assessment will also provide Johns teachers and school staff with strategies to help John with his school progress. Review of Records: Discipline Records: As of 12/26/09, John has received 20 referrals to the principals office for behaviors such as insubordination (refusal to follow staff members directives and instructions) and verbal aggression, during his time at the ABC School District. Attendance Records: As of 12/26/09, John has missed five days of school for the 2009-2010 school year, and two days for the 2008-2009 school year, which were due to a suspension out of school. Social and Developmental History Form: Mr. and Mrs. Anystudent did not note any specific areas of concern regarding Johns birth or developmental histories. John appears to have good general health, and no concerns with his vision or hearing have been noted. John has a medical diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and has been prescribed Concerta by his pediatrician. Mr. and Mrs. Anystudent report that they are aware of Johns defiant school behaviors and report experiencing similar behaviors at home. Student Reinforcement Responses: In conversations with John, he acknowledged that he needed to improve his listening skills and completing his assignments in a timely manner. He did not note any particular reasons for his school behaviors, other than reporting that the assignments were hard, but he would not elaborate further. He noted the following items that may serve as possible behavior reinforcers for him: Friend time Verbal praise Privileges (walk around the school) Computers iPod Snacks (chips, gummy bears) TV/videos Board games Card games Dirt bike magazines Target Behavior: Disruptive BehaviorJohn will openly defy, yell at school staff, and question most directives given to him by school staff (for example, Why do I have to do this? This is stupid, I am not doing it). He frequently seems to need to have the last comment in most conversations (example, Whatever, Ughhhh) after a directive is given. Frequency and Duration: Over a period of five days, eight classroom observations of forty-five minutes in length of John in various academic settings were completed. John appeared to be noncompliant 1

at times and working on his own agenda. He struggled to complete tasks without much adult support. His attention appeared to be poor, and he appeared to not understand the expectations for classroom behavior. John appeared to be off-task several times (fidgeting with a pencil and paper clip). Based on these observations and teacher reports, it was determined that John engages in disruptive behaviors on average 1-3 times per class period. Each incident lasts 1-5 minutes. The behaviors appear to occur at various times throughout the school day. Intensity of Behavior Rating Rubric: Low Behavior is confined only to the named student (possible examples: not completing work, scowling, crossing arms, pouting, muttering under his or her breath, or quietly fidgeting). Medium Behavior disrupts others in the students immediate area (possible examples: fidgeting with an audience, slamming textbook closed, dropping objects on the floor, name calling, using inappropriate language/gestures, refusal to follow staff directions, or trouble with social peer interactions). High Behavior disrupts everyone in the class (possible examples: throwing objects, yelling, open defiance of teacher directions, or leaving the classroom). Behavior disrupts other classrooms or common areas of the school (possible examples: throwing objects, yelling, open defiance of school personnels directions, or leaving the school campus). Behavior causes or threatens to cause physical injury to student or others (possible examples: threats of hands-on contact with others, actual hands-on contact with others, or display of weapons/perceived weapons). Johns behaviors range in intensity from medium to high. Settings, People Involved Where Target Behavior Occurs: According to teacher report, observations, and discipline records, the disruptive behavior generally occurs in the classroom settings during independent work times. The disruptive behavior tends to occur at various times during the day, but more so during academic classes (math, science, social studies,

English), rather than in special classes (art, physical education, computers, music). Antecedent Behaviors to Target Behavior: The disruptive behavior appears to occur after John experiences negative interactions with his peers or after John perceives he has experienced a negative interaction with his peers. The disruptive behavior also occurs after John is assigned an independent academic task. Consequences of the Target Behavior: As a result of the disruptive behaviors, the teacher issues a warning to John and/or sends John to the principals office, with a discipline referral for his behaviors, at which time his parents are contacted. John has received time spent in the schools alternate learning environment room, after school detention, and both in-school suspension and out-ofschool suspension as consequences to his behaviors. In response to the disruptive behaviors, his peers laugh at the situation and appear to encourage him to continue the disruptive behaviors. Hypothesis: John is a 12-year-old student attending the seventh grade at the ABC School District. John was referred for a Functional Behavior Assessment by the Committee on Special Education in October of 2009, because of the behaviors he demonstrates while in school. John appears to have an inability to stop and think before acting, which may be influencing some of his disruptive behaviors. John also appears to be lacking in social skills and appears to have low self-esteem. According to staff member responses on the Motivation Assessment Scale, John may engage in disruptive behaviors to obtain attention. John may find the disruptive behavior rewarding, as it gives him the attention he appears to crave. It is also hypothesized that John may engage in disruptive behavior because he does not have mastery of the necessary basic academic skills. Lisa Bundrick, MSW The New Social Worker Spring 2010 23

Sample Behavior Intervention Plan Behavior Strategies: Prevention: Provide clear expectations and rules for behavior (verbally and visually) and refer to classroom rules often. Provide John with a consistent daily routine that is visual and gone over verbally. Seat John in a location with minimal distractions, near a positive role model. Immediately reinforce (Great job, thumbs up, high five) all appropriate attempts at communication and other appropriate behaviors. Contract with John to complete a certain amount of work, then allow John the opportunity to engage in a preferred activity. Call John by his name and establish eye contact before providing directions. After giving directions to the entire class, privately approach and ask John to repeat the directions to check for understanding. Break assignments into smaller more manageable parts. Break down longer directions into smaller parts. Provide consistent encouragement to acknowledge difficult tasks. Defer control to avoid power struggles (example, blame the schedule, the program, the rules). Wait until there is more privacy and tension is low to talk to John, if he is being oppositional. Deflect arguingnevertheless here is what must happen. Use controlled choicesYou can do A or you can do B. Use I need you to rather than You need to statements. Ask John to complete a minimum of three behaviors with which he has a high probability of compliance (example, Please help me hand out papers, Please help me pass back papers, Please help me straighten chairs, Please erase the board for me) in succession immediately before making a request with which he has a low probability of complying. (Once the momentum of compliance is started, it is more likely to continue with low probability responses.) Teaching Alternative Behavior(s): Teach John to self-monitor his behavior by asking him how he thinks he did, then explaining how you think he did, then coming up with a plan for improvement (if needed). Teach John problem-solving skills (this is the problem, these are possible choices, what will happen if I, make the best choice possible). Role play challenging situations and appropriate actions. Teach John to ask for help if needed. Consequences for the Targeted Behavior(s): If John is off-task, prompt with, Whats supposed to be happening right now? Speak in a calm, emotionless voice if John is defiant. You may have to sound like a broken record. Preferred activities will be contingent upon John making positive behavior choices. Consequence Hierarchy Non-verbal redirection (clearing of the throat, the eye) Verbal redirection

Loss of privilege Contact with parents and discipline referral with consequence per school policy Behavior Goal: John will improve his communication skills and calmly express his point of view or thoughts when disagreeing with a school staff member. Behavior Evaluation Method: Teacher reports and data collection sheets (a tally sheet with the number of times John displays disruptive behaviors, as defined in this report) will be submitted weekly, as progress monitoring will be ongoing. Johns behavior intervention plan will be discontinued when the frequency of the disruptive behavior decreases by 90 percent from the present level of 1-3 Return on Investment by Scott Anderson, Ph.D., LCSW ROI, or Return On Investment, is difficult to measure when the primary investment is emotional-interchange with people, and the primary outcomes are, in large part, about an improved quality of life. Although I see the objective features that can be quantified (e.g., number of people served, nights spent with stable shelter, income improvement, and others), how do you accurately quantify the subjective measures of happiness, peace, or potential when serving people? Sure, I know all about operationalization of abstract concepts, statistical techniques for measuring validity, and other strategies for quantifying inherently fuzzy concepts (e.g., Love...lots of measures of love!), but they still lack natures laws confidence, and always remain one step removed from the actual thing were trying to identify. The largest returns we get as social service professionals are not financial, but rather come in knowing that weve made the world a better place, even if only for a very small part of it. For me, its satisfaction from knowing I had a part in placing a beautiful baby for adoption from a wise and willing birth mother and father into the arms of a wonderful caring couple. Its knowing that couples lived together with a lot more happiness than before. Its knowing that I played a small part in peoples decisions to change their lives for the better. Our investments are resources such as time, money, and emotional output. And instead of investing in stocks and bonds, we invest in people and potential. We are in an economic environment that increasingly demands that we prove the value of our services with quantifiable outcomes. I support such demands, because I think they reflect best practices and provide the best services for our clients. But, I dont want to become so focused on looking for the quantifiable outcomes as returns that we fail to recognize the returns of personal fulfillment that can never be measured. Right now, many workers in the social service industry are tired. Its been a tough year. Their jobs inherently demand a level of emotional investment that can lead to compassion fatigue and burnout, and they work in many cases with clients who are just as tired as they are. With organizations scaling back and cutting jobs, while at the same time being required to offer more services, Im worried that a lot of social service professionals will move from tired to disengaged, to disenchanted, disillusioned, disappointed, and depressed. Regardless of how outcome oriented we collectively become in the coming months and years, I hope we can hang on to the un-measurable outcomes that called us to the profession in the beginning: engaging people in real relationships that produce mutual satisfaction. I dont want our interactions to become 15-minute patient consultations that

end abruptly. I dont want the solvency of a program to become more important than a persons sanity or safety. Perhaps its pie in the sky, save the world thinking, but thats what brought me into the profession in the first place. I believed I could be an agent of change, and that I could participate in making someones life somewhere just a little bit better than beforethat a burden could be just a little bit lighter; or that a laugh or a smile could linger just a little bit longer. Thats the kind of Return On Investment that makes it worth it. Thats the Return On Investment that I hope we never lose sight of. Scott Anderson, Ph.D., LCSW, is the Director of Communications for Data Systems International, developer of ClientTrack software for social service organizations. 1. 2. 3. 4.