When target behaviors occur, responding in order to minimize severity and decrease the likelihood of recurrence.
When determining which response strategies to use, ask yourself these questions:
What strategies have worked in the past?
Think about what the student is currently getting when they engage in their target behavior(s) — less peer attention. How can we eliminate that reinforcement so the behavior no longer "works" for them?
How can we plan responses that are appropriately gauged to the intensity of the student’s behavior?
How will we respond if the target behavior is ongoing?
How will we respond if the student exhibits agitation and needs to de-escalate?
If we are unsuccessful in interrupting the reinforcement a student receives (i.e, they do avoid peer attention), how can we use consequences that are meaningful and logically tied to the behavior, build replacement behaviors, and repair harm in order to move on and make the target behavior less likely to recur?
What resources are available to implement these strategies with fidelity (e.g., behavior processing room, crisis team, paraprofessional)?
Examples below.
NOTE: Many of these strategies are Tier 1 (universal) best practices.
At the Tier 3 or SpEd level, we're using them more deliberately, sometimes with adaptations.
RESPONSE CONTINUUM: In all school settings, if XXX engages in inappropriate behavior, staff will follow building procedures: (A) a “major/minor chart” where “major” behaviors = an automatic referral out of class (B) for “minor” behaviors—using nonverbal prompts, indirect prompts, direct prompts, or private chats to address the behavior in the least disruptive manner. [Provide additional details regarding when/how to use the listed strategies to optimal effect. If appropriate, create a numbered intensity list (e.g., #1…, #2…) where specific behaviors are described along with the response staff should execute.]
AVOID PITFALLS: In all school settings, during corrective interactions with XXX, staff will avoid the following, which tend to escalate XXX’s behavior: [arguing with XXX in a power struggle, public correction, aggressive nonverbals, raised voice]. Instead, staff will [ignore or defuse challenging statements, correct discreetly, use calm and assertive communication].
DE-ESCALATION: In all school settings, if instructional control is compromised during a corrective interaction with XXX, school staff will maximize XXX’s privacy and use calm, assertive nonverbal communication with XXX. Staff will use brief prompts that [defuse challenges, suggest a calming strategy, repeat the expectation, connect the expectation to a desirable outcome, and/or offer XXX a choice]. Following each prompt, staff will provide XXX with wait time.