Positive Behavioral Support Plan

Sarah Reinhardt
Towson University

Positive Behavioral Support Plan

*Names have been changed to protect the identity of the individual.
Definition
During instructional time given by a teacher, instructional assistant, or intern, Jessica
often exhibits the behavior of noncompliance. When this behavior occurs, Jessica will often
furrow her brow, place her head on the desk, scream, cry, and destroy materials. This
noncompliant behavior typically lasts somewhere between five to ten minutes. Jessicas
noncompliant behaviors are a source of much disruption to her learning and the learning of
others. When Jessica exhibits the behavior other students in the room are distracted during the
first few minutes of the behavior. On certain occasions Jessica will continue to be disruptive even
if she has removed herself from the group. She may hit her hands against the table or scream.
Literature Review
Axelrod, M., & Zank, A. (2012). Increasing classroom compliance: Using a high-probability
command sequence with noncompliant students. Journal of Behavioral Education, 21(2),
119-133.
This article discusses the effectiveness of a high- probability command sequence (HPCS)
in order to increase compliance of noncompliant students. High- probability command sequence
is a set of simple commands in which an individual is likely to comply immediately prior to the
delivery of a command that has a lower probability of compliance. The study targeted two
noncompliant elementary-age students within the general education setting. The teachers of the
students were trained on how to integrate HPCS into their classroom reading instruction. The

results found that higher percentages of compliance with low-probability commands were
displayed during instruction compared to the baseline data of the students.
Babin, H., McLaughlin, T. F., Derby, K. M., Weber, K. P., & Cartmell, H. (2016). An
examination of a break card intervention with and without a token economy for a child
with autism. World Wide Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 2(1),
1-5.
The purpose of this article is to evaluate the effects of a break card intervention on a sixth
grade student with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) when presented with an academic task. The
study was divided into three conditions in an attempt to develop a functional relationship
between the intervention and the participants behaviors. Break Card A was designed so that the
participant was able to choose a break at any point during academic instruction. The participant
was reluctant to take a break and when prompted the behavior increased. For Break Card B, the
student was still able to choose a break whenever she wanted, however, this time the participant
had four break options (reading a book, listening to music, playing on the iPad, and eating a
snack). Participants behavior decreased slightly due to this Break Card. For Break Card C, the
author of the study created a token reward system with the same choice of reinforcing break
options. This break card was most successful because the inappropriate behavior was decreased
significantly.
Ritz, M., Noltemeyer, A., Davis., & Green, J. (2014). Behavior management in preschool
classrooms: Insights revealed through systematic observation and interview. Psychology
in the Schools 51(2), 181-197.

This study examined behavior management strategies used in a preschool class in order
to address student noncompliance in the classroom. Observations and teacher interview were
conducted in five classrooms across two preschools. Results revealed that teachers use a variety
of methods to address noncompliance, many of which are preventative in nature and not reactive.
In this study however, students were reinforced for appropriate behavior following
noncompliance less than one-third of the time. The results found from the study suggest that
teachers are using a wide range of strategies in order to address noncompliance and not only
implementing one strategy. The results also stress the importance of positive reinforcement for
appropriate behavior following an episode of noncompliance.
Voorhees, M. D., Walker, V. L., Snell, M .E., & Smith, C. G. (2013). A demonstration of
individualized positive behavior support interventions by head start staff to address
childrens challenging behavior. Research & Practice for Persons with Severe
Disabilities, 38(3), 173-185.
This article discusses the effectiveness of individualized Positive Behavior Supports in
early childhood settings. The article studied whether the effects of an individualized Positive
Behavior Support intervention implemented by Head Start staff would have a significant effect
on the occurrence of inappropriate and appropriate behavior in the classroom. The study was
conducted on three head start students, some with identified disabilities or developmental delays,
and found that there was a reduction of inappropriate behavior, regardless of type, and an
increase in appropriate behavior. The results of this study found that the interventions are
effective among children with varying support needs and the interventions are able to be
reproduced with the same results. The authors of this study suggest that the individuals who

implement the interventions and supports have the necessary training and experience in working
with a child with severe disabilities.
Wadsworth, J. P., Hanson, B. D., & Wills, S.B., (2015). Increasing compliance in students with
intellectual disabilities using functional behavioral assessment and self-monitoring.
Remedial and Special Education, 36(4), 195-207.
This article studied noncompliance in three elementary age students with intellectual
disabilities. The student noncompliance was assessed using a functional behavioral assessment.
Teacher-monitoring and self-monitoring interventions were implemented for the three students in
order to increase compliance in the classroom. Results showed that the interventions were
effective and that all three students increased compliance during the teacher-monitoring and selfmonitoring conditions.
Baseline Data Collection
Jessica is a fifth grade student at Franklin Elementary. She spends most of her school day
in a Special Education resource room with my mentor, Deborah Peach. In this resource
classroom, Jessica receives instruction for reading, math, and Individualized Education Program
Skills. Jessica has been diagnosed with Hydrocephalus, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder,
and a Seizure Disorder. Jessicas past medical history should also be noted, as it most likely
affects her behavior. From discussions with my mentor and the other teacher in the room further
into the observations, I discovered that Jessica does not have her frontal lobe due to
complications with seizures when she was younger. Upon further research, it was found that
frontal lobes are responsible for certain kinds of behaviors and individuals who have it removed
may be affected in the areas of motivation, attention, or concentration, organization and other

executive functioning skills, and mood, impulse control. I observed Jessica during her time in the
classroom on multiple occasions. I formally observed Jessica for a total of three days, before the
implementation of the Positive Behavior Support Plan. Additional data was also collected during
informal observations. For the formal and informal observation of Jessica, I took handwritten
notes on an ABC chart. The ABC chart measures the frequency of the target behavior, the
behaviors antecedent, and the consequence/reaction to the behavior.
In addition to the data collected during class, I reviewed Jessicas file with my mentor.
Jessica is taking medications for her ADHD, and for a seizure disorder. I attempted to gather
further information on Jessicas medication, but due to HIPAA restrictions, this information was
unavailable to me. Jessica does suffer from hyperactive behaviors in the classroom due to her
ADHD. When reviewing Jessicas past Individualized Education Plan (IEP), I observed that
Jessica has only one goal that specifically relates to her behavior in the classroom. This goal
consists of Jessica using management/coping strategies when faced with situations that cause
anxiety, frustration, stress, and/or anger. Most of her goals were related academic content and
fine motor skills. Further information gathered from Jessicas previous teachers showed that
Jessica has always exhibited the target behavior in the classroom, but that was not the immediate
concern at the time. The immediate concern was her academics and performing successfully in
those areas.
Before implementation data was collected on Jessica for a total of fifteen days. The first
three days were the formal observation data in order to determine the frequency of the target
behavior. Additional data was also recorded to see if Jessica exhibited the behavior constantly
over a period of days. For these observations, I recorded all of the disruptive behavior that

Jessica performs consistently throughout the school day. It was observed that all of her behaviors
that were disruptive in the classroom were related to noncompliance.
With the help of the data collected and discussions with my mentor, I was able to focus
on the behavior of noncompliance and observe what caused Jessicas noncompliance and what
behaviors she exhibited, as well as perfect the method of recording data. It can be seen in the
data on the ABC chart that the target behavior of noncompliance is mostly performed in the
morning, during the reading class in the special education resource room. For some days, the
target behavior can be seen constantly throughout the entire school day. When Jessica exhibits
the target behavior of noncompliance, she also exhibits other types of behavior that are related to
her noncompliance, such as throwing her glasses, furrowing her brow, putting her head down,
crossing her arms, and crying. All of these behaviors were seen when Jessica was noncompliant.

This chart on the previous page shows the frequency with which Jessicas target behavior
of noncompliance was seen over the course of fourteen days. During the fourteen days of
observation, the average amount of times the behavior occurred is three instances of the target
behavior a day. From the graph above, one can also see that the amount of behaviors occurred
more frequently at the beginning of the observations. One day at the beginning of the
observation, a total of seven behaviors were observed.

The graph above shows all of the different behaviors Jessica exhibits when she has
performed the target behavior of noncompliance. It can be seen that the majority of the behaviors
that she performs when she is noncompliant are furrowing her brow, throwing her glasses, and

putting her head down. There were additional behaviors that Jessica exhibited when she was
noncompliant, but the graph above only shows the behaviors observed more than 4% of the time.
Additional behaviors include walking out of the room, moving seats in the classroom, and
banging fists on the table.

The formal observational data that I have collected on Jessica shows that she exhibits the
target behavior multiple times throughout the school day, but it is mostly seen in the morning
during the reading class. On the date of the first formal observation, February 18, 2016, Jessica
demonstrated the target behavior three times during the morning in reading, and once in the
afternoon in math. In between these times, Jessica did not perform any unwanted behavior.
The second set of formal observational data was collected on February 19, 2016. On this
day, Jessica performed the target behavior a total of seven times during a one and half hour
period in the morning. Most of the target behavior was performed when an adult in the room
asked Jessica to do something, such as to start working or listen to others as they are talking. The
target behavior also occurred when the students were moving into groups. Jessica became upset,
stomped to the table, and then proceeded to put her head down and refuse to work on the task.
For the remainder of the school day, Jessica did not perform the targeted behavior.
On February 22, 2016, Jessica exhibited the target behavior a total of four times. All of
these behaviors occurred in the morning within an hour period. These behaviors occurred when
an adult asked her to do something or to listen to her classmates when they were talking. During
these instances, Jessica would throw her glasses, furrow her brow, and put her head down.
Jessica did not exhibit the behaviors in the afternoon during this day.
For the last formal observation conducted on February 24, 2016, Jessica performed the
target behavior a total of four times during the school day. One instance observed on this day
occurred in the morning. The remaining three instances occurred in the afternoon during the
math portion of the day. It should be noted that on this day, my mentor and the other teacher in
the room were not present. There was a substitute in the room for the entire day. Two of Jessicas

behaviors on this day occurred when the substitute told her to do something. When the substitute
did talk to her, Jessica performed the Im watching you gesture, which is when Jessica points
to her eyes with two fingers and then points at the person the gesture is directed two. She then
put her head down and refused to participate or the rest of the class period. For the behavior that
occurred in the morning, Jessica exhibited the target behavior when another student in the class
was talking to her and the class. During this time, Jessica furrowed her, threw her glasses on the
floor and then put her head down. She would not communicate with any of the adults and would
turn away from anyone who would try to talk with her.

While Jessica performs the target behavior throughout the day, it should also be
mentioned that most of Jessicas behavior occurs in the morning. While Jessica does perform the
target behavior consistently, it should be noted that Jessica performs the behavior that is asked of
her on rare occasions. She occasionally receives positive reinforcement for this appropriate
behavior, in the form of a high five or verbal praise. Although this appropriate behavior occurs
infrequently, it shows that Jessica does know what the more appropriate behavior is that should
be performed. This knowledge of appropriate behavior may help in the future when teaching
Jessica the replacement behavior and when and how it should be performed.
Many of Jessicas problem behaviors most likely stem from the absence of her frontal
lobe and being told what to do. Due the absence of the frontal lobe, Jessicas mood and impulse
control is affected. Her behavior may also stem for interactions with adults that she may not like,
or who tell her what to do during instructional time. The data collected over the fourteen days

supports this finding. One minute Jessica may be laughing and having a productive time during
class and then the next, someone says something to her and she becomes noncompliant.
Hypothesis of Functional Intention
The main functional intention behind Jessicas problem behaviors is revenge. Most of the
target behavior is performed when the teacher, instructional assistant, or intern is communicating
with her and asking her to continue working or something similar. When this happens, Jessica is
likely to be seen furrowing her brow, putting her head on the table, throwing glasses, or
performing the Im watching you gesture. When these behaviors occur Jessica will move her
seat in order to be further from the person who is addressing her.
Jessica also exhibits another functional intention behind her problem behaviors, which is
avoidance of academic work that she struggles to focus on. Jessica is diagnosed with ADHD, and
does not have her frontal lobe, which may affect her attention and concentration, so she finds it
hard to concentrate on academic tasks that require sitting in one spot for a prolonged period of
time, attending to written work and reading, and listening to instruction for more than very short
periods of time. When Jessica exhibits the target behaviors of noncompliance, she is meeting her
goal of avoiding academic work.
Another functional intention that is exhibited by Jessica is power. In many cases during
the observation, Jessica exhibits the behavior when an adult asks her if she needs help or asks her
a question. From this data, one can assume that Jessica does not like to look weak in front of her
classmates. When someone offers Jessica help, she often says that she does not need any help.
This can be seen as Jessica trying to appear competent in front of her classmates.

Jessica is reprimanded for her target behavior rarely during the academic day, but the
time he is actively engaged in exhibiting the target behavior such as throwing her glasses, putting
her head down, and glaring at an individual, is time that is spent trying to avoid tasks and
enacting revenge on an individual. When Jessica is reprimanded, her behavior will worsen and it
will take much longer for her to calm down and rejoin the class in order to finish instruction.
During these periods, all attention goes to Jessica for the first few minutes, but her classmates are
conditioned to her behaviors, so they quickly return to the task at hand.
Replacement Behavior
The replacement behavior for Jessica has been identified as her quietly raising her hand
and asking for a break when she becomes frustrated, anxious, or angry during a situation, and
then she will return to her seat and finish the required assignments. The replacement behavior is
operationally defined as raising a quiet (non-verbal) hand and waiting to be acknowledged in
order to ask for a break. When Jessica has completed her break, she will return to her seat and
continue her work in a timely manner. When Jessica does become frustrated or angry she will ask
for a break and then sit in a quiet area for around a minute. There she will reflect on why she is
frustrated or angry. After the specific amount of time has passed, Jessica will rejoin the class and
continue with instruction. This behavior would appear to obtain the same goal as the target
behavior, but with little distraction to the other students. Instead of displaying the target
behavior of noncompliance, Jessica will raise her hand in order to obtain a break and then come
back to the group once she has calmed down. Each time Jessica exhibits the replacement
behavior, she will receive a sticker that could be exchanged for a reward if she collects enough.

I will teach the replacement behavior by modeling correct behaviors during different
situations. When there is a situation where Jessica becomes frustrated or angry, I will remind her
to ask for a break. I will discuss the new behavior with Jessica each day and make sure that if she
ever feels frustrated or angry, she will have the opportunity for a break. I will continuously ask
Jessica if she needs a break if I see she is becoming frustrated or angry during a situation. In
order to reinforce the desired behavior, I will discuss the procedure for asking for a break with
Jessica daily, so that she will know what she should do if she comes to a situation that makes her
frustrated or angry.
Positive Behavioral Supports
Positive Behavior Supports (PBS) are a set of research-based strategies used to increase
quality of life and decrease problem behavior by teaching new skills and making changes in a
persons environment (Association for Positive Behavior Support, 2014). Three positive
behavioral supports that can be used with Jessica include a token economy, break system, and
self-reflections. A token economy is a system where students earn some type of token when they
have exhibited the replacement behavior. These tokens can be exchanged for a specific
reinforcer. The positive aspects of a token economy are numerous. While the student is earning
the token, they are also given specific praise. This allows the student to know why they have
earned the token and will hopefully increase the likelihood of the replacement behavior. Tokens
should be given out only when the student is caught being good and not on a schedule.
Distributing tokens on a schedule will send the wrong message to the student. One thing that is
interesting about the token economy is that it specifically states to never take away tokens that a
student has earned.

With a token economy, the student may realize that he is only receiving the tokens when he
performs the replacement behavior, thus increasing the frequency of said behavior. For Jessica,
she will be given stickers each time she is seen performing the replacement behavior. Jessica
should also be rewarded when she remains on task during the instructional time, as that is also a
difficulty of hers that occurs throughout the day. Once Jessica has earned enough tokens
(stickers), she will be able to earn her reward. As discussed prior to the system being put in
place, Jessica stated that she would love to earn a mechanical pencil and a lollipop for when she
is performing well in class.
A break system will also be used with Jessica. As she often becomes frustrated and angry
when faced with a situation in the classroom, having the opportunity to remove herself from that
situation will be beneficial for everyone in the room. It will be beneficial because Jessica will be
able to take a break from the situation and calm herself down. Once she has calmed herself down
enough, she will return to the class and continue with instruction. Jessica will be given a break
card sheet that has a certain number of break cards. On this sheet will be ten different break
cards. This means that Jessica can take a maximum of ten breaks during the day. The goal of the
break card is for Jessica to be able to calm herself down and not need the break. Once it is seen
that Jessica is not taking all of the breaks, the amount of breaks she is allowed will decrease. The
goal is for Jessica to not need any breaks during the class and for her to stay focused and
compliant throughout the entire school day.
Self-reflections will also be incorporated in Jessicas plan. Whenever Jessica needs to
take a break from a situation that makes her feel angry or frustrated, she must complete a selfreflection sheet that asks her to say how she is feeling, why she is feeling that way, a way to find
the best solution to the problem and situation she has faced, and how she can act in the future to

prevent a problem situation from occurring. This self-reflection sheet will help Jessica to identify
what she is feeling and why. This will help her in the future because she may be faced with a
situation that she cannot take a break from and if she knows how to reflect on her thoughts and
actions, she will perform much better in the situation.
Specific praise will also be used with Jessica. It has been noticed during all observations
that when Jessica receives specific praise for an appropriate action that she has performed, she is
more likely to perform that action again in the future. It has been noticed that when Jessica is
praised, she will try harder in class in order to earn more of that praise. Although when the praise
comes from an individual that is not normally in the room it could incite the target behavior of
noncompliance.
It should be noted that the use of proximity control has been used in the past as a
behavior support, but has been unsuccessful. If an adult has said something to Jessica that causes
her frustration or anger, she will want distance from the person and staying in close proximity
will only escalate her behavior.

Data Collection and Visual Representation

Data Summary and Interpretation

Overall, there have been slight improvements in Jessicas behavior. The frequency with
which she exhibits the behavior is slightly less than before implementation of the Positive
Behavior Supports. Although there have been slight improvements, it is obvious that Jessica
needs much more support than what my mentor and I were able to give her during the three
weeks of positive supports. I collected data on Jessicas noncompliant behaviors in the classroom
for about three weeks. I introduced the supports, which include a token chart, a break system,
and a self-reflection sheet on a Monday and the first couple of days she was really excited about
it and her behaviors decreased slightly. There were some days where she did not exhibit the
behavior. During the second week the frequency of her behaviors were constant for the majority
of the week. During this week Jessica needed to be reminded that she had the break cards and
that she was working towards a reward. The final week that I recorded data, Jessicas behaviors
increased slightly. This may be due to the fact that she became bored with the token system and
she didnt respond as well as she did during previous weeks.
Jessica did implement the break system occasionally during the three weeks. There were
multiple occasions where she declined a break when she was becoming frustrated or angry. This
may be because when Jessica became angry or frustrated, all of the attention would focus on her.
This then caused her to become embarrassed and she did not want to take a break or be treated
differently in front of her classmates.
In the graphs on the previous page, the behaviors that Jessica exhibits when she is
noncompliant are shown. Many of the same behaviors can be seen in the data gathered during
implementation. There were increases in some behaviors such as clenched fists and screaming.

Although Jessicas behaviors have decreased slightly during the time the positive behavior
supports were in place, it is clear that she needs much more than what is implemented currently.
Due to this fact that Jessicas behavior has not been extinguished, the school has decided to
implement a plan that is enacted by the Occupational Therapist.
Reflection
The completion of this project has helped me grow in my knowledge, skills, and
dispositions in classroom management. It not only taught me to create a plan to manage a
students behavior in the classroom, but how managing one students behavior can help the entire
class as a whole. I learned a lot about how one students behavior can impact the entire class.
I feel like I am better at managing classroom and individual student behavior by
completing this assignment. Classroom management is all about being proactive, instead of
reactive and that can be seen in this assignment. By having a management system for an
individual student, it can change the entire classroom. This assignment also helped me to get to
know the student and form a positive relationship with her as well. When it comes to managing a
behavior, one has to have a positive relationship with the student because I am the one
interacting with the student and rewarding the student for positive behaviors. Knowing what
frustrates or angers a student is a huge part in being proactive in classroom management.
By completing this assignment, my disposition towards classroom management has
grown tremendously. Hearing stories in classes about behavior management is completely
different than actually experiencing it in the classroom. Being in the classroom for five days this
semester has really put my knowledge of classroom management to the test. I have struggled

throughout, but I believe that I am more prepared to manage an individuals behavior, as well as
the behavior of the entire class.
As I am at Franklin Elementary for another four weeks, I am going to keep up with the
token board for Jessica. Although, I recently discovered that she will receive a behavior plan
created by the school because there has been limited change in her behavior. Until that time
though, I will keep up with the plan that is currently in place. By creating this plan for Jessica, I
can now generalize this positive behavior support plan to many of my future students. Providing
positive reinforcements for all students is a great way to lessen negative behaviors in the
classroom. This behavior plan can also be used for individual students as well.
If I were to complete this project again, I would be sure to remind Jessica of the plan
every day. Throughout the majority of the plan, I did remind her about what she can do if she
ever becomes frustrated or angry, but there were some days when I did not remind her of the
plan. These were the days that she had stronger reactions to situations in the classroom. I would
be sure to always talk with the students every day so that they are aware that the plan is still in
place. Another change that I would make would be to observe Jessica in her other classes as well.
I was unable to do so this semester due to teaching classes at the time that she has class. If I were
to complete the plan again, I would be sure to observe Jessica in other classes to see if her
behavior is any different. I would also start the plan at the beginning of the year instead of in the
middle of the year. Many students with disabilities struggle with change and Jessica is no
different. All students need structure and it is important to remain consistent throughout the
entire school year.

Works Cited
Axelrod, M., & Zank, A. (2012). Increasing classroom compliance: Using a high-probability
command sequence with noncompliant students. Journal of Behavioral Education, 21(2),
119-133.
Association for Positive Behavior Support. (n.d.). Retrieved December 3, 2015.
http://www.apbs.org/new_apbs/genintro.aspx
Babin, H., McLaughlin, T. F., Derby, K. M., Weber, K. P., & Cartmell, H. (2016). An
examination of a break card intervention with and without a token economy for a child
with autism. World Wide Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 2(1),
1-5.
Ritz, M., Noltemeyer, A., Davis., & Green, J. (2014). Behavior management in preschool
classrooms: Insights revealed through systematic observation and interview. Psychology
in the Schools 51(2), 181-197.
Voorhees, M. D., Walker, V. L., Snell, M .E., & Smith, C. G. (2013). A demonstration of
individualized positive behavior support interventions by head start staff to address
childrens challenging behavior. Research & Practice for Persons with Severe
Disabilities, 38(3), 173-185.
Wadsworth, J. P., Hanson, B. D., & Wills, S.B., (2015). Increasing compliance in students with
intellectual disabilities using functional behavioral assessment and self-monitoring.
Remedial and Special Education, 36(4), 195-207.