Article #1

Article Title: School Wide Positive Behaviour Support in an Alternative setting

Authors of the Article: Simonsen, B.,Britton., & Young, D

Name of the Journal: Journal of Positive Behaviour Interventions

Volume Number: 12

Issue Number: 3

Year of Publication: 2010

The case study School-Wide Positive Behaviour Support in an Alternative School Setting by Simonsen, Britton and Young uses different approaches to the understanding of the support mechanisms. It focuses on the intensity of needs in children in alternative schools. It notes that despite their seclusion from other children in the society, children in alternative schools have varied needs that require different approaches. As a result, Simonsen, Britton and Young (2010) suggests three interventions to the challenges: primary, secondary, and tertiary interventions.

The primary intervention, also known as universal intervention, seeks to offer support to all students in the alternative school. It involves teaching the students while establishing little expectations and reinforcement for specific positive behavior. The reinforcement may include rewards for consistent positive behavior or little punishment for undesirable behavior. It primarily seeks to foster positive behavior among children.

The second intervention approach is the second tier approach (Targeted-group intervention). The method focuses on the support for learners with more specialized needs. This small group of students is made up of those that need checkout or check-in often. Their higher intensity needs may demand the behavior education program and mentor. The support providers should undergo intensive social skills training and other evidence-based interventions to deliver effectively.

The third intervention – tertiary tier – also known as individualized interventions focus on the support for individual children with high frequency/intensity problems. The intervention incorporates intensive support and positive behavior intervention plans. The article acknowledges the unique needs of individual students whose situations do not fall under a specified category. It, therefore, plays a critical role in offering support to distinct learners.

The analysis of the strategies shows that the authors considered humanity, care, and equality in the provision of behavioral support to the children. The author has given out various policies that support providers could have options to choose from based on the needs of the group or individual learner. It ensures that all student needs is catered for within the institution to avoid discrimination. The strategies seek to promote the behavior of all students in alternative schools.

Apart from the intervention strategies, readers learn a lot from this article. For instance, I have discovered that a support mechanism in alternative schools require specialization for one to offer services to offered adequate assistance and support to the vulnerable children. This is because the needs of children in alternative schools tend to vary widely; thus the difficulties in supporting them. It is, however; important to note that the strategies have its strengths and weaknesses. Its advantages are seen in the conciseness of its interventions – it caters for all the different supports needed by children in such schools. Its fault is that it elaborates on the specific skills that are required for each strategy.

Plausibly, different groups of people including teachers, medical professionals, and families among others could have different opinion and perspective on the intervention strategies. One could argue that the third tier strategy is less effective compared to the primary intervention because the former is more specific in offering support to individuals rather than the whole group. Overall, as a DSW, I would utilize the strategies in providing help to vulnerable groups. The policy could direct me on how to approach different situations in alternative schools. I would consider the ethics and values of any assistance that I will offer.

Reflection

Through the use of PBIS, as a developmental service provider, I will teach the school personnel on how to make and implement new strategies to the schools in the local culture and setting. While the schools that are using PBIS are thought to teach their students a wide range of how they are expected to behave, the methods that are used to prepare the students on the various expectations and how they are supposed to act, are left so that they can perfectly match with the culture, the resources that the school has, and the demands that are imposed on the school organization.

Additionally, the focus on core features has a direct positive impact on the implementation process of the strategies that are aimed at behavioral change. Since the adoption of the behavioral change strategy does not only involve the passage of the PBIS, the school organization usually needs a formal way or personnel to know that there core features are acting and in the proper direction, I will perform that function of analyzing and performance tracking. I would assess by the use of Tier I, Tier II and Tier III to support and ensure that the practices are correctly in place. As a developmental services worker, I will teach organizations that it is not the organization that behaves, but the people in the organization. This will help them not only focus on the development of individual behaviours, but also the development of group behaviour to enhance general behaviour improvement.