Using Functional Assessment to Enhance Efficacy of First Step to Success

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Using Functional Assessment to Enhance Efficacy
of First Step to Success

• Deborah Russell, Ph.D.
• Bruce Stiller, Ph.D.

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First Step to Success

• First Step to Success (Walker, et.al., 1997) is
  a collaborative home and school intervention
  program designed to divert at-risk primary age
• children from learning behaviors that interfere
  with success in school and life.

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First Step to Success

• Designed for Kindergarten and First Grade
  students with moderate to severe problem
  behaviors
• Provides 30 - 60 days of intensive behavior
  support
• Two complementary, primary interventions CLASS
  and HomeBASE
• Key participants Teacher, Parent, Coach, and
  Student

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Philosophical Foundations

• Behavior should be taught (identify the correct
  response differentiate from most common errors
  model prompt reinforce re-teach when errors
  are observed)
• Attention is a powerful reinforcer of student
  behavior. Maximize attention for appropriate
  behavior minimize attention for inappropriate
  behavior

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CLASS Intervention

• Positive behavior management program
• Implemented by Coach Days 1-7
• Implemented by Teacher Days 8 thru conclusion
• Children learn how to
• Attend to the teacher
• Get along with others
• Participate in activities

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CLASS Procedures

• Target Student earns points on the GREEN/RED card
• GREEN/RED card provides feedback
• Points on GREEN side earn activity rewardfor
  the class

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PLAYING THE GREEN/RED CARD GAME

• Procedures (continued)
• Teacher teaches, coach operates card
• When time is up, debrief with student
• Ask teacher to stop class
• Announce the outcome

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Coach turns card to RED when student is not
attending to the teacher
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Coach shows how many points have been earned.
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The group activity reward should be delivered as
soon as possible after the GREEN/RED card game
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HomeBASE

• Commitment for parents/caregivers
• Weekly meetings with First Step coach 30-45
  minutes
• Complete Check-up lists (How well do you know
  your child ?)
• Discuss Parent Tips (Dos and donts of good
  parenting)
• Practice Games to play with child( Focused on
  school success)
• Daily practice and activities with child 5-10
  minutes

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HomeBASE

• WEEK 1 Sharing the day
• WEEK 2 Cooperation
• WEEK 3 Limit Setting
• WEEK 4 Problem Solving
• WEEK 5 Friendship Skills
• WEEK 6 Building Confidence/Self-Esteem

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Common Obstacles to Effective Intervention

• Treatment Integrity is low (adult behavior has
  not changed -- student continues to receive high
  rates of attention for inappropriate behavior)
• The student exhibits escape maintained problem
  behaviors (e.g., leaving the room without
  permission escalating into severely disruptive
  behaviors) that are not responsive to the RED
  card
• The problem behaviors occur primarily in
  unstructured situations where it is difficult to
  provide adequate structure/adult supervision

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Common Modifications to Enhance Efficacy

• Identify specific social skills that can be
  taught as replacement behaviors (e.g. careful
  please) Also use when escape maintained
  behavior is due to low frustration tolerance
  (e.g., take a break or practice self-talk
  strategies)s
• Add an extinction component for escalation cycles
  when the RED card is not effective
• Add an academic intervention (such as
  pre-teaching a key skill) when escape maintained
  behavior is due to low academic skills

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Adding Function-Based Behavior Support to First
Step

• PURPOSE
• Experimentally assess the effects of
  individualized, function-based adaptations to
  First Step to Success for students identified as
  weak or non-responders to the standard program.

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Conceptual Model
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Research Questions

• Is there a functional relationship between the
  addition of function-based procedures to First
  Step and
• (a) reduction in problem behavior and
• (b) increase in academic engagement?
• Are First Step procedures with FBA socially
  acceptable to teachers?

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Design

• Single Subject Design
• Study 1 (pilot study)
• Single case reversal design
• Study 2 (replication)
• Non-concurrent multiple-baseline design

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Study 1 Pilot StudySingle Case Reversal Design
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Participant Setting

• NOAH
• 1st grade (6 years old), male
• SSRS High maladaptive
• DIBELS High literacy skills
• FACTS Problem behavior attention maintained
  (peer adult)
• Strengths top of class in reading and math
  groups, charismatic, leader with his friends,
  communicative/loving
• Setting Reasoning Writing, large group
  instruction

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DV Measurement

• Measures of Student Social Behavior
• Standardized Assessment SSRS
• Direct Observation Academic Engagement
  Problem Behavior
• IOA (35 of observations)

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IV Measurement

• Measures of implementation fidelity of standard
  First Step and First Step plus function-based
  support
• First Step to Success
• 13 items (key features of FS)
• Prior to, during, following red/green card game
• Function-Based Supports
• 9 items (key features of added function-based
  supports)
• Scoring (yes2, somewhat1, no0)

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Hypothesis Statement (Noah)
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Intervention Summary (Noah)
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Results (Noah) Problem Behavior
B Coaching
C FS w/ FBA
D FS w/o FBA
C FS w/ FBA
A Baseline
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Results (Noah) Academic Engagement
A Baseline
B Coaching
C FS w/ FBA
D FS w/o FBA
C FS w/ FBA
Academic Engagement
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Study 2 ReplicationNon-Concurrent Multiple
Baseline Design
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Participants Setting

• Gabriel
• Kindergarten, 6 Yrs. old, Male
• SSRS low social skills (18th percentile), high
  maladaptive behavior (98th percentile), low
  academic skills (18th percentile)
• FACTS PB maintained by peer attention
• Setting Small group reading
• Jonas
• 1st Grade, 7 yrs. old, Male
• SSRS low social skills (10th percentile), high
  maladaptive behavior (94th percentile), low
  academic skills (23th percentile)
• FACTS PB maintained by peer attention
• Setting Spelling
• Patrick
• Kindergarten, 5 yrs. old, Male
• SSRS low social skills (4th percentile), high
  maladaptive behavior (gt98th percentile), low
  academic skills (lt2th percentile)
• FACTS PB maintained by escape during writing
  tasks by peer adult attention during
  unstructured times
• Setting Letter book

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Hypothesis Statement Intervention Summary
(Gabriel)

• Class points for following directions ignoring
  distractions
• Positive behavior slips that target student could
  award to peers
• Flow-chart for dealing with noncompliant behavior

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Hypothesis Statement Intervention Summary
(Jonas)

• Class points for following directions ignoring
  distractions
• Positive behavior slips that target student can
  award to peers
• Flow-chart for dealing with non-compliant behavior

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Hypothesis Statement Intervention Summary
(Patrick)

• Class points for following directions ignoring
  distractions
• Positive behavior slips that target student could
  award to peers
• Modified work during difficult academic times
• Allowed to complete preferred activity when
  modified task completed
• Required to complete academic task if not
  completed during allotted time

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ResultsProblemBehavior
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ResultsAcademicEngagement
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Social Validity
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Implications for Practice

• Implementation of First Step should focus on two
  goals
• Implementing core program components with
  fidelity
• Identifying and providing necessary adaptations
  for potential non-responders
• Completion of a functional assessment prior to
  implementation of First Step to Success will
  allow interventionists to more efficiently adapt
  interventions to align with each students unique
  needs

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Directions for Future Research

• Direct systematic replication
• Larger broader participant samples
• Include observations across multiple activities
• Examine maintenance long-term effects
• Integrate FBA with other manualized interventions
• Examining systems to improve the efficiency and
  effectiveness of combined interventions
• Examine the relative effectiveness of individual
  features of the intervention
• Explore the effects of implementing
  function-based supports alone first
• Develop procedures to improve the efficiency of
  the intervention process for practitioners

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• Questions?