Young Adult Outcomes from the Good Behavior Game: a classroom behavior management program applied in 1st and 2nd Grades

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Young Adult Outcomes from the Good Behavior
Game a classroom behavior management program
applied in 1st and 2nd Grades

• Sheppard G. Kellam, M.D.
• AIR Center for Integrating Education and
  Prevention Research in Schools
• Presentation at SREE
• December 11, 2006
• Funding since 1984 by National Institutes of
  Health
• NIDA, NIMH, NICHD

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Co-Authors

• Sheppard G. Kellam, M.D. 1,4
• C. Hendricks Brown, Ph.D. 2
• Jeanne Poduska, Sc.D. 1
• Carla Ford, Ph.D. 1
• Amy Windham, Ph.D. 1
• Natalie L. Keegan 1
• John Reid, Ph.D. 3
• Nicholas Ialongo, Ph.D. 4
• Hanno Petras, Ph.D. 6
• Bonnie Copeland, Ph.D. 5
• Linda Chinnia, 5
• 1 American Institutes for Research,
• Center for Integrating Education and Prevention
  Research in Schools
• 2 University of South Florida, Prevention Science
  Methodology Group

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The Baltimore Education and Prevention Partnership

• The Baltimore City Public School System (BCPSS)
  has collaborated in 3 generations of education
  and prevention epidemiologically-based randomized
  field trials.
• Trials were directed at helping children master
  key social task demands in 1st and 2nd grade
  classrooms.
• Interventions were tested separately, then
  together.
• The 1st generation will be our main focus today,
  where the Good Behavior Game (GBG) was tested by
  itself and the children, now young adults, were
  recently followed to ages 19-21.

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Developmental Epidemiological Randomized
Preventive Trials

• One of a set of current prevention research
  strategies
• Intervention is directed at early risk factor to
  reduce risk and improve developmental paths
• Defining population helps control selection bias
• Allows study of means, but also variation in
  developmental paths and in impactwho benefits
  and under what conditions
• Periodic follow-up to determine impact on paths
  and outcomes

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Early Risk in Prevention and Education Research

• Over the last four decades much has been
  learned about early risk factors and paths
  leading to behavioral, mental health, and school
  problems.
• Most if not all are strongly related to
  academic failure, also a major risk factor for
  later school drop-out, delinquency, drug abuse,
  depression, and other problem outcomes.
• Aggressive, disruptive behavior as early as 1st
  grade has been repeatedly found a risk factor for
  later school failure, delinquency, violence, drug
  abuse, and high risk behaviors.

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Stancavage Theory
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Design of 1st Generation Baltimore Trial Aimed
at Aggressive Behavior and Poor Achievement
Separately

• 41 1st grade classrooms in 19 schools
• Across schools 3 or 4 schools in each of 5 low
  to low/mid SES urban areas were matched. 70
  African American. Schools were randomly assigned
  either to the standard program (control) or to
  an enhanced curriculum (Mastery Learning--ML) or
  to a classroom behavior management program (Good
  Behavior Game--GBG).
• Within intervention schools Children were
  balanced across all 1st grade classrooms. 1st
  grade classrooms and teachers were randomly
  assigned to standard program classrooms or to
  intervention classrooms.

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Study Design cont.

• In the 1st generation, the GBG trial was done
  over 1st and 2nd grades in 2 consecutive first
  grade cohorts.
• 1st cohort with 40 hours of teacher training and
  support thru the year. This was the
  effectiveness trial, and will be our focus today.
  
• 2nd cohort with same teachers with little
  training and support, tested the sustainability
  of resultsthe naïve trial.

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Classroom Levels of Aggressive, Disruptive
Behavior 8-10 Weeks After Random Assignment in
First Grade (control classrooms)
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High Risk Children in Well vs Poorly-Managed
Classrooms (control classrooms)

• If the top 25 of all children on aggressive
  behavior were in disrupted classrooms, their risk
  of severe aggressive behavior problems by middle
  school was up to 59 times the average childs.
• If similar children were in well-managed
  classrooms, the risk was 2.7 times the average
  childs.
• Random assignment of children and teachers within
  schools allowed inferences re classroom effect.

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Impact of Poorly Managed Classrooms on Teachers

• The number-one reason for teacher burn-out is the
  inability to manage classrooms.
• Teachers need tested tools to manage classrooms,
  i.e., to teach children how to be students.
• A large portion of 1st grade teachers need such
  tools, e.g. 50 in Baltimore.

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Goals of the Good Behavior Game (GBG)

• Provide teachers a classroom-wide method to
  socialize children into the role of student
• Reduce classroom aggressive, disruptive behavior
  among children to enhance classroom teaching and
  learning
• Prevent school failure, drug abuse, delinquency,
  and other problem outcomes

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The History of the Good Behavior Game (GBG), a
Classroom-wide Program

• The GBG was originally developed by Barrish,
  Saunders, Wolfe at the University of Kansas in
  the late 1960s
• The GBG had been reported in over 20 scientific
  papers, none randomized field trials, prior to
  the Baltimore large scale epidemiologically based
  trials.

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GBG Implementation

• In Baltimore, the GBG consists of dividing the
  1st grade class into 3 heterogeneous teams.
• Teacher exhibits a large poster that states
  proper student behaviors, i.e., classroom rules.
  
• Teams are rewarded for each childs pro-social
  behavior, and not rewarded when a child is
  disruptive. It is group contingent.

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GBG Implementation (contd)

• Early in the year, the GBG was played
  systematically for ten minutes, 3 times a week,
  and the time extended over the year.
• Rewards were more abstract as the year went on.
  It was carried out in first and second grades.

Kellam Framework
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Measure of Early Classroom Aggressive, Disruptive
Behavior

• For this presentation a sub-set of Teachers
  Observations of Classroom Adaptation (TOCA R), a
  measure of each childs social adaptation to
  classroom rules for student behavior
• Structured 2 hour interview with the teacher, not
  a checklist
• Ratings were obtained for each child in the
  classroom in fall and spring of 1st and 2nd
  grades, and thereafter in spring of 3rd through
  7th grades
• TOCA Aggressive, Disruptive Items on 6 point
  scales (1) breaks rules, (2) harms others and
  property, (3) breaks things, (4) takes others
  property, (5) fights, (6) lies, (7) teases
  classmates (8) yells at others, (9) stubborn,
  (10) trouble accepting authority

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The Young Adult Follow-up Data

• Ages 19-21
• 2 Hour (average) telephone interview with each
  respondent.
• Developmental, psychological and psychiatric
  status, WHO version of the CIDI for diagnoses.
• Juvenile court and school records.
• Social adaptational status in social fields of
  parental family, school, work, intimate
  relations, marital family if any, peers.

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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Any Service Use for
Males
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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Alcohol Abuse or
Dependence Disorder for Males
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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Drug Abuse or
Dependence Disorder for Males
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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Drug Abuse or
Dependence Disorder for Females
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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Antisocial
Personality Disorder for Males
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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Regular Smoking for
Males
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GBG Impact vs All Controls on Completed High
School for Males
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GBG Effectiveness trial vs. GBG Sustainability
Trial

• Although the results from the 1st generations
  1st cohort were impressive, the results from the
  2nd cohort-- the sustainability trial-- except
  for drug abuse and dependence disorder-- revealed
  less impact, but in the same direction.
• Since the mid 1980s we have learned more about
  the problem of sustainability of practices and
  results over subsequent cohorts.
• We are currently trying a model with BCPSS based
  on multi-level mentoring and continual monitoring.

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Lessons Learned I

• First-grade classrooms are of central importance
  to later academic, mental, and behavioral health.
• A relatively simple universal method of classroom
  behavior management in 1st and 2nd grades, aimed
  at aggressive, disruptive behavior-- a risk
  factor shared by a set of long term outcomes--
  appears to improve the set of long term outcomes.
• Females are less responsive to GBG than are
  higher risk males. More research is needed re
  females.

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Lessons Learned II

• Without a system to mentor, model, and monitor
  teacher practices over time, GBG practices are
  prone to deteriorate.
• Teachers need support from principals principals
  from area leaders area leaders from chief
  academic and executive officers.

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Lessons Learned III

• Randomized field trials (RFTs) are vital in
  testing what works, for which children, in what
  conditions.
• Demographic epidemiology, analytic modeling,
  Pre-RFT observational studieslead to testing
  with RFT designs
• Partnerships among researchers and school
  districts are essential to support such studies,
  and dissemination.

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Thank you,

• The End

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Had baseline TOCA
Followed as young adult
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2nd Generation Ed/Prev Trial in Baltimore Schools

• Combined curriculum/instruction (CI) and GBG
  from 1st trial
• New family/classroom partnership program (FCP)
  tested separately
• Children, teachers, intervention condition all
  randomly assigned within 9 schools
• 3 Classrooms randomly assigned within each school
  to 1) CI GBG 2) FCP alone or 3) the
  standard program
• Results By middle school combined GBG and CI
  improved both achievement and behavior
• Family/classroom partnership by itself had modest
  impact

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3rd Generation Ed/Prev Trial in Baltimore Schools

• Integrate 3 components into 1 Whole Day Program
  (WD) GBG CI F/C partnership
• 8 Development Schools helped design and refine
  interventions and measures
• Within 12 trial schools, random assignment of all
  1st grade children, teachers, and classrooms to
  WD or standard program
• Children in 12 Whole Day 1st grade classrooms are
  compared to children in 12 Standard Program
  classrooms

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Phases of Education and Prevention Trials
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Baltimore analytic model
Decreased Later Substance Abuse
Decreased Aggressive, Disruptive Classrooms
Decreased Individual Aggression
Classroom Behavior Management
Individual
Classrooms
Aggression
Decreased Later Conduct Anti- social
Personality Disorders
Teachers Effective Academic Instruction
Increased Achievement
Poor
Poor
Improved Reading Skills
Reading Skills
Achievement
School Success Decreased Drop-Out
Decreased Depressive Symptoms
Effective Family-Classroom Partnerships
Depressive
Symptoms
Decreased Later Depressive Disorders

• Other mediating or moderating variables
• Family and poverty
• Deviant peers
• School building
• Community economic health,
• resources, drugs, and violence

Whole Day First Grade Education and Prevention
Program

Whole Day


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Prevention Research Strategies
DEVELOPMENTAL EPIDEMIOLOGY directed at early
proximal targets
COMMUNITY PREVENTION directed at Community
School proximal targets
MORE IMMEDIATE RISK directed at more recent
proximal targets
COMMUNITY / SOCIETAL directed at Policies
Laws as proximal targets
Kellam Framework