When Not to FBA... what?!?

Obviously if a student in a school setting (or anyone in any setting for that matter), is engaging in a repertoire of problem behavior that is both severe and dangerous, of course the best path forward is to conduct some sort of functional assessment that will inform a solid intervention.

However, in many classroom settings, problem behavior is disruptive, but very often not dangerous per se. Also in classroom settings, many times, there are multiple students engaging in disruptive behavior, which makes the implementation of several individualized behavior plans rather difficult to pull off, by even the most skilled teacher. 

Fortunately, there are numerous, empirically-validated interventions that address disruptive classroom behavior at scale. I'm talking about changes in classroom structure, changes in instructional strategies, group contingencies, and when needed, simple and straightforward individualized interventions. 

Anika Costa, Dr. Paulie Gavoni, and I have spent the better part of a year curating what is essentially a survey course in these strategies. The course is called, "When Not to FBA: 5 Quick Strategies for Improving Behavior in the Classroom." 

If you're a school-based BCBA, you've probably gotten FBA referrals only to find out that upon observing the classroom, there are larger, more structural challenges to address. This course will provide an overview of some of the tools that that teachers can implement that will bring out the best in their students, and restore a sense of peace and order to their classrooms.  

This course is broken up into nine modules, but this isn't just sitting in front of a screen watching a power point. There are six activities that you will implement in classroom settings, so you can get a sense of how these strategies work in the real world. To help with this, we've created a workbook, several assessment tools, and other handouts. 

Again, the concept of functional assessment will probably go down as one of the most critical innovations in behavioral science. It is, after all, the circumstantial view of humanity. So it's worth re-stating that we are not saying that FBAs are unnecessary. Instead, we're making distinctions about selecting the right tool for a given situation.

If all of this sounds good to you, please consider taking the course. If you're on the fence, the course is 30% off through Friday, April 12th. Just use the code, 'classroom,' at checkout to save. 

Lastly, if you have friends and colleagues who'd benefit from this information, feel free to forward this email to them. 

Thanks!

Matt