The What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) released in September a practice guide focused on reducing behavior problems that are common in elementary schools. The guide was developed by a panel of experts in behavioral research after examining studies that have evaluated the impacts of individual and class- and school-wide behavioral interventions.

The guide, Reducing Behavior Problems in the Elementary School Classroom, is intended to help elementary school and district educators and administrators develop and implement effective prevention and intervention strategies that promote positive student behavior. The guide comes complete with recommendations for practitioners about what to do at the school and classroom levels, including how to navigate potential roadblocks to implementing research-based strategies.

“Classroom teachers are the most important adults at school for elementary students and play a critical role in reinforcing appropriate behavior and reducing the frequency of behaviors that impede learning. This guide is intended to assist teachers to develop school environments that foster positive student outcomes,” said Michael Epstein, chair of the panel that produced the guide and professor of special education at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Recommendations
The report provides five key strategies teachers can use immediately in their own classrooms and can build on readily available external resources, including parents, teachers, counselors, resource teachers, and school administrators.

• Identify the specifics of the problem behavior and the conditions that prompt and reinforce it. Since research suggests that the success of a behavioral intervention depends on identifying the specific situations that prompt and reinforce the behavior, the panel recommends that teachers observe the conditions in which the problem behavior is likely to occur and not occur. Teachers then can use that information to tailor effective and efficient strategies that respond to the needs of the individual student within the classroom.
• Modify the classroom learning environment to decrease problem behavior. Many effective classroom-focused interventions alter or remove triggers of behavioral problems, such as a mismatch between the classroom setting or academic demands and a student’s strengths, preferences, or skills. Teachers can reduce the occurrence of inappropriate behavior by reinforcing classroom expectations; rearranging the classroom environment, schedule, or learning activities to meet student needs; and individually adapting instruction to promote student engagement and on-task behavior.
• Teach and reinforce new skills to increase appropriate behavior and preserve a positive classroom climate. The panel urges teachers to actively teach socially and behaviorally appropriate skills to replace problem behaviors. This will help students learn how, when, and where to use these new skills; increase the opportunities to exhibit appropriate behavior; preserve a positive classroom climate; and manage consequences to reinforce positive “replacement” behaviors and adaptive skills.
• Draw on relationships with colleagues and students’ families for guidance and support. Social and collaborative relationships can play a critical role in supporting teachers in managing disruptive behavior in the classroom. Teachers should draw on these relationships in finding ways to address the behavior problems of individual students and rely on parents, school personnel, and behavioral experts for new insights, strategies, and support.
• Assess whether behavior problems warrant adopting schoolwide strategies or programs and, if so, implement those shown to reduce negative, and foster positive, interactions. Classroom teachers, in coordination with administrators, grade-level teams, and special educators, can benefit from adopting a schoolwide approach to preventing problem behaviors and increasing positive social interactions among students and with school staff. This requires a shared responsibility between all school personnel, particularly administrators and teachers.

The panel rated the quality of evidence supporting behavioral prevention and intervention programs and practices based on What Works Clearinghouse evidence standards. Information about these standards and other practice guides is available at http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/.

Full text of the practice guide is available at http://ies.ed.gov/ncee/wwc/publications/practiceguides/#be_pg.

The What Works Clearinghouse is administered by Mathematica for the Institute of Education Sciences.