Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
History of NCSS PBIS Program:
In the fall of 2012, six Newton County Schools implemented Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS). These schools included all five middle schools and Newton High. The goal of PBIS is to reduce the amount of time students spend out of class due to discipline incidents and promote a positive school climate and school safety while increasing academic outcomes for students. Before beginning PBIS, the Georgia Department of Education requires schools to take an in-depth look at their current discipline data. Our schools could then pinpoint the time of day and the areas where most behavioral incidents occurred. From this, the PBIS team made up of school administrators and teachers, brainstormed solutions for preventing student time away from class.
Since the inception of the Newton County Schools’ PBIS program, additional schools have been trained in the core guiding principles of PBIS. To date, NCS has 19 schools implementing PBIS in their buildings. The PBIS Teams at each of these buildings have undergone extensive training under the guidance of the Georgia Department of Education’s Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports team. Implementing PBIS in our schools has saved countless instructional hours otherwise lost to discipline. Jessica Harris currently serves as the NCS PBIS District Coordinator, and she can be reached at
[email protected] or 678-342-5853.
What is School-wide PBIS?
PBIS is a school-wide system of support that includes proactive strategies for defining, teaching, and supporting appropriate student behaviors to create positive school environments. Positive behavior support is a behaviorally-based systems approach to enhance the capacity of schools, families, and communities to design effective environments that improve the link between research-validated practices and the environments in which teaching and learning occur. Attention is focused on creating and sustaining systems of support that improve lifestyle results (personal, health, social, family, work, and recreation) for all children and youth.
Why is it so important to focus on teaching positive social behaviors?
In the past, school-wide discipline has focused mainly on reacting to misbehavior by implementing punishment-based strategies, including reprimands, loss of privileges, office referrals, suspensions, and expulsions. Research has now shown that implementing punishment, especially when it is used inconsistently and in the absence of other positive strategies, could be more effective. Introducing, modeling, and reinforcing positive social behavior is important to a student's educational experience. Teaching behavioral expectations and acknowledging/rewarding students is a much more positive approach than waiting for misbehavior to occur. School-wide PBIS aims to establish a climate in which appropriate behavior is the norm.
Philosophy:
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support (PBIS) is a team-based, systematic approach to teaching behavioral expectations throughout the school. It is based on a proactive model that teaches behaviors, reinforces, and recognizes students who can model these behaviors. It also has systems to support students who have a difficult time or may present with more challenging behaviors.
PBIS is a school-wide system that addresses the entire school, the classroom, and areas outside the classroom (such as hallways, restrooms, offices, cafeteria, playground/school grounds, etc.).
The entire faculty of each school is aware of the behavioral expectations and works to ensure students are consistently getting the same message, regardless of the setting they are in or the adult they come in contact with.
Benefits of PBIS (research based):
1. Fosters respectful, supportive relationships among students and staff
2. Creates a more positive, safe, and calm environment.
3. Reduction in the number of behavioral disruptions
4. Increased academic engagement
5. Increase in student/teacher morale
6. Increases attendance by both students and staff.
7. Dropout prevention
8. Reinforces positive academic and social behavior
9. Provides an opportunity for positive student/teacher interactions
10. Community/Family involvement
AWARDS and RECOGNITIONS
Several of our school PBIS teams have proudly represented NCSS by presenting at state and national school conferences.
Schools have received Ga DOE PBIS Recognition status.
COMMENTS by School Staff
PBIS has provided our school with a way of 'streamlining' discipline and rules. Students and teachers are continually made conscious of our expectations. Discipline procedures are well defined, and follow-through when dealing with behaviors is more consistent across campus. As a team, we are able to effectively target certain discipline issues and immediately address as they appear. The "Intervention" part of PBIS is truly wonderful and useful.
PBIS has increased school spirit and pride at Newton High School. Every morning, we open the day with our chant, WE ARE RAMS...¬ This causes the students to understand clearly the expectations. I have seen it bring about more school spirit and awareness.
Since the implementation of PBIS, my students are more ready for learning when they come to class. My students love being rewarded for good behavior and they also love spending the "cash rewards."
Students actively participate in writing music lyrics and songs for our PBIS objectives.
PBIS has created a more positive atmosphere at our school. Students and teachers alike are being recognized for positive behaviors and jobs "well done."
Students are really thinking about what it means to be Responsible, Accountable, and Engaged.
At our school, PBIS has helped reduce discipline referrals. It has also provided motivation for our students to do better with both their academics and behavior. It has served as a way to increase teacher moral.
It has fostered an environment more conducive to learning!
PBIS has given students who usually are 'well-behaved' concrete and tangible rewards for their excellent behavior. It has motivated many students who experience frequent behavior issues with a concrete way to measure their improvements and monitor their behaviors.
HELPFUL INFORMATION:
Georgia Department of Education PBIS Webpage
Center On PBIS
PBIS Rewards
PBIS World