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School-wide Positive Behavior Support and Response to Intervention: System Similarities, Distinctions, and Research to Date at the Universal Level of Support

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Handbook of Response to Intervention

Abstract

Problem behavior is unfortunately a universal challenge in schools. While several evidence-based strategies are widely available to address problem behavior, educators continue to rely on ineffective strategies including exclusionary options and fail to build comprehensive school-wide systems necessary to truly realize effective intervention potential. A parallel challenge is to embed effective strategies at the first indication of risk to prevent problems from becoming chronic and intensive to the point specialized instruction is necessary. This chapter provides an overview of School-wide Positive Behavior Support (SW-PBS) within the context of building systems of early intervention/prevention that incorporate evidence-based practices and the potential of SW-PBS as a possible element of a social-behavioral response to intervention (RTI) framework that might allow for an improved special education evaluation process under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act category of seriously emotionally disturbed. The history and logic of SW-PBS, essential features, research to date, and implications for practice are discussed.

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Acknowledgment

The preparation of this manuscript was supported in part by the Technical Assistance Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports and a grant from the Office of Special Education Programs, the US Department of Education (H326S980003). Opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the position of the US Department of Education, and such endorsements should not be inferred. For information about the Center, go to www.pbis.org, or for information related to this manuscript, contact Tim Lewis at lewistj@missouri.edu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Missouri, Columbia, USA

    Timothy J. Lewis, Barbara S. Mitchell & D. Tichelle Bruntmeyer

  2. University of Connecticut, Storrs, USA

    George Sugai

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  1. Timothy J. Lewis
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  2. Barbara S. Mitchell
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  3. D. Tichelle Bruntmeyer
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  4. George Sugai
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Correspondence to Timothy J. Lewis .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of California, Santa Barbara Gevirtz Graduate School of Education, Santa Barbara, California, USA

    Shane R. Jimerson

  2. University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA

    Matthew K. Burns

  3. Education Research & Consulting, Inc., FAIRHOPE, Alabama, USA

    Amanda M. VanDerHeyden

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Lewis, T., Mitchell, B., Bruntmeyer, D., Sugai, G. (2016). School-wide Positive Behavior Support and Response to Intervention: System Similarities, Distinctions, and Research to Date at the Universal Level of Support. In: Jimerson, S., Burns, M., VanDerHeyden, A. (eds) Handbook of Response to Intervention. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-7568-3_40

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