Positive Behaviour Support
I have spoken before of a student where I work who needs to have a positive behaviour support plan in place to help him manage his behaviour in college but to support staff in working with him too. The process has started and we have had several meetings to get the functional assessment process up and running.
Positive behaviour support refers to a supportive team based approach to identifying environmental issues that can be adapted in such a way as to reduce or eliminate disruptive or challenging behaviour which can then be replaced with a new set of behaviour skills.
Behaviours that are used repeatedly serve a useful function for the person, such as avoiding something unpleasant or gaining attention but they can also be negatively supported by how staff or other people react to these behaviours.
Student M has a range of diagnosis and a repertoire of behaviours that he engages in during his time at college. Staff have tried the usual behaviour strategies, such as group behaviour rules, individual rules, trying to remind the student of his behaviour and its effect and speaking to his parents about his disruptive behaviour. None of these have had any real effect on the level of disruption or the amount of attention he gathers for his behaviour.
It was clear from meeting the parents that he behaves quite differently between home and college, which in itself is not unusual and you will find a similar pattern with many students. Student M is on the Autistic spectrum, he has had various medical issues that have been resolved to varying degrees using medication, he exhibits OCD behaviour traits, has learning difficulties.
The process of functional assessment began with a meeting with both of his parents to discuss his behaviour and see what strategies they use at home and when he is not at college. The parents have found a way of reducing disruptive behaviour in a variety of ways that include keeping him busy throughout the week, especially when he is not at college, providing him with a space that he can have control over and altering the environment to suit his needs, but also maintaining a routine that he is able to function within.
The next step was for staff who teach and support the student M to meet and discuss his behaviour in more detail.
