An Evaluation of the School-wide Positive Behavior Intervention and Support Check In/Check Out Behavior Education Program

Abstract

One of the many concerns of parents, teachers, and school administration is the lack of student discipline and its effect on academic achievement. Many schools have adopted different models of prevention to support positive behaviors and increase academic achievement. For those schools that adopt and implement the School-wide Positive Behavior Intervention and Support Program (SWPBIS), there is a need for secondary and tertiary programs to support those students who do not respond positively to the universal framework. This study, which took place during the 2010-2011 school year, evaluated one secondary intervention, the Check In/Check Out (CICO) behavior education program at a Midwest public middle school.

This examination utilized a mixed method case study to understand the issues that arise when implementing SWPBIS CICO, the features that support or hinder the processes, and the benefits of the program to the students, staff and school. Data from student behaviors/office discipline referrals and academic achievement noted by the number of Fs and GPA on student quarter report cards were the basis for voluntary participation. Such an investigation was undertaken to understand students' disruptive behaviors and the connection between these behaviors and academic achievement.

This case study provided an illustration of how one middle school used the SWPBIS CICO behavior education program to identify those students at-risk of academic failure, trained coordinators/staff, implemented the intervention, accessed the data, and evaluated its effectiveness. The researcher and team members, comprised of staff and administrators, implemented the program in the school year 2010-2011 to improve behaviors and academics for students at-risk of academic failure. The data and results proved the program was not helpful in its first year of implementation. Findings are discussed in terms of data assessment and results, program efficiency, implications for reform, and usefulness of the CICO program to student behavior and academic achievement.