Improving Academic Engagement through Systematic, Function-Based Intervention.

Abstract Fiona was a 14-year-old 7th-grader whose academic history, frequent behavior problems, and low levels of academic engagement put her at-risk for academic failure. This study's purpose was to examine the effectiveness of a systematic process for identifying the function of her problem behaviors and designing interventions that directly addressed that function. The study was conducted in two phases. Data from a descriptive functional assessment (Phase 1) were used to develop function-based interventions that were implemented in multiple classes (Phase 2). Substantial increases in academic engagement resulted. ********** Researchers in school settings have reported the positive effects of function-based intervention for more than 15 years (Fox & Gable, 2004). This approach involves designing intervention based on the results of a functional behavioral assessment (FBA), i.e., an assessment that identifies the consequences that reinforce a problem behavior and the events that predict when it will occur (Sugai et al., 2000). Reviewers of this work (e.g., Fox, Conroy, & Heckaman, 1998; Heckaman, Conroy, Fox, & Chait, 2000, Lane, Umbreit, & Beebe-Frankenberger, 1999; Sasso, Conroy, Stichter, & Fox, 2001) have concluded the approach appears to consistently produce positive results. However, these same reviewers also identified a critical weakness: Although researchers have clearly described the interventions used, they usually provided little if any detail about how they used FBA data to develop the interventions. This weakness in the research has created problems for practitioners as well. For example, recent research with school teams (Scott, Liaupsin, Nelson, & McIntyre, 2005; Scott, McIntyre, Liaupsin, Nelson, Conroy, & Payne, 2005) found that, even when school teams accurately identified the function of a student's problem behavior, they did not use information about function to develop intervention plans. To address this problem, Umbreit, Ferro, Liaupsin, and Lane (2007) developed a systematic process and set of methods for organizing FBA data to identify the function(s) of behavior and developing intervention components that are directly linked to FBA data. Some researchers (Blair, Liaupsin, Umbreit, & Kweon, 2006; Stahr, Cushing, Lane, & Fox, in press; Umbreit, Lane, & Dejud, 2004) using these methods have already reported positive results. However, before conclusions can be drawn about the broad applicability of this methodology, more research is needed with students with differing abilities, across different settings, and across different types and functions of behavior. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of this methodology with a middle-school student whose problem behaviors put her at-risk for academic failure. The study was conducted in two phases. In Phase 1, a descriptive FBA was conducted. The FBA included structured interviews and observations that were used to identify the function of Fiona's behavior. In Phase 2, function-based interventions were systematically developed and implemented within ongoing activities in Fiona's classes. General Method Participant and Setting Fiona was a 14-year-old, normally developing Caucasian female. Fiona had no record of special education placement or psychiatric diagnoses, though she did have a mild, unilateral hearing loss. She attended 7th-grade at a charter school, where she had enrolled at the beginning of the current school year because of previous academic and behavioral difficulties in the public school system. A review of records from the public school revealed that Fiona was frequently absent, had numerous discipline referrals, and was to be retained in 7th grade. Her mother reported that Fiona had not gotten along well with peers and teachers in public school. She decided to move Fiona to a smaller charter school setting in the hope that it would positively affect her attendance, achievement, and behavior. …