PBIS: Building a Schoolwide System Around Shared Identity & Expectations
Education is a social process; education is growth; education is not preparation for life but is life itself.
– John Dewey
INTRO
To meet one of the major goals of the Santa Ana Unified School District, Valley High School, in partnership with Carmen Gelman, was challenged to get a comprehensive system based on Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) off the ground. The leaders at Valley realized that implementing PBIS throughout their campus was an opportunity to also meet a systematic need to have common language and expectations for students and staff, both in school and the greater community. To truly address this need, Valley launched a rebranding transformation.
OBJECTIVES
- Have the shared values and beliefs of both internal and external stakeholders inform the shared expectations for the school community
How to Get Started Integrating PBIS with Shared Values & Beliefs
1. Form an Educational Support/Leadership Team
- The more diverse your team, the more equitable and effective your system
- Conduct and evaluate the process and results every step of the way
2. Gather Stakeholder Voices
- Goal: Identify school values and beliefs
- Students, staff, families, community
- Listening Sessions
- Digital Surveys
3. School Identity Awareness Campaign
- Communications (internal & external)
- Posters/signs/apparel, etc.
- Assemblies and/or small group learning sessions
- Direct instruction/classroom integration
4. Schoolwide PBIS and Classroom Expectations
- Guided by the co-created/established shared school identity
- Another round of student feedback (especially for the classroom expectations)
5. Teach, Reinforce, and Live Expectations
- Student-led assembly start of each school year (repeated if/when needed throughout school year)
- For elementary and middle school, scaffold student leadership roles/responsibilities to still allow for their input and inclusion
- Direct instruction by teachers in classrooms each semester
- Reinforcement by all school staff in all school settings via shared language, etc.
TIPS
- Take It Further:
- Utilize a robust data management system to monitor progress (in both academics and behavior)
- Use this work and system as a basis for developing and implementing a schoolwide multi-tiered integrated support system (MTSS) committed to holistic student well-being
- Big Plays are substantial efforts that take 6-18 months to fully accomplish.
- Give yourself, your leadership team, and your school time to survey all stakeholders, brainstorm and plan for possible solutions, and check in with stakeholders along the way
- Remember, this is not a quick fix: You’re establishing a schoolwide change that should better serve all students for years to come
Responses