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Managing Student Behavior in a Middle School Special Education Classroom Using CW-FIT Tier 1

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An Author Correction to this article was published on 08 February 2020

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Abstract

Middle school special education teachers often express concern about challenging student behavior. Class-Wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT), a behavior management program based on school-wide positive behavior support, have been effective in elementary general education classrooms. The present study, the first to apply it in a middle school special education setting, used an ABAC design to examine effects on student on-task behavior and teacher praise rates in a self-contained special education classroom for students with severe disabilities and their typically developing peer tutors. Results suggested that CW-FIT Tier 1 is associated with improvements in student on-task behavior and teacher praise rates, especially when peer tutors are included in the intervention and when the timer is silent. Both teachers and students reported the intervention to be socially valid. Study limitations and areas for future research are addressed.

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Change history

  • 08 February 2020

    The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in the funding information.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for the Improvement of Teacher Education and Schooling, Brigham Young University, 149 MCKB, Provo, UT, 84602, USA

    Robyn K. Orr, Paul Caldarella & Blake D. Hansen

  2. University of Kansas, 444 Minnesota Ave #300, Kansas City, KS, 66101, USA

    Howard P. Wills

Authors
  1. Robyn K. Orr
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  2. Paul Caldarella
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  3. Blake D. Hansen
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  4. Howard P. Wills
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Correspondence to Paul Caldarella.

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Ethical Statement

The research reported in this manuscript was conducted in accordance with the ethical standards of the American Psychological Association. Approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Board of Brigham Young University, which also approved the informed consent procedures used. We declare no conflicts of interest. This research was funded in part by a grant from the Institute of Education Sciences and the US Department of Education (R0302677) awarded to the University of Kansas in cooperation with Brigham Young University. The opinions presented in this article are those of the authors, and no endorsement by the funding agency is intended or implied.

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Orr, R.K., Caldarella, P., Hansen, B.D. et al. Managing Student Behavior in a Middle School Special Education Classroom Using CW-FIT Tier 1. J Behav Educ 29, 168–187 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10864-019-09325-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10864-019-09325-w

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