Classroom management is a common challenge in middle schools. Class-wide Function-Related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a multi-tiered intervention designed to decrease problem behaviors at the classroom level (Wills et al., 2010). It is comprised of evidence-based practices such as teaching classroom expectations, increasing teacher praise, and…

Nudge is an approach to public policy that changes the decision-making environment to encourage citizens to make a particular choice. The approach has been eagerly adopted by administrations around the world, with some governments establishing dedicated nudge units to advance their use. One reason proposed for nudge's popularity is that it…

A question asked by many teachers, is "How do we motivate the unmotivated kid?" There are many theories about motivation in the classroom and in order for these theories to work, they must become actionable strategies. These theories can be organized into five different categories: Enthusiasm, Empowerment, Encouragement, Emotions and…

When a student has a learning disability in reading and or dyslexia, interventions focus on remediating the weakness. Positive psychology is a field of psychology that looks to help people, based on harnessing a person's strengths, to create better outcomes. Strengths-based or asset-based interventions have been used with people with developmental…

During peer review, students often exhibit resistance when asked to respond critically to their peers' writing. Most students tend to offer gentle critiques, especially when they personally know the peers whose writing they are reading. This tendency to be overly kind can be frustrating for instructors, yet there may be logical reasons for…

There is limited use of empirically supported mental health interventions in schools. Leveraging technology may reduce some barriers, however, use may still be limited. To further understand variable intervention use, this study investigated the challenges experienced by teachers invited to implement a daily report card (DRC) intervention aided by…

Access to early intensive behavioral intervention for children with autism spectrum disorder is commonly recommended. Intervention programs may include high rates of instructional trials, which may evoke escape-maintained problem behavior. Recent research on "pairing" or "rapport-building" interventions have sought to reduce…

Research supports the "broaden and build" nature of positive emotions on child socio-emotional outcomes. This article describes three lesson plans that can promote learning while helping students express positive emotions.

Although a demand analysis is helpful for identifying potential establishing operations for the functional analysis (FA) demand condition, it may not always be practical due to time constraints. A potential alternative is the Negative Reinforcement Rating Scale (NRRS), an indirect assessment tool that may serve as a time efficient alternative to a…

More is known about how to reduce challenging behavior with functional communication training (FCT) than how to mitigate its resurgence during or following a course of treatment. Research suggests reinforcing mand variability during FCT may mitigate the resurgence of challenging behavior, but validated procedures for reinforcing mand variability…

This paper presents a conceptual framework to understand the Nurtured Heart Approach (NHA) through the perspective of Self-Determination Theory (SDT). The Nurtured Heart Approach and the Self-Determination Theory are discussed and the parallels are drawn between the two, to provide a theoretical foundation to NHA and support for its effectiveness,…

Structured and frequent teacher-delivered praise is an evidence-based component of classroom management. High rates of teacher-delivered praise have positive effects on student behavior. These positive effects are observed in all students. However, teachers struggle to deliver rates of praise consistent with recommendations in the literature. This…

Individuals with developmental disabilities often do not develop vocal repertoires, thus requiring the use of augmentative devices. Teaching caregivers to conduct communication training with their children may be one way to foster communication with their device in the natural environment. This study replicates Rosales, Stone and Rehfeldt (2009),…

Although extensive research has focused on young children's writing and identified the importance of early writing experiences, there is a limited amount of writing occurring in some early childhood classrooms. Furthermore, existing research on teacher supports for emergent writing in preschool classrooms is limited. This study examined how one…

Philosophy for Children (P4C) is an educational program founded by Matthew Lipman and Ann Sharp in the 1970s to improve judgment in children by sharpening their critical, creative, and caring thinking skills. As children's engagement in philosophical dialogue is an essential component of the program, the teacher has a facilitative, rather than an…