Effective Approaches to Intervene

with Students Who Attempt to

Escape or Avoid
Richard Van Acker, Ed. D.
University of Illinois at Chicago
1040 W. Harrison
Chicago, IL 60607
Email: [email protected]
The role of the educator is more
difficult today than ever before...
 Greater expectations
 No Child Left Behind
 Meet or Exceed State Standards
 Use of empirically validated interventions
 State and federal curricular mandates
 Common Core
 Grade level exposure
 Larger class sizes
 More diverse student population
 Ethnic - Cultural - Special Needs
 Linguistic - Academic - Mental Health
Educators are not the only ones
feeling the pressure…
 Students too are displaying greater levels of anxiety in the
face of these educational demands.
Effective instruction calls for a
successful integration between…
Student
Characteristics

Teacher Behavior
Curricular Demands
When a Mismatch Occurs:
 Escape or
Avoidance
Behaviors are likely
 Non-compliance
 Withdrawal
 Passive aggressive
responses
 Defiance
 Disruptive behavior
 Destructive Behavior
 Aggression
The Fallacy of Punishment
 Punishment is more likely to simply repress
rather than change behavior.
 Punishment increases potential for escape
behavior and student aggression.
 Serves to destroy the bond between the
student and the teacher and often results in
alienation of the student from school.
 Yet,…
 ….simple, predictable consequences IN
COMBINATION with HIGH FREQUENCY
recognition of desired behavior can prove
effective.
IDEA 1997
 Mandate to develop a Behavior
Intervention Plan to address behavior(s) of
students with disabilities that impact their
learning or the learning of others.
 When a change of placement to a more
restrictive environment is being considered
for a student with disability as the result of
behavior.
 More than 10 days of suspension (cumulative) is
considered a change of placement.
How might we typically address
the following behavior?

 Brian is a third grade student.

 He has a mild learning disability.
 He lives with his mother and
three brothers - father has
died.
 Mother works a minimum wage
job.
 Brian loves pens and pencils
How might we typically address
the following behavior?

 Brian is a third grade student.

 He has a mild learning disability.
 He lives with his mother and
three brothers - father has
died.
 Mother works a minimum wage
job.
 Brian loves pens and pencils
When the bell rings for lunch, Brian races out of the room.
Behavior can serve a variety of
functions for a student
 Attention - always ask where
the attention leads.
 Escape or Avoidance
(Explore underlying need)
 Power, Control, or
Competence
 Peer Affiliation
 Material Gain or Tangible
Reward
 Self Gratification
 Justice or Revenge
(Neel & Cessna, 1993)
Selecting an Appropriate
Consequence
(Function vs. Form)
 The nature of the surface
behavior has little to do
with the selection of an
appropriate
consequence.
 The function of the
behavior should serve to
direct the selection of the
consequence.
 If the function of a
behavior is thought to be
escape or avoidance…
 Will any response that
does not compel the
student to complete
the assigned task
simply reinforce
escape and
avoidance?
Be Careful with Escape
 Escape and Avoidance is often
a function of undesired
behavior.

 Is Escape and Avoidance a

basic human need?
 Be Careful with Escape
 Escape and Avoidance is
often a function of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
undesired behavior
Self-Actualization

 Is Escape and Avoidance a Self Esteem

basic human need?
Belonging
 Typically, Escape and
Avoidance result from Safety

threats to the need for: Physiological Needs

 safety,
 competence/self-
esteem,
 and/or autonomy.
 Fear
 Students may become frightened
for any number of reasons at
school.
 Fear of failure
 Fear of teacher
 Fear of peers
 Fear of unknown
 Frightening locations
 Post traumatic events
 Response for Fear

 Threat reduction
 Promote feelings of
safety – safe distance,
calm voice.
 Reassurance – “I want
you to feel safe.”
 Two clear options for
activities that will
promote feelings of
being safe and bring
student into successful
action.

I want you to feel safe. I can give you a couple of minutes to just think or we
can move and you can use your ‘safe spot’ – What works for you?
 Frustration

 Given the increased level of expectations

held for today’s students, frustration is a
common trigger for crisis in schools.
 Challenging work
 Unfamiliar topics
 Lack of knowledge or skill
 Too many errors
 Too many reprimands
 Response for Frustration
 Lending Control - promotion of
competence and success
 Remain calm, confident
 Reassure – “Stan, stop. Let’s sit down.”
 Provide two clear choices that will allow
student to be successful and competent
while moving into desired activity.
 “Stan, I want you to be successful. Let’s turn
back to the work we did yesterday and do
one of those problems or we can get a drink
of water and come back here and I will work
with you on this math sheet.”

If you provide a student with a legitimate pathway to

demonstrate competence – most will take it.
Autonomy (Control)
 For a number of students, any request you make is
perceived as an attempt to control them- in turn
they attempt counter-control.
 Children and youth with:
 Attachment disorders
 Oppositional Defiant Disorder
 History of abuse and neglect
 Sexually exploited children/youth
Autonomy (Control)
 For a number of students, any request you make is
perceived as an attempt to control them- in turn
they attempt counter-control.
 Children and youth with:
 Attachment disorders
 Oppositional Defiant Disorder
 History of abuse and neglect
 Sexually exploited children/youth

The is not one of POWER but rather

safety and predictability.

If they have control – they feel they

can control the outcome to be safe.
Note from accessibility technician
Explanation of slide 29
This slide is a set of graphs. They are inserted with comments which are read. Deleting the comments
would delete the graphs.
The first graph is Number of Incidents on the vertical axis, numbered zero to twenty, unit is ten. The
horizontal axis is numbered one to forty one, unit is three. The horizontal axis is not labeled. The
graph has two lines, connected dots. One is titled withdrawal and decreases over time. The other is
called elopement and also decreases over time, and remains roughly below the withdrawal line.
Graph two is set up the same way, number of incidents on the vertical axis, and numbered zero to
forty one on the horizontal axis, same units. The connected dot lines are labeled destruction. This
line decreases over time. The second connected dot line is labeled aggression, and starts lower and
remains below the aggression line the entire time, so it also decreases as the graph is read from left to
right.
The third graph is Number of Incidents, same vertical axis and horizontal axis as the other two. This
dotted line is labelled aggression, and trends downward. There is an arrow on the graph labeled self
control plan review, and shows a section from 29 to 33. The line drops in this section, and stays low
after number 33.
 RESULTS:
Baseline Basic Intervention Follow-Up
Number of 20
Incidents Series1
Withdrawal
10 Series3
Elopement

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

Destruction
Series1
20
Number of

Follow-Up
Incidents

10 Series2
Aggression

0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

20 Self Control Plan Review

Number of

Series5
Incidents

Aggression
10
0
1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41
Two Aspects to Most BIPs
 Increase  Decrease the
Reasonable Display of the
Alternative Behavior Target Behavior –
that Addresses the Make it Less
Function of the Effective in Meeting
Target Behavior the Identified
Function Give it
to me!
Can I play with the
dinosaur when you
are finished?
 Direct Behavior Intervention Plan
Figure is a flow chart, with spaces to
Current Undesired Behavior:
fill in. Current undesired behavior
leads to expected behavior, which
leads to Student displays the desired
behavior. Then it branches, left to yes,
right to no. If yes, leads to response. If
Expected Behavior: no, leads to response, then prevention
efforts: This includes efforts to alter the
environment, change in teacher
behavior, etc. It branches also to
Promotion of success, this includes
Student Displays the Desired Behavior
efforts to bring level of instruction and
opportunities to respond to the
student's level.

Yes No

Response: Response:

Promotion of Success: (This includes Prevention Efforts: (This includes efforts to alter
efforts to bring level of instruction the environment, change in teacher behavior,
and opportunities to respond to the etc.)
student’s level)
Student Behavior can Signal When
Instructional Level is Not Appropriate:
Careful Observation to Identify Triggers
 As one of the people who spends the most
time directly interacting with a student, you
may quickly become aware of when a
student moves away from his or her typical
or ‘baseline’ behavior.
 This may be signaled by an increase or a
decrease in behavior.
 A critical skill in working with children is to be
good at observing triggers that may serve to
move a student into a potential crisis
situation.
Understanding the Crisis
Crisis

De-
Escalation escalation

Agitation

Trigger

Hangover/Recovery

Adapted from: Managing the Cycle of

Acting-Out Behavior in the Classroom
By Dr. Geoff Colvin
Understanding the Crisis
Crisis

De-
escalation
Escalation
Staff Movement
Agitation Away from Self
Control
Trigger

Hangover
Staff Cognition

Student Cognition
Understanding the Crisis
Crisis

De-
escalation
Escalation

Agitation

Trigger

Hangover
Area of
Greatest
Influence
Provide a ‘Win-Win’ Opportunity
 When confronted with challenging or non-
compliant behavior, quickly revert to a
“curriculum of control”
 They forget what they were attempting to
accomplish with the student and switch to
the goal of getting the student to “do what
he was told!”
 Often they give situational control to the
student and simply follow their challenging
behavior attempting to gain the upper
hand.
Let’s Think About a Student
 Randy is a 5th grade student

Randy and his family have recently

moved into the school district from
another urban school district (Dade
County Florida – Miami).

 Randy is a very reluctant learner.

At times, Randy can become

disruptive to the classroom setting.

Randy seldom completes the

assigned work and almost never does
homework
 The classroom teacher has assigned the class to read the next 6 pages in the
Social Studies text and to answer the questions at the end of the chapter.
 Randy starts to try and do the lesson. He begins to look upset. He is
displaying increased movement and he is starting to look around the room
and to divert his attention from the task. He mumbles to himself and starts to
actively protest that, ”This shit is stupid. Nobody cares about this crap.”
 The teacher moves towards Randy and asks if everything is okay?
 Randy says, “I don’t know why we can’t do this as a class or with partners.
This is really boring!”
 The teacher says, “I know you can do this if you try – just do your best”
 Randy says, “I hate this shit!”
 The teacher says. “Randy you need to watch your language. You can not
cuss in this classroom.”
 Randy says, “Don’t tell me what I can and can not do. You aren’t my boss!”
 The teacher says, “Randy, we have to all get along and do what is asked of
us – otherwise the classroom just won’t work.”
 In a loud voice, Randy says, “I’m tired of this bullshit. I hate this f___king class.”
Randy starts to get up to exit the classroom.
 The teacher steps in his way (to block his exit) and says, “Sit down right now
and do what I have asked you to do! Stop swearing!”
 Randy says, “F__k you! I am out of here!”
 The teacher moves towards Randy and grabs his arm – attempting to move
him back to his seat.
 Randy shakes her hand off of his arm and pushes past her – exiting the
classroom.
Additional Information
 Randy is a student with both learning and
emotional disorders (Anxiety Disorders).
 He can become overwhelmed very easily
and often becomes frustrated and will either
simply ‘shut down’ or he will become
argumentative (loud protests and threats to
hurt others or to leave the instructional
area).
 The text is written at the 5.4 grade level.
Randy has 2.3 grade level decoding skills
and even lower levels of reading
comprehension.
 Figure is a table to fill in. First column, student behavior. Second column, staff behavior. Next column, an up arrow for
Debriefing escalate, sideways arrow for neutral and down arrow for reduce is recorded. Last column is titled options.

Student Staff Escalate Options

Behavior Behavior Neutral
Reduce
Debriefing
Student Staff Escalate Options
Behavior Behavior Neutral
Reduce
Teacher assigns 6
pages to read

Starts to look Is everything ok?

agitated – This
shit’s stupid
Why not do this as Try – Do your best
a class, partners –
This stuff is
boring.
I hate this shit. Watch your
language – can’t
cuss
Don’t tell me what We have to get
to do – you are along or school
not my boss won’t work
Tired of this Stop swearing –
bullsh_t, I hate Sit down right now
this f_cking class – Blocks exit
F_ck you! I am out Teacher grabs his
of here – starts to arm and attempts
exit to guide him to
seat
Shakes her arm
off - He pushes
Common Triggers
Trigger Option
Writing
Given subject (e.g., math,
reading)
Messages of failure (reprimands,
academic corrections)
Multiple stressors (‘basket’
student)
Too long or demanding work
Peer relations/social problems
Sensory issues
Issues at home (divorce, abuse &
neglect, disability)
Consider your classroom diversity

Student Reading Reading Math Attending

Decoding Comprehension Computation Skills
Skills

Jason Risner 4.3 4.0 6.3 5 min

Sue Bonner 6.4 6.2 5.9 30 min
Frieda Sen 6.9 6.7 7.7 30 min
 Clearly Signal Expected
Behavior
 Students must raise their hands
and wait to be called upon 0
vs.
 Use inside voice as long as you do 1
not ‘step on someone else’s
speech.’
2

Native American – speech stick (only the person holding the stick can speak).
 Library Envelope System
The library envelopes are in a 3 by 3 array. Each envelope has a name on it. The kids are grouped somehow. There are color tickets. The first row, for
students Aaron, Sarah and Joe, have a green ticket, a yellow ticket and a red ticket. Each ticket represets something: Green labeled free ticket, yellow
are 2 to 3 minute delay to recess or passing, and red tickets are 5 minute delay. Number of cards varies from row to row, based on student need.

 Make one library pocket card for each student

Number of cards
based on
Aaron Sarah Joe

baseline data –
student need.
Lashika Anita Mary

Randy Lashonda Scott

Free ticket 2-3 minute delay 5 min delay

to recess or
passing
Simple Consequence to
Reduce High Rate Behaviors
Developing a Group
Contingency or HERO System
 Establish developmentally reasonable time interval for
implementation
 Collect baseline data on the frequency of the target behavior
to be addressed (be specific to the nature of the behavior)
 Identify nature of the system (group vs. hero) and structure
(marks, stars, etc)
 Provide a number of marks somewhat larger than the average
number of target behaviors observed during baseline
 Remove one mark each time the behavior is observed. Do
not enter into power struggle with student.
 Reinforce if ANY marks remain at the end of the specified
interval.
 Over time, slowly reduce the number of marks provided at the
start of the interval or lengthen the interval.
To Increase Desired Behavior
(Modified Check-IN)

I am doing my
work.
I am following the
teacher’s directions.

I am using kind
words and actions.

Bonus: Ignored teasing of others

 Student Recommended for CICO Figure is a flow chart. Student Recommended for
CICO leads to CICO Implemented, which leads to a
loop: morning check in to regular teacher feedback to
afternoon checkout to parent feedback. Morning
check in also branches to CICO Coordinator
summarizes Data for Decision Making, which leads to
Bi weekly meetings to assess student progress. THAT
CICO Implemented has branches: graduate program, revise program
which loops back to CICO implemented.

CICO Coordinator
Morning Summarizes Data
Check-in For Decision Making

Parent Regular Teacher Bi-weekly Meeting

Feedback Feedback to Assess Student
Progress

Afternoon
Check-out

Revise Graduate
Program Program
Student: ___________________ Teacher: ________________ Date:____
Subject Area

Behavior Scoring Rubric Soc Math Science Reading

Stud

BE SAFE Displays kind and welcoming behavior towards others 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

Teases, taunts or displays rude or disrespectful behavior 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Uses Kind words and towards others
actions Threatens harm or displays verbal/physical aggression
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
towards others
Stays in the Assigned Area Remains in the seat or assigned area throughout the 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
interval
Out of seat or instructional area but returns the first time 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
asked
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Out of seat or assigned area and fails to comply with initial
request to return
Exits the classroom without permission (any time during 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
interval)

BE PREPARED TO On-task more than 85% of the interval 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

LEARN On task more than 50% but less than 85% of the interval 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
On-task more than 10% but less than 50% of the interval
Active Task Engagement On-task less than 10% of the interval
1 1 1 1 1 1 1
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Work Completion Work completed with reasonable level of effort (Not 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
concerned with accuracy or neatness at this time) 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Effort expended at a reasonable level but work not
completed
0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Little or no work attempted

Bonus Points

Comments:
Blueprints for Intervention
 Identify common behavior problems
in your school.
 Identify possible alternative
behaviors that should be taught.
 Explore the various functions for
these behaviors and identify:
 Ways teachers can teach desired
behaviors and provide necessary
practice and feedback.
 Teacher behaviors and interventions to
avoid.
 Potentially effective ways to reinforce
desired behavior.
 Potentially appropriate ways to address
undesired behavior.

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No one likes change but a wet baby!