An FBA, or functional behavior assessment, is a useful tool to determine why a student is misbehaving and what the IEP team can do to help. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires school districts to conduct or pay for an FBA when a student with special needs demonstrates disruptive behaviors that interfere with his or her learning or the learning of classmates.
An FBA describes the reasons causing the student’s disruptive behaviors, develops a plan to improve the behavior, and proposes appropriate replacement behaviors using positive interventions. The assessment consists of the following stages:
- Define the problem behavior
- Collect data (e.g., review student records, observe student, conduct interviews, etc.)
- Analyze the data
- Formulate a hypothesis about what is causing the problem behavior
- Develop interventions to reduce the problem behavior
For example, suppose that Sam has an intellectual or developmental disability. Whenever Sam is in math class and gets tested, he throws his test and pencil on the floor. Sam’s parents become concerned by his poor math grades and they ask his IEP team to conduct an FBA. The FBA might reveal that Sam becomes overwhelmed when he takes a math test because he is struggling in math and feels hopeless when he sees a test with so many questions. Alternatively, the FBA could show that Sam’s understanding of the math curriculum is perfectly fine, but that he gets very anxious when he takes a test around classmates, as he thinks they are smarter than him and that he is inadequate in comparison.
If the FBA concludes that the reason Sam misbehaves when he gets tested is because he struggles in math, then the FBA may recommend that Sam’s teacher review assignments with him individually, give him shorter tests with fewer questions per page and more time to finish, and offer positive reinforcements when he takes the test without incident. On the other hand, if the FBA finds that Sam’s comprehension of the math curriculum is not the problem, but rather that anxiety issues are causing Sam to avoid testing around his peers, the FBA might propose that Sam take his math tests in a different setting, that his teacher provide more praise to help boost his self-esteem, and that he should regularly meet with the school psychologist to talk about his anxiety.
Ultimately, the FBA’s recommendations should inform the IEP team’s development of behavior-related goals and a behavior intervention plan to address the student’s disruptive behaviors. The FBA should also inform the team about what if any additional supports are needed in the classroom to support the student.
If you need to request an FBA or need to know the timelines regarding an assessment look at this post: How to Request Additional Assessments for Your Child with an IEP
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