Effects of Targeted Professional Development Facilitated by School-Based Coaches on Teachers’ Classroom PBIS Practices and Student Outcomes

When teachers implement classroom positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), students can benefit. Unfortunately, teachers report insufficient training and concerns with students’ behavior. We conducted this study to test the effects of Targeted Professional Development (TPD; brief training, email prompts, and teacher self-management), facilitated by school-based coaches, on teachers’ targeted classroom practices (i.e., prompts, opportunities to respond [OTRs], and specific praise) and students’ classroom behavior (e.g., on-task, disruptions). Using an experimental crossover design, we randomly assigned participating teachers to two cohorts; then, school-based coaches facilitated TPD for each classroom practice in a different randomly assigned order for each cohort. During TPD, teachers increased their use of each targeted practice. As teachers increased their OTRs and specific praise, students’ active participation increased and disruptions decreased, respectively. Although additional research is needed on sustained implementation, the successful delivery by school-based coaches shows the potential of TPD as a feasible approach to ongoing PD.