Behavioral Intervention Plans (BIPs) in the School Setting

In the school setting, students who exhibit disturbing behavior are often and easily cast aside as “problem students.” In reality, these students need an extra dose of intentional care ingrained into their IEP. Many of these students may face multiple suspensions throughout a school year, perhaps culminating in the recommendation to change to a different or more restrictive placement. However, school professionals and administrators have an opportunity to help students with behavioral issues nip some of these problems in the bud before they manifest themselves as major disturbances. 

Creating a Behavioral Intervention Plan is one such way that teachers and school administrators can take a hands-on approach to empower a student to perform his or her best in the school setting and provide the support needed to ensure that the student is successful.

What is a Behavioral Intervention Plan (BIP)?

A Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP) is a set of specific procedures and interventions to help students reduce challenging behavior. Most BIPs typically include different categories of interventions that come together into a single plan to help a student improve his or her behavior.

At the center of a BIP are three areas to focus on: 

1. Preventing problem behaviors

2. Teaching appropriate behavior

3. Reinforcing positive behavior

For a Behavioral Intervention Plan to be successful, it is crucial that it address all three areas of prevention strategies, teaching strategies, and reinforcement strategies. It is also important to ensure that a Behavioral Intervention Plan has detailed and specific information about the intervention procedures that are included in it so there is no confusion among the parties involved.

When Should You Pursue a BIP?

Behavioral Intervention Plans, or BIPs, work hand-in-hand with Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBA), beginning after the completion of an FBA. Ideally, if a student is showing signs of disruptive behavior, the school administrators will encourage a Functional Behavioral Assessment before the behavior becomes habitual, followed by creating a Behavioral Intervention Plan for the student to encourage positive behavior. 

If the school system has failed to take a preventative approach, then an FBA will be performed, and a BIP will be developed following a Manifestation Determination Review (MDR). 

Who is Qualified to Develop a BIP?

A Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) is the most qualified individual to provide a Behavioral Intervention Plan. In some cases, your school district may have a BCBA on staff or be able to retain one. However, if a BCBA is not available or accessible in your school district, the next best professional to create a BIP is a school psychologist. In some schools, individuals with titles such as behavior specialists or behavior coaches may develop the BIP.  The training level of these individuals can be highly variable, so you may want to ask questions about their level of training or expertise.  In most cases, teachers do not have adequate training to write BIPs.
Different Types of Interventions in Behavior Intervention Plans 

At the center of a BIP are three areas to focus on: 

1. Preventing problem behavior

2. Teaching appropriate behavior

3. Reinforcing positive behavior

For a Behavioral Intervention Plan to be successful, it is crucial that it address all three areas of prevention strategies, teaching strategies, and reinforcement strategies. For students who display dangerous behaviors such as aggression, self-jury, or elopement (running away), a crisis plan is also a component of a BIP. 

Prevention Interventions

Prevention interventions are designed to reduce the likelihood that the student continues to exhibit the problem behavior. There are several ways to modify the environment, task, or other setting events.  Using the data about antecedents or triggers from the FBA will be helpful in determining appropriate prevention interventions.  A few examples are provided below:

• Adult verbal behavior

• Classroom management

• Modifying the curriculum 

• Providing choices

• Setting events

• Transition supports

It is important to remember that each student is a unique individual who will respond to settings and circumstances in a way that is different from his or her peers. The extra effort to prevent triggers may feel like a lot of work initially but it is well worth it when a student begins to make progress. 
Teaching Replacement Behaviors 

Teaching appropriate replacement behaviors is a key part of creating an effective BIP.  It is also the one most often missing from school Behavior Intervention Plans.  The student is likely engaging in challenging behavior because they do not possess the skills to meet their needs in a more socially acceptable way.  Because there is a skill deficit, we need to teach the appropriate skill for the student to get their needs met. Examples of replacement behaviors to teach students are provided below:

• Social skills 

• Academic skills 

• How to self-monitor 

• How to delay gratification 

• How to stay engaged

Reinforcement Interventions

Reinforcement interventions exist to reinforce positive, appropriate behavior shown by a student. It’s important to reinforce appropriate replacement behaviors as soon as they occur so the student associates the positive reinforcement with the newly shown behavior. For example, if a student appropriately asks for a break, you should give them a break immediately as a reinforcer for requesting pro-social behaviors appropriately.

Other examples include:

• Allowing the student to take a break when requested appropriately

• Allowing the student access to sensory materials when requested

• Providing help or assistance to the student when needed

• Providing praise or attention for appropriate behavior 

• Increasing non-contingent reinforcement to show love and attention to a student who is prone to acting out

• Allowing the student access to preferred items or activities

Some staff members don’t believe in providing reinforcement for appropriate behavior.  For example, if a student becomes overwhelmed by long or difficult tasks, we should provide a break when the student requests it. The alternative is that the student will “take their own break” by engaging in inappropriate behaviors such as causing a disruption or leaving the area.  Concerning reinforcement strategies, it is important that the reinforcement be something the student wants. Otherwise, they won’t feel inclined to put forth effort for something they don't care about. 

Training Staff on a Student’s Behavior Intervention Plan

When developing Behavior Intervention Plans it is crucial that all of the staff members who work with the student are trained on that student's plan. This includes special education teachers and general education teachers, paraprofessionals, and teacher aids. It is also imperative that administrators that might be involved are trained on that student's plan. If there is a school resource officer present, ideally, that person should be trained on the plan as well.

Writing the Behavior Intervention Plan and handing out the paperwork isn’t enough.  The person who creates the plan should actively train the staff on the student’s BIP allowing time for Q&A.  The person writing the plan should also observe the staff actually implementing the plan and then provide feedback to maximize treatment integrity. 

After a Behavioral Intervention Plan is in Place

After the Behavior Intervention Plan is in place, the team should consistently implement all parts of it.  If you are in a situation where a Manifestation Determination Review is required, the BIP will be reviewed, and a discussion will be held about whether or not it was implemented as designed. The two questions to keep in mind regarding a Manifestation Determination Review are: 

1. Was the conduct in question caused by, or does it have a direct relationship to, the child’s disability?

2. Is the conduct in question a direct result of the school system’s failure to implement the child’s IEP?

If the staff did not implement the BIP correctly and consistently, the behavior resulting in the recommendation for suspension or removal would be considered to be a manifestation of the child’s disability.  The BIP would be reviewed and or revised, and the team would not move forward with the recommended discipline.  Having a BIP in place could be the difference between suspension or expulsion and keeping the student in the classroom with some intentionality on the part of the teacher, paraprofessionals, and any support staff who work with said student. 

A good rule of thumb surrounding BIPs is that if you do what you’re supposed to do, you don’t have to do what you’re told. Taking the preventative approach to handle disruptive behavior in the classroom and going through the process of conducting an FBA and integrating a BIP will set your student up for success. 

Common Errors Surrounding BIPs

Creating a BIP is not a one-time occasion. It is important to update the BIP any time that a student’s IEP is updated because it's likely things have changed, and the BIP may need some tweaks to keep the student on track. 

Concerning BIPs and the use of a Functional Behavioral Analysis (FBA) to come up with a plan for a BIP, a team creating the BIP may not feel the need to go through the formality of an FBA, and they happen to get a plan in place that works. Often though, they try implementing a BIP without having done an FBA, and it doesn't work. The school will have to come back to the drawing board to perform an FBA and then come up with a plan that will benefit the student. 

Problems can arise if the school administrators pass out a BIP as if it’s general paperwork, but they don't do any training or if they do inadequate training on the plan. The training should be didactic, and staff should receive performance feedback on their implementation. Without these training steps, there are likely to be low levels of treatment integrity. If staff and teachers are not implementing a BIP the way that it was intended, you will not see the desired effects.

Closing Thoughts on a BIP

Behavioral issues vary greatly from student to student. While some behaviors might mimic others, it is important that any student who needs a BIP for his or her success has one created to his or her specific needs. A Behavioral Intervention Plan is often only as good as the Functional Behavioral Analysis that precedes it, so it is important to have a qualified person lead the formulation of the FBA and the implementation of a BIP. 

A student’s success is largely determined by how much time and effort the school system, administrators, and teachers want to put into his or her learning or providing extra support when needed. By taking an adaptive approach and meeting students where they need the most support, your child’s school district can provide intentionality in helping all of its students succeed. 

A brighter future for your child begins today