Project Description:
There is a paucity of Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBAs) in Nevada, and few working in Nevadas school districts. This has resulted in increases in challenging behavior in classrooms where teachers do not have the expertise, training, and knowledge in how to address behavior from a scientific perspective. The irony is that the Behavior Analysis Program (BAP) located in the College of Liberal Arts at the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) is one of the most respected in the world, is BACB-approved, and provides a thorough training in behavior theory and application.
The overall goals include: 1) Prepare education personnel in an area that has been led by Psychology through a collaborative relationship; 2) Prepare education personnel to become BCBA Certified via quality supervision; 3) Increase the collaboration between the Psychology Department and the Education Specialties program in the College of Education. With these goals being met, there will be an increase in the number of BCBA Certified teachers working in Nevadas schools, which will result in a quantifiable reduction in aberrant behaviors. There will be opportunity to conduct research in several areas (e.g., Effects of feedback during Supervision, Relationship between course content and classroom teaching, Validity in classroom data collection, etc.).
The most unusual feature of this project is the fact that it is collaboration between the BAP in the Psychology Department and the Education Specialties (emphasis) in the College of Education, a first of its kind. Teachers (n= 21) will be taking courses in both Colleges; will receive supervision and ongoing feedback from two BCBAs (Dr. Harrington and Ashley Greenwald), and will be prepared to sit for the BCBA Examination.
The most significant expected benefit will be quality, BCBA teachers training and working in the school districts across Nevada. With quality BCBA teachers working with children, their families, their colleagues and administration, more learning will take place in the classrooms, on the playground, and in the cafeteria. Conversely, there will be reductions in challenging behaviors, improved quality of life, and expanded supports. Another benefit is the collaboration between two programs (i.e., Special Education and Psychology) that historically worked independent of each other.
Keyword(s):
Behavior Analysis, BCBA, Collaboration, Education
