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School Enlists Tiered Approach to Discipline

Eighth grader Andro Benard, 14, reviews his behavior ratings at the end of Shawna A. Moore’s language arts class at Sylvester Middle School in Burien, Wash. As part of the school’s PBIS program, each day teachers rate 20 students, including Andro, on how well they demonstrate “five P’s”: being prompt, positive, polite, prepared, and productive.

—Josie Liming for Education Week

A middle school in Washington state uses Positive Behavior Supports, or PBIS, to curb behavior problems

By Mary Ann Zehr

Burien, Wash.

Depending on what class he is in, 13-year-old Kumar Teve behaves noticeably differently.

During a recent science class, for instance, the 7th grader repeatedly called loudly for his teacher when he wasn’t sure what to do next on an assignment, and he didn’t proceed until his teacher gave him individual coaching. But later the same day in language arts class, Kumar didn’t holler for his teacher at all. He followed classwide instructions and led a group of students in creating a poster about what they could learn from “text features.”

The same is true for 14-year-old Andro Benard. In a mid-January mathematics class, the 8th grader frittered away time chatting with a girl or fidgeting rather than solving the problems assigned him. In English class the next day, though, he completed all his work; in drama, he cooperated with other...