Functional behavioral assessment in the general education setting

Students with disturbing social behaviors continue to be a concern for educators within the public school setting. Their disruptive behaviors impinge not only on their learning but also on the learning of their classmates. Functional behavioral assessment (FBA) has been mandated in the re-authorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997 (IDEA '97) as a means of understanding problem behavior. At present, there are two challenges in implementing this mandate. The first is the need for more research to validate multiple methods used in FBA across populations with mild disabilities. The second challenge is to provide guidelines for school districts to (a) comply with the law, and (b) implement best practices. In essence, the success of FBA within the general education setting will be determined by the development of promising parsimonious practices and strategies. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to provide further empirical support for the efficacy of multiple strategies in a general education setting. This study was an applied research project utilizing a brief functional analysis process. The experimental phase was structured to test variables of easy versus hard academic tasks with teacher attention paid to appropriate versus inappropriate behaviors. Results of this study further contribute to the research that the combination of multiple methods can produce valid hypotheses as to the function of aberrant behavior, The value of FBA rests on the assumption that successful treatment of disruptive behavior is a result of accurate diagnosis. The end goal is to create a learning atmosphere in which students acquire and practice socially appropriate behaviors.