ED466 922 - What Is a Functional Behavior Assessment? The WHY of a Behavior

This guide discusses using Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) to find out why a student is behaving inappropriately and to enable the provision of appropriate positive behavior intervention. It stresses that a FBA goes beyond looking at antecedent behavior and consequence to review everything in' the entire environment of the student, Components of the FBA are explained and include: (1) identifying the area of the behavior that is the greatest concern; (2) identifying where the behavior occurs and does not occur; (3) investigating what happened in the student's environment before the student started having the behavior; (4) examining whether a pattern exists; (5) investigating when the behavior occurs; (6) identifying what the student is getting out of having the behavior; (7) reasons why the student is having the behavior; and (8) identifying replacement appropriate behaviors that can be taught to the student to replace inappropriate behaviors. The guide closes with a copy of "Technical Assistance for Implementation of the Behavior Intervention Process" provided by the Office of Exceptional Children, Ohio Department of Education. This document explains behavior intervention plans and provides a systematic collaborative problem-solving process to guide behavior intervention planning. (CR) 1.