National Research and Development Center on Serious Behavior Disorders at the Secondary Level

Study Purposes: The primary objective of this project is to develop and evaluate the efficacy of a package of intervention strategies designed to reduce the significant behavioral and academic challenges experienced by high school students with behavior disorders. In addition, the research team will conduct supplementary studies to address key issues in special education and are responsive to the needs of policymakers and secondary-level special education practitioners; broadly disseminate their findings; and provide national leadership on services for high school students with behavior disorders. The Center’s long-term goal is to improve the behavior, social, and academic outcomes of secondary students with serious behavior disorders.

Interventions: The Center will develop, implement, and evaluate a comprehensive set of intervention strategies across three core intervention components: Enhancing school and teacher capacity, building youth competence, and increasing family and community supports. The intervention package will include multiple components addressing academics and behavior (e.g., classroom structure, teacher-student interactions, evidence-based academic instruction), youth competence in social skills, mental health, and general living skills (e.g., making healthy choices, organization and study skills, mentoring, securing effective therapy), and increasing family and community supports (e.g., parent guidance, homework guidance, and linking schools to community therapy and supports).

Design: During the initial project years, the research team will examine the strategies within each core component to identify those strategies that are the most efficient and have the best potential to improve student outcomes. The strategies will be incorporated into the intervention “package” to be further refined and developed. At the end of the development phase, the team will have a fully developed intervention package with evidence of acceptability and feasibility in secondary school settings. An experimental, random assignment test of efficacy of the intervention package will be conducted in years 3-5. The goal of the trial is to determine whether the intervention package improves student outcomes compared to business-as-usual control conditions. The trial will also include an examination of the variables that mediate student-level outcomes or moderate the effect of treatment on student outcomes.

Outcome Measures: A set of measures is planned to examine student behavior, social, and academic outcomes. In addition, fidelity of intervention, amount of student exposure to the intervention strategies, intervention acceptability, and social validity will be measured.

Key Personnel: Lee Kern, Steve Evans, Tim Lewis, Debra Kamps, Carl Paternite, Terry Scott, Mark Weist, Paras Mehta, Zewelanji Serpell, Howard Stevenson, Charlayne Hayling, Allison Cloth, Lori Newcomer.

Center Website: http://www.ies-cars.org/

IES Program Contact: Dr. Jacquelyn Buckley
Email: Jacquelyn.Buckley@ed.gov
Telephone: (202) 219-2130