Assessing Behavior and Social Competence

ASSESSING BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL COMPETENCE West Chester University, Adapted Physical Education KIN 582: Assessment and Development of Individualized Programs Melissa Ewerth Youtube Link: http://youtu.be/4nbPNa_COHU Text: Developmental and Adapted Physical Activity Assessment

OBJECTIVES Adaptive and Maladaptive Behavior  Traditional versus Functional assessment of behavior problems  The concept of social competence and the importance of assessing social competence  Importance of self-concept and various assessment methods  Importance of play and how to assess play behaviors  Understand the importance of attitudes and how to assess and develop positive attitudes 

ASSESSING CHILDREN WITH CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS 

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Students displaying difficult behaviors can be the most challenging students in both general and adapted physical education settings. Difficult behaviors include Physical violence toward others  Verbal outbursts  Destroying equipment  Passive-aggressive behaviors 

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Before an IEP team can determine an appropriate behavior, the team must determine the following. Types of displayed behaviors  Intensity of behaviors  Possible causes of behaviors 

ASSESSING CHILDREN WITH CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS: ADAPTED BEHAVIOR Adaptive Behavior: Behavior the demonstrates one’s ability to meet expectations of personal independence, physical needs, and interpersonal relationships.  Adaptive behavior related to physical education includes: 

Following directions  Getting along with peers  Proper use of equipment 

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Adaptive behavior allows for student success, independence, and acceptance.

ASSESSING CHILDREN WITH CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS: MALADAPTED BEHAVIOR Maladaptive Behavior: Behavior that is undesirable, unacceptable, and interferes with everyday activity. Also called problem behaviors.  Maladaptive behavior limits student independence. Limited independence leads to 

Restrictions  Extra supervision  Segregated placement 

ASSESSING CHILDREN WITH CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS: BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENTS The first step of a behavioral assessment is identifying the behavior and the extent of occurrence of the behavior.  The assessment of the behavior must be based on an accurate observation and precise measurement.  Examine antecedents and consequences. 

Antecedent: Things that happened before behavior that could have caused the behavior.  Consequence: Things that happen after behavior that could possibly reinforce the behavior. 

ASSESSING CHILDREN WITH CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS: BEHAVIORAL TESTS 

Frequency 

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Response Rate 

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Number of responses divided by the time in an interval

Intervals 

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Number of behaviors during designated time

Behaviors during a certain time period

Time sampling 

Observations during different time periods rather than one large block of time

ASSESSING CHILDREN WITH CHALLENGING BEHAVIORS: BEHAVIORAL TESTS 

Duration 

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Latency 

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Time lapse between the cue and the response

Categorization 

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The amount of time the behavior is observed

Classification of responses

Group 

Number of individuals who perform the behavior as opposed to just one individual response

BEHAVIORAL TESTS University of Virginia Adapted Physical Education Program (UVA-APE) Initial Observation and Referral Form  Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised (SIB-R)  Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (VABS)  AAMR Adaptive Behavior Scale-School 

UVA-APE INITIAL OBSERVATION AND REFERRAL FORM 

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Easy to use tool designed to determine significance of child’s behavioral problems in PE. Five main categories     

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Scored on a three-point scale 

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Transition to and from PE Responding to teacher Relating to peers and equipment Effort and self-acceptance Cognitive abilities Adequate, needs improvement, significantly inadequate.

No reports of validity or reliability Results can be used for programming and recommending formal behavioral assessment

SCALES OF INDEPENDENT BEHAVIORREVISED (SIB-R) 

Comprehensive norm-referenced assessment of adaptive and maladaptive behavior. Adaptive: 14 areas  Maladaptive: 8 areas 

Test appropriate for infants through older adults  Test administration 

Short form: 15-20 minutes  Full scale: 40-60 minutes 

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Assessment uses a scale of 0-3.

VINELAND ADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR SCALES (VABS) Measures social competence of children with and without disabilities from birth to 19 years old.  Classroom edition contains 224 items that are completed by IEP team or lead teacher.  Interview edition has two forms completed by parent. 

Survey form: 297  Expanded form: 577 items 

Measured on a 3-point scale  Measures behavior in four domains 

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Communication, daily living skills, socialization, motor skills

AAMR ADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR SCALESCHOOL (ABS-S:2) Measures adaptive and maladaptive behaviors  Adaptive behavior measurements 

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Independent functioning Physical development Economic activity Self-direction Language development Numbers and time Prevocational and vocational activity Responsibility Socialization

AAMR ADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR SCALESCHOOL (ABS-S:2) 

Maladaptive behavior measurements       

Social behavior Conformity Trustworthiness Stereotyped and hyperactive behavior Self-abusive behavior Social engagement Disturbing interpersonal behavior

Range: 3-18 years  Testing time: 15 to 30 minutes  Measurement: Likert Scale of 0 to 3 or “yes” or “no” response. 

FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIORAL ASSESSMENT Step 1: Clear objective description of behavior including type, frequency, intensity, and duration  Step 2: Cause of behavior  Step 3: Observation consequences after behavior  Step 4: Determining the reason for the behavior  Step 5: Creating the hypothesis 

*See Figure 9.2 on page 166.

SOCIAL COMPETENCE 

Social competence includes a variety of subareas:     

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Basic classroom skills Basic interaction skills Getting-along skills Making-friend skills Coping skills

Assessing social skills allows the physical education teacher to determine student strengths and weaknesses, set goals for social competence, and identify student progress in relation to set goals toward social competence.

SOCIAL COMPETENCE: SOCIAL SKILLS TESTS Walker-McConnell Scale  University of Virginia Adapted Education Program Social Skills Inventory  Matrix to Target Social Skills Deficits 

WALTER MCCONNELL SCALE (WMS)  

Rates social behaviors by focusing on behaviors that can be easily observed during the school day. Elementary-aged students(K-6) Teacher-preferred social behavior  Peer-preferred social behavior  School adjustment 

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Adolescent students (7-12) Self-control  Peer relations  School adjustment  Empathy 

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Information gained from this test can be used to design a social skills improvement plan for the student.

UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA ADAPTED PHYSICAL EDUCATION SKILLS INVENTORY Easy to use tool to measure the social competence of children with disabilities.  Inventory is divided into 10 sub-categories 

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Accepting authority Coping with conflict Gaining attention Greeting others Helping others Making conversation Organized play Positive attitude towards others Informal play Care of property

UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA ADAPTED PHYSICAL EDUCATION SKILLS INVENTORY Although test validity and reliability has not been tested, it is useful for identifying basic competencies of children with disabilities in physical education.  Administration of the assessment requires teacher observation that may take several observations. 

MATRIX TO TARGET SOCIAL SKILLS DEFICITS Similar to the UVA-APE Social Skills Inventory.  Behaviors are listed on the left and given a score from 1 to 5.  The matrix can be used for individuals or for the class as a whole.  The UVA-APE Social Skills Inventory is preferred as it is more relevant to the physical education setting. 

SELF-CONCEPT Positive self-concept is important for all students to stay motivated to try their best in all areas of school.  Self-Esteem: general positive self-regard, selfworth, or overall good feeling about oneself  Perceived Competence: The competence one feels in particular activities or pursuits. 

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School, sports, friendships, appearance, romantic appeal, social acceptance, behavioral conduct

SELF-CONCEPT: MEASUREMENT SCALES

Harter’s Self-Perception Profile of Adolescents (SPPA)  Ulrich’s Pictorial Scale of Perceived Physical Competence (PSPPC) 

HARTER’S SELF-PERCEPTION PROFILE FOR ADOLESCENTS (SPPA) 

Measures self-perceptions in several domains         

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Global self-worth Scholastic competence Social acceptance Athletic competence Physical appearance Behavioral conduct Friendship Romantic appeal Job competence

Format encourages students to respond based on how they feel and not what they believe to be the desired response. Figure 9.5 is a section that relates to physical education specifically in relation to athletic competence.

ULRICH’S PICTORIAL SCALE OF PERCEIVED PHYSICAL COMPETENCE (PSPPC) 

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Pictorial scale designed to assess self-perceptions of motor skill competence of elementary students and students with mild mental retardation. Measures fundamental gross motor skills  

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Swinging Running Jumping Catching Climbing on a jungle gym Bouncing a ball Kicking Skipping Jumping rope Throwing

ULRICH’S PICTORIAL SCALE OF PERCEIVED PHYSICAL COMPETENCE (PSPPC) 

Measures sport-specific skills 

Baseball Batting  Throwing  Catching 

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Basketball Dribbling  Shooting  Passing 

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Soccer Dribbling  Kicking  Throw-ins 

ULRICH’S PICTORIAL SCALE OF PERCEIVED PHYSICAL COMPETENCE (PSPPC) Students are shown two pictures for each skill. The student indicates whether the person in the picture is really good, pretty good, sort of good, or not very good at the skill. The student then indicates which person he is most like.  Follow up questions listed below are recommended to help the examiner better understand the response of the student. 

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Have you ever done this skill? When did you do it? How many times have you done it? Who taught you? Do you enjoy it?

PLAY BEHAVIORS 

Social play allows children to Learn from peers  Learn to take turns and cooperate with peers  Learn appropriate ways to play with peers and toys 

Learning to play prevents students with disabilities from being rejected and avoided by peers.  Children with disabilities do not always have developmentally appropriate play skills, specifically children with autism. 

PLAY BEHAVIORS: SHERRILL-UVA-APE SOCIAL PLAY BEHAVIOR INVENTORY Easy to use social play behavior inventory to measure current behaviors in play and ongoing improvement.  Divided into five developmental levels and assessed on a scale of 1-4. 

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Autistic/Unoccupied Solitary/Exploratory Parallel Associative/Interactive Cooperative

Reliability is gained through multiple observations.

ATTITUDES 

Attitudes specify one’s preference to either avoid or approach someone or something. 

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Attitudes are directly connected to intentions which are connected to behaviors.

Physical educators should measure how nondisabled students feel about including students with disabilities. Conduct assessments early in the year to allow for disability awareness and acceptance activities  Continue assessments throughout the year. 

ATTITUDES Children’s Attitudes Toward Integrated Physical Education-Revised Inventory  Siperstein’s Adjective Checklist  Siperstein’s Friendship Activity Scale 

ATTITUDES: CHILDREN’S ATTITUDES TOWARD INTEGRATED PHYSICAL EDUCATION-REVISED INVENTORY Designed to determine the attitudes of students without disabilities to the students with disabilities and the modifications that would be present in an inclusive setting.  A scenario is given to which students must respond using a 4-point Likert scale.  Results are analyzed by totaling each subscale and dividing to get a score of 1-4. 

Score of 1-2 indicates negative attitudes  Score of 3-4 indicates positive attitudes 

ATTITUDES: SIPERSTEIN’S ADJECTIVE CHECKLIST Designed to measure student attitudes towards peers with disabilities.  Children are asked to choose words that describe how they feel about a certain student or certain disability.  Results should be examined and discussed with the class 

ATTITUDES: SIPERSTEIN’S FRIENDSHIP ACTIVITY SCALE Designed to measure friendship intentions.  Students are given a prompt and then asked to answer questions based on what they have read or has been read to them.  Results should be examined and then discussed with the class. 

CLASS ACTIVITY 

Please think about the following questions and be prepared to share your answers during our Skype session. Have you ever used any of these assessments? What were your thoughts?  After viewing this presentation do you plan on using any of these assessments? Why or why not? If so, which one will you use?  Would you be against using any of the assessments discussed in the presentation? How could you modify them? 

SUMMARY Adaptive and maladaptive behavior  Social competence  Self-concept, self-esteem, and perceived competence  Play behaviors  Attitudes towards students with disabilities 

RESOURCES Block, M.E. (2000). A teacher’s guide to including students with disabilities in general physical education (2nd edition). Baltimore: Brookes.  Block, M.E., Horvat, M., & Kelly, L.E. (2007). Developmental and adapted physical activity assessment. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics  Janney, R., & Snell, M.E. (2000). Behavioral support. Baltimore: Brookes.  Tripp, A., & Sherrill, C. (2004). Inclusion, social competence, and attitude change. In C. Sherrill (Ed.), Adapted physical activity, recreation, and sport (6th ed.) (pp. 240-260). Madison, WI: McGraw-Hill. 