• What is PBIS?

    PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) is a multi-level program that helps school personnel adopt and organize evidence-based behavioral interventions in a way that helps all students achieve academically and behaviorally.

    PBIS IS NOT a packaged curriculum that is used in the same way for every student. PBIS IS a prevention-focused way for school staff to organize best practices, improve the implementation of those practices and maximize academic and social behavior outcomes for students. PBIS supports the success of ALL students, not just those who struggle with behavior.

    You likely know Duker School’s PBIS program by the acronym SOAR. SOAR stands for Safety, Ownership, Achievement, and Respect. These are building wide expectations for all students and at the core of our PBIS framework.

    PBIS works hand in hand with our RtI (Response to Intervention) framework. Both are part of a MultiTiered System of Support (MTSS).

    What is RtI?

    Much like PBIS, Response to Intervention (RtI) is a multi-level approach to help students achieve academic and behavioral success. The purpose of RtI is the early identification and support of students with learning and/or behavior needs.

    The RtI process begins with high-quality instruction and screening of all children in the general education classrooms. Struggling learners are provided with interventions at increasing levels of intensity to help accelerate their rate of learning. These services may be provided by a variety of Duker staff, including general education teachers, special educators, specialists and classroom assistants. Student progress is closely monitored to assess both the learning rate and level of performance of individual students.

    Educational decisions about the intensity and time-frame of interventions are based on individual student responses to instruction. RtI is designed for use when making decisions in both general education and special education, creating a balanced system of instruction and intervention guided by child outcome data.