By October 25, 2025, all candidates for an endorsement as a
Behavior Intervention Specialist will be required to complete a program aligned
to the Advanced Specialty Set for Special Education Behavior Intervention
Specialist (2015), published by the Council for Exceptional Children, 2900
Crystal Drive, Suite 1000, Arlington VA 22202-3557, and available at
https://exceptionalchildren.org/standards/specialty-sets-specific-practice-areas.
(No later amendments to or editions of these guidelines are incorporated.) The
standards effective until September 30, 2025 are as follows:
a) Foundations - The competent behavior
intervention specialist understands the philosophical, historical, and legal
foundations of special education.
1) Knowledge
- The competent behavior intervention specialist understands:
A) positive theoretical approaches and
landmark research on behavior;
B)
current State and federal laws, policies, and ethical principles regarding
positive behavior management planning and implementation;
C) relationships among teacher attitudes,
behavior, the learning environment, and individuals with exceptional learning
needs;
D) crisis prevention and
intervention research and issues;
E) the impact of cultural and linguistic
diversity on student behavior and learning;
F) the impact of multiple disabilities on
behavior and learning;
G)
biophysical and environmental effects on behavior; and
H) relationships between individual school
discipline policies and students with IEPs.
2) Performance - The competent behavior
intervention specialist:
A) articulates a
personal philosophy of behavior management consistent with standards of the
profession and State and federal laws; and
B) recognizes students' behaviors as
age-appropriate based on observation and social validation.
b) Characteristics of
Learners - The competent behavior intervention specialist understands the
impact that disabilities have on the cognitive, physical, emotional, social,
and communication development of an individual and provides opportunities that
support the intellectual, social, and personal development of all students.
1) Knowledge - The competent behavior
intervention specialist understands:
A)
similarities and differences of behavior of individuals with and without
disabilities;
B) the impact of
varying disabilities on behavior;
C) the communicative aspects of
behavior;
D) the effects of various
medications on student behavior; and
E) the relationship between learners'
behaviors and the intensity of service provision.
2) Performance - The competent behavior
intervention specialist matches service provision to learners' academic and
behavioral needs.
c)
Assessment - The competent behavior intervention specialist understands the
educational assessment process and uses various assessment strategies to
support the continuous development of all students (ages 3-22).
1) Knowledge - The competent behavior
intervention specialist understands:
A)
terminology used in functional and positive behavioral assessment;
B) State and federal laws and regulations and
ethical considerations of functional and positive behavioral
assessment;
C) the use and
limitations of behavior rating scales, systematic recording procedures,
authentic assessment, or functional assessment;
D) duration and intensity of behavior and the
influence on learner performance on formal and informal assessments;
E) behavior as a form of communication;
and
F) the relationship between
determination of behavioral interventions and issues of screening, referral,
and placement.
2)
Performance - The competent behavior intervention specialist:
A) uses systematic recording procedures,
behavior rating scales, and authentic and/or functional assessment to identify
a learner's behavioral needs;
B)
interprets and uses results from behavior rating scales, systematic recording
procedures, and authentic and/or functional assessment in determining positive
behavioral intervention needs for individuals with disabilities;
C) communicates results of positive
behavioral assessments to the learner and all stakeholders;
D) adapts and modifies formal and informal
assessments to accommodate behavioral needs of the learner; and
E) identifies positive behavioral supports
needed to facilitate integration of a learner with disabilities that provide
access to the general curriculum.
d) Planning for Instruction - The competent
behavior intervention specialist understands how students differ in their
approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are adapted
to diverse learners. The specialist understands instructional planning and
designs instruction based on knowledge of the discipline, students, community,
and curriculum goals.
1) Knowledge - The
competent behavior intervention specialist understands:
A) behavioral demands of various learning
environments;
B) the impact of
learners' behaviors on instruction;
C) the impact of learners' behaviors on
interpersonal relationships with teachers, other service providers, and
peers;
D) positive behavioral
intervention strategies;
E)
positive behavior management plan guidelines and key components; and
F) the rationale for targeting specific
behaviors and selecting positive behavior management techniques.
2) Performance - The competent
behavior intervention specialist:
A) develops
positive behavior management plans with consideration of demands of the
learning environment, assessment results, and input of relevant
stakeholders;
B) implements
positive behavior management plans;
C) facilitates implementation of positive
behavior management plans through collaborative relationships with classroom
teachers and related service personnel;
D) evaluates the effectiveness of positive
behavior management plans and revises as needed; and
E) plans for effective transition and
integration across settings.
e) Learning Environment - The competent
behavior intervention specialist uses an understanding of individual and group
motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages
positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and
self-motivation.
1) Knowledge - The competent
behavior intervention specialist understands:
A) reinforcement theories, techniques, and
application;
B) ways to create and
positively modify learning environments that respect and value
diversity;
C) the continuum of
placements and services, including alternative programs for individuals whose
behavior is interfering with learning; and
D) issues, resources and strategies of
integration and transition from most restrictive environments to least
restrictive environments.
2) Performance - The competent behavior
intervention specialist:
A) uses strategies
for facilitation, maintenance, and generalization of behaviors across learning
environments;
B) teaches
individuals to use problem-solving and self-regulation strategies to promote
independence and successful transitions;
C) designs learning environments that provide
behavioral feedback from peers, teachers, and related service
personnel;
D) directs, observes,
evaluates, and provides feedback to paraprofessional educators and teachers in
the implementation of positive behavioral interventions and management
plans;
E) implements a range of
positive strategies that promote positive behavior, including crisis
intervention and family support and involvement, in varied learning
environments;
F) monitors
intra-group behavior changes across activities and learning environments;
and
G) facilitates development and
implementation of classroom routines, rules, and consequences in varied
learning environments.
f) Instructional Delivery - The competent
behavior intervention specialist understands the central concepts and methods
of inquiry; uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students'
development of critical thinking, problem-solving, and performance skills; and
creates learning experiences that make content meaningful to all students (ages
3-22).
1) Knowledge - The competent behavior
intervention specialist understands:
A)
classroom management theories and positive strategies for individuals with
exceptional learning needs; and
B)
research-based best practices for effective, positive management of teaching,
learning, and behavior.
2) Performance - The competent behavior
intervention specialist:
A) sequences,
implements, and evaluates individualized behavioral objectives;
B) integrates positive behavioral supports
with academic curricula;
C) uses
varied positive, non-aversive techniques for managing targeted
behavior;
D) implements positive
behavior management plans using systematic recording procedures, establishments
of timelines, hierarchies of interventions, and schedules of
reinforcement;
E) designs,
implements, and evaluates behavioral support programs to enhance learners'
social and community participation; and
F) analyzes critical variables that have an
impact on learners' behavior and designs and implements positive behavioral
supports.
g)
Collaborative Relationships - The competent behavior intervention specialist
uses knowledge of effective written, verbal, and visual communication
techniques to foster active inquiry, collaboration, and supportive interaction
among professionals, parents, paraprofessional educators, and students.
1) Knowledge - The competent behavior
intervention specialist understands:
A)
concerns of families of learners whose behavior is interfering with learning
and positive strategies to address these concerns;
B) strategies of mentoring and collaboration
with other behavior intervention specialists, related service personnel, other
educators, and paraprofessional educators in implementation of positive
behavioral interventions;
C) parent
education programs and behavior management guides that address positive
behavior management and facilitate collaboration and consultation;
and
D) collaboration and
consultation issues in integration of individuals with significant behavioral
problems transitioning into and out of alternative environments, including
incarceration, psychiatric, and residential facilities.
2) Performance - The competent behavior
intervention specialist:
A) demonstrates
skills of problem-solving and conflict resolution;
B) designs, implements, and evaluates in
service trainings for teachers, related service personnel, and paraprofessional
educators that address positive behavioral intervention needs of
learners;
C) synthesizes and
communicates to stakeholders information available from family, school, the
justice system, and referral agencies;
D) uses collaborative strategies and
counseling techniques with families, learners, related service providers, and
other professionals; and
E)
provides parent education in the implementation of positive behavioral supports
in the home environment.
h) Professional Conduct and Leadership - The
competent behavior intervention specialist understands teaching as a
profession, maintains standards of professional conduct, and provides
leadership to improve students' learning and well-being.
1) Knowledge - The competent behavior
intervention specialist meets the standards set forth in Section
28.100(h)(1).
2) Performance - The competent behavior
intervention specialist:
A) uses positive
behavioral interventions with consideration of learners' physical freedom and
social interaction;
B) uses
positive behavioral interventions with respect for human dignity and personal
privacy;
C) serves as an advocate
for individuals and their families; and
D) collaborates with appropriate agency
individuals to reduce family stress and implement family support.
i) Reflection and
Professional Growth - The competent behavior intervention specialist is a
reflective practitioner who continually evaluates how choices and actions
affect students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community and
actively seeks opportunities to grow professionally.
1) Knowledge - The competent behavior
intervention specialist meets the standards set forth in Section
28.100(i)(1).
2) Performance - participates in professional
development activities that assure that practice is consistent with the
evolving behavioral research and literature.