ERIC ED540771: The Incredible Years Teacher Classroom Management Training: The Methods and Principles That Support Fidelity of Training Delivery

2011·0.35 MB·English

by  ERIC

SchoolPsychologyReview,
2011,Volume40,No.4,pp.509–529
The Incredible Years Teacher Classroom Management
Training: The Methods and Principles That Support
Fidelity of Training Delivery
Carolyn Webster-Stratton
University of Washington
Wendy M. Reinke, Keith C. Herman, and Lori L. Newcomer
University of Missouri
Abstract. This article focuses on the Incredible Years Teacher Classroom Man-
agement(IYTCM)interventionasanexampleofanevidence-basedprogramthat
embedsfidelityandadaptationwithinitsdesign.First,thecorefeaturesoftheIY
TCM program along with the methods, processes, and principles that make the
interventioneffectivearedescribed.Theimportanceoffidelityandmethodsfor
effectively measuring fidelity are discussed. In addition, support mechanisms
(training, mentoring, consultation, and coaching) necessary to facilitate high
fidelityofimplementationofIYTCMarehighlighted.Thegoalistoclarifythe
underlyingprinciplesandsupportsneededtoeffectivelyallowIYgroupleaders
todisseminatetheIYTCMamongteacherswithdiversebackgroundsandskills,
who work with students with varying developmental, academic, and social-
emotionalneeds.Oftenfidelityandadaptationarethoughtofasmutuallyexclu-
sive,butintheIYmodeltheyareconsideredbothcomplementaryandnecessary.
Implicationsforschoolpsychologistsandpreventionsciencearediscussed.
Considerableresearchhasdemonstrated (Hawkins, Catalano, Kosterman, Abbott, &
that effective teacher classroom management Hill, 1999; Kellam, Ling, Merisca, Brown, &
strategies promote student interest in learning Ialongo, 1998; Walker, Colvin, & Ramsey,
(Kunter, Baumert, & Koller, 2007), enhance 1995). On the other hand, ineffective class-
academic achievement and school readiness roommanagementpracticesinterferewithstu-
(Webster-Stratton&Reid,2004),andprevent dents’ motivation and on-task learning and
and reduce classroom- disruptive behavior contribute to escalating risk for developing
The research reported here was supported by the Institute of Educational Sciences, U.S. Department of
Education,throughGrantR305A100342tothesecondandthirdauthors.Theopinionsexpressedarethose
of the authors and do not represent views of the Institute or the U.S. Department of Education. This
research was also supported through Grant P30 MH066247 to the second and third authors from the
NationalInstitutesofHealth,NationalInstituteofMentalHealth.
Correspondence regarding this article should be addressed to Wendy M. Reinke, Department of Educa-
tional, School, and Counseling Psychology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211; e-mail:
[email protected]
Copyright2011bytheNationalAssociationofSchoolPsychologists,ISSN0279-6015
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SchoolPsychologyReview,2011,Volume40,No.4
disruptive behavior problems (Jones & Jones, behavioralproblemsareenteringschool(Bro-
2004; Webster-Stratton, Reid, & Hammond, phy,1996;Conroy,Sutherland,Haydon,Stor-
2004). For example, if elementary school mont, & Harmon, 2009). Increased classroom
teachers of children presenting with early sizes and the inclusion of students receiving
signs of aggressive/disruptive behavior fail to specialeducationservicesingeneraleducation
consistently provide responsive and nurturing classrooms present challenges for teachers
teaching, reinforcement for prosocial behav- working to provide instruction and manage
ior, or effective proactive discipline, a coer- classroom behaviors among diverse learners.
cive cycle may be established whereby chil- In fact, nearly half of new teachers leave the
dren’s oppositional and negative behavior is profession within five years, many citing stu-
reinforced either by the teacher’s harsh or dent misbehavior as a primary reason (Inger-
critical responses or by giving in to their de- soll, 2002). Thus, to fully support teachers’
mands(seeReinke&Herman,2002).AsPat- effortstouseeffectiveclassroommanagement
terson, Reid, and Dishion (1992) have de- practicesthatnurture,encourage,andmotivate
scribed, these patterns of negative or coercive students with varying developmental abilities
interactions at school contribute to a cascade and cultural backgrounds, evidence-based
ofnegativeoutcomesforchildrenwithantiso- teacher classroom management training pro-
cial behaviors including peer rejection, nega- gramsareneededthatareflexibleandadaptive
tive school reputations, academic failure, and to the unique challenges faced by teachers.
furtherescalationoftheirantisocialproblems. Further, these training programs need to be
Well-trained teachers can help children attentive to the varying backgrounds and ex-
whoareaggressive,disruptive,anduncooper- periences of teachers, and provide teachers
ative to develop the appropriate social behav- with additional consultation and support ac-
iorandemotionalself-regulationthatisapre- cording to individual classroom needs.
requisite for their academic success in school
(Walkeretal.,1995;Webster-Stratton&Reid, The Incredible Years Teacher
2004; Webster-Stratton, Reid, & Hammond, Classroom Management (IY TCM)
2004; Webster-Stratton, Reid, & Stoolmiller, Program
2008).However,manyteacherssimplyarenot
adequately prepared to manage the escalating The IY TCM program (Webster-Strat-
numberofstudentswithbehaviorproblemsin ton,1994)ispartofaseriesofthreeinterlock-
their classrooms; some even enter the work- ing and complementary IY training programs
force without having taken a single course on forparents,children,andteachersdesignedto
behaviormanagement(Barrett&Davis,1995; reduce the multiple risk factors associated
Evertson&Weinstein,2006;Houston&Wil- with early-onset conduct problems and emo-
liamson, 1992). In a recent survey of elemen- tional and social difficulties in children ages
tary teachers, teachers reported managing be- 3–8 years. The IY training series is grounded
havior in the classroom to be their greatest in cognitive social learning and relationship
challenge(Reinke,Stormont,Herman,Puri,& theories about the development of antisocial
Goel,2011).Whenaskedaboutareasinwhich behaviors in children (Patterson et al., 1992)
they felt they needed additional training, as well as developmental, modeling, and self-
teachers in this survey stated that the number efficacy theories (Bandura, 1977, 1982). The
one area for which they needed training and IY TCM program targets key school risk fac-
support was in managing challenging class- tors that can lead to negative outcomes for
room behaviors. students, and works to break the negative co-
Teacherstodayarepresentedwithmore ercive cycle described earlier while strength-
complex classrooms. Increasing numbers of ening protective factors. To accomplish this,
students with English as a second language teachers are trained in evidence-based prac-
(NationalClearinghouseforEnglishLanguage tices of effective behavior management, pro-
Acquisition, 2009) and with emotional and active teaching, teacher–child relationship
510
IncredibleYearsAdaptationWithFidelity
skills, parent–teacher collaboration, behavior Webster-Stratton et al., 2004; Webster-Strat-
plans addressing developmentally appropriate ton et al., 2008). Further, teachers’ reports of
goalsforindividualstudents,andwaystopro- parent bonding and involvement in school
mote students’ emotional regulation, social were significantly higher for trained than un-
skills and problem-solving skills. trainedteachers(Webster-Strattonetal.,2001;
Webster-Strattonetal.,2008).Independentin-
Research on the IY TCM Program vestigatorshavereplicatedmanyofthesefind-
ings in low-income, high-minority Head Start
The IY Series has been the subject of
classroomsinChicago(Raveretal.,2008)and
extensive empirical evaluation over the past
NorthCarolina(Williford&Shelton,2008),in
three decades. All three programs have been
low-income counties in Michigan (Carlson,
widely endorsed by various review groups,
Tiret,Bender,&Benson,2011),inWaleswith
including the Office for Juvenile Justice and
Sure Start (Hutchings, Daley, Jones, Martin,
Delinquency Prevention, as one of 11 “blue-
Bywater, & Gwyn, 2007), in Jamaica with
print”modelviolencepreventionprogramsfor
teachersof24preschoolsininner-cityareasof
treating and preventing disruptive behavior
Kingston (Baker-Henningham, Walker, Pow-
disorders (Webster-Stratton et al., 2001). Fur-
ell, & Gardner Meeks, 2009), and as a stand-
ther, all three programs have been imple-
alone self-administered training program with
mentedandevaluatedaspreventionprograms
preschool teachers receiving consultation
with high-risk populations (e.g., Head Start
(Shernoff & Kratochwill, 2007).
and primary grades serving low-income fam-
ilies)andastreatmentinterventionswithchil-
Fidelity of IY TCM Program Delivery
dren with diagnoses such as oppositional de-
fiant disorder and attention deficit hyperactiv- An important topic around the delivery
ity disorder, or with developmental delays. of EBPs is the fidelity with which these pro-
Evaluationsindicateimplementationwithhigh grams are implemented in the field. Fidelity,
fidelityacrossavarietyofsettingsandcultural also referred to as treatment integrity, is an
contexts (see Webster-Stratton & Reid, overarching term defined as the degree of ex-
2010a). actness with which the delivery of a program
The IY TCM group-based training pro- adheresto,orreproduces,theoriginaltraining
gram has been evaluated by the developer in program model features with the goal of rep-
three randomized control trials as well as by licating original research outcomes (Schoen-
sixindependentinvestigators.Acrossthesetri- wald & Hoagwood, 2001). Fidelity can be
als, research findings indicated that indepen- conceptualized in three dimensions: (1) treat-
dent observers reported that trained teachers ment adherence, or trainer delivery of core
uselessharshdisciplineandcriticism,provide program content and intervention dosage
more nurturing and praise, demonstrate more (number of hours of training) in the recom-
consistency and confidence, and build higher mended sequence, (2) interventionist compe-
levelsofpositiveclassroomclimatethancon- tence, or the IY trainer’s skill level of using
trol teachers (Raver et al., 2008; Webster- the training methods, processes, and learning
Stratton et al., 2004). Children in classrooms principles employed in the original program
withtrainedteacherswereobservedtobesig- model, and (3) treatment differentiation, or
nificantlylessaggressivewithpeersandmore implementation of the program for the popu-
cooperativewithteachers(Webster-Strattonet lation for whom the program was designed
al., 2001; Webster-Stratton et al., 2004). In (Gresham, 2009; Power et al., 2005). In addi-
addition, these children exhibited more social tion to the three dimensions outlined here,
competence, emotional self-regulation, and Power and colleagues (2005) note that partic-
schoolreadinessskills,andlessconductprob- ipant responsiveness, or the level of partici-
lems in comparison to children in control pants’ engagement in the intervention, is an
classrooms (Webster-Stratton et al., 2001; important component to treatment fidelity. In
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SchoolPsychologyReview,2011,Volume40,No.4
other words, fidelity encompasses both the studies do not include data on any dimension
qualityandquantityofEBPtrainingdelivery. of treatment fidelity (Sanetti, Gritter, & Do-
bey, 2011). Consequently, we have a poor
Why Does Fidelity Matter? understanding of what aspects of treatment
implementation are important for outcomes
Convincing evidence exists that high
(Perepletchikova, Treat, & Kazdin, 2007). To
program delivery fidelity is predictive of sig-
trulyunderstandtheeffectofEBPsonstudent
nificantpositiveoutcomesacrossanumberof
outcomes, it is imperative that researchers
different EBPs, notably parent training pro-
measure the dose, content, and processes of
grams(Eamesetal.,2009;Henggeler,Schoe-
delivery for these programs.
nwald, Liao, Letourneau, & Edwards, 2002;
For the remainder of this article, we
Wilson & Lipsey, 2007). On the other hand,
focus on the IY TCM program as an example
poor program fidelity, including reduced pro-
ofanEBPthatembedsfidelityandadaptation
gramdosage(numberofhoursoftrainingand
withinitsdesign.First,webrieflydescribethe
poor sequencing) and poor quality delivery,
core features of the IY TCM program along
has been shown to predict little or no change,
withthemethodsandprocessesthatmakethe
challenging the view that some exposure to
intervention effective. Second, we highlight
program components is better than no expo-
the dissemination support mechanisms (train-
sure. Research shows that higher program
ing, mentoring, consultation, and coaching)
doses of several EBPs produce superior out-
necessary to facilitate high fidelity of imple-
comes to partial dosage (Borduin et al., 1995;
mentation of IY TCM. The goal is to clarify
Lochman et al., 2009). Analyses of dose–re-
theunderlyingprinciplesandlayeredsupports
sponse effects for the IY parent program has
neededtoeffectivelydisseminatetheIYTCM
shownapositiveassociationbetweennumbers
program to teachers with diverse cultural
of parent sessions attended and the effect size
backgrounds and skills who work with stu-
of program outcomes (Baydar, Reid, & Web-
dents with varying developmental, academic,
ster-Stratton, 2003). Moreover, prior research
andsocial-emotionalneeds.Oftenfidelityand
on the process of IY program delivery has
adaptation are thought of as mutually exclu-
indicated that quality of program delivery
sive, but in the IY model they are considered
methods and processes were related to effect
both complementary and necessary. Finally,
size of outcomes (Eames et al., 2009; Scott,
we discuss implications for school psycholo-
Carby, & Rendu, 2008). For several EBPs
gists and future research.
includingtheIYparentprogram,researchhas
shown that by adding consultation and super-
IY TCM Training Methods and
vision for trainers after the original training,
Delivery Principles
fidelity of program delivery is enhanced
(Henggeleretal.,2002;Lochmanetal.,2009; The IY Series is frequently misunder-
Raver et al., 2008; Webster-Stratton, Reid, stood as a fixed-dosage, inflexible, curricular-
Hurlburt, & Marsenich, in prep). Taken to- driven EBP. Instead, the IY Series is better
gether, these findings lend support to the as- understood as a set of principle-driven, dy-
sertion that higher dosages and quality deliv- namic interventions that were developed in
eryleadtomorerobusteffects.Sadly,todate, applied settings and that are flexibly adapted
very few randomized control trials of evi- toeachculturalcontextforchildrenwithvary-
dence-based teacher classroom management ing developmental abilities based on ongoing
trainingprogramsexistwheretrainingfidelity dialogue and collaboration between partici-
process,methods,anddosagehavebeenmea- pantsandtraininggroupleaders(seeWebster-
sured, let alone comparisons made to short- Stratton & Reid, 2010a; Webster-Stratton,
ened versions of these programs. In fact, a 2009; Webster-Stratton & Reid, 2008). The
recent review of school-based intervention big ideas or principles, and the video-based
studiesreportedthatthemajorityofpublished vignettes and participant books (Webster-
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IncredibleYearsAdaptationWithFidelity
programmodelsuccessfullyisforgrouplead-
ers to understand how to tailor the program
according to the individual needs of each
teacher. Group leaders can achieve flexible
applications of the manual when there is un-
derstanding of the program at multiple levels,
includingtheprogrammodel,content,training
methods,anddeliverylearningprinciplesbuilt
into the program to promote a culturally and
developmentally responsive structure for di-
verse populations. Thus, fidelity to the IY
Figure 1. Reciprocal interaction be- TCMemploysamodelnotunlikethepartner-
ship-based framework outlined by Power and
tween Incredible Years Teacher Class-
colleagues (2005), in which the group leaders
room Management group leaders and
incorporate the core components of the inter-
participants.
vention with responsive strategies targeting
the identified needs of the teachers and the
Stratton,1999),givestructuretotheprograms, individual students in their classrooms.
butflexibleimplementationgivesvoicetothe Evidence of the success of the IY im-
participants and helps ensure that the content plementation and adaptation processes comes
fitsthecontextoftheirlives.Figure1provides from the high attendance rate by teachers in
a diagram of the reciprocal interaction be- prior IY TCM studies in varied contexts. In
tweengroupleadersandparticipantexperienc- one study (Herman, Borden, Reinke, & Web-
es/backgrounds, which allows IY TCM to be ster-Stratton, 2011), 159 preschool through
tailored to the specific needs of group mem- second-grade teachers agreed to participate in
bers with high fidelity. By using a principle- the trainings as part of a multicomponent in-
driven framework and flexible delivery strat- terventionforchildrenintheirclassroomswho
egies, the IY interventions have proven to hadbeendiagnosedwithadisruptivebehavior
affect parent, child, and teacher behaviors disorder. Every teacher in the study attended
acrossawiderangeofsettingswithculturally everytrainingsessioninexchangeforcontinu-
diverse groups of participants in repeated and ing education credits and no payment. Like-
rigorous evaluation studies (Webster-Stratton wise,inthefirstyearofanongoingtrialbeing
& Reid, 2010b). conducted by the second and third authors
IY TCM is recommended to be deliv- with general education teachers in an urban
ered in six full-day workshops spread out setting with high rates of poverty and a pre-
monthly over the school year by trainers dominately African American student body
(called“groupleaders”)togroupsofteachers. (98% of students in two of the schools were
The IY TCM program utilizes self-reflective AfricanAmerican),all17teachersattendedall
and experiential learning, group support and training sessions. Meals were provided, but
problem solving, and specific training meth- teacherswerenotpaidfortheirattendancenor
odsthatteachinstructorsimportantclassroom
did they receive continuing education credit.
managementskillsalongwithhelpingteachers
managetheirownself-regulationandstress.It IY TCM Training Methods
is recommended that, between each training
workshop, an IY TCM coach visits teachers’ ThecoreIYTCMtrainingmethodsused
classrooms to model skills and support teach- to support effective classroom behavior man-
ers’efforts,andmeetsindividuallywithteach- agement skills include having trained group
ers to help them generalize the principles leaders who (1) facilitate supportive and col-
learned and refine behavior plans specific to laborative teacher group processes and prob-
their classroom. Part of using the IY TCM lem-solving interactions, (2) use video vi-
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SchoolPsychologyReview,2011,Volume40,No.4
gnettes chosen to model effective teacher in- wide social and emotional developmental
teractionswithstudentsrepresentingavariety span. Third, IY TCM uses role-play, and ex-
ofdevelopmentalabilities and ages, (3)struc- periential and self-reflective learning. Role-
ture role-play and practices for teachers to play and performance-based practice of unfa-
self-reflect and have experiential learning, us- miliar or newly acquired behaviors and cog-
ing the newly acquired classroom manage- nitions has been shown to be effective in
ment skills, (4) set up small-group break-out producing behavioral changes (Twentyman &
sessions for behavior planning, (5) assign McFall,1975).Role-playpracticeshelpteach-
classroom practice assignments between ers anticipate situations more clearly, drama-
monthly workshops, and (6) weekly IY TCM tizing possible sequences of behavior and
coach visits to classroom teachers to support thoughtsthatoccurintheeverydayclassroom
generalization of skills and enhance learning. setting. This allows teachers to apply behav-
Thesetrainingmethodsareusedacrossthesix ioralandcognitiveprinciplestosituationsthat
workshop sessions. are specific to their individual situations.
First,akeypartofthetransportabilityof Fourth, IY TCM uses small-group break-out
IYisthatitisdeliveredingroups.Notonlyis sessions to simulate strategies regarding be-
thisapproachmorecost-effectivethanindivid- haviorplansandtoengageteachers.Thus,IY
ual consultation, but it also allows training TCM employs a partnership learning philoso-
group leaders to capitalize on dimensions of phy (Knight, 2010). Partnership learning uses
groupprocessesthatfacilitateteachercooper- strategies to allow the teachers to express
ative learning (Brown & Palincsar, 1989; themselves with a reciprocal approach to
Eames et al., 2009), motivation, and self-effi- learning between the teachers and the group
cacy(Bandura,1982).Moreover,theapproach leaders. Lastly, IY TCM uses weekly class-
attempts to build social networks among room practice assignments and coaching to
teachers and reduce the isolation and stigma help transfer what is learned in the monthly
that they commonly experience, especially groupworkshopstopracticeintheclassroom.
thosewhoarestrugglingwithclassroomman- Learning about a skill or creating a behavior
agement (Abdallah, 2009). The group leaders plan during the workshop group discussion is
encourage group participant collaboration, one thing, but implementing it with real stu-
problem solving, and the sharing of their suc- dentsintheactualclassroomsettingisanother
cessesintacklingdifficultproblemsaswellas (see Fixen, Naoom, Blase´, Friedman, & Wal-
theirmistakesandfeelingsofguilt,anger,and lace, 2005). Teachers bring the successes and
depressioninvolvingpersistenceofmisbehav- challenges they have faced in implementing
ior from their students. These discussions the strategy or behavior plan in the classroom
serveasapowerfulsourceofsupport.Another to the next workshop. Thus, the between-
advantage of the group is that it allows the workshop practice assignments serve as pow-
group leader to capitalize on the collective erful experiential learning opportunities and
knowledgeandwisdomofalltheteacherpar- stimuli for discussion, review, and refinement
ticipants. Teachers learn as much from each of strategies and further role-plays in subse-
other as they do from the group leader. quent workshops (see Knight, 2010).
Second,theIYTCMprogramusescog-
nitive social learning, modeling, and self-effi- IY Principles
cacy theory (Bandura, 1977), which contends
that observation of a model can support the Programs must be flexible enough to
learning of new skills. As applied to teacher allow for some adaptations for the given cul-
training in behavior management skills, IY tural contexts of participants, as well as the
TCM uses video-based modeling, which in- skill level and degree of experience of the
volves showing participants culturally diverse individual teachers. The core teaching meth-
teachersusingeffectivebehaviormanagement ods described earlier support trained group
skills with diverse children representing a leaders in doing this effectively. In addition,
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IncredibleYearsAdaptationWithFidelity
theIYSeriesencompassesasetofunderlying the group leader will personally contact that
deliveryprinciplesthatallowforthecontentto teachertoresolvetheissueor,ifthedifficulty
be tailored to the specific audience and the issharedbyothers,bringitupinasubsequent
specific needs of each teacher attending the workshop.
group trainings (see Figure 1).
Principle 2: Start With Teachers
Principle 1: Collaboration and Choosing Goals and Self-Monitoring
Relationships Are Essential to Teacher Progress
Learning
Collaboration implies that teachers ac-
The IY TCM model is active and col- tivelyparticipateinsettinggoalsandthetrain-
laborative. In a collaborative relationship, the ing agenda. In the initial workshop, teachers
group leaders do not set themselves up as areaskedtosharesomeoftheirexperiencesas
“experts” dispensing advice about how teach- wellastheirgoalsforthetrainingprogramand
ers should teach more effectively. Rather, forspecificstudentstheywanttoaddress.This
teachers function as experts regarding their initial discussion often produces immediate
ownstudents,classroom,school,andcommu- group rapport as teachers realize they have
nity in determining their goals. Collaboration shared difficulties and are working toward
implies a reciprocal relationship and training similar goals. These initial long-term goals
basedonusingequallythegroupleaders’and support the development of short-term goals
the teachers’ knowledge, strengths, and per- between workshop meetings. This principle
spectives (see Knight 2010; Webster-Stratton ensures that the goals are congruent with
& Herbert, 1994). The collaborative group teacher values and suit the backgrounds or
leader actively solicits the teachers’ ideas and abilities of the students in their classrooms.
feelings, learns about their classroom, and in- The use of goal setting has been shown to
volves them in the reflective learning process supporttransferofskillsintopracticeinwork-
by inviting them to share their experiences, place settings (Reber & Wallin, 1984; Rich-
discusstheirthoughtsandorideas,andengage man-Hirsh, 2001).
inproblemsolving.Anotheraspectofthecol- Teacherscompleteself-reflectioninven-
laborative process is having the group leader tories regarding their use of the ideas dis-
work with teachers to adapt concepts and cussed on the topic and determine their goals
skillstotheirparticularcircumstances.TheIY for the subsequent month. At the following
groupleadersandcoachesrecognizeandvalue workshop, teachers reflect on their progress
cultural differences and the diversity of toward achieving their goals and share their
teacher and student backgrounds. A collabor- own personal observations of their use of the
ative group leader works carefully to process teachingstrategies.Inaddition,betweenwork-
differenttheoreticalframeworksandhelpeach shopsessions,theteachers workdirectlywith
teacher use the content in a way consistent an on-site IY TCM coach who helps support
withhisorherteachingstyleandbeliefs.This teachers in meeting these goals in the actual
climate of trust creates a safe place for teach- classroom. In a recent cohort, teacher-deter-
erstorevealchallengestheyfaceandrisknew minedgoalsincludedimprovingandstrength-
approaches. Further, at the end of each train- ening relationships with particular students,
ing workshop, teachers complete a brief eval- increasing positive contact with parents, in-
uation form. This provides the group leaders creasing collaboration with the parents of at-
with immediate feedback about how each risk students, using planned ignoring as a re-
teacher is responding to the group leaders’ sponse to minor misbehavior, and supporting
styles, group discussions, practices, content, specific students to develop self-regulation
and video vignettes presented in the work- skills. For students who demonstrate excep-
shop.Whenateacherisdissatisfiedorhaving tional challenges, the teacher and IY TCM
trouble with a concept or workshop method, coach problem solve, tailoring strategies to
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SchoolPsychologyReview,2011,Volume40,No.4
Figure2. IncredibleYearsTeacherClassroomManagementtrainingpyramid.
addressthechallengebycreatinganindividual draw upon the goals and skills that each
behavior plan. In a recent cohort of teachers, teacher is working toward, allowing group
the coach worked with teachers to use clear memberstoseethesimilaritiesinsomeofthe
limits, praise and encouragement, and social- challenges they face. This promotes cohesion
emotional coaching with a student whose as well as attention to individual goals, thereby
mother was incarcerated; positive forecasting makingtheprogramrelevanttoeachteacher.
and incentives with a student with significant
language delays and disruptive behavior; and Principle 3: The IY Teaching Pyramid
social-emotional coaching combined with in- Is a Road Map for Content
creased parent contact with a student with
poor peer relations and disruptive behavior. The Teaching Pyramid serves as the
During workshop meetings, the group leaders road map for delivering program content (see
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IncredibleYearsAdaptationWithFidelity
Figure2)andisusedtohelpteachersconcep- and IY TCM group leaders and coaches em-
tualizeeffectiveandsupportiveclassroomen- powers teachers in their ideas and enhances
vironments. The bottom of the pyramid de- their ability to cope with challenges. Bandura
picts behaviors and activities that should be (1977, 1982, 1989) suggested that self-effi-
liberally applied as teachers form the founda- cacyisthemediatingvariablebetweenknowl-
tion for development of other skills and be- edge and actual behavior. Teacher self-effi-
haviors. The base of the pyramid includes cacyandincreasedself-confidenceareaccom-
building positive relationships with students plished in this program through the goal-
and parents, proactive strategies, and specific setting,self-reflectioninventories,experiential
academic, persistence, social, and emotional learning, mutual support, and collaboration
coaching methods. A basic premise of the mentioned earlier. Workshop group leaders
model is that a positive relationship founda- and coaches facilitate this by celebrating
tion precedes discipline strategies, and atten- teachers’ success at achieving their goals,
tion to positive behaviors should occur far strengthening their knowledge base, and in-
more frequently in effective classroom envi- creasing their autonomy, instead of creating
ronmentsthanattentiontonegativebehaviors. dependence on the group leaders or coach.
Only when a positive foundation is in place Thereisfurtherreasonforthismodel:Because
within the classroom will strategies higher up the IY program wants teachers to adopt a
onthepyramidbeeffective.Allofthetraining participative,collaborative,empowering,self-
elements are principles, however, and are ne- reflectiveapproachwiththestudentsandfam-
gotiated with each teacher in terms of how ilies with whom they work, the group leaders
they are implemented in a given classroom. model this approach for them in all of their
Thatis,howagiventeacherconveyswarmth, interactions with teachers.
defines and communicates expectations, and For instance, coaching, praise, and re-
chooses consequences is up to that teacher to wardmethodsareusedliberallywithteachers
ensure that it fits with their personalities and bytheleadersandcoaches.Thisreinforcesthe
perceived needs of the class. Teachers are teachersandservesasamodelforusingthese
encouragedtousetheirprofessionaljudgment, strategies with students. Group participants
including their knowledge of their classroom are also encouraged to praise one another.
and their students, to make decisions about Group leaders pull out important workshop
howtheprinciplesonthepyramidareenacted content from the ideas and comments gener-
intheirclass.Thepyramidisalsothefounda- atedbyteachersinthegroupmeetingthrough
tion for flexible adherence to program princi- these teachers’ own language. For instance,
ples. For example, after a presentation of the duringarecentsessionthegroupleaderasked,
pyramidtoteachersinarecenttrialinschools “What are you thinking that helps you stay
with many students facing risk for negative calm?”Theteacherreplied,“Ithinktomyself,
outcomes, one teacher commented, “We are ‘Bystayingcalm,Iamapositivemodeltomy
the base for our students.” This concept reso- students for how to solve problems.’” The
nated with the other teachers at the training groupleaderhighlightedthatthisteachercame
and became their rule for understanding and up with the principle that children learn by
applying IY in their schools. watching others (modeling principle) and
wrote this principle, which can be applied
Principle 4: Build Participants’ across multiple situations, on a poster for re-
Confidence and Self-Efficacy view in subsequent sessions.
Teachers will only be successful in im-
Principle 5: Address Cognitions,
plementing new practices if they believe that
Emotions, and Behaviors
theycandoitandiftheybelievedoingsowill
produce desired changes (see Han & Weiss, A common barrier to effective imple-
2005). The partnership between the teachers mentationofnewpracticesforteachersistheir
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SchoolPsychologyReview,2011,Volume40,No.4
owninternaldialoguesaboutthemselves,their learner perceiving the training as relevant to
world (e.g., their students, workplace, peers, real world conditions (National Research
supervisor), and their future. Quite often, Council, 1991). Therefore, IY TCM places a
teachers are unaware of their self-dialogue. majoremphasisonexperientiallearningrather
Thereisaclearlinkbetweenthoughts,behav- thansimplydidacticinstruction.First,teachers
iors, and emotions (Bandura, 1989). For in- observegroupleadersandvideomodelsdem-
stance, teachers who have worked for months onstrating effective implementation of teach-
with a challenging student without success ing practices. Next, they are given the oppor-
may have developed very negative views of tunity in the group discussions to reflect on
the student that, in turn, influence their inter- which practices fit best with their style and
actionswiththisstudentandperhapseventhe class. This is followed by demonstration and
parent(s).Forthesereasons,throughouttheIY practice of the observed skills in front of the
TCM intervention, attention is given to these entire group where role-playing teachers re-
self-defeating thoughts and the emotions and ceive feedback and are empowered for their
behaviors they engender. These thoughts are ideas. In addition, small-group practices are
elicited during role-play practices and discus- setupwhereteacherspracticewiththeirpeers
sionsofchallengingstudents.Thisuseofrole- and are given feedback about their perfor-
playpracticeanddiscussionallowsthecontent mance. Again, this principle allows for tai-
for learning these skills to be specific to the lored delivery of the program with high fidel-
emotional challenges faced by teachers in the ity because the content and practice opportu-
group.Anexampleofthisisateacherwhodid nitiesincorporatespecificchallengesfacedby
not believe she could work effectively with a teachers in their classrooms. As an example,
student she found to be particularly challeng- teachersatarecenttrainingexpressedconcern
ing, and about whom she confessed, “I just about the use of ignoring as a strategy with
don’tlikehim.”Awarethatshewasputoffby someoftheirstudents.Thegroupleadersthen
thestudentandavoidedinteractionswithhim, invited a teacher whom they had observed
she doubted her ability to overcome her aver- using ignoring effectively in her classroom to
sion to him in order to implement proactive demonstrate the skill as applied to working
strategies. Through role-play, one teacher in with a particularly challenging student. The
the group whispered encouraging statements role-play was especially effective because
to help her communicate in a sincere, enthu- many of the teachers were from the same
siastic, and positive manner as another group building, and thus familiar with the student.
membertooktheroleoftheoffendingstudent.
During follow-up visits with the IY TCM Principle 7: Contextualize the Learning
coach, the teacher reviewed her use of the Process
strategy. Ultimately, the teacher not only in-
Generalization, or the ability to apply
creased her positive interactions with the stu-
specific skills in the training to one’s own
dent, but she reported that she had grown to
unique situation, and to extrapolate from cur-
like him. She noted an increase in his task
rent concerns to future classroom challenges,
engagement and participation in class. As a
is enhanced when teachers are exposed to a
result of her experience in the program, she
varietyofclassroomsituationsandapproaches
felt more confident in her ability to be effec-
to solving problems (Fixen et al., 2005). The
tive with challenging students.
IY TCM program works to increase general-
ization of skills by choosing a variety of vi-
Principle 6: Use Experiential and Self-
gnettes and by group leaders using probing
Reflective Learning Methods
questions that are specifically relevant to the
Factors found to increase transfer of teachers in the group. Group problem solving
learning to real world settings include active further helps support this process, making the
learner participation in the training and the content applicable for those teachers in the
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