EDSPX505.BEACONL - Beacon Leadership

Course Description

Number of Credits: 1

The Behavior Education Application Cohort Network (BEACON) aims to increase local education agency (LEA) capacity by providing behavioral training, support, and resources for educators statewide. This will be achieved by establishing tiered cohorts of educational peers based on behavior expertise and training those cohorts on evidence-based practices for working with students with challenging behavior in the school setting. BEACON Leadership is the advanced tier for individuals to develop behavior change skills by delivering training in their school setting. 

• Increase LEA capacity to train and support staff in working with students with challenging behaviors. 
• Apply a train-the-trainer model grounded in Behavior Skills Training that includes instruction, modeling, rehearsal, and feedback. 
• Develop skills related to training and consulting with staff to produce adult behavior change to prevent, teach, and respond to challenging behavior. 
• Prepare participants to use take and teach products to train staff in evidence-based strategies for behavior intervention, positive behavior intervention supports, and monitoring intervention fidelity. 

As a sub-project of Idaho SESTA, funded by the Idaho Department of Education, Special Education Department, BEACON is a cohort system where educators refine their behavioral expertise and collaborate to improve student support across Idaho schools. 

Instructor Information

Jenny Vickhammer - jennyvickhammer@boisestate.edu

Rachel Grenzebach - rachelgrenzebach@boisestate.edu

Course Objectives: 

By the end of this course, participants will gain knowledge and skills in: 

Behavior Skills Training: How adults learn 

• Learn best practices for instructing, modeling, rehearsing, and providing feedback to develop a new skill in adults. 
• Develop participants’ skills to train and coach LEA staff on how to effectively teach and support students in using the replacement skills outlined in Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP). 
• Design an LEA training plan template to support Behavior Skills Training for individual or group LEA staff trainings. 
• Create an Implementation Checklist to support ongoing training and fidelity measures within the participant’s LEA.

Prevention: Non-contingent access 

• Learn best practices for instructing, modeling, rehearsing, and providing feedback to develop this antecedent strategy. 
• Train LEA staff in how to implement this prevention strategy to decrease the likelihood of behavior across SpEd, Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 interventions. 
• Design an LEA training template to support Behavior Skills Training for individual or group staff trainings. 
• Create an Implementation Checklist to support ongoing training and fidelity measures within the participant’s LEA. 

Teaching: Effective prompting strategies 

• Learn best practices for instructing, modeling, rehearsing, and providing feedback to develop this instructional strategy. 
• Train LEA staff in how to implement this intervention strategy to increase students’ expected behaviors or replacement skills across, SpEd, Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 interventions. 
• Design an LEA training template to support Behavior Skills Training for individual or group staff trainings. • Create an Implementation Checklist to support ongoing training and fidelity measures within the participant’s LEA. 

Responding: Selecting, using, and adjusting reinforcement schedules 

• Learn best practices for instructing, modeling, rehearsing, and providing feedback to develop this response strategy. 
• Train LEA staff in how to implement this consequence strategy to increase students’ skill acquisition across SpEd, Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 interventions. 
• Design an LEA training template to support Behavior Skills Training for individual or group staff trainings. 
• Create an Implementation Checklist to support ongoing training and fidelity measures within the participant’s LEA. 

Required Materials: 

There are no outside readings or materials required for this course. Resources and materials will be linked in each module that is located within the course site. 

Course Requirements: 

1. Participation: Participants must attend their assigned quarterly webinars, online office hours and online cohort meetings. Participants will complete a Behavior Skills Training Planning Template for each quarter, conduct a training using provided scripted PowerPoints, document instruction and training fidelity gathered through the use of an Implementation Checklist. 
2. Course Activities: Participants must submit the quarterly train-the trainer components. Participants must earn a passing score on all quarterly assignments. Assignments can be resubmitted after receiving feedback from their cohort lead up until 2 weeks before the end of the semester. Participants must actively participate in 80% or more of all activities and quarterly online meetings. Participants must complete all online course surveys.  
3. Survey: Participants are required to complete a course satisfaction survey. 
4. Final assignment: Each quarterly topic will require the completion of the Behavior Skills Training Planning Template, and pre and post training documentation using the Implementation Checklist. Each quarter’s final assignments will be submitted through your institution’s online canvas course available through the keeplearning student portal (Keeplearning.uidaho.edu) 

Grading: 

This is a Pass/Fail course. No incompletes will be given. Late work will not be accepted. 

1. Participants must participate in online webinars, online office hours and cohort meetings. 
2. Participants must earn a passing score on all quarterly assignments. Assignments must be submitted prior to the monthly cohort meeting, or they will be marked “missing” until submitted. Assignments can be resubmitted after receiving feedback from their cohort lead up until 2 weeks before the end of the semester. 
3. Participants must actively participate in 80% or more of all activities and monthly virtual cohort meetings. 
4. Participants must complete all online course surveys.