- Hey there, I'm Luke. Today, we are gonna talk all about FBAs, or Functional Behavior Assessments. We will discuss the purpose of a functional behavior assessment. We will describe the when,
the why and what of an FBA. Lastly, we will describe
when an FBA occurs in a behavior intervention plan. All of this on today's episode
of Special Education Decoded. (pulsating music) An FBA is an acronym for
functional behavior assessments. So, what is a functional
behavior assessment, you may ask? The definition of an FBA or
functional behavior assessment is a process that identifies behaviors that are directly interfering with the child's educational progress. Specific target behaviors,
the purpose of that behavior and what factors maintain the behavior. A functional behavior assessment is a part of the behavior intervention
plan, or BIP, process. If you'd like more information on the behavior
intervention plans, or BIP, please check out our video on that topic. Now that we know what an FBA is, let's discuss when this assessment
is necessary to complete. An FBA is complete when
a specific behavior or emotional concern is
disrupting the academic progress of a child and other children
within the classroom, a repeated behavior has
escalated as the year has gone on and been a continuous concern. Now that we've discussed what an FBA, or functional behavior assessment, is, and when it's necessary to complete, let's dive into why this type
of assessment is necessary for a child's academic progression. There are four main reasons. Number one, an FBA is used
to find the specific behavior that is causing your child's
academic progress to decrease. Number two, an FBA is used as a part of creating a behavior
intervention plan, or BIP. Number three, an FBA is used
to help both you, as a parent, and teachers focus on
the positive outcomes. And, finally, an FBA is used to help build a relationship together. Now that we've discussed
the importance of an FBA, let's cover an overview of what all goes into this assessment. Number one, identify the
severity of the behavior. This is done with both parents
and the behavior support team or, in some cases, the
child study support team. Once the severity of the
behavior is identified, we move on to step two in the process. Step two, a path is
decided for the assessment which will eventually become part of the BIP, or behavior intervention plan. Less severe behaviors may require some observations
and verbal prompts. Eventually, a written plan is created to change the challenging behavior. More severe behaviors
require five key steps, defining the target or key behavior, several weeks' worth of data collection, developing a hypothesis,
setting up interventions, and evaluating the plan and
making sure it's effective. Now there are some differentiating factors regarding the severity. They include the amount of time it takes the FBA to be completed. The amount of detail
found within the plan. The last part of an FBA, or
functional behavior assessment, is understanding how it fits into the BIP, or behavioral intervention plan. How does the FBA fit into a
behavior intervention plan? Creation of the FBA is the fourth step in a behavior intervention plan. Again, check out our video
regarding the BIP process. The FBA is vital, as it helps
identify target behaviors. And, finally, an FBA leads to developing a behavior intervention plan tailored to your child's needs. Well, that wraps up the topic on functional behavior
assessments, or FBAs. I truly hope this video
helped you understand more regarding this important
assessment and how it can lead to actually bringing
some much needed relief to not only your child, but to you. Be sure to check out the
description of this video for some additional resources
regarding FBAs and much more. If you like what you saw,
please consider subscribing to our channel and sharing
this video with anyone you think may need some help
in this particular area. If you have any suggestions
on what you'd like to see in an upcoming video, or even
questions related to this one, please leave a comment. You can also contact us directly using the information
found in the description. We love interacting with
our incredible community and strive to help simplify the crazy world of special education. From all of us at specialedresource.com, thank you for watching this episode of Special Education Decoded. We'll see you on the next video.