Using PBIS with Rhithm

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a three-tiered framework designed to aid in the decision making process of selecting, assimilating, and applying an evidence-based academic and behavioral practice for improving student outcomes. PBIS provides a system for schools to design, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of school-wide and individual student behavior management plans. When PBIS is implemented with consistency across the school setting, PBIS have the ability to to reduce distracting behaviors, improve school climate and build safer and more productive school settings. The PBIS framework works to create a more productive school setting by focusing on how staff respond to student behaviors, and by teaching students specific behavior expectations that shift reactive, punitive practices to ones that promote and reward positive student behavior.

1. Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)

2. Using Rhithm As Part of Your PBIS Framework

3. Further Considerations

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS)

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is an evidence-based three-tiered framework designed to advance and streamline the data, systems, and practices schools use to support student academic and behavior outcomes. The three tiers of PBIS include:

• Tier 1: School-wide universal supports for all students that establish a foundation of regular, proactive supports that are designed to prevent adverse behaviors.

• Tier 2: Practices and systems of support for students at risk of developing more intensive problem behaviors. The supports within tier 2 are designed to help students develop the skills necessary to benefit from the schools primary programming.

• Tier 3: More intensive and individualized support designed to help students improve their behavior and academic performance.

The PBIS Framework combines four integrated elements:

1. data to support decision-making

2. measurable outcomes supported and evaluated by data

3. practices which provide evidence that outcomes are achievable and support students and staff

4. systems that efficiently and effective support implementation of these practices

To ensure a schools systems, data, and practices reflect the ongoing needs of students and staff, ongoing screenings frequently occur.

Using Rhithm As Part of Your PBIS Framework

The Rhithm App can play a vital role in any school's PBIS Framework by supporting a school's ability to quickly and continually screen and monitor students' social-emotional/behavioral needs.

Each time a student "Gets in Rhithm" by completing a Wellness Check-In and watching a targeted well-being video selected by our algorithm, important information related to their overall well-being and social-emotional needs is captured and shared with members of the school team. When Rhithm is part of a daily practice, frequent and ongoing data centered on students' social-emotional well-being can be used to quickly determine if any individual student requires additional interventions or support. Data collected at the start of the school year can also become a baseline to help school teams monitor and identify significant shifts in a student's social-emotional presentation.

Furthermore, the Rhithm Toolkit provides access to our library of 400+ English and Spanish videos and allows users to search for content aligned with their various needs. With access to such a wide array of content, school teams can implement Rhithm at each tier of their PBIS framework by providing students of all ages access to social-emotional interventions created by clinical specialists that help students stay well.

In practice, an example of using Rhithm as a Tier 1 intervention is asking a class to “Get In Rhithm” and watch their algorithm-identified well-being video. An example of using Rhithm as a Tier 2 intervention would be pulling aside a small group of students and showing a specific video from the Rhithm Toolkit related to their shared well-being needs, such as “Relational” skills. Lastly, an example of using Rhithm as a Tier 3 intervention is having a 1 on 1 student session either starting with a wellness check-in and/or showing specific video to that student from the Rhithm Toolkit related to the skills they are working.

For more information, check out Rhithm’s article: Viewing assessment data or The Rhithm Toolkit.

Further Considerations

Interventions found within the PBIS framework help students and school staff with relationship building, which can lead to a supportive and collaborative school environment. When teachers and students utilize the Rhithm App regularly, they consistently receive strategies and tools that strengthen regulation and their overall well-being.

Research shows that school settings with a high level of student and staff well-being experience higher rates of intrinsic motivation, academic achievement, school satisfaction, and a decrease in disciplinary problems (Buecker et al., 2018). By including Rhithm in each tier of the PBIS Framework, schools can efficiently work towards a climate of overall well-being by using Rhithm to frequently monitor student social-emotional needs and provide tailored social-emotional interventions created by a clinical team. Having the Rhithm App as part of your PBIS Framework takes the guesswork out of student social-emotional monitoring and allows teachers to focus on success.

At Rhithm, we understand that just like students, each school setting has its own unique and individual needs. As part of our work, we strive to create programming that can meet the needs of schools and students at all levels.

We hope you find the information on using Rhithm as part of your PBIS Framework helpful. If you have any feedback or want additional tips, please do not hesitate to contact our support team to let us know!