Acting out and testing boundaries can be a normal and natural part of child and teen development. The problem occurs when behavior rises to the level of causing repeated disciplinary issues in school.
For students with disabilities, behavioral issues can be even more common. Why students with disabilities are more likely to have behavioral issues isn’t a simple solution and can vary depending on the disability, as well as a student’s unique qualities.
Behavior Intervention Plans (BIPs) are one way that schools can address these issues. BIPs support a student to help learn how to modify their behavior and reduce disciplinary and misconduct issues.
If your student has a disability and has had disciplinary or behavioral issues, contact the Education Law Team at the LLF National Law Firm. You and your family have options, up to and including suing the school. Call us at 888-535-3686 or fill out an online form.
What Is a Behavior Intervention Plan?
A Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP), sometimes referred to as a behavioral support plan (BSP), is a formal written plan. The document should address a student’s behavioral issues and lay out a roadmap for how to move the student to positive replacement behaviors.
Replacement Behavior
Similar to IEPs, a BIP should be tailored to the individual student. Of all the recommended information, the most important might be the target behavior and desirable behavior.
A BIP should identify the target behavior, which is the behavior students should engage in less often. The second part of a BIP is identifying the desirable, or replacement, behavior that serves the same function as the target behavior and replaces it.
In other words, the goal of BIP isn’t just about stopping the target behavior. It’s to stop the target behavior and learn to engage in a replacement behavior. The goal of a BIP is to make a student not only stop displaying an interfering behavior but also to learn how to engage in a replacement behavior.
For example, a BIP may focus on helping a student learn to communicate instead of engaging in the target behavior. In some cases, a BIP may include several steps. The goal for desirable behavior may not be practical to immediately introduce, and a BIP may involve multiple types of behavior to move a student from the target behavior to the goal behavior.
For example, a student’s behavioral issues revolve around demanding or seeking attention. In this case, the IRIS Center at Vanderbilt University recommends the following possible replacement behaviors:
- Ask for help
- Raise a hand to speak
- Engage in task-related conversation
Any desirable behavior should have a better payoff than the target behavior.
What’s in a BIP?
Similar to IEPs and 504 Plans, the services and support a school offers can differ from what other school districts offer. Schools aren’t required to provide any specific type of service or support.
While the target behavior and desirable behavior are key, that isn’t the only information a BIP should include.
The IRIS Center recommends that a BIP should include:
- A description of the target behavior
- A summary of the data collected during the FBA
- A theory on the reason for the behavior
- A description of the replacement behavior that will be taught and reinforced
- Specific interventions that will be implemented to address the behavior
- A progress monitoring plan
New York City Public Schools provides a more condensed list of recommended targets. In NYC Public Schools, a BIP should include:
- The target behavior(s) and goal(s)
- Positive behavioral interventions and strategies
- Accommodations or modifications
- How the plan will be monitored and updated as needed
An effective BIP is one of the best ways to put an end to your student’s misconduct and disciplinary issues. If you have concerns about your student’s BIP, contact the Education Law Team at the LLF National Law Firm.
MTSS, PBIS, and Preventive Support
An increasing number of states and schools are recognizing that preventative support for students can reduce the number of behavioral and disciplinary issues for all students. These evidence-based frameworks help support all students and operate in tandem with the normal school curriculum.
Multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) involves all students. MTSS uses three tiers of support, with Tier 3 providing individual help to students who require intensive and individualized attention. MTSS uses the whole child approach, combining academic and behavioral support.
In comparison, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) focuses on behavior management. The goal with PBIS is to promote positive behavior by teaching and reinforcing appropriate behavior. PBIS focuses on teaching rather than punishment.
In schools that have MTSS, PBIS, or similar programs, services, and support, these programs can be included in a student’s BIP.
How Does a BIP Differ from an IEP or 504 Plan?
BIPs, IEPs, and 504 Plans may sound similar, but they have important differences. They’re similar because the end goal for all three is to support the student.
IEPs and 504 Plans focus on supporting students with disabilities in the classroom and during school activities. For example, a student is vision-impaired. Their IEP may include access to audio versions of textbooks.
BIPs focus on assisting students with behavioral issues. BIPs should work in conjunction with a student’s IEP or 504 Plan.
The Florida Department of Education provides guidance on understanding the relationship between IEPs and BIPs. The BIP should be written in a way that supports a student’s IEP goals and objectives. A BIP should be viewed as an extension of the strategies and methods on a student’s IEP, especially those related to social and behavioral issues.
Florida recommends that a BIP include plans for addressing the following situations:
- When a student is incapable of following their school’s code of conduct.
- When a student’s behavior interferes with their ability to learn.
- When a student’s behavior interferes with other students’ opportunities to learn.
- When a student’s behavior results in repeated removals from the classroom or other school activities.
These guidelines are specific to Florida, but many schools and states operate similarly.
The Education Law Team at the LLF National Law Firm helps our clients navigate these questions. Our goal is to have effective BIPs that allow our clients to succeed in school and reduce their disciplinary issues.
Do Only Students with Disabilities Qualify for a BIP?
Under federal law, only students with disabilities qualify for a BIP. That doesn’t mean a student without disabilities can’t get a BIP, but schools don’t have the same legal obligations to provide one for students.
Schools may still provide a student with a BIP following an FBA. In a November 2024 Dear Colleague letter, the U.S. Department of Education recommended using BIPs for all students, not just those with a disability or those who are suspected of having a disability. The letter highlights that BIPs can focus on proactive measures that avoid disciplinary measures, such as removing a student from class.
In schools that have MTSS or PBIS programs, students without disabilities may also find support for improving behavior. These programs are often available to all students.
Manifestation Determination and BIPs
When a student with a disability has been removed from their normal classroom or school day multiple times, their school may be required to hold a manifestation determination meeting. In this meeting, school staff and parents or guardians will discuss what influence, if any, a student’s disability had on their misconduct.
Manifestation determinations don’t occur for every instance of misconduct. They occur when a student who has an IEP or 504 Plan is removed from their school placement for at least ten consecutive days or for more than ten days total in a school year.
For example, suspension is a type of change in school placement. If a student with autism has been suspended for a total of eleven days during the current school year, the school must conduct a manifestation determination meeting.
These meetings focus on two questions:
- Was the conduct in question caused by or did it have a direct and substantial relationship to the student’s disability?
- Was the conduct in question the direct result of a school’s failure to implement a student’s IEP or 504 Plan?
If the answer to both of these questions is no, schools can discipline a student the same as they would any other student in similar circumstances.
Even if a manifestation determination meeting finds that a student’s misconduct didn’t relate to their disability, parents or guardians may ask about having their student undergo an FBA to get a BIP. The caution is that schools no longer have a legal obligation to provide an FBA or BIP. The answer to the request comes down to the school policy or the staff’s choice.
Manifestation of a Disability
When the answer is yes to either question, which means a student’s actions do relate to their disability, schools must conduct an FBA. Based on the information gained from the FBA, the school will create a BIP.
What If a Student Already Has a BIP?
Sometimes, students who have a BIP may continue to have misconduct or behavioral issues. If this happens, parents or guardians should arrange to meet with school staff to discuss how to proceed.
During the meeting, parents or guardians should make sure the following questions are discussed:
- Is the student’s BIP as well as their IEP or 504 Plan being fully implemented?
- Does the student’s IEP or 504 Plan need revisions?
- Should a student undergo a new FBA?
- Does the student’s BIP need revisions?
Similar to an IEP, BIPs may sometimes need revising. A support that seemed like it would work in theory may not work in practice. In other cases, what once worked on a BIP may no longer be effective.
One of the challenges with behavioral issues is that they often don’t have a clear cause and effect. Sometimes it can take time to find the best services and support.
If a student is having behavioral issues even after they have a BIP, parents or guardians don’t have to wait until a student has serious disciplinary issues or is suspended for multiple days before requesting a meeting with the school. You have the right to request a meeting at any point.
You don’t have to wait until a student qualifies for a new manifestation determination meeting. Parents and guardians can request a meeting at any point with school staff members. In most cases, for students with disabilities, these meetings will be linked to their IEP or 504 Plan.
These meetings should focus on your individual student and their specific situation. Just as disabilities can manifest differently, and what accommodations work for one student may not work for another, even if they have the same disability, BIPs are similar. They should be tailored to the individual student and not be a one-size-fits-all support.
It can be challenging if a school refuses to work with parents or guardians to address a student’s behavioral issues. The goal throughout should be to keep your students’ best interests in mind.
The Education Law Team at the LLF National Law Firm assists our clients with making sure their student has the support they require. Ineffective BIPs don’t serve the student or the school, but it can sometimes take time to make schools understand that effective BIPs benefit them as well.
Protect Your Child’s Education
Behavioral issues don’t mean a child is bad. It simply means they need additional support to understand their behavior and learn.
Behavioral issues are often a natural part of child and teen development. They may reflect a child’s inability to communicate or process emotions. They may fail to understand the consequences of their actions. For students with disabilities, these challenges can sometimes be more complicated.
Misconduct isn’t a set character trait. With the proper support, such as via a BIP, any child can improve.
If your student has had misconduct issues, a BIP can put together a plan to help them move forward. If your child attends a K-12 school and has had repeated instances of misconduct, they need support, not additional punishment. Contact the Education Law Team at the LLF National Law Firm. We’re here to assist you and support your family. Call us at 888-535-3686 or fill out an online form.