Eliminating the Racial Disparity in Classroom Exclusionary Discipline

Advocates call for schools with high suspension rates to receive technical assistance in adopting “proven-effective” systematic supports. Such supports include teacher professional development. This call is justified given evidence that good teaching matters. But what types of professional development should be funded? Increasingly, research points to the promise of programs that are sustained, rigorous, and focused on teachers’ interactions with students. The current study tests whether a professional development program with these three characteristics helped change teachers’ use of exclusionary discipline practices—especially with their African American students. Exclusionary discipline is when a classroom teacher sends a student to the administrators’ office for perceived misbehavior. Administrators then typically assign a consequence, usually in the form of suspension (in-school or out-of school). The My Teaching Partner-Secondary (MTP-S) aims to improve teachers’ interactions with their students when implementing instruction and managing behavior. MTP-S helps teachers offer clear routines, implement consistent rules, and monitor behavior in a proactive way. The program also supports teachers in developing warm, respectful relationships that recognize students’ needs for autonomy and leadership. Teachers are paired with a coach for an entire school year (sustained approach), they regularly reflect on videorecordings of their classroom instruction and carefully observe how they interact with students, and they apply the validated Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS-S) to improve the quality of their interactions (rigorous approach). In the current study, a randomized controlled trial found that teachers receiving MTP-S relied less on exclusionary discipline compared to the control teachers. Specifically, MTP-S teachers issued fewer exclusionary discipline referrals to their African American students. This is the first study to show that programs like MTP-S that focus on teacher-student interactions in a sustained manner using a rigorous approach can actually reduce the disproportionate use of exclusionary discipline with African American students. More broadly, the findings offer policymakers direction in identifying types of professional development programs that have promise for reducing the racial discipline gap

An Individual Participant Data Meta-analysis: Behavioral Treatments for Children and Adolescents With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

Objective: Behavioral interventions are well established treatments for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, insight into moderators of treatment outcome is limited.Method: We conducted an individual participant data meta-analysis [IPDMA], including data of randomized controlled behavioral intervention trials for individuals with ADHD[less than]18 years. Outcomes were symptoms of ADHD, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and conduct disorder (CD) and impairment. Moderators investigated were symptoms and impairment severity, medication use, age, IQ, sex, socioeconomic status, and single parenthood. Results: For raters most proximal to treatment, small to medium sized effects of behavioral interventions were found for symptoms of ADHD, inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity (HI), ODD and CD, and impairment. Blinded outcomes were only available for small preschool subsamples and limited measures. CD symptoms and/or diagnosis moderated outcome on ADHD, HI, ODD, and CD symptoms. Single parenthood moderated ODD outcome, ADHD severity moderated impairment outcome. Higher baseline CD or ADHD symptoms, a CD diagnosis, and single parenthood were related to worsening of symptoms in the untreated, but not in the treated group, indicating a protective rather than an ameliorative effect of behavioral interventions for these children.Conclusion: Behavioral treatments are effective for reducing ADHD symptoms, behavioral problems, and impairment as reported by raters most proximal to treatment. Those with severe CD or ADHD symptoms, a CD diagnosis, or single parents, should be prioritized for treatment, as they may evidence worsening of symptoms in the absence of intervention

The World Federation of ADHD International Consensus Statement:208 Evidence-based conclusions about the disorder

Background: Misconceptions about ADHD stigmatize affected people, reduce credibility of providers, and prevent/delay treatment. To challenge misconceptions, we curated findings with strong evidence base. Methods: We reviewed studies with more than 2000 participants or meta-analyses from five or more studies or 2000 or more participants. We excluded meta-analyses that did not assess publication bias, except for meta-analyses of prevalence. For network meta-analyses we required comparison adjusted funnel plots. We excluded treatment studies with waiting-list or treatment as usual controls. From this literature, we extracted evidence-based assertions about the disorder. Results: We generated 208 empirically supported statements about ADHD. The status of the included statements as empirically supported is approved by 80 authors from 27 countries and 6 continents. The contents of the manuscript are endorsed by 366 people who have read this document and agree with its contents. Conclusions: Many findings in ADHD are supported by meta-analysis. These allow for firm statements about the nature, course, outcome causes, and treatments for disorders that are useful for reducing misconceptions and stigma.</p

I’ll Be There for You? The Bystander Intervention Model in Cyber Aggression

Cyber aggression is a relatively common occurrence that can have deleterious effects on the victim. Cyber bystanders have a unique ability to intervene in cyber aggression and alleviate its impact. However, few bystanders choose to take positive, pro-social action when encountering cyber aggression. This underscores the importance of understanding the process that leads to bystander intervention in cyber aggression, and the barriers to intervention. The bystander intervention model posits that intervention in intervention in face-to-face bullying hinges on five sequential steps: noticing the harassment (Step 1), interpreting the situation as an emergency (Step 2), taking responsibility for acting (Step 3), knowing what to do (Step 4), and acting (Step 5). Barriers can block progress from one step to the next, including distraction (Barrier 1), ambiguity (Barrier 2), diffusion of responsibility (Barrier 3), and lack of competence (Barrier 4). However, to date, there is little work applying the bystander intervention model in its entirety in the context of cyber aggression. It is critical to avoid the pitfall of assuming that well-established conceptual models for face-to-face experiences similarly pertain to the cyber sphere, without independently evaluating this

Assessing friendship quality of children with ADHD : Comparison of questionnaire and observational measures

Patients with concurrent disorder (i.e., co-occurring mental disorder and substance use disorder) have greater severities of childhood abuse and neglect than substance use disorder patients, and often experience recurrent relapse and rehospitalization. Considering childhood abuse and neglect are associated with greater relapses during treatment for alcohol use disorder and stimulant use disorder, childhood abuse and neglect among concurrent disorder patients may importantly contribute to relapse and hinder treatment. Methods: Adult inpatients undergoing treatment for concurrent disorders (N=210) completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire-Short Form. The number of relapses, positive urine drug screen and breath alcohol results, and treatment duration were extracted from patients’ medical records. Results: Greater severities of childhood physical, emotional, and sexual abuse significantly predicted a greater number of positive breath alcohol results, while controlling for treatment duration. There were no observed relationships between childhood physical or emotional neglect and indicators of relapse. Discussion: Screening for and addressing a history of childhood abuse may reduce alcohol-specific substance use and relapse among concurrent disorder inpatients. Further research is needed to understand why childhood abuse, but not neglect, contributes to negative outcomes during concurrent disorder treatment.Arts, Faculty ofPsychology, Department ofUnreviewedFacultyUndergraduat

ADHD Symptoms, Social Media Use, and Social Media Intensity Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Arts, Faculty ofPsychology, Department ofUnreviewedUndergraduateFacultyGraduat

Exploring Teacher Attributions of ADHD Type Behaviour in Elementary Classrooms

Arts, Faculty ofPsychology, Department ofNon UBCUnreviewedUndergraduatePostdoctoralFacult

Teacher Practices, Peer Dynamics, and Academic Enablers: A Pilot Study Exploring Direct and Indirect Effects Among Children at Risk for ADHD and Their Classmates

Establishing a positive peer climate in elementary school classrooms is an important goal for educators because peer dynamics are thought to affect academic learning. Thus, it is important to (a) understand the relationship between children\u27s peer dynamics and academic functioning, and (b) identify teacher practices that influence both peer processes and academic outcomes. In this pilot study, we explored whether specific teacher strategies that promote positive behaviors in children and positive peer dynamics influence children\u27s better academic enablers, as well as whether they do so indirectly via improving peer sociometric ratings. Such teacher strategies may be particularly relevant for supporting children who demonstrate impairment in both social and academic domains, such as children at risk for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Thus, we also examined whether these relationships differ for children with elevated ADHD symptoms and peer problems (i.e., target students), relative to classmates (i.e., non-target students). Participants were 194 children in the classrooms of 12 teachers (grades K-4) who participated in an open-trial pilot study of the school-based version of the Making Socially Accepting Inclusive Classrooms (MOSAIC) program. In the fall and spring of a school year, we assessed children\u27s sociometric ratings received from peers, and academic enabler skills as rated by teachers. Throughout one academic year, we obtained assessments of teachers\u27 use of MOSAIC strategies (observed and self-reported). Results showed that, after accounting for fall academic enablers, the teacher strategy of CARE time (involving one-on-one interaction with the student to build the teacher-student relationship) was positively associated with spring academic enablers. However, findings did not support the hypothesized indirect effect of peer sociometric ratings on the relationship between teacher strategy use and academic enablers, or the moderated indirect effect by target student status. Implications for future research and classroom interventions are discussed