School Climate Goals: Bridging the Implementation Gap between Evidence Based Prevention Practices and Teacher Intervention Delivery

Introduction: Positive school climate contributes to positive academic outcomes and may also serve as a protective factor supporting positive life outcomes. As such, many public schools set district wide climate goals and invest in large scale programs to improve school climate at the classroom level. While programs are chosen that address the needs of the district and their students, implementation often falters at the classroom level if classroom teachers are not adequately supported during implementation. Classroom consultation is one way to provide support to teachers, increasing the likelihood of full implementation of programs designed to support school climate goals.

Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS) uses an evidence-based classroom consultation model called Classroom Check-Up (CCU). CCU relies heavily on Motivational Interviewing (MI) and uses data-based decision making to guide teachers in setting goals and action plans. In addition, teachers are provided with a menu of evidence based programs from which they choose the program(s) that best fits their needs and goals. These core elements of CCU allow consultants to provide individualized, confidential, and non-evaluative support to teachers thereby improving both the acceptability and fidelity of classroom interventions.

Methods: Two school based therapists provided CCU consultations in BCPS, a large urban school district. CCU was initially offered to five to seven teachers at five schools, allowing for a close examination of implementation successes and challenges. Usage of CCU was tracked and fidelity was assessed through classroom observation at multiple time points. Ongoing consultation was used provide personal feedback and make adjustments to implementation strategies. A subset of teachers received a final classroom observation to determine success of their classroom goals.

Results: The effectiveness of improving the classroom environment by providing individualized, confidential, and non-evaluative support to teachers is demonstrated by examining the level of teacher goal attainment.

Conclusions: When seeking to bridge the gap between district wide school climate goals and implementation at the classroom level, providing individualized support to teachers is an important component in improving the quality of classroom interventions delivered by teachers. Classroom consultation is an effective mechanism for support provision and allows evidence based practices to be mapped onto teacher needs and goals, greatly increasing the likelihood that interventions will be fully and rigorously implemented.