Feasible Coaching Supports to Promote Teachers' Classroom Management in High-Need Settings: An Experimental Single Case Design Study

Abstract

Although there are many definitions of a high-need (or high-risk) school, typically researchers and policy makers agree it is a setting in which a vast percentage of students are (a) living in economic disadvantage, (b) from racially diverse backgrounds, (c) identified as having a disability, or (d) underperforming academically. Many teachers in high-need settings are new to the field or have experienced persistent challenges demonstrating effective classroom management. As a result, these teachers might benefit from intensive data-driven coaching to improve classroom management practice. Yet, existing empirically supported comprehensive coaching models tend to require resources that may be scarce in high-need settings. In this multiple-baseline single case research design study, teachers who requested assistance to provide effective classroom management received feasible coaching support (i.e., explicit didactic training, booster training with verbal modeling). Teachers implemented comprehensive classroom management plans with the highest level of treatment fidelity upon receiving booster training, and class-wide student behavior improved.