Using FBA to Enhance Student Success

About the Child / Client

Ethan (name changed to protect privacy) is a bright, highly inquisitive nine-year-old boy who loves natural sciences, building complex robotics, and reading encyclopedias. Despite his high intelligence and verbal abilities, Ethan was experiencing a severe crisis in his conventional classroom environment.

Ethan was demonstrating extreme behavioural issues during specific periods of the school day. Whenever it was time for independent writing, journaling, or copying notes from the board, Ethan would become highly disruptive. He would frequently leave his seat without permission, loudly provoke his peers, tear up his worksheets, and occasionally throw his pens and pencils across the room. Because these actions disrupted the entire class, Ethan was constantly being sent to the principal’s office. His parents, frustrated by the daily phone calls from the school and worried about his academic future, contacted the multidisciplinary experts at daar to uncover the root of the problem.

The Challenge

Prior to engaging with professional support, Ethan’s behaviour was being viewed strictly through a punitive lens, which was dramatically worsening his outcomes:

• At School: The school’s traditional discipline model was failing. Ethan’s teachers assumed he was simply acting out to be defiant or "naughty." When he tore up his paper or threw a pencil, he was sent to the principal's office or given a detention. However, this was actually worsening his academic decline. Because he spent so much time outside the classroom, he was missing vital instruction and falling significantly behind his peers in literacy, despite his high IQ.
• At Home: The negative school experience was spilling over into family life. Ethan developed severe school refusal, crying and experiencing panic attacks every morning before getting into the car. Homework sessions at the kitchen table often ended in explosive meltdowns, leaving his parents completely exhausted and financially stressed from navigating constant school meetings.

Ethan did not need more detentions; he needed a customized intervention to decode his behaviour and unlock his true academic potential.

daar Therapy Approach

The behaviour support practitioners at daar know that behaviour is never random; it is always a form of communication. To stop the cycle of punishment, we utilized a cornerstone methodology of behaviour therapy for children: the Functional Behaviour Assessment (FBA).

Our highly structured intervention plan was entirely data-driven:

• Conducting the FBA: Our clinicians spent several days observing Ethan in his classroom. Through meticulous data collection using the FBA framework (analyzing the Antecedent, Behaviour, and Consequence), we cracked the code. Throwing pencils and being sent to the office wasn't a failure—it was Ethan's highly successful strategy to escape the painful task of handwriting. Furthermore, provoking his peers was fulfilling his need for social attention, connecting to his ADHD.
• Implementing Positive Behaviour Support (PBS): Armed with the FBA data, we rebuilt Ethan’s learning environment using a robust positive behaviour support plan. We collaborated with the school to completely remove the trigger. Instead of forcing handwriting, Ethan was provided with a school laptop for all written assignments, immediately eliminating the physical pain that caused his anxiety.
• Integrated Speech Therapy: To help Ethan bridge the gap between his high verbal intelligence and his written output, a daar speech pathologist introduced specialized speech therapy techniques. We taught him how to successfully use speech-to-text dictation software. Additionally, we provided him with communication scripts, teaching him to say, "My hands are tired, I need to type," instead of ripping up his workbook.
• Socialised Behaviour Therapy for Peer Connection: To address his need for peer interaction safely, we utilized socialised behaviour therapy. We worked with his teacher to give Ethan a structured leadership role during science labs. By allowing him to guide his peers in building circuits, he received the positive social attention he craved, eliminating the need to act like the "class clown" during quiet times.

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Results & Progress

The results of replacing punitive discipline with an FBA-informed intervention were nothing short of spectacular. By understanding the "why" behind Ethan's actions, the team at daar was able to remove the barriers blocking his success.

Within four weeks of implementing the laptop accommodations and speech-to-text dictation, Ethan’s classroom disruptions virtually vanished. Because he no longer needed to escape the pain of handwriting, he stopped throwing his pencils and ripping up his work. His morning panic attacks disappeared, and he began looking forward to going to school again, particularly focusing on his new leadership role in science class.

100%

Elimination of school disciplinary removals. 

95%

 Task Completion in Literacy.

0%

Work Destruction (Ripping paper/throwing items)