Investigating use of the Behavior Education Program for students with internalizing behavioral concerns

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of the Behavior Education Program (BEP), also known as check-in/check-out (CICO), on internalizing problems and academic engaged time exhibited by elementary school students identified at risk for developing anxiety or mood disorders. Descriptive data for teacher ratings of student internalizing problems were collected pre and post intervention. A single-subject multiple baseline design was used to examine effects of the Behavior Education Program (BEP) on student academic engagement. Student, parent, and teacher perceptions of intervention acceptability and fidelity of implementation also were measured. Overall, the intervention had a positive impact on teachers' perceptions of student problems and also on academic engaged time. In addition, student and parent participants generally viewed the intervention favorably and school personnel were able to implement a majority of intervention components with high levels of fidelity.