The purpose of this course is to provide pre-service educators and related-service providers with group and individual behavior management and instructional procedures that can be used in a variety of educational environments. Course content will provide both theoretical understanding and practical application of strategies aimed at creating safe, encouraging, and effective learning environments. Emphasis will be placed on the use of evidence-based (a) instructional procedures rather than the content (i.e., curriculum) of instruction, (b) behavior and program evaluation, and (c) core management principles. It is important for educators to use practices that have been shown, through sound research, to improve the achievement and performance of students. This course has been designed to expose students to and provide opportunities to use EBP. Finally, the overarching focus is for learners to create mutually respectful relationships with students; be respectful; and value ethnic, cultural, contextual, and linguistic diversity to foster student engagement across learning environments.

Basic principles of applied behavior analysis and modification which employ social learning theory and operant conditioning models are taught. Emphasis is placed on designing individualized learning environments, selecting and implementing behavior management strategies, writing behavior objectives, and performing task analyses.