Ronald Beghetto is interviewed about his new book, “What If?”

Morgaen Donaldson, a professor at the University of Connecticut, said the initial buy-in followed by pushback isn’t surprising, pointing to her own research in New Haven. To some, aspects of the initiative “might be worth endorsing at an abstract level,” she said. “But then when the rubber hit the road … people started to resist.”

In a nutshell, PBIS is an approach to addressing student behavior, a sort of scaffolding upon which teachers and administrators build practices to prevent problems and provide the right help for kids who need it. “We focus on the social and emotional success of kids but we do it in the context of academic success,” George Sugai told a packed auditorium at Southwest High School earlier this week.

The University of Connecticut will start offering what is believed to be the only full teacher preparation program in Mandarin Chinese in January. Already with what officials say is a robust World Language program, UConn would include Mandarin to a program that already turns out teachers of French, Spanish, German, Italian and Latin.

How can teachers and schools promote creativity and innovation through education? Ronald Beghetto suggests structured uncertainty in this TEDxUConn talk, which took place this past spring in Storrs.

The Federal Commission on School Safety will have its first “field” hearing Thursday—and second meeting—at a school in Anne Arundel County, Md., that has embraced Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, or PBIS. Also on hand: Dr. George Sugai, the co-director of the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports at the University of Connecticut.

Should a shooting or other traumatic event happen, schools that have positive behavioral interventions in place can respond “more quickly and more strategically,” said George Sugai, co-director of the Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports.

During a field visit by the Federal Commission on School Safety at the Frank Hebron-Harman Elementary School in Hanover, Md., George Sugai said schools that have faithfully and consistently implemented the PBIS program — which includes interventions for students who misbehave — have seen results. If schools implement the strategy, “you’re likely to see decreases in referrals for major infractions. You’re likely to see decreases in bullying,” Sugai said.

This morning, Neag School Professor George Sugai, an expert in positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS), was invited to speak about PBIS and improving school climate with representatives from the U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Commission on School Safety, who made a field visit to an elementary school in Maryland’s Anne Arundel County to learn more about the impact of implementing PBIS practices. 

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos will visit Frank Hebron-Harman Elementary School in Hanover Thursday to learn about the school’s use of approaches to encouraging positive behavior. The visit will be the first field trip by the Federal Commission on School Safety. University of Connecticut Professor George Sugai, a top PBIS expert according to the Education Department, will speak to the commission.