Robert F. Putnam, Marcie W. Handler, Christina M. Ramirez-Platt, & James K. Luiselli (2003).
Improving student bus-riding behavior through a whole-school intervention.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
36, 583-590.
We describe a multicomponent intervention to improve bus-riding behavior of students attending
an urban public school. The intervention was developed with technical assistance consultation
that emphasized collaboration among students, school personnel, and bus drivers. The primary
intervention procedures were identifying appropriate behaviors during transportation ("bus
rules"), training bus drivers to deliver positive reinforcement, and rewarding student performance
through a weekly school-based lottery. Disruptive bus behaviors, as measured by discipline
referrals and suspensions, decreased with intervention relative to baseline phases in an ABAB
reversal design. These positive results were maintained over the long term, with school
personnel assuming responsibility for intervention in the absence of ongoing consultation.
DESCRIPTORS: school bus transportation, student discipline, behavioral consultation, systems