BY AMY ENGLI SH, ANDREA NARDI , AND

STEPHANI E JANZEN
First Step to Success
Evidence-Based Intervention
EDPS 674
What is First Step to Success?
A collaborative home and school intervention
designed for preschool to grade three children
with challenging behaviour.


Parents and school work together
to teach at-risk children
behaviour patterns which will
contribute to
Academic success
Building friendships
First Step to Success
Helps children overcome antisocial behaviour
Aims to divert at-risk children from a path toward
Adjustment problems
Rejection by peers, teachers, and caregivers
School failure/dropout
Juvenile delinquency
Gang membership
Violence

Cost
WWC suggests $500 per student, including coachs time
Starter Kit $207.95
Implementation guide, consultant guide, 3 parent handbooks, video
& all supplies required (timer, stickers, point cards, help & activity
cards)
Resupply kit $50.95 Includes
supplies for 1 additional family
Preschool edition $179.95
Implementation guide, homeBase
Coach guide, parent handbook, video
Resupply kit $59.95 Includes supplies
for 1 additional implementation

Versions
K to grade 3 version
Teaches children to get along with peers and engage in
schoolwork
Requires trained behaviour coach (school psychologist,
behavioural specialist, interventionist, etc.)
Preschool version
Gives children social skills required to succeed in school

Three components
1. Screening of all kindergartners to identify those at-
risk
2. School intervention
CLASS involves student, peers, teacher
3. Home intervention
HomeBase involves child
and parent/caregiver
Takes 2-3 months for completion
CLASS
Three phases
1. Coach
2. Teacher
3. Maintenance
Reward criterion are set
Have to do with adaptive
behaviour patterns
School success (behaviourally)
Friendship making skills
Peer relations
Activity rewards are determined
Classroom game, extra recess

CLASS
Cards green on one side, red on the other
Visual feedback for appropriate/inappropriate behaviour
Earn reward points
Record feedback from teacher & coach
Student earns rewards by demonstrating appropriate
behaviour
Teacher signs card and sends home every night
Daily communication tool
Requires 30 days for completion
Each day has a goal that must be met
If not met, goal is repeated the next day/must be met before moving
on to the next program day


HomeBase
Day 10, parents are contacted and asked to
participate
Lessons are taught which are designed to build child
competence in:
Communication and sharing
Cooperation
Limit setting
Problem solving
Friendship making
Self-confidence
HomeBase
Requires 6 weeks for implementation, working on
one skill per week
Coach teaches the skill for 45 min-1 hr
Parents given materials to review and practice
Parents then engage child in skill-building activities
for 10-15 minutes per day
Reinforcers (points, rewards) used until day 20
Maintenance
Continue with praise
Brief reminders of goals/skills
Continue monitoring progress
Parent, teacher, and child sustained behaviour
Booster shots at beginning of each school year to
sustain gains

Roles throughout program
Coach Teacher Parent
Day 1-5
Consulting Phase
Implements
program with child
in classroom
Communicates
with parents daily
Completed
red/green card
Determines if
recycling is
required
Provides verbal
praise
Announces
incentives to class
Supports delivery
of incentive
Supports
red/green card
going home
Checks daily for
child to bring
home red/green
card
Gives 3 praise
statements and
incentive for
making daily
points
Remains neutral
is child doesnt
make points
Signs card and
returns it to school
Roles throughout program
Coach Teacher Parent
Day 6-30
Implements weekly
HomeBase session
Provides support
and consultation to
teacher
Takes over daily
intervention
implementation
Records information
on monitoring form
Communicates daily
with parent on
red/green card
Participates in
weekly HomeBase
session with coach
Participates in daily
HomeBase activities
with child
Provides praise,
incentives, monitors
red/green card
Day 6-30

Implements weekly
HomeBase session
Provides support
and consultation to
teacher
Takes over daily
intervention
implementation
Records information
on monitoring form
Communicates daily
with parent on
red/green card

Participates in
weekly HomeBase
session with coach
Participates in daily
HomeBase activities
with child
Provides praise,
incentives, monitors
red/green card

Research Basis
FSS is an EBI that was developed at the University of Oregon
1992-1996
Collaboration between the Eugene school
district, UofO, the Oregon Social Learning Center
and Oregon Research Institute
Randomized, experimental, wait-list control-
group design (group of 22 and 24 students)
Intervention done in kindergarten,
follow-up in grades 1 & 2
Results saw statistically significant improvements were
recorded for target participants on their teacher-rated
behavioral levels at post-intervention and follow-up.
Dr. Hill M. Walker, PhD
Research Basis
Assessing the Effectiveness of FSS: Are short-term Results
the First Step to Long-Term Behavioral Improvements?
(2013)
Large-scale RCT (48 schools across country, 6 students at each)
1) Evaluate FSS as typically delivered under naturally occurring
conditions across multiple school districts 2) different levels of
implementation integrity
Made significant gains in prosocial &
adaptive behavior
Higher implementation integrity in
classroom and at home = greater gains




Research Basis
A Randomized Controlled Trial of the First Step to Success
Early Intervention: Demonstration of Program Efficacy in
a Diverse, Urban School District (2009)
Purpose was to evaluate effects under more real-world and
complex school district and community conditions
200 participants in Albuquerque NM, 72% were Hispanic, Black,
Native American, Asian, multiracial, and Pacific Islander
Substantial levels of poverty,
high rates of alcohol and
substance abuse
Moderate to strong effects
achieved
Research Basis
First Step to Success Early Intervention Program: A Study
of Effectiveness with Native-American Children (2005)
4 Native-American children from Indian reservation in Arizona
Higher rates of alcohol abuse, shoplifting, vandalism, assaultive
behavior. 2-3times more likely to live at poverty level. School
drop-out rates 50%.
Program had significant positive affect
on all participants social play behaviors,
nonsocial behavior decreased, except 1.
Also remained high at follow-up phase.
No cultural barriers to success of the program.

Critical Thought
Positive Negative
EBI extensively evaluated (10 in the Journal of Emotional &
Behavioral Disorders)
No Canadian studies
Strong immediate and long-term effects Little control over inconsistent behavioural treatment in
HomeBase portion (researchers did not want to disrupt
relationship with behavior coach)
Teachers claim that FSS helped them develop a more positive
teaching approach
Lack of classroom management skills may have negative
impact on implementing FSS
No cultural/economic barriers FSS doesnt seem to work well with students who come from
homes that are in chaos and require massive supports and
intervention just to function at a basic survival level
Can still be effective with varying levels of implementation
integrity
No follow-up studies beyond two years (high school?)

Focusing on those students who are often not referred to
appropriate interventions and supports until their problems
have escalated to the point where they cannot be solved
For students with more well-developed externalizing behavior
patterns, FSS should be across a full school year
FSS is well grounded in a social-ecological model
(conceptualizes the individual as embedded within a system,
organization and setting)
Some teachers reported that it took too much time and effort
Can be implemented using only materials and support
typically available to those who purchase the intervention
FSS might rely on the targeted students home integrity

A strong efficacy
foundation
A rigorous
experimental
design
A diverse study
population
Off-the-shelf
implementation
Commercial
availability of
materials &
technical support
High-quality
meausre
Appropriate
analytic approach
Consistenly positive
and significant
effects across
multiple domains
Critical Thought
References
Diken, I. H., & Rutherford, R. B. (2005). First step to success early intervention
program: A study of effectiveness with Native-American children. Education
& Treatment of Children (ETC), 28(4).
Golly, A. M., Stiller, B., & Walker, H. M. (1998). First Step to Success replication and
social validation of an early intervention program. Journal of Emotional and
Behavioral Disorders, 6(4), 243-250.
Sumi, W. C., Woodbridge, M. W., Javitz, H. S., Thornton, S. P., Wagner, M.,
Rouspil, K., ... & Severson, H. H. (2013). Assessing the Effectiveness of First
Step to Success Are Short-Term Results the First Step to Long-Term
Behavioral Improvements?. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders,
21(1), 66-78.
Walker, H. M., Kavanagh, K., Stiller, B., Golly, A., Severson, H. H., & Feil, E. G.
(1998). First Step to Success An Early Intervention Approach for Preventing
School Antisocial Behavior. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders,
6(2), 66-80.
Walker, H. M., Seeley, J. R., Small, J., Severson, H. H., Graham, B. A., Feil, E. G., ...
& Forness, S. R. (2009). A Randomized Controlled Trial of the First Step to
Success Early Intervention Demonstration of Program Efficacy Outcomes in a
Diverse, Urban School District. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral
Disorders, 17(4), 197-212.