The aim of the BASE project (Behavioral Assessment to improve School Environment) is the introduction in the European context of the Positive Behavior Support (PBS), an innovative system to manage the scholastic environment, especially in face of individuals’ challenging behaviours. Despite the efforts deployed, the incidence of acts of school violence such as vandalism, fighting, truancy, playground “bullies”, and student victimization, appears even to be increased in the last years. The idea underpinning the project is that only a preventive, proactive and multi-level approach, able to mobilise the entire educational ecosystem, starting from school leaders and teachers, until all actors of the community involved in the learning processes, can contribute to set up effective solutions. Another guiding principle in the designing the project was the attention toward practices with a sufficient level of evidence and a good theoretical basis. Various scientific studies have emphasized the promising role of PBS in reducing the occurrence of behavioural problems by setting up a preventive, proactive and multi-level system. Therefore, we thought that the idea to adapt the proven US concept of PBS to the different school settings in Europe was an extremely challenging objective. In the construction of the partnership, the systemic approach finds the most evident expression. To realize actions able to have a profound effect, a plurality of subjects, with different competencies and experiences, has been involved. One Research Centre and four Universities coming from four European countries (IT, PT, NL, IE) with diverse backgrounds: educational psychology, computer science, project management, ICT studies, and others. Three amongst associations, NGOs and Public Bodies from the UK, RO and TR, engaged in general and special needs education. Six schools and scholastic districts, from different European countries (PT, RO, UK, TR, NL, IT), in charge to involve and support local school leaders and teachers. This wide team, for a total of 14 entities and about 40 persons, is essential to deploy the diverse actions laid down in the project: • The development of the BASE application to support the implementation of the PBS system according to stringent theoretical and methodological constraints defined in the project. • The construction of a repository for the data gathered at schools through the BASE application, documents about PBS, and a reasoned collection of multimedia contents on PBS strategies. • The organization of a good practices collection to retrieve evidence and experiences about the application of PBS strategies at school in each country involved in the project. • The definition of policy recommendations to provide policy makers with the foundation for the development of policies in national contexts heavily based on evidence. • The implementation of evidence-based PBS dataset, where to put together data about the application of the PBS approach in the schools involved in the project. This dataset permits to consult and compare all the measures collected through the BASE system during the project lifetime. The BASE project has a solid methodological foundation. In fact, it use the PBS approach as a transversal theme that links the results carried out in two successful European projects: the WHAAM project (531244-LLP-2012-IT-KA3MP LLP, KA3 Multilateral projects), and the PBS Europe project (509966-LLP-1-2010-NL-COMENIUS-CMP, KA Multilateral Projects). From the first project, BASE inherits some methodological and technological solutions, designed to apply the Functional Behavioural Assessment (FBA) processes in real contexts. The application of the FBA is crucial for the development of positive behavioural interventions that are effective and efficient. From the second project, BASE adopts the concept of “working smarter” for ensuring to all students - not just those with learning and behavioural difficulties – to have access to the most effective instructional and behavioural practices and interventions. The definition of a European expertise team, animated by the same principles and values, provides an opportunity to disseminate widely the PBS and FBA practices in other European countries, and redesign carefully a multi-systemic school environment. This in according to the main principle at the basis of PBS, i.e. pursuing simultaneous changes: in the system (policies, structures, routines), in the environment, such as the aspects of the setting, in students' and adults' (parents, teachers, staff) behaviour, and in the appreciation of appropriate behaviours. These are also the main impacts intended in the BASE project. Thanks to a series of multiplier events, organised in five different countries, the project plans to help the construction of a community of practices engaged in doing experiences and sharing information, also beyond the project's lifetime.
The BASEproject, in response to the European requirement of reforming the whole scholastic disciplinary system, identifies in the proven US-born concept of the Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) one possible solution, and tries to adapt its practical and evidence-based principles to the heterogeneous European school settings. The main targets of the project were mainly school leaders, teachers and all students including those coming from vulnerable groups. The aim of the BASE project was the introduction in the European context of the PBS, an innovative system to manage the scholastic environment, especially in face of individuals’ challenging behaviours. The PBS is rooted in the behavioural science and in the practice of Functional Behaviour Analysis (FBA). The idea underpinning the project was that only a preventive, proactive and multi-level approach, able to mobilise the entire educational ecosystem, starting from school leaders and teachers, until all actors of the community involved in the learning processes, can contribute to set up effective solutions. Another guiding principle in the designing the project was the attention toward practices with a sufficient level of evidence and a good theoretical basis. In the construction of the partnership, the systemic approach finds the most evident expression. To realize actions able to have a profound effect, a plurality of subjects, with different competencies and experiences, has been involved. One Research Centre and four Universities coming from 4 European countries (IT, PT, NL, IE) with diverse backgrounds: educational psychology, computer science, project management, ICT studies, and others. Three amongst associations, NGOs and Public Bodies from the UK, RO and TR, engaged in general and special needs education. 5 schools and scholastic districts, from different European countries (PT, RO, TR, NL, IT), in charge to involve and support local school leaders and teachers. This wide team, for a total of 13 entities and about 40 persons, has been essential to deploy the diverse actions laid down in the project: • The development of the BASE application to support the implementation of the PBS system according to stringent theoretical and methodological constraints defined in the project. • The construction of a repository for the data gathered at schools through the BASE application, documents about PBS, and a reasoned collection of multimedia contents on PBS strategies. • The organization of a good practices collection to retrieve evidence and experiences about the application of PBS strategies at school in each country involved in the project. • The definition of policy recommendations to provide policy makers with the foundation for the development of policies in national contexts heavily based on evidence. • The implementation of evidence-based PBS dataset, where to put together data about the application of the PBS approach in the schools involved in the project. This dataset permits to consult and compare all the measures collected through the BASE system during the project lifetime. The BASE project has a solid methodological foundation. In fact, it use the PBS approach as a transversal theme that links the results carried out in two successful European projects: the WHAAM project (531244-LLP-2012-IT-KA3MP LLP, KA3 Multilateral projects), and the PBS Europe project (509966-LLP-1-2010-NL-COMENIUS-CMP, KA Multilateral Projects). From the first project, BASE inherits some methodological and technological solutions, designed to apply the FBA processes in real contexts. The application of the FBA is crucial for the development of positive behavioural interventions that are effective and efficient. From the second project, BASE adopts the concept of “working smarter” for ensuring to all students - not just those with learning and behavioural difficulties – to have access to the most effective instructional and behavioural practices and interventions. The definition of an European expertise team, animated by the same principles and values, provides an opportunity to disseminate widely the PBS and FBA practices in other European of a European expertise team, animated by the same principles and values, provides an opportunity to disseminate widely the PBS and FBA practices in other European countries, and redesign carefully a multi-systemic school environment. This in according to the main principle at the basis of PBS, that is pursuing simultaneous changes: in the system (policies, structures, routines), in the environment, such as the aspects of the setting, in students' and adults' (parents, teachers, staff) behaviour, and in the appreciation of appropriate behaviours. These have been also the main impacts of the BASE project. Thanks to a series of multiplier events, organized in five different countries, it helped the construction of a community of practices engaged in doing experiences and sharing information, also beyond the project's lifetime.