A Classwide Intervention Program (SSIS-CIP) Focuses on Social, Behavioral, and Academic Outcomes in the Primary Grades
Teaching children to get along with others, care about themselves, and actively participate in learning are three of the most important outcomes of the schooling process. Yet some children do not achieve these outcomes, and often, educators have not received adequate training to create instructional environments that promote them. As a consequence, some children feel uncomfortable, unsupported, and ultimately, uninterested in learning. The Social Skills Improvement System Classwide Intervention Program (SSIS-CIP; Elliott & Gresham, 2007) is an instructional program developed to improve children’s social skills and reduce behaviors that interfere with learning. Dr. James DiPerna, Associate Professor of Education (School Psychology) and Dr. Puiwa Lei, Associate Professor of Education (Educational Psychology), received a 4-year award from the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) to examine the efficacy of this intervention program in first and second grade classrooms.
Research suggests that up to 20% of the general school population have, or are at risk of developing, a behavior disorder. Children at-risk of developing a behavior disorder often exhibit patterns of externalizing behaviors (e.g., delinquency, peer aggression) and/or internalizing behaviors (e.g., depression, social withdrawal) that interfere with their ability to form positive relationships and achieve academic success. The SSIS Project will evaluate the social behavior, engagement in learning, and academic skill outcomes resulting from implementation of the SSIS-CIP.
When the study is complete, approximately 1,500 elementary students will have participated in this longitudinal project. In addition to direct observations of student behavior and individualized assessments of students’ reading and mathematics skills, teachers will complete standardized ratings of students’ social skills, problem behaviors, and academic engagement.
Although the project is only entering its second year, initial findings suggest that involvement in the SSIS intervention reduced behavioral problems and increased students’ prosocial behavior and academic engagement. In the next phase of this study, benefits of repeated exposure to the program as well as the program’s acceptability to teachers, parents, and students will be examined.
A substantial amount of research has demonstrated that a positive association exists between prosocial behaviors and academic skills; however, far fewer studies have shown that promoting prosocial behaviors actually improves academic skills. “The SSIS Project will help address this gap in the empirical literature and provide insights regarding the social and behavioral context for academic learning in the classroom,” said DiPerna.