Educator Policy Sensemaking About Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports in the Post-Pandemic Schooling Context

• In Event: Educators, Youth, and Policy Mediation and Sensemaking at the Local Level

Abstract

Increasing our understanding of how school-level policy actors make sense of social-emotional and behavioral policies is essential to craft effective policy in the post-pandemic era. This case study investigates educator sensemaking about Positive Behavioral Intervention and Supports policy in one elementary school in a conservative, small-town context in 2022-23. Utilizing qualitative thematic and discursive analysis of educator interview data and district policy documents, we find: educators evidenced ideological dilemmas around centering positive behavior and adapting school context to student needs, struggled to manage core implementation elements, and were often given autonomy rather than support to address these challenges. Careful attention to educator sensemaking is essential if policymakers wish to empower students and bolster student social-emotional and behavioral health.

Authors

• Elizabeth E. Blair, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

• Susan Hart, Pennsylvania State University

• Sabina R. Neugebauer, Temple University

• Lia E. Sandilos, Lehigh University

• James Clyde Diperna, Pennsylvania State University