| Summary: | Federal and state initiatives (No Child Left Behind, 2001) require schools and districts to set high standards for student growth and achievement. Currently, student growth and progress are measured in Louisiana via statewide achievement tests. In 4th and 8th grades these assessments are considered to be high-stakes, as promotion and retention decisions are made based on how well students perform on these assessments. Making day-to-day decisions based on one assessment per year is not best practice (Jenkins, Deno, & Markin, 1979); therefore, screening instruments known as curriculum based measures (CBMs) were devised and tailored for school-based implementation. CBMs of academic skills have been shown to predict scores on statewide achievement tests (e.g. Good, Simmons, and Kameenui, 2001; Shaw & Shaw, 2002; Keller-Margulis, Shapiro, and Hintze, 2008). However, less research has been conducted using behavior screening instruments, despite the fact that the relationship among behavior and academic achievement has been extensively documented. The current study adds to the literature base by assessing the predictive validity of commercially available behavior screening instruments for statewide achievement test scores in a school district in Louisiana. Results show that two of four behavior screenings within the program are independent predictors of statewide testing scores in addition to academic screenings and prior achievement in their respective content areas. Implications of these findings are that it may prove beneficial for schools to proactively screen for and intervene with behavior problems as early and frequently as possible.
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