ReOrientation (Time Out) Program
Program Model
The PACE West ReOrientation (RO) Program primarily uses a psychoeducational model of intervention. This model is a specialized form of education aimed at helping individuals to learn about a broad range of emotional and behavioral difficulties, their effects, and strategies to deal with them. The psycheducational approach combines social skills instruction with intervention strategies to support youth experiencing behavioral or emotional difficulties. Our belief is that with appropriate knowledge and techniques, undesirable behaviors occur less often and are usually less severe in intensity and duration. Knowledge and awareness result in students having more control over their behaviors.
The goal of the ReOrientation Program and its staff is to provide a safe, nurturing, and supportive environment in which students can regain self-control and engage in pro-social behaviors so they may continue to meet the challenge of learning in the classrooms. The ReOrientation Program is located in two rooms in the school which are staffed throughout the school day with personnel trained in crisis management. A full-time teacher provides supervision of the program throughout the day. School Counselors and the Principal are available to provide support, guidance and intervention throughout the school day.
Interventions and Techniques
The ReOrientation Program at PACE West is structured to accommodate different levels of intervention. These levels of intervention can be divided into three general categories:
- Primary Prevention
- Secondary Prevention
- Crisis Management
Primary Prevention
Primary Prevention involves those preventative measures or activities that reduce the probablity of problem behavior before it occurs. Intervention techniques include:
Natural consequences which allow students an opportunity to draw a concrete connection between a behavior and a consequence of life.
Self-referral which provides a student the opportunity to withdraw him/herself from an activity or situation that may be stressful and interfering with their ability to participate fully in learning.
Alternative structure which provides a student an opportunity to complete their work in a setting other than the regular classroom for purposes of reducing anxiety, alleviating stress or resolving conflict.
Mediation which is a planned and structured process of discussion with the goal of providing the student an opportunity for peaceful settlement of conflict. Mediations serve to resolve conflicts before and after they occur.
Life Space Interview which involves a student sharing with a counselor an experience they have had which has impacted them in a negative way. The process is used to give the student the opportunity to connect feelings to behavior and to look at alternative ways of handling situations.
Talk outs which provide students an opportunity to disclose, share or discuss personal problems with an appropropriate staff on a one-to-one basis.
Secondary Prevention
Secondary prevention involves the use of strategies designed to anticipate and prevent the occurrence or reoccurrence of the student's problem behavior while in the RO room.
Encouragement is provided to students in the form of a word of confidence to keep the student on track and acknowledge positive behavior.
Verbal reminders and warnings are provided to redirect the student's problem behaviors while they complete their time in the RO room.
Redirections/choices are provided to help students choose a more appropriate behavior.
Limit setting with clear directions and identification of consequences are used when verbal reminders and warnings are ineffective.
Writing assignments are tasks designed to help students reflect seriously on their behavior and draw a connection between their behavior and what they were feeling at the time of the incident.
Conflict resolution and problem solving strategies are brief interventions used by the RO staff to assist a student having difficulty in demonstrating appropriate behaviors in the RO room. These include, but are not limited to, referring a student to a counselor, separating disruptive students and arranging one-on-one supervision in an alternate location.
Physical prompts are actions taken by staff to restrict or prevent the student's problematic or disruptive behaviors. These involve close proximity to the student taking the form of non-threatening body contact, such as blocking a student's movement or providing an escort.
Crisis Management
Crisis Management involves the use of strateiges designed to assist the student regaining self-control.Assigned time involves staff assigning students to the RO room for a period of time due to their unmanageable behavior in the classroom which is disrupting the learning environment of other students.
Time out involves isolating the student from situations, activities and/or others due to "out of control" behaviors as demonstrated by their inability to follow school rules OR their choice to disregard school rules.
Confinement/Seclusion involves isolating the student alone to assist them in regaining self-control. Students requiring confinement typically present a serious or real threat of harm to self, others and/or property.
Crisis Counseling is provided by counseling staff to help stabalize or restore the student to a level of functioning prior to the crisis event.
Physical Restraint involves bodily contact to obstruct or limit the student's mobility and to prevent him/her from causing serious harm to self, others and/or property. All instructrional staff at PACE West are trained in Handle with Care, a verbal intervention and physical intervention program.
Behavior Contract is a negotiated agreement between staff and student and includes a statment from the student regarding their appropriate and safe behavior in the school. It also may contain a statement of specified consequences for failure to comply with the contract.
Additional information regarding the operation of the ReOrientation Program can be gained by contacting PACE West.
