Division for Emotional & Behavioral Health slates Webinar series on classroom management
Want to know about this professional development opportunity?
The Division for Emotional and Behavioral Health, in collaboration with the Council for Exceptional Children, announced that it will hold a three-part Webinar in August 2026 on fundamentals of classroom management. The series is under the title, “Foundational Classroom Management Practices.” The cost is $99 for people who are not members of the CEC and $69 for those who are members. Register here.
The sessions are slated for 5 PM (Eastern Time:
August 4: Setting the Stage for Success: Establishing and Teaching Routines and Expectations
August 11: Proactive Strategies to Enhance Student Engagement
August 18: Using Positive and Corrective Feedback to Support Classroom Behavior
I asked Lauren Collins, President of DEBH about what the organization hoped to accomplish with the series of Webinars. She wrote to me, “We developed this series to help teachers better support students with, and at risk for, EBD [emotional and behavioral disorders] in the classroom. At the same time, we intentionally chose strategies that are practical, easy to implement, and beneficial for all students—not just those with disabilities—because we know that challenging behavior is one of the biggest challenges teachers face.”
About the sessions
Each session will be led by highly qualified presenters, including David James Royer (University of Louisville), Robin Parks Ennis1 (University of Alabama), and Matt McNiff (Educational Service Unit No. 5 in Beatrice, Nebraska). Together these presenters bring scores of years of experience in real-world classrooms at both the elementary and secondary levels. See the tab “Presenters” on the event announcement page for more information about each person.
Here is how DEBH described the three sessions:
Session 1: Setting the Stage for Success: Establishing and Teaching Routines and Expectations
This session is Part 1 of a three-part series on evidence-based practices to support and respond to classroom behavior. This session will introduce two strategies– teaching expected classroom behaviors and precorrections. Participants will learn how to develop, model, and teach expected classroom behaviors for students and will build knowledge of effective steps for prompting student use of these skills over time. Tools to support teachers in implementation of these practices in their classrooms will be provided.
Session 2: Proactive Strategies to Enhance Student Engagement
This session is Part 2 of a three-part series on evidence-based practices to support and respond to classroom behavior. This session will introduce two strategies– opportunities to respond and instructional choice. Participants will learn to design instructional cues that prompt frequent student responses and will build knowledge of steps for providing instructional choice. Tools to support teachers in implementation of these practices in their classrooms will be provided.
Session 3: Using Positive and Corrective Feedback to Support Classroom Behavior
This session is Part 3 of a three-part series on evidence-based practices to support and respond to classroom behavior. This session will introduce two evidence-based classroom strategies– acknowledging behavior and behavior ratings. Participants will learn how to provide immediate, specific feedback that guides student behavior, supports learning, and promotes reflection and self-monitoring.Tools to support teachers in implementation of these practices in their classrooms will be provided.
Bonus
For those registrants who are members of CEC, there is also added content. Members will be eligible to participate in “office hours,” which are, as I understand, opportunities to engage is follow-up discussions with other members and the presenters.
In her correspondence with SET, Professor Collins explained DEBH’s rationale for these bonus sessions: “We’re especially excited about the follow-up office hours, which will provide implementation support as teachers begin to use or refine the strategies presented. In addition to helping classroom teachers, this series is also relevant for teacher educators and instructional supervisors as they prepare, coach, and support educators in implementing evidence-based practices.”
Additional detail is available about the sessions contents on the Web site.
Footnote
Alert readers of Special Education Today might find Professor Ennis’s name familiar. Yep, she’s a long-standing member of the SET community.