Online training for teachers delivering evidence-based preventive interventions

This study investigated the perceived feasibilityand pattern of implementation following an online trainingfor teachers delivering an integrated intervention encom-passing two school-based universal preventive interven-tions: Promoting Alternative THinking Strategies (PATHS)curriculum and the PAX Good Behavior Game (GBG).Forty-five teachers from three urban elementary schoolscompleted an online training consisting of didactics andvideo demonstration and received in-person coachingacross a 31-week implementation period. Data from 65teachers from three schools who received in-person train-ing and coaching provided a benchmark for comparison.Most teachers in the online training ?in-person coaching(OLT ?IPC) condition reported that the technology waseasy to use and that the course was as effective as an in-person workshop. Teachers in the OLT ?IPC groupreported positive attitudes regarding PATHS and the PAXGBG that generally were not significantly different fromattitudes reported by teachers who received in-persontraining ?in-person coaching (IPT ?IPC). Importantly,teachers in the OLT ?IPC condition achieved a high levelof implementation quality similar to that demonstrated byteachers in the IPT ?IPC condition. The frequency ofintervention delivery by OLT ?IPC teachers was also notsignificantly different than that of IPT ?IPC teachers.These findings provide evidence that the internet is apromising component in a training sequence designed toteach teachers to deliver evidence-based preventiveinterventions.

Citation: Becker KD, Bohnenkamp J, Domitrovich C, Keperling JP, Ialongo NS: Online training for teachers delivering evidence-based preventive interventions. School Mental Health 2014, 6(4):225-236