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Rate IT!: A classroom solution to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline through the analysis of student heart rates

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Rate IT!: A classroom solution to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline through the analysis of student heart rates

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Content 1
Rate IT!: A Classroom Solution to Disrupt the School-to-Prison Pipeline
Through the Analysis of Student Heart Rates
Janelle E. Porter
Social Work Doctorate Capstone Project
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Social Work
Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, University of Southern
California SOWK 722: Implementing Your Capstone and Re-Envisioning Your
Career Dr. Renee Smith-Maddox
December 2021
2

Acknowledgements
This project would not have been possible without the encouragement, guidance, and
support from my committee chair, Dr. Rene Smith-Maddox. Thank you for challenging me to
think beyond the status quo and not accept the norm. I also want to thank the rest of my
committee, Professor Fatouros and Dr. Blosnich. Your support and encouragement also allowed
me to stretch my thoughts and expand my knowledge base. I would be remiss if I did not also
thank Dr. T and Dr. Kay-Wicker. I will never forget the lessons learned from the two of you. I
would not have taken on this challenge without the guidance of my mentor, Dr. Perry Hilvitz.
Thank you for seeing in me what I could be and leading me down a career path where I can
effect positive change. My cohort colleagues became such an important part of my life which I
did not expect. Thank you all for the laughs, encouragement, and most importantly for seeing me
for who I am. Finally, none of this would have been possible with out the support of my husband
and daughter. The two of you are my world and I am beyond thankful for your support,
encouragement, and your belief in me from the beginning.

3

Contents
Executive Summary ...………………………………………………………………………….. 5
Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………….. 11
Conceptual Framework ………………………………………………………………………… 11
Social Emotional Learning Curricula ………………………………………………….. 12
A More Specialized Approach …………………………………………………………. 13
Proposed Solution Argument …………………………………………………………... 14
Relevance and Implications ……………………………………………………………. 15
Problems of Practice and Solutions/Innovations ………………………………………………. 16
Additional Considerations ……………………………………………………………... 19
Project Structure, Methodology, and Action Components …………………………………….. 21
Advantages …………………………………………………………………………….. 22
Compatibility …………………………………………………………………………... 23
Acceptability …………………………………………………………………………… 23
Financial Plans …………………………………………………………………………. 24
Detailed Revenue Plans ………………………………………………………………... 27
Implementation and Evaluation ………………………………………………………... 27
Communication Products and Strategies ………………………………………………. 29
Ethical Concerns and Negative Impacts ……………………………………………….. 30
Conclusions, Actions, and Implications …………………………………………………………31
References ……………………………………………………………………………………… 34
Appendix A: Theory of Change ………………………………………………………………... 40
Appendix B: Logic Model ……………………………………………………………………... 41
4

Appendix C: Narrative for Logic Model ………………………………………………………. 42
Appendix D: Stakeholder Analysis Matrix ……………………………………………………. 44
Appendix E: Journey Maps and Prototype Description ……………………………………….. 47
Appendix F: Project Budgets ………………………………………………………………….. 53
Appendix G: Sample Lesson and Calming Plan ………………………………………………. 55

5

Executive Summary
In the United States public-school system, exclusionary discipline is routinely utilized to
manage student behavior. Exclusionary discipline is the removal of a student from the classroom
setting in response to behaviors exhibited by the student. The over usage of this disciplinary
method leads to racial disproportionality both in in-school discipline and out-of-school
suspensions. Multiple studies state Black students receive discipline referrals and out of school
suspensions at rates two to three times that of their White peers and Black males are suspended
more frequently than any other race or gender group (Gregory et al., 2017; Mendez & Knoff,
2003). This cycle of suspensions increases the likelihood that a student will be involved with the
criminal justice system; this is evidenced by Black males being seven times more likely to be
incarcerated than White males (Lyons & Petit, 2011). This phenomenon, described as the school-
to-prison pipeline, is best defined as “a set of policies and practices in schools that make it more
likely that students face criminal involvement with the juvenile courts than attain a quality
education” (Mallet, 2015, p.15). The Grand Challenge for Social Work of ensuring the healthy
development of all youth emphasizes proactive rather than reactive measures as the means of
increasing the physical and emotional health of youth. The program proposed in this paper
intends to maximize prevention strategies that can develop healthy identities and manage
emotions in youth.
In the 1980’s, zero tolerance policies were enacted to combat violent behaviors. The
public-school system has since broadened its definition of zero tolerance to include non-violent
acts such as truancy, obscene language, verbal harassment, disrespect, and disobedience (Mallett,
2015). Over the past four decades, the use of exclusionary discipline through out-of-school
suspensions has doubled and as many as one out of every three students in the public-school
6

system will receive an out-of-school suspension (Fisher, Dawson‐Edwards, Higgins, & Swartz,
2020; Welsh & Little, 2018). Between 1972 and 2011 suspensions of White students rose from
3.1% to 5%; during that same time period, however, suspensions of Black students rose from 6%
to 17% (Losen & Gillespie, 2012). In Missouri’s North Kansas City School District (NKCSD),
where the pilot program will launch, there were 12,808 total incidents of disrespectful or
disruptive behavior leading to the use of exclusionary discipline between the 2017-2018 and
2018-2019 school years. Events defined as ‘disrespectful’ or ‘disruptive’ represent over 82% of
the incidents employing exclusionary discipline. Black students and students identifying as two
or more races comprise over 41% of these exclusionary discipline incidents; yet these two groups
represent less than 16% of the total enrollment in the school district (North Kansas City School
District, 2020). This disparity is seen in public school systems across the country and must be
addressed.
The public-school system attempts to address this issue in multiple ways, including
policy changes limiting the use of suspensions as well as prevention and intervention methods
that incorporate social emotional learning. Social emotional learning, which includes teaching of
self-regulation skills, provides some of the most promising and innovative interventions to
address this problem. Self-regulation skills not only teach students how to identify their
emotions, but also provide techniques such as deep breathing and mindfulness practice during
periods of emotional dysregulation. Emotional dysregulation is defined as “the inability to
manage the intensity and duration of negative emotions such as fear, sadness, or anger” (Franco,
2018). The ability to connect antecedent emotions with subsequent behavior increases the
student’s efficacy in regulating emotions in a healthy way before unwanted behaviors escalate.
7

The concurrent shift in teacher-held beliefs regarding de-escalation of behavior issues engenders
an increase in positive classroom environments.
The Rate IT! innovation provides wearable heart rate monitors to all students in a
classroom to assist them in self-monitoring and self-regulation before their behavior becomes
disruptive to the learning environment. Current practices involve simply teaching students self-
regulation skills and then relying on the student to intrinsically know when to implement these
skills. The Rate IT! system differs in that it identifies precisely when the student should
implement their learned skills and prompts them to do so. Rate IT! ensures the implementation of
the calming strategies early in the emotional escalation cycle, thereby increasing the likelihood
the child will be able to calm themself and avoid externalized behavior that often leads to
removal from the classroom learning environment. The Rate IT! program focuses on 1
st
and 2
nd

grade classrooms. Adoption of the program at these grade levels seeks to create lasting change
that will lead to lowering the rate of exclusionary discipline in subsequent years. As part of
ongoing social emotional learning, the students are not only taught self-regulation skills, but they
are conditioned to make the connection between their emotions and their bodies in an age-
appropriate way. When the heart rate monitor notifies the student their heart rate is increasing,
the student will be prompted to utilize their individually developed calming plans to regulate
their body. In addition to the intrinsic reward of self-regulation, students will receive electronic
badges through a software system on an electronic device when they successfully self-monitor
and implement their individual calming plan.
The design of Rate IT! results from careful consideration of input from a variety of
stakeholders including, teachers, parents, administrators, and students. It was imperative to
stakeholders that the program was easy to implement in the classroom; however, there were
8

some critical design components which needed to be addressed along with this ease of
implementation. One of these was the necessary change in the belief system of the teacher about
classroom behaviors. This paradigm shift begins in the training phase of the design and continues
throughout the implementation. The shift is needed because it is believed the attitude of teachers
can significantly impact the implementation of the program. Teacher attitude and decision
making will be monitored by implementation coaches and through the use of surveys. The design
also considers equity as a primary component in that no students are singled out in the
implementation. However, research must continue around equitable practices in social emotional
learning. As evidenced in an issue brief by Simmons et al., there is currently little research on the
connection between social emotional learning in the classroom and increased discipline equity
between races (2018). Additionally, research indicates that culturally different understandings of
the sense of self can impact all the competencies of social emotional learning promoted by the
Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) which indicates the need
to approach this type of learning in the classroom through a cultural relevancy lens (Mahfouz &
Anthony-Stevens, 2020). When the intervention is fully implemented, it is important to involve
all students in the classroom to increase the sense of community and belonging which are
protective factors against drop-out and future delinquent behavior. Lastly, it is important to
continue developing focus groups and asking for participant feedback in order to capture
information regarding cultural relevance of the program.
The pilot program in the North Kansas City School District will commence in Spring
2022. In its nascency, the Rate IT! program will involve a small group of no more than six
students to determine efficacy of the design. Rate IT! will then be introduced to the entire
classroom shortly after. During this time, focus groups will provide individual feedback and
9

recommendations to improve the design. Once implemented, the program will rely on systematic
evaluation through the use of surveys and monitoring of quantitative data in the software system
to determine if students are responding the heart rate monitors and implementing their plans.
This data will determine validity and effectiveness of the program. The desired outcomes of Rate
IT! include decreases in lost instructional time due to exclusionary discipline and racial
disparities in overall discipline, as well as improved classroom climate (as indicated by students),
academic performance, and an increased sense of student belonging. Longitudinal outcomes will
hopefully bear decreases in the number of youths, primarily Black males, entering the criminal
justice system.
Now more than ever the social emotional health of children is at a critical state. The
COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the issues already faced by students, likely leading to an
increase in problematic behavior in the classroom. Minkos and Gelbar (2020) report that
stressors present in the households of children prior to the pandemic likely increased as a result
of the pandemic. Potential exposure to substance abuse, domestic violence, and mental health
issues during the COVID-19 lockdown may have created an adverse childhood experience for
some children and result in significant long-term negative consequences, including potential
behavior problems in schools as children attempt to deal with the trauma they experienced.
While the need to address the school-to-prison pipeline was apparent before the pandemic, the
need to disrupt it is now profound. The federal government acknowledged this need with the
passage of the American Rescue Plan which funnels $123 billion to K-12 public education.
School leaders, with support from parents and other stakeholders, must leverage these new funds
and introduce social emotional learning and alternatives to exclusionary discipline in the
classroom on a broader scale. The recommendation is for schools to invest this money in social
10

emotional learning to combat the issues compounded by the pandemic (Collaborative for
Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning, 2021).

11

Rate IT!: A Classroom Solution to Disrupt the School-to-Prison Pipeline
Through the Analysis of Student Heart Rates
Public schools overuse exclusionary discipline to manage student behavior. This practice
leads to racial disproportionality in school discipline and out-of-school suspensions. Multiple
studies state Black students receive discipline referrals and out-of-school suspensions at rates 2
to 3 times that of their White peers and Black males are suspended more frequently than any
other race or gender group (Gregory et al., 2017; Mendez & Knoff, 2003). This cycle of
suspensions as a behavior “intervention” increases the likelihood that a student will be involved
with the criminal justice system. This is evidenced by Black males being 7 times more likely to
be incarcerated than White males (Lyons & Petit, 2011). The problem emanates from the
disproportionate use of exclusionary discipline with Black students resulting in a lack of
connection to school and therefore an increased likelihood of engagement in delinquent
behaviors which increases the chances of involvement with the criminal justice system. This
phenomenon is described as the school-to-prison pipeline and is defined as “a set of policies and
practices in schools that make it more likely that students face criminal involvement with the
juvenile courts than attain a quality education” (Mallet, 2015, p.15).
Conceptual Framework
The disproportionate use of exclusionary discipline with Black students results in a lack
of connection and a sense of belonging at school and an increased likelihood of engagement in
delinquent behaviors such as stealing, fighting, and even violent acts involving a weapon
(Mallet, 2015). Engagement in delinquent behaviors drastically increases the chances of
involvement with the criminal justice system, which often leads to removal from the family
home, a decreased sense of safety and stability, and increased trauma (Fisher et.al, 2020).
12

Combined, these factors disrupt the Grand Challenge for Social Work of ensuring the healthy
development of youth. It is well documented that Black students receive a disproportionate
number of discipline referrals and out-of-school suspensions compared to all other student
populations (Gregory et al., 2017; Mendez & Knoff, 2003; Mallet, 2015). To combat this
disparity, Gregory et al. proposed a framework focusing in part on prevention and intervention
techniques such as social emotional learning, or SEL (2017). A study by Turner, et al. indicated
that SEL curricula can enhance skills such as attitude toward self and others, mental health, and
academic success in youth (2019). The U.S. Department of Education recommends in their
report that schools should have an established framework of educations, social, emotional and
behavioral-health supports (2021). Many studies are now focused on SEL in the classroom
setting as an effective approach to the prevention of behavioral issues.
Social Emotional Learning Curricula
Second Step is a widely utilized social emotional learning curriculum in public schools.
A recent study indicates a significant increase in prosocial behaviors among students who
participated in the curriculum (Moy & Haven, 2018). Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies
(PATHS), another SEL program offered in public schools, was found to have a positive impact
on students’ externalizing behaviors, such as verbal outbursts or aggression toward others, when
implemented with fidelity and quality by the teacher. However, the program’s impact on
reduction of exclusionary discipline was not reported (Humphrey et al., 2018).
Other studies focus on the explicit instruction of self-regulation skills to decrease
disruptive classroom behaviors. The I Control curriculum, studied by Smith, et al. boasts that
teachers reported increases outcomes in students’ executive functioning and decreases in both
externalized behavior problems and general behavioral problems (2017). A dissertation study by
13

Kiesel corroborated the positive impact of implementing self-regulation instruction in the
classroom (2019). Regrettably, Goldberg et al., found that although the implementation of a
school-wide SEL curriculum provided significant improvements in social and emotional
adjustment of the students, the improvements in behavioral adjustment were de minimis and did
not impact to the students’ academic success overall (2018).
A More Specialized Approach
Perhaps the missing step in these curricula is not only an emphasis on self-regulation
tactics, but the knowledge of exactly when to implement the tactics. Recent studies are now
beginning to explore the connection between students’ heart rate and their emotional state.
Mygind et al., looked at the stress responses of students across school settings and measured the
response utilizing heart rates (2018). This study showed a connection between higher heart rates
and stress response before the students showed other outward signs of distress. Together, these
studies indicate that there is a positive connection between heart rate and emotional distress
establishing that heart rate could potentially be used as an indicator for young students to know
when they are becoming emotionally distressed or dysregulated. This information, coupled with
social emotional learning curriculums is the basis for the development of the Rate IT! system.
The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) promotes
specific competencies for social emotional learning including self-awareness, self-management,
responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and social awareness (Elliott et al., 2021). It is
important to note that Mahfouz and Anthony-Stevens contend that culturally different
understandings of the sense of self can impact all of the aforementioned competencies (2020).
Simmons et al., also indicate that culture plays a large role in how SEL competencies are
developed and expressed (2018). If teachers are not aware of how cultural differences inform
14

how students express their emotions and how they are taught (or not taught) to regulate
themselves, misunderstandings may occur and contribute to the overuse of exclusionary
discipline rates. Continued teacher education focusing on equity and inclusion, including the
inherent dangers of implicit bias, is crucial in addressing these differences. All of these issues
will be addressed during the implementation of Rate IT! and will inform any necessary revisions
to the program.
Proposed Solution Argument
The proposed solution, Rate IT!, is a sustainable innovation rooted in behavioral change
theory. One framework for behavioral change is the COM-B model which involves three
conditions to create behavior change; capability, opportunity, and motivation (Michie, van
Stralen, & West, 2011). Rate IT! seeks to provide all three conditions in order to change the
behavior of both teachers and students. Research strongly suggests that teaching self-regulation
skills to students is an effective means of decreasing disruptive behaviors and increasing on-task
behaviors in the classroom (Jones, 2019). The missing component, however, is to ensure students
effectively implement these skills at the appropriate time and remain motivated to do so in the
future. Teachers indicated in interviews that limitations on their time prevent them from
monitoring all students for signs of emotional dysregulation. In order for students to effectively
implement these skills and have a positive impact on their behavior, they must be able to do so
on their own prior to becoming escalated to a point the interventions are no longer effective.
Rate IT! not only integrates the instruction of effective self-regulation strategies with the
idea of students self-monitoring their emotional state, but additionally introduces technology to
increase consistency in the student’s self-monitoring. Instead of waiting for qualitative indicators
such as sweaty hands, changes in body language, or feelings of rising body temperature, students
15

will use the heart rate monitors as a quantifiable measure of the onset of emotional dysregulation.
Once alerted to an increase in heart rate, the student will implement previously taught calming
strategies. The student will then receive an electronic badge on their individual device to reward
and reinforce their continued use of self-regulation skills at the appropriate time. As students
continue to utilize the monitors, they will become better able to effectively identify when
emotional dysregulation begins, implement calming strategies, and avoid disruptive behavior. It
follows that a decrease in disruptive behavior will encourage teachers to question their beliefs
regarding the efficacy of utilizing exclusionary tactics for behavior management (see Appendix
A for the Theory of Change). Both the students and the teachers enjoy reinforcement for their
actions, increasing the likelihood that the students will continue to use their heart rate monitors
and calming plans and teachers will continue to implement the intervention with fidelity in their
classrooms.
Relevance and Implications
Rate IT! seeks to reduce or eliminate the use of exclusionary discipline by addressing the
issue earlier in the process in an effort to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. Today, many
schools are seeking alternatives to excluding children primarily for behavior defined to be solely
disruptive or disrespectful in nature. The U.S. Department of Education states that unmet mental
health needs may manifest in ways that are not aligned with expectations of student behavior in
schools and that students of color experience more reactive and exclusionary responses to these
behaviors (2021). Schools have put resources and time into training on trauma informed
practices and exclusionary discipline does not align with these trainings. Schools are recognizing
that much of the externalized behavior they see from children is a symptom of some type of
traumatic event the student experienced. Schools are uniquely positioned to impact the effects of
16

this trauma in a positive way. The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this issue and brought
the need for social emotional learning in schools once again to the forefront. Legislation
approving funding for schools to increase social emotional learning was passed earlier this year,
increasing the ability of schools to access high-quality evidence-based curriculums. However,
without the ability for students to identify when to implement the skills they are learning, the
curriculums cannot truly impact those who need it the most. Rate IT! addresses this gap in
knowledge of when to implement skills, allowing students to take more control of their behavior
even when they are beginning to feel emotionally dysregulated. This control leads to fewer
behavior incidents. Decreased behavioral incidents will increase the students’ sense of belonging
in the classroom and school community and increase positive interactions between the student
and their teacher. Teachers will witness the success of the implementation of the self-regulation
skills at the appropriate time and begin to change their beliefs about behavior management in the
classroom, thus creating an openness to continuing interventions in the classroom as opposed to
utilizing exclusionary discipline. This effectively limits young Black males being sent out of the
classroom and falling victim to the school-to-prison pipeline. (see Appendix B and Appendix C
for the Logic Model and explanation).
Problems of Practice and Solutions/Innovations
Many young children struggle with emotional self-regulation. Without the needed skills,
knowledge of when to employ those skills, and reinforcement of the skills, the child may escalate
their behavior in the classroom as a way of expressing their emotions. This escalation,
unfortunately, often leads to the application of exclusionary discipline. Rate IT! seeks to reduce
or eliminate the use of exclusionary discipline by addressing behavioral issues earlier in the
emotional escalation process.
17

Disciplinary data from the 2017-2018 and 2018-2019 school years in the North Kansas
City School District indicates the need for the Rate It! program. Over the course of those two
school years, there were 12,808 total reported incidents of disrespectful or disruptive behavior
that resulted in the use of exclusionary discipline (North Kansas City School District, 2020). Of
these incidents 1,173 (9%) and 1,290 (10%) and involved 1
st
and 2nd grade students,
respectively. (North Kansas City School District, 2020). It is important to note that the grade
levels with the highest incidents were 6
th
, 5
th
, 4
th
, and 3
rd
, respectively (North Kansas City School
District, 2020). The question arises: If the undesired behavior was effectively mitigated in those
lower grade levels, would it result in fewer disrespectful or disruptive behavior incidents in
subsequent years? If students are taught self-regulation skills at a young age, given the resources
to objectively identify when they need to implement the skills they have learned, and are
subsequently reinforced for their execution of those skills at the appropriate time, there will be
fewer disruptive behavior incidents in classrooms. These decreased incidents will increase the
students’ sense of belonging in the classroom and school community, increase positive
interactions between the student and their teacher, change the belief system of the teacher on
how behavior can be managed in the classroom, and allow the student to have a greater sense of
control and autonomy. Ultimately the combination of these changes will lead to great success for
all students in school including young Black males, effectively eliminating the school-to-prison
pipeline.
The implications of Rate It! are far-reaching. The primary beneficiaries of this solution
are students who will benefit from the increased focus as a community of learners as a result of
fewer disruptions to the learning environment. Teachers will benefit from increased instructional
time, more positive interactions with their students, and improvement in self-efficacy regarding
18

classroom management. The positive outcomes of Rate IT! will radiate beyond the classroom to
positively impact other stakeholders as well (see Appendix D for the Stakeholder Analysis).
These impacts have the potential to not only shift disciplinary actions away from exclusionary
methods, but also instill self-regulating behaviors that better equip students to handle the myriad
problems they will inevitably encounter throughout their lives. These shifts and skills also work
to combat the school-to-prison pipeline beginning at an early age.
Although all students are detrimentally affected by the practice of exclusionary
discipline, the group most negatively impacted by systemic reliance on this method are young
Black males. Data spanning three school years in the North Kansas City School District reveals
that males committed 79% of the 2,463 incidents of disrespectful and disruptive behavior
incidents that led to exclusionary discipline in 1
st
and 2
nd
grades (North Kansas City School
District, 2020). Furthermore, 31% of the incidents were attributed to Black students. (North
Kansas City School District, 2020). The disparity in the use of exclusionary discipline for these
behaviors is clearly seen through the data for this district: Males represent only 49% of the total
population of 1
st
and 2
nd
grade students in the school district and Black students represent a mere
15% of the students in these grades (North Kansas City School District, 2020). As the Rate IT!
program begins to diminish the use of exclusionary discipline through the use of heart rate
monitors to warn students of impending emotional dysregulation, all students, including young
Black males, will benefit. Solely by remaining in the classroom while working through
emotionally triggering events rather than being removed as the result of problematic behavior,
Black male students will acquire additional opportunities to become more engaged in classroom
learning. Engagement will increase the likelihood of academic success. The intrinsic and
extrinsic rewards of academic success will then provide motivation to avoid delinquent
19

behaviors, which in turn will disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline and ensure the healthy
development of these youth.
Additional Considerations
Many times, students are singled out when their behavior creates a disruption in the
classroom. Moreover, some students experience greater difficulty with self-regulation than
others. In order to foster an environment where all students develop a sense of community, the
heart rate monitors would be issued to the entire class. This ensures that the Rate IT! program is
equitable and avoids the social stigma and potential trauma of being “singled out” in the
classroom. During the pilot, this same concept will be applied, by working with a group of
students who are in a pull-out group for academic interventions therefore the small group of
students all utilize the monitor. This small group will allow for problem-solving of any initial
issues encountered with the introduction of the monitors.
Students in the pilot school district currently receive social emotional instruction through
the Second Step program. To support and ensure continuity, Rate IT! is systematically integrated
into that curriculum. Second Step presents self-regulation methods in age-appropriate ways
intended to allow young students to accommodate the information and concepts. The Rate IT!
program builds on the learning, teaching the students about the connection between their
emotions and their body (including their heart rate) in developmentally appropriate ways.
Students will then be issued a heart rate monitor to wear on their wrist and establish their resting
heart rate. Next, practice scenarios will give opportunities to the students so they can observe
different aspect of the monitors. Students will be able to watch their heart rates increase, view the
monitor change colors, and implement some of the self-regulation skills they learned through
Second Step, such as calming breaths and positive self-talk (Second Step, 2019). To ensure that
20

the heart monitors do not create a distraction in the classroom, students would interact with the
monitors during specific instructional periods for several weeks prior to wearing them
throughout the school day. This approach has proven successful when issuing other electronic
devices to students in this age group in North Kansas City School District.
Finally, in order to continue to motivate students to monitor their heart rate and utilize
their calming plan, they will receive electronic badges through a software system on their iPads
as a reward when they successfully follow their plan. In order to earn an electronic badge, the
monitor must indicate that the student had an elevated heart rate and has implemented self-
regulatory skills in order to slow the heart rate. When the system recognizes the elevation and
subsequent calming within a certain amount of time, the child will be prompted to record on their
iPad which skill they employed and are then rewarded with the electronic badge.
As with any innovative solution, there are potential barriers to successful implementation
of the Rate IT! system. First, it is imperative that instructional materials provided to teachers be
easily incorporated into the Second Step curriculum currently utilized in North Kansas City
District classrooms. The materials must be developed and presented in a way that avoids both a
real or perceived concept of increasing teacher workload. It is also important to adequately
communicate the benefits of the Rate IT! program to ensure parents give consent for their child
to participate. The quality and clarity of the explanatory materials provided to parents will play a
large role in gaining parental confidence and consent. Lastly, the addition of another electronic
device to the classroom setting could create an unwanted distraction detrimental to the impact of
the program.
The Rate IT! program was developed within the framework of a theory of change (See
Appendix A for the Theory of Change). Rate IT! specifically addresses the overuse of
21

exclusionary discipline tactics with young students and its subsequent impact on the school-to-
prison pipeline. It is important to note that there are many basic underlying assumptions which
undergird the Rate IT! program. To further understand the Rate IT! theory of change and those
basic assumptions, the proposed solution is supported by a logic model (See Appendix B for
Logic Model and Appendix C for the Narrative for Logic Model).
Project Structure, Methodology, and Action Components
The overuse of exclusionary discipline in the public school system is a problem of
practice. These practices have developed over many years and are sustained in the public school
system because they are now viewed as the social norms. Students are expected to behave or risk
being sent out of the classroom regardless of the reason for their behavior. The impacts of the
zero tolerance policies implemented in the 1980s have deprived students of educational
opportunities while simultaneously failing to make schools safer places (Gonzalez, 2012). Yet
schools persist in their efforts to move disruptive students out instead of implementing programs
and responses that teach them how to manage their emotions and behavior and keep them in the
classroom. These norms of utilizing exclusionary tactics must be addressed including both the
practices used and the beliefs held by staff. The Rate IT! system attempts to do just that while
also giving students more control over their experience.
To test this theoretical concept, a prototype was developed in order to show the overall
change framework and the user experiences of the Rate IT! program (see Appendix E for
Journey Maps). This particular type of prototype is an important component of the design
process because it allows stakeholders to better understand the intended process and overall goal
of the program. This prototype allows end users to view the framework for how the norms of the
classroom will change relative to exclusionary discipline and to view different points in time
22

from the users’ perspective and give feedback for implementation. Prior to the pilot, ongoing
feedback sessions with stakeholders were held in order to ensure proof of concept before
beginning. Teachers and students are the most important voices for this feedback; however,
parents and school administrators can also utilize this prototype for further understanding. Lastly,
potential funders seeking information regarding how the program will impact students and
school staff will find the journey maps helpful in increasing their knowledge and understanding.
Advantages
A distinct advantage of this innovation is the relative low cost both financially and in the
amount of time needed to implement the innovation comparative to the potential positive
outcomes (see Appendix F for the Project Budgets). Current solutions demand high costs and
high time commitments from staff for training and implementation. These solutions merely teach
the social skills needed to promote improved behavior in the classroom but lack the ability to
connect the skills to the precise moment they need to be implemented. As discussed previously,
many studies indicate positive outcomes from social skills training including improved social,
emotional, and behavioral adjustment; however, there was little connection to improvements in
school success overall (Goldberg et al., 2018). Furthermore, studies show positive impacts on
classroom behavior from the use of small groups to teaching calming techniques such as
mindfulness; yet, students do not always utilize these skills when their behaviors escalate
(Malboeuf-Hurtubise et al., 2018). Due to the ability of this solution to indicate to students
exactly when to utilize their learned skills and the perceived connection between decreased
externalized behaviors and increased time in classroom, the already low cost of the program
becomes nominal to school districts.

23

Compatibility
The proposed solution aligns seamlessly with current practices in schools and seeks to
enhance the effectiveness of these interventions. Many schools teach social emotional skills and
see some positive impacts as a result. Despite this, students who struggle with intense
externalized behaviors are not often able to access their knowledge of self-regulation skills in a
timely manner. The proposal of incorporating a wearable heart rate monitor into the classroom to
indicate a potential escalation in behavior is predicated on previous use of heart rate monitors in
the school setting. Many studies have been conducted on the use of heart rate monitors in
physical education classes in schools. Dating back to the 1990’s, these studies showed positive
outcomes related to increasing physical fitness with minimal distractions or negative issues
associated with the monitor itself (Strand & Reeder, 1993; Bendiksen et al., 2014). Clearly there
is a difference between the academic classroom setting and the physical education. However, the
precedence exists for the successful use of monitors within the school setting.
Acceptability
In respect to incorporating technology into the classroom, it is likely there will be a high
level of acceptability of the devices by both staff and teachers. This is evidenced by the increased
adaptability of classrooms to and acceptance of technology over the past decade. Research
abounds on the acceptability of technology in classrooms and teacher willingness to adapt new
ways of teaching utilizing these devices. One study by Scherer et al., states it is likely teachers
will accept a new technology if they see it as relevant for a specific approach in the area they are
teaching (2019). This aligns with feedback gained in focus groups from teachers to date. It is
important in the context of the proposed solution to ensure that both teachers and students
24

understand the purpose and relevance for the use of the heart rate monitors to increase
acceptance in the classroom.
Financial Plans
The costs for implementing this intervention are nominal in comparison to many other
programs. This is due in part to very few personnel costs associated with the intervention. In the
start-up phase, about $10,000 is budgeted for the founder position. In the first full year of
operation this amounts to approximately $8,000 (see Appendix F for the Project Budgets).
Because both the start-up and first full year of operation phases of this intervention occur in a
school district as a part of the overall behavior management strategy, the founder will be able to
incorporate much of the work into their normal work duties. Therefore, the work is in-kind and
will not include additional benefits for this person in either phase. The primary focus of the
founder in both phases is the development of the curriculum and oversight of the
implementation. The founder will interact with the implementation staff, oversee the software
development, and manage the associated technology. Lastly, the founder serves as a liaison
between the staff implementing the program and parents of the students in the classrooms
receiving the intervention to determine best ways to foster collaboration.
Beyond the personnel costs, the majority of the money for the start-up and first full year
of operations for the Rate IT! program is earmarked for other associated costs. This includes
contracted work for software development, curriculum development, and consulting. These costs
are expected to be approximately $10,000 during the start-up phase and $5,000 during the first
full year of operations (see Appendix F for the Project Budgets). The software is a vital piece of
the intervention and as such it is important to invest appropriately during the start-up phase.
After this initial cost, ongoing consultation is important to ensure the software is operating at an
25

optimal level. Software developers are needed to add the ability to distribute electronic rewards
into the current software, or alternatively, create a completely new software program and provide
the consultation on that software in subsequent years.
Funds are budgeted to pay for ongoing coaching and consultation throughout the start-up
and first full year of operation phase. Coaching and consulting serve as a means to motivate
teachers to implement the program even if they encounter barriers along the way. The coaching
and consultation help to ensure fidelity as the coaches monitor the implementation of the
program. During the start-up phase, the cost is budgeted at approximately $5,000 and increases
to $15,000 as the program expands during the first full year of operation (see Appendix F for the
Project Budgets). Funds are also budgeted for teachers to compensate them for training time
outside of their normal work hours. At the onset of the start-up phase, six hours of training will
be given to six staff members who will serve as implementers and as coaches at a cost of
approximately $1,000. During the first full year of operations, this cost increases to $2,500 for
the training of 14 additional staff members (see Appendix F for Project Budgets).
Money is also allocated for the purchasing of materials such as the heart rate monitors,
the software to accompany them, and hard copy materials. This cost for the needed technology is
approximately $5K during the start-up phase and $10K for the first year of operations (see
Appendix F for Project Budgets). During the first full year of operations, $1K is budgeted for the
purchase of a computer that will be dedicated to monitoring the software for the program. In
order to assist students in learning the strategies and to inform parents, funds are budgeted for the
printing of paper materials. This includes posters for the classroom with reminders about the
Rate IT! process and what students should look for as indicators on their heart rate monitors. In
addition, brochures and/or one-page flyers about the program will be printed and disseminated to
26

families. During the start-up phase the anticipated cost is $3,000 which will increase to $5,000
during the first full year of operations as the program expands to more classrooms and students
(see Appendix F for Project Budgets).
Although the program is set to become part of a larger non-profit organization at some
point, money is budgeted in the amount of $1,000 during the start-up phase for an LLC
application in order to protect the founder of the program as the work is incorporated into their
place of employment. This cost is paid directly by the founder and not taken from the initial
revenue for the program. Lastly, the program includes money budgeted for a research evaluator
during the start-up phase in the amount of $4,000 to provide an outside perspective on the
implementation and overall effectiveness of the program (see Appendix F for Project Budgets).
This evaluation will assist in future marketing of Rate IT! as an evidence-based program.
Projected revenue for Rate IT! will evolve over time as the scope of the project grows.
The intent of this project is that the Rate IT! program will be marketed through a non-profit
organization. Initially, the project is planned to commence in a school district as a piece of the
overall behavior management strategy. The money to fund the start-up phase is part of a grant
which the school district receives for services to students. As such, the project is neither a non-
profit nor a for-profit organization. Rather, it will be operating as part of a public sector
organization as one program within that organization. This type of operation requires an
agreement between the founder and the school district to allow the program to operate under its
auspices. Due to the nature of this type of operation, the personnel costs for the founder will be
donated as in-kind revenue since the founder will be incorporating this work as part of their
regular job duties.

27

Detailed Revenue Plans
As mentioned in the strategy above, the start-up phase and subsequent year of this project
utilizes a grant awarded to the school district. This grant is given by the Children’s Services
Fund Board and is the result of a sales tax in the county where the pilot school district is located.
The overall grant for the district is $2.7 million for the 2021-22 school year. This project will
require $28,000 of that grant for the start-up phase. The first full year of operation, the project
will require $38,500 (see Appendix F for the Project Budgets). The entire Children’s Services
Fund budget for that year is not yet determined, but the school district has already stipulated that
this project will be included in the subsequent budget.
The personnel costs for the project, both in the start-up phase and the first full year of
operation, are donated as in-kind services. This is due to the founder working on the project in
conjunction with their normal job duties. During the start-up phase, the in-kind donation for
development work by the founder is in the amount of $10,000. In the subsequent year, the in-
kind donation for the continued work of overseeing the expansion and implementation in
additional classrooms, along with the training of additional staff, is in the amount of $8,000 (see
Appendix F for Project Budgets). Together, the grant funds and in-kind donations are enough to
fund the project for two years and provide data for future expansion and adoption by other school
districts who can then leverage American Recovery Act funds targeted for the implementation of
social emotional learning programs.
Implementation and Evaluation
It is important to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed solution both in terms of
creating the expected outcomes and, in terms of the implementation. Observation by the project
designer will occur during the pilot program, and changes can be made to how the curriculum is
28

taught, how students receive notifications, how they are instructed to follow their plans, and how
they receive feedback/rewards on their device. Additionally, observations will give insight into
how the children are responding to the wearable heart rate monitors, including the level of
distraction they create. It is important in the pilot phase to determine if the chosen wearable
monitors are effective at helping students easily identify an increase in heart rate.
To ensure the program is being implemented with fidelity, checklists will be provided to
the staff teaching the curriculum and classroom observations will occur during some teaching
periods to ensure consistency between classrooms. Fidelity checklists related to the introduction
of the heart rate monitors to students and explicit information will be provided to staff regarding
addressing student behavior in the classroom during the test period. Observations of the
implementation phase will allow feedback on the aforementioned elements through a formative
evaluation. Information will be gathered from student interviews throughout the pilot to gauge
the student perception of the implementation of the proposed solution.
Finally, the Implementation Process Assessment Tool (IPAT) will be utilized to
determine whether the program is adopted, used, and sustained by the target audience. This tool
is a 27-item survey targeting the implementation staff which in this case is the classroom teacher
(Hartveit et al., 2019). The questions on this survey address individual attitudes of those
implementing the intervention. This knowledge is important as it is unlikely the program will be
implemented with fidelity if the teachers approach it negatively. Teachers will complete the
survey after the pilot is completed.
Several measures will be used to determine overall success of the proposed solution. At
the onset of the program, the desired outcome is students using their heart rate monitors to
successfully identify when they need to employ a calming strategy. This can be measured
29

through observations and tracking the heart rate on the teacher monitoring software. Intermediate
outcomes include a reduction in the number of documented behavior incidents that result in
removal from the classroom, an increase in the positive climate indicators in the classroom as
measured through the Panorama survey, and an increase of student scores on classroom
assessments. The Panorama Student Survey is currently used in the pilot district and captures
student perceptions on topics such as student engagement, pedagogical effectiveness, school
climate, and safety (Panorama, 2021). Long-term outcomes include a reduction in the rate of
exclusionary discipline in a school or district, an increase in feelings of school community as
reported by students, an increase in students graduating high school, and ultimately, a decrease in
the number of Black males incarcerated. Many of these indicators are tracked by school districts
through their own data collection processes.
Communication Products and Strategies
Effective communication is essential to the success of any innovative solution. To ensure
a successful launch, teachers will learn information pertinent to the program through training and
ongoing coaching and assistance. First, training and coaching will be conducted by the project
designer. Subsequent training will be conducted via a train-the-trainer model. Teachers are an
integral part of this project due to the lack of fidelity in implementation that may occur without
teacher buy-in to the goals and objectives of the program.
Students will learn about the program through classroom instruction of social emotional
learning. The initial training necessary with students will be conducted during this time and will
require three additional lessons built into the social emotional training curriculum. The lessons
will be incorporated into the Emotion Management unit in the Second Step curriculum (see
Appendix G for the Sample Lesson and Calming Plan).
30

Finally, parents are also a vital part of this process. Prior to the implementation of the
program, parents will be sent information regarding Rate IT!, its purpose (including pictures of
the heart rate monitors), and resources to consult for additional information. Parents will be
invited to a parent session offered both in person and online where they can ask questions
directly of school staff and view the heart rate monitors. Parents will also receive regular reports
of how their child is doing in class with the heart rate monitor and the calming tactics. Families
will be offered information and activities to reinforce this work at home since the child will only
have access to the heart rate monitor during the school day. Furthermore, the Second Step
curriculum offers family activity connections which can provide supplemental information about
social emotional learning in general.
Ethical Concerns and Negative Impacts
Any project design must consider potential negative consequences; this is especially true
when working with vulnerable populations such as children. The project implementation must be
monitored for negative impacts not only to individual students, but also to the classroom
environment. Students could potentially misuse the program and attempt to use their calming
plan as an “escape” from work in the classroom. Additionally, students could find the monitors
distracting and lose academic time as a result. Finally, if students must move around the
classroom as a part of their calming plan, the movement could become a distraction in the
classroom and disrupt the learning environment. These concerns were discussed with teachers
and other stakeholders and do not pose enough of a concern to prevent piloting the program, but
care should be taken to closely monitor the issues.
Regarding ethical concerns, an issue arose during a focus group which equated the use of
heart rate monitors to the use of tracking devices employed by the criminal justice system. To
31

date, this concern has not been identified in subsequent focus groups. However, it is important to
evaluate whether this concern resonates with other relevant stakeholders as it could impact
whether the program is ethically sound.
Conclusions, Actions, and Implications
Rate IT! has the ability to change the way behavior is managed in the classroom, create
an increased sense of community among students and their teachers, and keep more students in
school, thereby disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline. Through fidelity in the development,
implementation, and evaluation of the program, Rate IT! will assist in decreasing racial disparity
in school discipline, particularly through a decrease in exclusionary discipline. Rate IT! is easily
scalable and can be replicated in multiple classrooms after the initial start-up for a relatively low
cost. Since the majority of program costs are related to software development, many of the
initial costs will fall off in subsequent years as the program expands. Moreover, the project is
self- sustainable as the success of the program in classrooms will encourage other teachers to
implement it with fidelity in their own classrooms to achieve the same level of success.
There is a clear connection between exclusionary discipline practices and dropout rates
indicating that these practices may ultimately lead to involvement with the criminal justice
system. Currently in the public school system, data shows that students are disciplined using
exclusionary tactics far too often. According to the data, young Black males are at an even
greater risk for removal from the classroom in response to disruptive behavior than their peers.
Rate IT! has the ability to positively impact these racial disparities and close the gap in school
discipline by keeping students in the classroom and changing teacher attitude about exclusionary
discipline tactics.
32

The Rate IT! program is a relatively low cost, easy to implement, low risk option for
decreasing the use of exclusionary discipline. Rate IT! offers the ability to connect the skills
students learn for self-regulation with a method of knowing exactly when to utilize these skills in
the classroom through the use of a heart rate monitor. This method of connecting the skills to the
time for implementation is the missing link in current classroom behavior management systems.
Schools need interventions which are effective and easily implemented with low levels of time
commitment and very little financial impact. Rate IT! fits that bill. It is crucial we empower
students to make choices about their experiences during the school day to help them feel heard
and connected. This program offers students choice and control in managing their behavior.
Children deserve to feel they belong in their classroom environment. This innovative solution
offers an opportunity to increase that sense of belonging and disrupt the school-to-prison
pipeline.
Returning to school in the midst of a global pandemic is a critical time. Children across
the country are dealing with stress and trauma exacerbated by the pandemic. It is crucial that
these problems are addressed now. The proposed solution offers a way for students to gain
control and autonomy over their behavior and their classroom experience, increasing the
likelihood of academic and future success. The Rate IT! solution can be implemented in any
classroom in the country. Given the program’s low cost, funding required to ensure success is
less difficult to obtain. Stakeholders must implore school districts to prioritize social emotional
learning, implementation of programs such as Rate IT! to support that learning, and to find
alternatives to traditional exclusionary discipline. These proactive steps, rooted in prevention
over cure, allow for important strides in achieving the goals of the Grand Challenge of Social
Work in ensuring the healthy development of all youth. Children deserve to feel they belong in
33

their classroom and enjoy the same opportunities as their peers. Rate IT! offers the chance to
disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline by introducing a preventative strategy to the classroom
which reduces the disparities currently seen in public school discipline.

34

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40

Appendix A
Theory of Change

Appendix B
What is the
problem you are
trying to solve?

Decrease reliance
on exclusionary
discipline
methods in public
school to disrupt
the school-to-
prison pipeline
Who is your key
audience?

Black males in 1
st

and 2
nd
grade
What is your
entry point to
reaching your
audience?

Preventing
disruptive
behavior in the
classroom
without adult
intervention
through
student self-
regulation
What steps are
needed to bring
about change?

Explicit classroom
instruction on
heart rates
Explicit classroom
instruction on the
body’s response
to emotions

Student-guided
utilization of
calming
strategies
without adult
intervention
Motivation to
employ calming
techniques
Quantifiable data
to support
continued
implementation

What is the
measurable effect
of your work?
Students self-
monitoring heart
rate
Student
implementing
calming plans
What are the
wider benefits of
your work?

Students will
utilize these skills
outside of school

What is the long-
term change you
see as your goal?
Decrease in the
school-to-prison
pipeline
resulting in
fewer
incarcerations
increased
financial
success.

Less racial
disparity in
school
discipline.
Key assumptions
Pipeline is driven
by exclusionary
discipline
Key assumptions
Disruptive
behavior is caused
by emotional
dysregulation
Key assumptions
SEL and
implementation
of skills will
decrease behavior
Key assumptions
Focus on early
grade levels will
lead to change in
later grades
Key assumptions
Calming tactics
will decrease
behavior issues
Key assumptions
Students will
continue to use
strategies learned
Stakeholders
Criminal justice
system
School system
Parents
Students
Wider benefits?
Increased
academic success
Greater
emotional
growth
Wider benefits?
Increase in sense
community in
school
Decrease in use
of exclusionary
discipline
Measurable
effect?
Increase in
school belonging
Decrease in
delinquent
behavior
Change in
teacher beliefs
Measurable
effect?
Decrease in
disruptive
behavior in class
Increased
instructional
time
41

Logic Model
Name: Janelle Porter
Date: September 17, 2021
Capstone Project: Disrupting the School-to-Prison Pipeline

Goal: To decrease the number of exclusionary discipline incidents used in 1
st
and 2
nd
grade classrooms
INPUTS ACTIVITIES OUTCOMES
What we invest What we do Who we reach
Why this project:
short-term results
Why this project:
intermediate results
Why this project:
long-term results
Teacher and
student time for
training

Cost of heart
monitors

Cost of social-
emotional learning
curriculum

Cost of software
development

Time and cost of
data analysis
Teach students
about heart rate
and the connection
to a change in
emotions

Teach students
self-calming
strategies

Create self-calming
plans for student
guided use

Teach students to
identify appropriate
times to use plans
Students in grades 1
and 2

Teachers in these
classrooms

Young black
students who
struggle with
emotional regulation
and disruptive
behavior in the
classroom
Students will utilize the
monitors to identify how
their heart rate changes
with their emotions

Students will utilize
heart rate monitors to
effectively identify times
to implement their
calming plans without
intervention from adults

Increased instructional
time as a result of
improvements in
classroom behavior
Measurable decrease
in disruptive behavior
in the classroom
compared to the
baseline level

Increase in sense of
community in the
classroom and school
Measurable
decreased in incidents
leading to the use of
exclusionary discipline

Increase in high
school graduation
rates for Black males

Decrease in
incarceration rates of
Black males

Assumptions
Students will utilize the heart rate monitors to effectively identify
when to implement a calming plan
Disruptive and disrespectful behavior happens because children
are emotionally dysregulated and could be avoided if
interventions occurred when the child initially becomes agitated
External Factors
COVID-19 protocols may restrict in-person classroom instruction and a
different instructional environment may affect student behavior and the
ability to implement this program
May not be able to pilot intervention during COVID
42

Appendix C
Narrative for Logic Model
The logic model for the Capstone Project provides a concise outline of the inputs,
activities, and outcomes of the Rate IT! pilot program as well as assumptions and external factors
as they relate to achieving the ultimate goal of disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline. The
initial inputs for this project can be categorized in terms of time and cost. Specifically, time will
be needed to ensure that students and teachers will learn about resting heart rates and how
different emotions will cause an elevation in heart rate. Additionally, time will be needed for
students to learn techniques that calm the body to restore the heart rate to its resting rate. These
calming techniques will come from additional lessons in the Second Step social emotional
curriculum being used in the classroom; therefore, the creation of additional lessons is another
time input for the project. Cost oriented inputs are primarily composed of the cost of the heart
rate monitors, the cost of software development, and the cost of analyzing data after the
implementation of the project.
Activities which the students and teacher will engage in include learning about the heart
rate and the connection to emotions, learning and practicing different calming strategies, creating
calming plans, and identifying appropriate times and spaces to implement the calming plans. The
goal through these activities is to reach all of the students in the classroom and their teachers.
Through these activities, students who struggle with behavioral issues as a result of emotional
dysregulation will be reached.
This project includes short, medium, and long-term goals. In the short-term, students will
utilize the heart rate monitors to identify how their heart rate changes with their emotions and
effectively identify when to implement their calming plans without intervention from adults.
43

Students will gain an increase in instructional time as a result of the improvements in their
classroom behavior. In regard to medium-term outcomes, there will be a measurable decrease in
the number of disruptive behavioral events in the classroom as compared to the baseline measure
and an increase in the sense of community in the classroom and school. Finally, long-term
outcomes will include a measurable decrease in exclusionary discipline incidents, an increase in
high school graduation rates for Black males, and a decrease in incarceration rates of Black
males.
There are key assumptions involved in this model including the idea that students will
remain engaged in using the heart rate monitors and will correctly identify when to implement
their calming plan. Also, it is assumed that disruptive behavior happens because children are
emotionally dysregulated and that this could be avoided if interventions occurred earlier when
the child first becomes dysregulated. Finally, COVID-19 could potentially have large impacts on
the implementation and piloting of this project. If students are not in the classroom and are
learning remotely, the original plan for implementation of a pilot would not work. If students are
in the classroom but are on a hybrid schedule with significantly fewer students in the classroom,
this could have direct impacts on the outcomes of the project as well. It must be considered that
if instruction is being delivered differently due to COVID-19, the results of the pilot may not be
generalizable to the typical classroom setting.

44

Appendix D
Stakeholder Analysis Matrix
Stakeholder
Name
Contact Person
Phone, Email, Website,
Address
Impact
How much does
the project
impact them?
(Low, Medium,
High)
Influence
How much
influence do
they have over
the project?
(Low, Medium,
High)
What is
important to
the
stakeholder?
How could the
stakeholder
contribute to
the project?
How could the
stakeholder
block the
project?
Strategy for
engaging the
stakeholder
Teacher (1
st
grade teacher) High High Time spent
teaching
Actively engaging
in the intervention
Not implementing
the project with
fidelity or not
encouraging
students to
participate
Through training
and
implementation,
the teacher will see
the potential
positive impacts
with little time
investment on their
part
Student (Students in 1
st
grade pilot
classroom)
High High Sense of belonging
in the classroom
Willingness to
participate
Not participating,
being distracted
by the monitors,
utilizing the
monitors as a
ways to avoid
work
Motivating
students through
fun training and
encouraging the
attainment of
electronic badges
Heart Math Jeff Goelitz
Director of Education
(831) 338-8713
jgoelitz@heartmath.org
Medium Low Providing the
technology and
expertise to ensure
success
Unwillingness to
participate in
developing
additional
software
Willingness to
collaborate on
other projects and
offering ideas for
how this project
may benefit the
existing project in
his company
45

Stakeholder
Name
Contact Person
Phone, Email, Website,
Address
Impact
How much does
the project
impact them?
(Low, Medium,
High)
Influence
How much
influence do
they have over
the project?
(Low, Medium,
High)
What is
important to
the
stakeholder?
How could the
stakeholder
contribute to
the project?
How could the
stakeholder
block the
project?
Strategy for
engaging the
stakeholder
School Principal (Principal of school where
pilot will occur)
High High Academic success
for the school
Supporting the
teacher to try the
intervention
Not allowing the
project to exist in
the school or
continuing to
remove students
from the room
without the
opportunity to
implement their
plan
Ensure limited time
investment of the
teacher and
principal and offer
support and
coaching during
implementation
Parent (Specific parent not
determined)
Medium Medium Student remaining
in the classroom
and at school and
being successful
Giving permission
for student to
participate and
reinforcing skills at
home
Not allowing their
child to
participate or
undermining the
ideas at home
Offer information
and a parent
session where
parents can ask
questions about
the program
District
Administrator
Dr. Perry Hilvitz
Asst. Superintendent of
Student Services
816-321-4821
2000 NE 46
th
St. KCMO
64116
Perry.hilvitz@nkcschools.org
Medium High Fewer exclusionary
discipline incidents
Providing the
needed resources
for the program
Not supporting
the project
Offering the
possible positive
outcomes and
showing the
limited potential
for negative
outcomes
Board of Education Jan Kauk
Jan.kauk@nkcschools.org
Low High Student academic
success
Approving the
program and
resources
Not approving
the project pilot in
the classroom
Offering the
possible positive
outcomes and
showing the
limited potential
46

Stakeholder
Name
Contact Person
Phone, Email, Website,
Address
Impact
How much does
the project
impact them?
(Low, Medium,
High)
Influence
How much
influence do
they have over
the project?
(Low, Medium,
High)
What is
important to
the
stakeholder?
How could the
stakeholder
contribute to
the project?
How could the
stakeholder
block the
project?
Strategy for
engaging the
stakeholder
for negative
outcomes
County Juvenile
Detention Officer
Janet Rogers
Juvenile Officer
816-736-8400
Low Low Fewer students in
juvenile detention
or on probation
Providing verbal
support for the
program
Speaking out
against the
project or not
offering support
Speaking to the
potential to
positively impact
the juvenile justice
system
County Children’s
Services Fund
Board
Deb Hermann
4420 NE Chouteau
Trafficway, Suite 100
Kansas City, MO 64117

816-454-2000 (office)

deb_hermann@nni.org

Low High Money being spent
appropriately on
effective
interventions for
children
Approving the
spending of money
from the Children’s
Services Fund on
the project
Not allowing the
money to be
spent on the
project
Directly connect to
the goals of the
board

47

Appendix E
Journey Maps

48

49

50

Prototype Description
The prototype chosen for the Rate IT! program is a framework and journey maps. The
framework depicts the COM-B model of behavioral change (Michie, van Stralen, & West, 2011).
This model identifies the need to have capacity, motivation, and opportunity to create behavioral
change. The first journey map depicts the belief and subsequent behavioral change which occurs
with teachers which leads to a decrease in the racial disparities seen in school discipline. It is
important that stakeholders see how the racial disparities will decrease with the program since
that is a long-term outcome of implementing Rate IT! in the classroom. The important piece of
this change is the belief shift of teachers who previously thought if a child begins to escalate in
the classroom, they must be removed from class to manage their behavior. The Rate IT! program
offers an alternative path for managing behavior which allows students to stay in the classroom
and be more involved in their own de-escalation and behaviors. Teachers are trained in a short
two-hour workshop to understand how the heart rate monitors work, the goal for the program,
the outcome measures, and how to teach the students. Students will be trained utilizing additional
lesson plans which build off of the Emotion Management unit in the Second Step curriculum.
Once teachers are trained, they have the capacity to change their interactions with students
struggling with behavior in the classroom. It is important teachers see the success occurring in
the classroom by students self-regulating and rejoining the class, so they are motivated to
continue implementation with fidelity by allowing students to access time for calming
techniques. Finally, teachers have an opportunity to change interactions with students by not
sending them out of the classroom when they become emotionally dysregulated.
The second journey map represents the experience of Jordan. Jordan is apprehensive as
the day begins. Jordan then experiences a trigger in the classroom and becomes frustrated. The
51

teacher is concerned because she is worried things will escalate. Another student laughs at
Jordan and he becomes angrier. At this point he is escalating and gets out of his desk to confront
the other student. The teacher is shocked at his behavior and Jordan is sent out of the room. The
teacher then feels relief and Jordan is sad because he is disconnected from his peers. The third
journey map depicts implementation of the program in the classroom with a particular behavior
escalation process and shows the experience of Daniel, a second-grade student. Class begins and
both he and his teacher are excited for the day to begin. Daniel then experiences a trigger in the
classroom which frustrates him, and his teacher becomes concerned. Daniel is notified by his
monitor that his heart rate is increasing. He then implements his calming plan and is focused on
calming himself because he knows he is becoming emotionally dysregulated. The teacher
watches on with concern and apprehension. Daniel finishes his calming techniques and rejoins
the class. The teacher is happy and relieved, and Daniel is feeling very proud of himself.
The Rate IT! program addresses a problem of practice, and the technology is not new.
Therefore, it is not necessary to show how the technology works as part of the prototype. The
intent is to determine if the practice can be implemented effectively in a classroom. This
prototype is intended to show stakeholders the change in belief and practice which will occur and
the subsequent change in outcome in the classroom and with the student. The prototype should
help stakeholders identify where they may see potential issues or feel that something will not
work the way it is indicated for implementation. Stakeholders who saw a similar version of this
prototype felt that it laid out the intent of the program well and helped them identifying potential
sticking points. The teachers who reviewed the similar prototype asked questions about how the
product worked based on what the saw in the prototype. Beyond teachers, parents may use this
prototype as an easy-to-understand explanation of how this program will change things in their
52

student’s classroom and why it would be a benefit for their student. Lastly since children are
involved in the design and are beneficiaries of the program, this prototype is easy to understand
and utilizes pictures which are helpful in explaining Rate IT! to students and gathering their
feedback.

53

Appendix F
Project Budgets

54

55

Appendix G
Sample Lesson and Calming Plan
Lesson: Physical Reactions to Emotions (Heart rate)

Lesson Concepts:
• Physical cues can indicate emotional responses
• Increase in heart rate relates to strong emotional feelings
• Heart rate can be tracked by a monitor to help us know when it is increasing

Key Words
Heart rate, emotions, escalation, monitor, recognize

Why This Lesson Matters
When we have strong emotions, we typically have clues from our body that those emotions are
happening. Sometimes these physical cues are happening in our body before our mind realizes
that we are having strong feelings. Sometimes when our feelings get too strong, it is difficult to
make good choices and not take out our feelings on others. Heart rate monitors assist us in
recognizing the physical cues in our body that our emotions are increasing. We can use the
monitor to help us know when to take a break and work on calming down before we act out.

Using Skills Every Day
Have students give examples of when they might have strong feelings and need to calm down.

Teachers should try to notice when students are beginning to feel strong emotions and reinforce
their ability to recognize the change in their body by giving specific feedback: I notice that you
are moving around a lot while you are talking to me, are you beginning to feel upset? What
are you feeling in your body?
• Model identifying feelings in your own body
• Encourage students to do the same throughout the day

Lesson

56

Starter:
1. Discuss with students what physical body changes means and have each student share
with the class one change that happens to their body when they are running around and
playing for a long time (e.g., sweat, breathe hard, face turns red, legs feel funny, heart
pounds). Have students work in pairs to brainstorm some reasons why they think our
bodies experience these changes.
2. On a whiteboard or a large piece of paper, draw a table with two columns and label one
column before and one after. Have the students share examples of the way our body feels
before we engage in physical activity (e.g., calm, cool, slow breathing, peaceful).
3. Now explain to students that they are going to engage in physical activity for 1 minute
and then they will fill out the after column indicating how their body feels. Ensure
students do some warm-up stretches and then time students for one minute doing jumping
jacks. At the end of the minute, tell students to stop and describe how they feel now,
recording the responses in the ‘After’ column. Ask students to find their hearts and see if
they can feel how their hearts are beating.

Body:
1. Explain to students that much like physical activity, our bodies have responses to
emotional activity as well. Ask students to give examples of strong emotions (e.g., anger,
joy, excitement, sadness). Can use additional activity here.
2. Explain to students that increased heart rate is an important indicator that our bodies give
us in response to both physical activity and emotional escalation. The heart bests faster
and pumps more oxygen around the body through the arteries (the vessels that carry
blood around the body). As your heart beats, it sends a wave of pressure through all the
arteries in your body. You can feel this pressure in some areas of the body (such as when
the artery passes over a piece of bone) and we call this your pulse.
3. Explain for the activity they are about to do they will be measuring their heart rate
through the use of a heart rate monitor that tells us what our pulse rate is or how many
bests per minute your heart is beating. Pass out heart rate monitors to all students and
remind them how to wear them on their wrist and how to see what their resting heart rate
is.
4. Have students work in pairs and time each other engaging in activity for one minute.
Have students predict them measure, their pulse rate as they engage in different types of
physical activity.
5. Discuss what students noticed as a whole group.

Additional activity:
Students may use the attached activity sheets to indicate the feelings they have in their bodies in
response to emotions. Each student should be given one of both sheets along with: scissors,
crayons, and glue or tape.
57

58

59

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Asset Metadata

Creator Porter, Janelle Elizabeth (author)

Core Title Rate IT!: A classroom solution to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline through the analysis of student heart rates

School Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work

Degree Doctor of Social Work

Degree Program Social Work

Degree Conferral Date 2021-12

Publication Date 01/02/2022

Defense Date 11/23/2021

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag heart rate,OAI-PMH Harvest,racial disproportionality,school discipline,school-to-prison pipeline

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Smith-Maddox, Rene (committee chair), Blosnich, John (committee member), Fatouros, Cassandra (committee member)

Creator Email janelle.porter@nkcschools.org,janellee@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC110455718

Unique identifier UC110455718

Legacy Identifier etd-PorterJane-10324

Document Type Capstone project

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Porter, Janelle Elizabeth

Type texts

Source 20220112-usctheses-batch-907 (batch), University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

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Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA

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