The authors report on an independent, two-year evaluation of a universal prevention program, implemented in kindergarten and first grade classrooms to determine the program’s effectiveness in increasing pro-social behaviors and reducing aggressive behaviors.
This paper presents the results of an independent, two-year evaluation of the I Can Problem Solve (ICPS) universal prevention program, implemented in kindergarten and first grade classrooms in a racially and ethnically diverse urban school district. Matched pairs of schools were assigned to Instruction (i.e., treatment) or Control status. Teachers assessed students' behaviors at pre- and post-implementation using two different rating scales. Overall, the authors found support for the effectiveness of ICPS in increasing pro-social behaviors and in reducing aggressive behaviors. The mean change scores of both scales showed a significant additive effect, with children (n = 96) receiving two years of ICPS instruction showing greater improvement than both children receiving one year of ICPS instruction (n = 106) as well as the two-year Control students (n = 24). The authors were selected by the school district to evaluate ICPS and are not affiliated with the program. Publisher Abstract Provided