Engagement as an Alternative to Noncompliance Measurement: Promoting Validity, Accuracy, and Student Outcomes

Abstract

While noncompliance is a concerning challenging behavior and commonly reported by educators, its measurement is likely to be invalid and inaccurate given the subjectivity of the operational definition. Engagement is offered as a more valid, accurate measurement that may provide data regarding the amount of instruction accessed by the student. In this article, we outline limitations of noncompliance measurement and provide resources for educators to measure and support varying forms of engagement to improve student outcomes.