Supporting students with challenging behavior requires more than responding to behaviors after they occur. In his interview at the 2026 Inclusive Classrooms Summit, Dr. Ross Greene Ph.D explained why many school systems are “set up to be late” when responding to student behavior – and what educators, therapists, and school teams can do differently. Drawing from his work in Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) and his latest book, The Kids Who Aren’t Okay, Dr. Greene shared how shifting the focus from behavior to unsolved problems can help schools move from crisis management to true prevention.
Why Schools Are Often “Set Up to Be Late”
According to Dr. Greene, focusing primarily on behavior means schools are already responding too late. In the CPS model, concerning behavior is viewed as a frustration or distress response. By the time a behavior occurs, the student has already encountered an expectation they are struggling to meet – what CPS calls an unsolved problem.
The behavior itself is not the root issue. It is the result of the root issue.
Dr. Greene explains that proactive support means identifying and solving those unsolved problems before they escalate into frustration responses.
When schools focus primarily on:
- De-escalation
- Calming corners
- Behavior charts
- Detention
- Suspension
- Restraint or seclusion,
they are often addressing the problem after the child is already distressed.
As Dr. Greene notes, many systems refer to these approaches as “crisis prevention,” when in reality they are forms of crisis management.
Looking Beyond the Behavior
One of the major themes of the interview was the need to stop viewing behavior in isolation.
Dr. Greene emphasizes that many strategies commonly used in schools still focus on what happens after frustration appears. Even approaches like identifying arousal levels through color systems or encouraging breaks are often happening late in the process.
Instead, CPS encourages adults to ask:
- What expectation is difficult for this student to meet?
- What unsolved problem is contributing to the frustration?
- How can we identify these challenges proactively?
Dr. Greene explains that unsolved problems are often recurring. If a child is repeatedly struggling in the same situation, it is likely not a new issue. Yet many systems continue focusing only on the visible frustration response rather than solving the underlying problem.
He stresses that rewarding and punishing are not problem-solving strategies. If the unsolved problem remains unresolved, the behavior is likely to continue.
What Is Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS)?
Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS) is a model focused on identifying and solving problems collaboratively with children rather than reacting to behavior after the fact.
The model shifts the focus:
- Away from behavior toward unsolved problems
- From reactive responses toward proactive problem solving
A key part of CPS is recognizing that children often have critical information about what is making an expectation difficult for them to meet.
Dr. Greene frequently returns to one core belief: “Kids do well if they can.” In other words, if a child could meet the expectation successfully, they would.
This changes the question from: “How do we stop this behavior?” to: “What is getting in the child’s way?”
The Three Steps of Plan B
The collaborative problem-solving process in CPS is called Plan B and consists of three steps.
1. The Empathy Step
This step involves gathering information from the child about what is making the expectation difficult.
Rather than adults deciding the problem and solution independently, the child becomes the primary source of information.
Dr. Greene explains that adults are often surprised by what they learn during this process. The child’s perspective may reveal underlying issues that were not previously considered.
Importantly, the goal is curiosity – not blame.
2. Define Adult Concerns
In this step, the adult explains why the expectation matters.
This helps ensure that both the child’s concerns and the adult’s concerns are acknowledged.
3. The Invitation
The final step involves collaboratively developing a solution that addresses both sets of concerns.
Dr. Greene emphasizes that solutions developed with children are far more likely to succeed than solutions imposed on them.
To illustrate how using this three step approach can help, Dr. Greene shared an example of a child who was hitting classmates.
Rather than immediately assuming the behavior was sensory-related or focusing solely on stopping the hitting, the team used the Empathy Step to understand the purpose behind the behavior. What they discovered was that the child was hitting peers to get their attention and invite them to play.
Once the real issue became clear, they could collaborate on a practical solution. In this case, a bean bag chair was used as a signal that the child did not want to engage in play, helping peers better understand social availability.
The key lesson was that going directly to the source – the child – can often reveal the root issue much faster than relying solely on adult assumptions.
Why Wording Matters
Dr. Greene also highlights the importance of how adults introduce unsolved problems to children. When adults lead with the concerning behavior itself, children often become defensive.
For example: “Why did you hit the child?” may trigger denial, shutdown, or “I don’t know.”
Instead, CPS encourages adults to approach conversations in a non-defensive way that invites communication and curiosity. The goal is not to accuse, but to understand.
Problem Solving Should Not Happen in the Heat of the Moment
Another important distinction in CPS is that collaborative problem solving happens proactively – not during escalation. Just as we would not try to teach reading during a meltdown, problem solving is also unlikely to be effective when emotions are high.
During moments of crisis, adults may unintentionally communicate frustration or anger, making it harder for children to engage openly.
The Empathy Step depends on calm curiosity and emotional safety.
CPS and MTSS: Focusing on Acuity Rather Than Waiting
According to Dr Greene, CPS can fit within Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), but he also questions whether tier systems sometimes slow intervention down.
Essentially CPS can be implemented at any tier because the key focus should not necessarily be the tier itself, but:
- The child’s unmet needs
- The intensity of their difficulties
- The unsolved problems contributing to frustration
One concern he raises was that educators are often required to spend long periods documenting behaviors that are already clearly significant.
Rather than waiting through lengthy tier processes, Dr. Greene suggests schools focus earlier on:
- The child’s acuity
- The Assessment of Skills and Unsolved Problems (ASUP)
- What supports are needed immediately
Prioritizing Unsolved Problems
One challenge educators often face is the sheer number of unsolved problems affecting a student. Some students may have dozens of unsolved problems, but teams should not attempt to solve all of them at once.
Instead, CPS encourages prioritization based on:
- Safety
- Frequency
- Gravity or overall impact
Teams should focus on no more than three unsolved problems at a time. As problems are resolved, others may improve naturally or become more manageable.
Supporting AAC Users and Non-Speaking Students
Assistive communication technologies can play a powerful role in helping children:
- Communicate frustrations
- Express needs
- Share concerns
- Participate in problem solving
Rather than assuming non-speaking students cannot participate meaningfully in collaborative problem solving, CPS focuses on finding accessible ways for each child to communicate.
Dr. Greene stresses that progress is incremental and individualized. For some students, communication may initially focus on basic needs such as pain, hunger, sensory input, or discomfort before expanding into more complex problem solving.
He also noted that advances in assistive technology have created more opportunities than ever before for meaningful communication and collaboration.
Moving Away From Restraint and Seclusion
The goal of CPS is to help schools become proactive enough that restraint and seclusion are no longer necessary.
While some schools may attempt to implement CPS alongside restrictive practices, restraint and seclusion fundamentally conflict with the values of the CPS model because they occur only after situations have already escalated.
Many settings successfully support children with equally significant challenges without using restraint and seclusion, demonstrating that alternative approaches are possible.
A Different Foundation for Supporting Students
At the heart of CPS is a fundamentally different way of viewing children.
Rather than assuming students are choosing challenging behavior, the model begins with the belief that:
- Children want to do well
- Children can contribute to solutions
- Behavior is communication
- Collaboration leads to more meaningful change
For therapists, educators, and school teams supporting students with challenging behavior, Proactive problem solving starts by understanding the unsolved problems beneath the behavior – and working collaboratively with children to address them before crisis occurs.
This is just a glimpse: get the full interview plus 11 other expert-led talks on mastering MTSS in schools.
About Dr Rosse Greene
Dr. Ross Greene, Ph.D is the originator of the model of care described in those books, now called Collaborative & Proactive Solutions (CPS). Dr. Greene was on the faculty at Harvard Medical School for over 20 years, and is now founding director of the non-profit Lives in the Balance, which provides a vast array of free, web-based resources on the CPS model. He has appeared in a wide range of media, including The Oprah Show, Good Morning America, The Morning Show, National Public Radio, Mother Jones magazine, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune, and the Boston Globe. Dr. Greene lectures and consults widely throughout the world and lives in Portland, Maine.
Find resources and more information at https://livesinthebalance.org/