Inclusion of Students
with
Emotional/Behavioral
Disorders
in a High School science
classroom
Erin Acheson
EDSP 6644
Spring 2009
“…teachers feel under
increasing pressure to
achieve academic
results at all costs in a
curriculum which
makes few
concessions to … ‘the
unteachables’.”( Times
Educational Supplement editorial,
2005, as quoted in Cooper, 2008).
“Growing numbers
of [students with]
special needs are
behaviour-related.”
(Times Educational Supplement
editorial, 2005, as quoted in
Cooper, 2008).
“The dark heart of
inclusion: every
child matters , but
only if they behave
themselves”
(Louisa Leaman as quoted in Soan, 2006).
Weighing the Pros and Cons
Support for inclusion
Students can learn from appropriate interactions
with same-age peers (although more intensive
training is always needed)
(Hallahan, 2009).
Academic goals of students with EBD should
parallel those of their peers anyway
(Hallahan, 2009).
Inclusion necessitates that teachers have a
highly structured classroom and lesson plans
that are relevant to students with EBD, which
benefits all students
(Hallahan, 2009).
More Support for Inclusion:
Inclusion prevents tracking of students with
disabilities and allows for students with and without
disabilities to work together
(Hallahan, 2009).
Pull-out programs aren't as effective as general
education classrooms with proper support
(Hallahan, 2009).
Working closely with special education teachers
builds valuable collaborative skills for both teachers
and will allow support of all students in the
classroom, not just students with EBD.
(Hallahan, 2009).
Impediments to Inclusion
Schools can exacerbate the problems of students with
EBD by:




Not taking into account different styles of learning and
expression
Using curriculum that is not relevant to the “real world lives
of students”
Tracking
Punitive discipline (Cooper, 2008).
Integration is difficult and demanding and needs to be
done on a case-by-case basis (Hallahan, 2009).
Students need rigorous instruction in order to make
progress which may not be possible in a general
education class (Hallahan, 2009).
Impediments to Inclusion
Teachers need to “be willing to make wise
choices for students who choose to behave
unwisely” and be consistent (Hallahan, 2009).
Negative behaviors of students with EBD
distract from the learning environment of all
students (Hallahan, 2009).
Students with EBD take a greater proportion of
a teacher’s time leaving less time for all other
students (Hallahan, 2009).
Full inclusion negates the importance of
affiliation with students who have disabilities.
(Hallahan, 2009).
Research
There is a correlation between
Academic deficits and EBD
Academic
Deficits
50% of students
with EBD drop
out of school
School
failure/dropping
out
Students present
more learning
problems than their
peers without
disabilities
Transition to
adulthood is
more difficult
Poor
performance
Students often lack
basic academic skills
along with negative
behaviors
(U.S. Department of Education as quoted in Pierce, 2004; Reschly, 2006; Hallahan, 2009).
Insufficient Research
Few empirical investigations of classrooms
and schools successfully educating and
including students with EBD have been
conducted
(Danforth, 2006).
Little research has been done on high school
students and students with internalizing
behavior problems
(Hoagwood, 2007).
Majority of research on students with EBD
focuses on behavioral outcomes instead of
academic outcomes
(Pierce, 2004).
Research community often falls into two camps:
Firm opposition:
• Says professionals should not support inclusive educational
reforms without empirical support. Often refers to the
research-based benefits of segregated programs.
Hesitant support:
• Agrees with the firm opposition position on the importance
of scientifically validated practices while recognizing the
general shift in American educational policy toward
inclusive schooling. Calls for ‘responsible inclusion’. (Danforth,
2006).
Despite opposition from the research community, there is
progression toward inclusion of students with EBD. American
public schools have gradually become more inclusive in
general. (U.S. Department of Education, 2004 as quoted in Danforth, 2006).
PROMOTE POSITIVE SOCIAL
INTERACTIONS AND
COOPERATION
REINFORCE APPROPRIATE
BEHAVIORS AND (IF NECESSARY)
PUNISH INAPPROPRIATE
BEHAVIOR
PURPOSEFULLY DESIGN THE
CLASSROOM AND LESSONS
USE FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIORAL
ASSESSMENTS TO IDENTIFY AND
ENCOURAGE APPROPRIATE
BEHAVIORS
PROMOTE POSITIVE SOCIAL
INTERACTIONS AND
COOPERATION.
The social aspect of school is especially important
for students with disabilities (Reschly, 2006).
 Promote learning, social–emotional
development, and organizational strategies
that improve academic achievement and
mental health (Hoagwood, 2007).
 Support students with EBD by giving more
help with academics or personal problems,
offer more autonomy in decision making, and
participation in the school environment. (Reschly, 2006).
PURPOSEFULLY
DESIGN THE
CLASSROOM AND
LESSONS

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
Creating smaller, more personal environments
may ease interpersonal connections between
students and teachers (Reschly, 2006).
Teacher-mediated interventions like structured
academic tasks, pre-planning, and sequential
prompting during tasks can increase academic
performance in students with EBD (Pierce, 2004).
Teachers of children with EBD should be trained to
use these strategies and to evaluate their
effectiveness in terms of academic achievement (Pierce,
2004).
REINFORCE APPROPRIATE
BEHAVIORS AND (IF NECESSARY)
PUNISH INAPPROPRIATE
BEHAVIOR




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Be consistent!
Use group-contingency (group rewards)
management techniques (Snowman, 2003)
Behavioral controls in an educational program
are essential for students with EBD (Hallahan, 2009).
Use effective instruction so that students can
learn to live and work with others
Allow students to make all of the choices they
can (Cooper, 2008; & Hallahan, 2009).
USE FUNCTIONAL
BEHAVIORAL
ASSESSMENTS TO IDENTIFY
AND ENCOURAGE
APPROPRIATE BEHAVIORS



Most functional assessment research has focused on
recognizing and creating interventions that
maintain consequences of problem behavior.
Antecedent assessments can be used in FBAs to
identify environmental variables that contribute to
the incidence of both inappropriate and appropriate
behaviors.
Studying these antecedents allow for the
development of interventions that prevent problem
behavior and promote appropriate classroom
behavior.
(Stichter, 2004).
Recommendations for Practice
Recommendations:
 There is research support for “proactive classroom management”
strategies:
 focus on preventing problems through the promotion of positive
instructional strategies
 Identify antecedent variables in the context of the classroom (Hoagwood, et al.,
2007)
 The schools demonstrating most success with students with EBD
include positive emotional, social interactions that value all students
as part of the school community (Cooper, 2008).
 Match teaching to students’ needs (Hallahan, 2009)
 Expand “the way in which we view success, and not equating
educational success solely with test scores…” (Cooper, 2008)
 Soan (2006) says that several agencies need to work as one to
support students with EBD.
Use FBAs!
 Functional behavioral assessments (FBA) are important to the
development of effective behavioral support plans and are supported
by major organizations like the APA and legislation (IDEA) which
mandates FBAs in disciplinary situations. (Hallahan, 2009)
 Few studies have examined its usefulness in the classroom with
students with EBD, but there is a growing literature base to validate its
relevance.
 Interviews and direct observations done for the FBA in the classroom
setting lead to successful interventions and are important in creating
an assessment-based behavior support plan supported by the National
Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE). (Kern, 2004).
5 Common features of effective inclusion, instruction,
and assessment for students with EBD include:
 Leadership: Principals and leadership teams provide effective leadership
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and communicate the values of the school. This leadership needs to have
hope and concern for solutions, not just problems.
Shared values: staff work to promote the values of the school involving all
students.
Behavior policy and practice: A consistent behavior plan with strategies
for students with EBD as an extension of behavior policy for all pupils is
present. Teachers are consistent with discipline and guidelines.
Understanding EBD: Staff understand the nature of EBD, and can
distinguish it from ordinary misbehavior. Staff also need to understand
the development (social, emotional and cognitive) of all types of students.
Teaching skills and the curriculum: Effective teaching strategies for
students with EBD are the same as those for all students. Teachers need to
collaborate and plan for instruction. This includes best practices such as
accessing students’ interest and prior-knowledge, peer teaching, and
using questioning strategies that allow students to make connections.
(Cooper, 2008)
 Cooper, P. (2008). Nurturing attachment to school:
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Contemporary perspectives on social, emotional and
behavioural difficulties. Pastoral Care in Education, 26(1), 1322.
Danforth, S., & Morris, P. (2006). Orthodoxy, heresy and the
inclusion of American students considered to have
emotional/behavioural disorders. International Journal of
Inclusive Education, 10(2-3), 135-148.
Hallahan, D. P., Kauffman, J. M., & Pullen, P. C. (2009).
Exceptional learners: An introduction to special education.
Pearson: Boston.
Hoagwood, K. E., Olin, S. S., Kerker, B. D., Kratochwill, T.
R., Crowe, M., Saka, N. (2007) Empirically based school
interventions targeted at academic and mental health
functioning. Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders,
15(2), 66-92.
Kern, L., Hilt, A. M., & Gresham, F. (2004) An evaluation of
the functional behavioral assessment process used with
students with or at risk for emotional and behavioral
disorders. Education & Treatment of Children, 27(4), 440-452.
 Pierce, C. D., Reid, R., & Epstein, M. H. (2004). Teacher-
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mediated interventions for children with EBD and their
academic outcomes. Remedial and Special Education,
25(3),175-188.
Reschly, A. L., Christenson, S. L. (2006). Prediction of
dropout among students with mild disabilities: A case for the
inclusion of student engagement variables. Remedial and
Special Education, 27(5), 276-292
Snowman, J., & Beihler, R. (2003). Psychology applied to
teaching (10th ed). Houghton Mifflin: Boston.
Soan, S. (2006). Multi-agency working: Are the needs of
children and young people with social, emotional and
behavioural needs being served within a multi-agency
framework. Support for Learning, 21(4), 210-215.
Stichter, J.P., Sasso, G. M., Jolivette, K., & Carr, E. G. (2004).
Structural analysis and intervention in a school setting:
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emotional/behavioral disorder. Journal of Positive Behavior
Interventions, 6(3), 166-177.