BEHAVIORAL CHALLENGES RELATED TO INCLUSION

Stacia Jarvis

EDUC 280

Fall 2014

b

“Growing numbers of [students with] special

needs are behavior related.”

(Times Educational Supplement editorial, 2005)

 “They can make our teaching lives

miserable and single-handedly

disrupt a classroom”

(Rhode et al., 1998, p. 3)

“The dark heart of inclusion: every child matters , but only if

they behave themselves”

(Louisa Leaman as quoted in Soan, 2006)

Their aggressive, disruptive, and defiant behavior wastes teaching time, disrupts the

learning of all students, threatens safety, and overwhelms teachers.

(http://www.aft.org/periodical/american-educator/winter-2003-

2004/heading-disruptive-behavior#sthash.lU1bCHtK.dpuf)

What is Inclusion?

Inclusion allows students with disabilities

to go to school along side their friends and

neighbors while also receiving the

“specially designed instruction and support”

they need in order to rise to the high

standards and to be successful as learners.

Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Teachers are reporting an increase of behavior problems related to Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities. A report recently released by Scholastic shows increased levels of behavior problems: Elementry Middle

SchoolHigh School

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

68%64%

53%

Increased Behavior Problems within the Classroom

Grade level of teachers reporting

% o

f te

ach

ers

rep

ort

ing

The most common disabilities

attentiondeficit/hyperactivity disorder

(ADHD)

behavioral or conduct

Problems

anxiety and depression

autism spectrum disorders

Tourette syndrome.

ADHD

Behavior/Conduct Problems

Anxiety

Depression

Autism Spectrum Disorders

TouretteSyndrome

4.2 Million

2.2 Million

1.8 Million

1.3 Million

678,000

99,000

Students with such disabilities are often labeled as having an emotional disturbance, which is defined under the Individuals with Disabilities

Education Act (IDEA) as follows:

...a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child's educational performance:

An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors

An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers

Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances

A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression

A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school factors.

-[Code of Federal Regulations, Title 34, Section 300.7(c)(4)(i)]

Problem Behaviors Often Encountered

• Talking out of turn

• Work avoidance

• Hindering other students

• Unwanted non-verbal noises

• Verbal abuse

• General rowdiness

• Physical aggression

• Consistent infringement of class rules

Challenges for EducatorsIt can be challenging for Teachers to identify and deal with

children who demonstrate serious behaviors related to emotional and behavioral disorders.

Students with emotional and behavioral disorder often need more individualized attention to help deal with their disability.

Effective programs for students having an emotional and behavioral disorder are often expensive:

For most regular schools, adequate support is not easy to provide

Extra training and support is often needed to improve teachers’ and other staffs’ ability to make inclusion work

Myths Surrounding Emotional Disabilities

o Myth B: Students with emotional or behavioral disabilities behave the way that they do because they’ve gotten away with a lot.

Often times, students with an emotional or behavior disability have gone the length of the

disciplinary system:• Privileges have been taken away

• Time has been spent in the principles office• They have been suspended

o Myth A: Emotional disabilities are not true disabilities. Students choose their behavior and have control over their

“handicap”.

Students who struggle with an emotional or behavioral disability have no more control over

that disability than a person who has a physical handicap. With proper interventions, students

with these type of disabilities can achieve a high degree of success.

Communicative Intent of Behavior:Why?

I can’t do this

work!

I’m frustrated!

I like doing this!

I’m bored!

I want to annoy you!

I’m lonely!

I’m rebelling!

What can we do?

PROMOTE POSITIVE SOCIAL

INTERACTIONS AND

COOPERATION

PURPOSEFULLY DESIGN THE CLASSROOM

AND LESSONS

REINFORCE APPROPRIATE BEHAVIORS

USE FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIORAL

ASSESSMENTS TO IDENTIFY AND

ENCOURAGE APPROPRIATE

BEHAVIORS

Children with social skills deficits often struggle with:

Teachers can provide instruction and modeling of appropriate behaviors and responses.

Teachers can create opportunities for children to practice and generalize social skills through class interactions.

Teachers should provide positive feedback to promote appropriate behaviors

Teachers should redirect inappropriate behaviors.

PROMOTE POSITIVE SOCIAL

INTERACTIONS AND

COOPERATION

Cooperation Communication

Emotional understanding and regulationAggression

Problem Solving

Challenging

behaviors are often

predictable

responses to a

specific event

occurring in the

environment.

PURPOSEFULLY DESIGN THE

CLASSROOM AND LESSONS

Identifying environmental variables will help to implement an intervention. An environmental intervention can help to address and reduce the challenging behavior and to increase appropriate behavior.

REINFORCE APPROPRIATE BEHAVIORS

Devise an IEP plan

Acknowledge the students preferences

and strengths

Be Consistent

Use group-contingency (group rewards) management techniques

Provide more opportunities to reinforce appropriate behaviors

USE FUNCTIONAL BEHAVIORAL

ASSESSMENTS TO IDENTIFY AND

ENCOURAGE APPROPRIATE

BEHAVIORS

Most functional assessments focus 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 both inappropriate and appropriate behaviors.

Studying these assessments allow for the development of interventions that prevent problem behavior and promote appropriate classroom behavior.

Functional Analysis

Isolate and Define the Behavior

Write down the main factors to be

considered

Make a grid for collecting data

Note and record when, where, what, and how whenever

the behavior occurs

Make revisions in grid if necessary

Analyze the data. Look for patterns

and areas of consistent prediction

Not getting enough sleep, noisy activity,

lights bright

Bell rings, teacher asks student to do

something, peer says “Hello”

Screaming, flapping hands, hitting, body

rocking

Child told to leave activity, Child takes a break, teacher says

“Don’t hit”

Setting Event Antecedent Stimulus Behavior Consequence

Anything that increases the

likelihood that the challenging behavior will

occur

Events or conditions that are

present right before the

behavior occurs

Challenging Behavior

The events or conditions that are

presentRight after the

behavior occurs

S A B C

EXAMPLE:

5 Common features of effective inclusion, instruction, and

assessment for students with Emotional and Behavioral

Disabilities Leadership:

Teachers, principles and other staff

members provide leadership 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 disabilities as an extension of

behavior policy for all students is present.

Teachers are consistent with discipline and

guidelines.

Understanding

Emotional/Behavioral

Disorders:

Staff understand the nature of Emotional and

Behavioral Disabilities, 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:

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.

Phases of an Incident

1

2

3

4

5

7

6

Calm

Trigger

Agitation

Acceleration/Agitation

Peak

De Escalation

Recovery

Intervention is Possible

at all Phases

ReviewChildren with Behavioral and Emotional Disabilities DO

belong!

Focusing on the reason and not the behavior effectively de-escalates many situations. After the student is rational, the behavior can be dealt with in a reasonable length of time.

Challenging behaviors are, most often, predictable responses to an event occurring in their environment.

Some children engage in challenging behavior because they

lack necessary language and social skills.

Alterations to features of the child's activities and child’s social and physical environment can help to manage behavior challenges.

Increase the probability that appropriate behaviors

will occur.

It is never to late for an intervention.

Use FBAs!

References Adams, C. L. (2006, June). The Challenges of Inclusion. Retrieved from Scholastic:

http://www.scholastic.com/browse/article.jsp?id=7022

Carey, D. J. (n.d.). Challenging Behavior. Retrieved from David J. Carey: http://www.davidjcarey.com/challenging_behavior.html

Garrett-Hatfield, L. (n.d.). What to Expect in an EBD Elementary Classroom. Retrieved from Global Post: http://everydaylife.globalpost.com/expect-ebd-elementary-classroom-16659.html

Hewitt, M. B. (n.d.). Meeting the Challenges of Inclution for Students With Emotional Disabilities. Retrieved from Behavior Advisor: http://www.behavioradvisor.com/InclusionOfEBD.html

Kauffman, J. (2009, December 23). Emotional/Behavioral Disorders. Retrieved from Education: http://www.education.com/reference/article/emotionalbehavioral-disorders/

Oliver, S. (n.d.). Weighing the Options of Inclusion and Separate Education for Children with . Retrieved from File Box: http://filebox.vt.edu/users/soliver/Exceptional%20Learners%20Paper.pdf

Salman, H. (n.d.). Educating Students with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders. Retrieved from Scholarwroks: https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2022/201/salmon%20educating%20students%20with.pdf;jsessionid=98822921F7B60D7A1F24121BCC6F7E21?sequence=1

Sources, P. (2012). Classroom Behavior Problems Increasing, Teachers Say. Retrieved from Scholastic: http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/classroom-behavior-problems-increasing-teachers-say