Los Angeles Unified School District
Division of Special Education
Schools for All Children
Emotional
Disturbance
Donnalyn Jaque-Antón
Associate Superintendent
Overview
• Definition• Impact of disability• Assistance with
– academic tasks– behaviors– social skills
• Hierarchy of behavioral supports• Positive behavior support• Behavior support plan• Strategies
Definition
• "...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.
Definition (cont.)
– 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 problems." [Code of Federal Regulations, Title 34, Section 300.7(c)(4)(i)]
• Social maladjustment– Behavior in conflict with parent– Behavior associated with a subculture and
contrary to larger community mores– Behavior which does not render student
helpless, confused or disorientated
Emotional Disturbance is NOT
• Conduct disorder– Aggression against people or animals– Property destruction– Lying or theft– Serious rule violation
Emotional Disturbance is NOT
Impact of Disability
• Academic – Skill deficits– Trouble beginning tasks– Difficulty maintaining
attention– Problems completing tasks
• Externalizing – Acting out– Aggression – Defiance – Disruption– Fighting
• Internalizing - Withdrawing– Isolation – Self abuse – Depression – Anxiety
• Interaction with others (making and keeping friends)– Coping strategies– Reading social cues
Impact … Behavior
Academic Tasks - Assistance
• Provide clear, specific directions• Use curricular interventions
– Tasks at student’s academic level– Assignments broken into smaller parts– Breaks given as needed– Student strengths utilized to learn new
material– Opportunities for choice making
Externalizing & Internalizing Behaviors –
Assistance• Listen
to/observe student and make adjustments
• Teach relaxation techniques
• Teach alternate behaviors
Social Skills - Assistance
• Teach social skills proactively• Break skills down into parts• Teach, model, practice and reinforce
skills• Teach self-regulating skills
Hierarchy of Behavioral Supports
• School–wide positive behavior support
• Classroom Management
• Individual Support Plan
Targeted/Intensive
(High-risk students)Individual Interventions
(3-5%)
Selected(At-risk Students)
Classroom & Small Group Strategies
(10-15% of students)
Universal(All Students)
School-wide Systems of Support (85-90% of students)
• Intensive social skills training• Individual behavior management plans• Parent training and collaboration• Multi-agency collaboration (wrap-around)
services
• Intensive social skills training• Self-management programs• Parent training and
collaboration• Adult mentors (check-in)• Increased academic support
• Social Skills Training• Positive, proactive discipline• Teaching school behavior
expectations• Active supervision and monitoring• Positive reinforcement systems• Firm, fair, and corrective discipline
Developed by: Institute On Violence and Destructive Behaviors, University of Oregon (1999)
School-wide Positive Behavior Support
• School-wide rules and expectations – Defined– Taught– Modeled– Practiced – Reinforced
• ALL members of school community participate in development and implementation of policy
Classroom Management
• Identify 3 – 5 clear, concise , positively stated rules– Taught, modeled, practiced, reinforced
• Reinforce appropriate behavior• Predictable schedule/environment/routine• Active monitoring• Provide corrective feedback privately• Avoid power struggles between student
and staff
• A-B-C– Antecedent – Behavior - Consequence
• Communicative Intent (purpose of the behavior)– To get or get away from…
• Sensory, Escape, Attention, Tangible
• Replacement behavior– What the should the student do instead?
• Must serve the same purpose
• Reinforcement– How, when, how often will student be
reinforced?
Individual Behavior Support Plan
• Proactive– Teach new behaviors– Reinforce appropriate behavior– Emphasize positive expectations
• Reactive– Does not promote new learning – May stop the behavior momentarily– Emphasize negative consequences
Proactive vs. Reactive Strategies
Examples of Strategies
• Proactive– Point system rewards– Modeling– Clear, specific expectations– Contracts
• Reactive– Time away– Planned ignoring– Loss of activities, privileges– Punishment
How Can Support Be Provided?
• Unconditional positive regard for the student
• Teach appropriate behavior and social skills• Positive reinforcement for appropriate
behavior• Prompts (visual, auditory, gesture, picture)• Frequent positive check in
with school staff• Schedules• Peer support
Resources• Durand, V. Mark. Severe Behavior Problems. New York: Guilford Press,
1990.• House, Samm N. Behavior Intervention Manual. Columbia, MO: Hawthorne
Educational Services, 2002.• Janney, Rachel, and Snell, Martha E. Behavioral Support. Baltimore:
Brookes Publishing, 2000.• McCarney, Stephen, Wunderlich, Kathy, and Bauer, Angela. Pre-Refferal
Intervention Manual, 2nd edition. Columbia, MO: Hawthorne Educational Services, 1993.
• McGinnis, and Goldstein, Arnold P. Skillstreaming in the Elementary School Child. Champaign, IL: Research Press.
• O”Neill, Robert, Horner, Robert, Albin, Richard, Sprague, Jeffrey, Storye, Keith, and Newton, J. Stephen. Functional assessment of Program Development for Problem Behavior, 2nd edition. New York:
Brooks/Cole Publishing, 1997.• Wright, Diana Browning, Gurman, Harvey. Positive Intervention for Serious
Behavior Problems. Sacramento: California Department of Education, 2001.
Our lives are not determined by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens, not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life. A positive attitude causes a chain reaction of positive thoughts, events and outcomes. It is a catalyst, a spark that creates extraordinary results.
―Anonymous