This paper examines several major problems confronting special education for students with emotional and behavioral disorders; identifies successful practices and programs; explores factors that contribute to continuation of inadequate practices; and presents recommendations for improving educational practice, policy, research, and professional…

A scientific, rule-governed approach to solving problems suggests the following assumptions: we need different rules for different purposes; rules are grounded in values; the origins and applications of rules are often misunderstood; personal experience and idea popularity are unreliable; and all truths are tentative. Each assumption is related to…

A survey of 402 teachers of students with behavior disorders gathered information on classroom conditions, perceptions of collegial and administrative support, job satisfaction, and professional judgment regarding student placement. Results indicate that teachers work in relative isolation and are moderately satisfied with their jobs. (Author/JDD)

Discusses the need for professionals in the field of behavioral disorders to take a leadership role in addressing larger issues and problems of great concern to our society, including ensuring school safety, identifying children vulnerable to gang membership, dropout prevention, and youth violence. (CR)

Identifies ways in which practices and attitudes work against the prevention of emotional and behavioral disorders in students. These include an overriding concern for labels and stigma, objections to a medical model and failure-driven services, a preference for false negatives over false positives, proposals for a "paradigm shift," and statements…

Behaviorally disordered students have been the most underserved population in special education. Scientific research and bureaucratic regulation are used unwittingly to avoid recognition of deviant child behavior. Strategies for nonrecognition of deviance include dissociation of the student from the problem, invalidation of the referral source,…

Comments on research related to current controversies in the education of students with emotional and behavioral disorders, including postmodernism, prevention, full inclusion, socialization by peers, and the future of research on social development. (Author/DB)

While Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 apparently protects individuals with emotional or behavioral disabilities when applying for admission to teacher education programs, closer inspection reveals that other legal and moral issues must be considered in protecting the public interest, especially the education of children and youth…

Research is reviewed on classroom behavior, demandingness, and beliefs of effective teachers of nonhandicapped students with behavior problems, and the need for different attitudes and additional skills for teaching students with behavioral disorders is discussed. Teacher characteristics analyzed include instructional and management strategies,…

This paper examines the role of effective practices in making education "special" for students with emotional and/or behavior disorders and discusses barriers and potential solutions for translating research into practice. These include accessibility of the literature base, teacher training and the role of teacher educators, support to implement…

The authors of EC 604 295 examine their developing interest in teachers' perceptions of their peers' effectiveness in teaching difficult students, consider questions raised after seeing results of their study, and outline implications of this line of research in the future. (JDD)

In this study of 186 elementary school teachers, discriminant function analyses of peer ratings yielded membership in high, medium, and low perceived effectiveness groups based on measures of self-efficacy, standards and expectations for students, responsibility for student behavior, and resistance to teaching handicapped pupils. Implications for…

An educator of special education teachers reflects on his childhood, the current conservative political movement as it affects people who are poor or disabled, the current inclusionary reform movement in special education, and how to best serve youth with emotional or behavioral disorders. General education is seen as inherently inadequate to…

This book is designed as an introductory text on special education for children and youth with emotional and behavioral disorders. Part 1 addresses the problems in the definition of emotional and behavioral disorders, the prevalence of the disorders, the growth of the field of emotional and behavior disorders, and major current trends. Part 2…