The purpose of this study was to determine whether teachers working with students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) are familiar with the resources shown to be most effective at improving student outcomes in this population and to what extent they are utilizing evidence-based practices in their classrooms. It also sought to gather…

Children and adolescents are imprisoned every day in juvenile detention institutions across the United States (Sickmund, 2002). Many adolescents with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) will struggle upon their release from juvenile detention center when attempting to reintegrate into society, with their family, and their school. Recidivism…

Adolescents with behavioral disorders suffer academic and social struggles when compared to general education adolescents in the United States. As behavioral health strategies gain greater priority in schools, interest has increased in the use of yoga practices as one of the key approaches to addressing student well-being. The majority of previous…

The social maladjustment exclusionary clause has been a source of contention and confusion for the last 50 years. Social maladjustment has never been defined at the federal level, leaving creating the definition to local and state agencies. Social maladjusted was not included in the original definition created by Eli Bower in the 1960s. It was…

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of Tootling on disruptive classroom behaviors and academically engaged behaviors within a self-contained setting of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). This study aims to answer two research questions: (1) Is there a functional relationship between Tootling and reducing the…

This qualitative study uses the traditions of interpretive phenomenological analysis to identify the effective instructional practices of educators that address the social, emotional and academic achievement of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). The guiding question that fuels the study is: What are the perceived effective…

Students with emotional or behavioral disorders (EBD) often display externalizing behaviors (e.g., aggression and defiance) and experience internalizing symptoms (e.g., anxiety and depression). When left untreated, these difficulties can result in negative outcomes for students in school and beyond. Cognitive-behavioral interventions (CBIs) offer…

The multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) design provides academic and behavioral support for students. Children with emotional behavior disorders need these interventions and support to develop management skills. Students identified with the emotional, behavioral disorder (EBD) or with being emotionally disturbed (ED) could have a range of…

Nearly 137,500 students in K-12 schools in Pennsylvania identified with Emotional Disturbance (ED) who receive special education services for externalizing behaviors experience bleak outcomes related to school connectedness and academic success. Teachers report feeling ill-equipped to work with students with EDEB. This instrumental case study…

Students with disabilities benefit from opportunities where skills learned through direct instruction can be practiced and experienced within nontraditional social contexts. Direct instruction methods are important in special education, however one of the challenges with it is that students with disabilities might not gain the understanding to…

Word problems are a challenging part of the math curriculum for students with emotional behavioral disorder (EBD). Schema-based instruction (SBI) is an evidence-based practice used in math that supports the underlying structure of any given word problem to find solutions to mathematical problems and apply that knowledge to future problems. Without…

Middle school special education teachers are often concerned about challenging behavior. In recent years, school wide positive behavior support (SWPBS) has been shown to be effective in improving students' behavior. Class-wide Function-related Intervention Teams (CW-FIT) is a SWPBS-based program designed to for implementation at the classroom…

The research-to-practice gap in special education refers to educators' limited use of practices that are supported by empirical evidence. Procedures specifying criteria for the determination of evidence-based practices (EBPs) in special education have the potential to address challenges associated with identifying EBPs. Although meta-analyses and…

The Good Behavior Game is an interdependent group contingency that relies on the influence of other important group members to modify challenging behaviors of a student or a group of students within the classroom. Although the Good Behavior Game possesses a long history of effective use in the research literature, there is a significant void in…

This comparative case study analyzes the overrepresentation of African American males in special education. The overrepresentation of African American children and youth in special education programs for students with learning disabilities, severe emotional or behavioral disabilities, and mental disabilities has remained a persistent reality, even…