EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE

Legal Definition:

As defined under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act:

"...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--

(A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors.

(B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers.

(C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances.

(D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression.

(E) 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)]
As defined by the IDEA, emotional disturbance includes schizophrenia but does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disturbance. [Code of Federal Regulation, Title 34, Section 300.7(c)(4)(ii)]

Own Definition:

A student who is emotionally disturbed shows signs of a long term inability that affects life skill performances. These skills show decline in areas such as social skills with others, their relationships with others, feeling, mood, and senses. It could be described as a roller coaster of emotions, having high and low points, on a day to day basis.

Prevalence:

Individuals of emotional disturbance (or behavioral disorders) represent 8.1% of all students ages 6–21 served under IDEA, or .72% of the school population (U.S. Department of Education, 2002a). Several other research studies suggest that this number may be much higher due to the fact that boys outnumber girls in this category by about 3.5 to 1. According to the 26th Annual Report (U.S. Department of Education, 2004), 482,597 students between the ages of 6 to 21 years of age were identified as having emotional disturbances (about 42,000 in NY State) Students classified with emotional disturbances represent about 1% of the entire school-age population.

Etiology:

Usually there is no known cause, but possible ties are made between biological (there are connections with schizophrenia, autism, ADHD, Tourette syndrome, etc) family (domestic violence), school (failure to accommodate for individual needs, inappropriate expectations, or inconsistency), and/or cultural factors (peer group, urbanization, and neighborhood factors)
The causes of emotional disturbance have not been adequately determined. Other factors (not the direct cause) may include heredity, brain disorder, diet, stress, and family functioning.

Characteristics and Identification

Major Characteristics:

-Hyperactivity
-Aggression/self-injurious behavior
-Withdrawal or symptoms of depression
-Immaturity or inappropriate social skills (with peers, teachers, siblings, parents, etc)
-Learning difficulties or unaware of class or school rules
-May feel that “people are out to get them”
-Higher risk for substance abuse

Serious emotional disturbances may include distorted thinking, excessive anxiety, bizarre motor acts, abnormal mood swings, and or phobias. Severe cases may include classification of psychosis or schizophrenia. Students may function two or more years below grade level in reading, math, writing, and spelling. With severe anxieties, they may be unable to attend, listen, and learn in school. May exhibit severe deficiencies in metacognitive skills, memory skills, and attention. At risk for dropping out of school. Other students of emotional disabilities attain average, or even above-average academic achievement.

How the Disability is Identified:

Children who fall into one of the legal definition categories above, and that prove to be lacking in any of those above mentioned areas may receive services under IDEA. They must be identified and documented by a team of individuals following IDEA guidelines. Children under the age of 9 who exhibit delays in social or emotional development may receive services under the developmental delay category.

Some federal agencies use different eligibility criteria for youth with emotional disturbance and this may include mental health conditions specified within the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th ed.). This would include concerns that limits a child’s role or functioning in family, school, or community activities.

Tips, Strategies, or Instructional Techniques

1) Providing responsibilities within the classroom such as distributing papers or helping to clean up the room. This will enable them to feel responsible and in charge by helping others. Other students in the class need to be aware of students with emotional behaviors, and may need to be informed as to ignoring inappropriate behaviors of others.

2) Class rules and review of specific acceptances are necessary. These may include providing specific directions, as well as illustrating the rules with clear examples and specify rewards for following rules as well as consequences when rules are disobeyed. These rules need to be consistently enforced, but in a positive manner. Providing models of behaviors may be important, such as: “Here’s one thing you can say if you think another student is sitting too close to you....” “Here is something you should not say....”

3) Maintaining a positive relationship by responding to them as normal human beings, rather than responding simply to their negative behaviors. Use positive comments frequently, such as: “Jeff, I appreciate the way you tried hard in class today. I know that math is not your favorite subject.” Before reprimanding negative social behavior, say: “Stop and think about what you just did. What should you have done? Now, try to do it more appropriately.”

4) Students with emotional disturbance can also benefit from general social skills instruction. It may be important to review more acceptable ways of asking and answering questions, including how to resolve conflicts.

5) A last strategy is to teach students to monitor their own behavior. Likewise, it is important to inform the child of strategies that they can use as well. For example: “I used the ‘stop and think’ strategy before acting, so I stayed out of trouble!” Using behavioral contracts is also a consideration which would be maintained individually between the teacher and student.

Other considerations for the classroom and students with Emotional Disabilities:

-Establish open, accepting environment.
-Emphasize positive behaviors and program for success.
-Reinforce positive behavior.
-Be tolerant.
-Teach self-control, self-monitoring, and conflict resolution.
-Teach academic survival skills.
-Carefully select partners.
-Have alternative activities available.
-Design activity checklists.
-Use carefully selected peers as assistants.