Training, Supervising, and Supporting Students With Emotional–Behavioral Disorders as Cross-Age Tutors

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) are frequently on the receiving end of intervention models (e.g., social skills training) in which targeted skills are modeled and practiced in unnatural arrangements (i.e., teacher-lead). Special educators consistently report a need for effective interventions and instructional arrangements that promote social-behavioral skills of students with EBD in natural learning environments (i.e., with peers). When students with EBD are provided the opportunity to serve in the role of tutor (i.e., on the instructional delivery end of the model), increases in academic and behavioral skills have been found for both tutors and tutees. This article provides an overview of effective procedures and considerations for training, supervising, and supporting students with EBD as cross-age tutors.

Working Conditions and Special Educators’ Reading Instruction for Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Council review ◽

10.1177/0014402921999825 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 001440292199982

Author(s):

Hannah Morris Mathews ◽

Jennifer L. Lillis ◽

Elizabeth Bettini ◽

David J. Peyton ◽

Daisy Pua ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reading Instruction ◽

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Working Conditions ◽

Special Educators ◽

Collegial Support ◽

Instruction Time ◽

Role Conceptions ◽

Working conditions may be an important lever to support special educators’ reading instruction for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). Thus, we explored how working conditions relate to the quality of special educators’ reading instruction in upper-elementary, self-contained classes for students with EBD. Using mixed methods to examine video observations of reading instruction and varied data sources on working conditions, we found that special educators who provided stronger instruction had a partner coleading their program, and consistent paraprofessionals, with time and support for training. Partners and paraprofessionals, together, protected special educators’ instruction time. Other conditions (i.e., material resources, role differentiation, role conceptions, planning time) emerged as potentially important, but evidence was less robust. Results indicate partners and paraprofessionals may be important forms of collegial support. These findings have important implications for improving the quality of instruction in self-contained settings for students with EBD.

Social Skills Practice Strategy Opportunities for Students With EBD

Beyond Behavior ◽

10.1177/10742956211020832 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107429562110208

Author(s):

Skip Kumm ◽

Jacob Reeder ◽

Erin Farrell

Keyword(s):

Social Skills ◽

Behavioral Disorders ◽

School Environment ◽

Social Skills Training ◽

Skills Training ◽

Social Skills Interventions ◽

The Social ◽

Meta Analyses ◽

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) are likely to require interventions to help them navigate the social demands of the school environment. Several meta-analyses of social skills interventions have been conducted, which have provided guidance and demonstrated the effectiveness of social skills training for students with EBD. This article details a framework for teaching and practicing social skills interventions. Included in it are descriptions of several social skills strategies and ways in which the teaching of them can be individualized to meet the needs of students with EBD.

Special Educators’ Experiences of Roles and Responsibilities in Self-Contained Classes for Students With Emotional/Behavioral Disorders

Remedial and Special Education ◽

10.1177/0741932518762470 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 40 (3) ◽

pp. 177-191 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Elizabeth Bettini ◽

Jun Wang ◽

Michelle Cumming ◽

Jenna Kimerling ◽

Sarah Schutz

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Special Educators ◽

Academic Growth ◽

Educational Systems ◽

Daily Work ◽

Roles And Responsibilities ◽

Academic Role ◽

Teacher Workforce ◽

Cultivating and retaining special educators competent to serve students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBDs) has proven persistently difficult. Improving educational systems’ capacity to meet this challenge will require better understanding of the roles special educators in these settings should be prepared for and supported to fulfill. The purpose of this qualitative investigation was to explore how four special educators in self-contained classes for students with EBD defined and experienced their roles. We found that teachers defined their primary roles as promoting students’ behavioral and academic growth; however, they also described experiencing dissonance between their ideal roles and their actual daily work. This dissonance was evident in two respects. First, extra responsibilities and emergent responsibilities occupied substantial energy. Second, social and material contexts often facilitated their behavioral role but less often supported their academic role. Findings have implications for improving the quality of the teacher workforce in self-contained settings for students with EBD.

Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders as Tutors

Intervention in School and Clinic ◽

10.1177/10534512211024934 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 105345122110249

Author(s):

Gavin W. Watts ◽

Joel C. Kerr

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Special Educator ◽

Social Emotional ◽

Behavioral Skills ◽

Tutoring Programs ◽

Lead Article ◽

Effective Planning ◽

Teachers implementing tutoring programs in which their students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) serve as cross-age tutors (CAT-EBD) for younger students in need of additional instruction have reported improvements in academic, social-emotional, and behavioral skills for both tutees and tutors. This practitioner-lead article features firsthand experiences and insights from a special educator implementing such a program. In addition to identifying the perceived strengths, challenges, and overall outcomes of a CAT-EBD program, the experiences within the case study highlight connections and recommendations for effective planning, training, supervising, and supporting of students with EBD as tutors. Practical strategies are provided in support of the challenges identified in implementing and sustaining a CAT-EBD program.

Conducting Meaningful Transition Interviews to Benefit Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Beyond Behavior ◽

10.1177/10742956211021394 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107429562110213

Author(s):

Kristopher Hawk Yeager

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Special Educators ◽

Transition Planning ◽

Transition Process ◽

Leadership Role ◽

Multiple Strategies ◽

Practical Guidelines ◽

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) benefit from person-centered transition planning. However, there are few practical guidelines for conducting individualized transition assessments that include interviews with this population. This article describes multiple strategies that special educators can implement to conduct interviews, develop rapport, and encourage students with EBD to take a leadership role in the transition process. Materials are provided for selecting appropriate interview topics, monitoring the use of strategies, and developing effective questions.

Building School Connectedness for Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Intervention in School and Clinic ◽

10.1177/1053451218765219 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 54 (2) ◽

pp. 67-74 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Robbie J. Marsh

Keyword(s):

Risk Behavior ◽

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Academic Outcomes ◽

School Connectedness ◽

Intervention Strategies ◽

Intervention Design ◽

Health Risk Behavior ◽

Effective Interventions ◽

Designing and implementing effective interventions for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) continues to challenge teachers. School connectedness is an emerging construct that is preventative for engagement in health-risk behavior and bullying. This article highlights a shift in intervention design and proposes a multifaceted intervention to meet the unique needs of students with EBD. Each component of the school connectedness construct is discussed with accompanying intervention strategies that can be implemented simultaneously to improve the behavioral and academic outcomes for students with EBD.

Administrators’ Roles: Providing Special Educators with Opportunities to Learn and Enact Effective Reading Practices for Students With EBD

Beyond Behavior ◽

10.1177/1074295620904024 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 29 (1) ◽

pp. 52-61

Author(s):

Elizabeth Bettini ◽

Michelle M. Cumming ◽

Nelson C. Brunsting ◽

John William McKenna ◽

Caitlin Cooper Schneider ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reading Instruction ◽

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Working Conditions ◽

Special Educators ◽

Opportunities To Learn ◽

Reading Practices ◽

Special educators are responsible for providing quality reading instruction to students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), but they often experience difficulties fulfilling this responsibility, especially for students with EBD who are placed in dedicated settings, including self-contained classes. Administrators can help by ensuring special educators have what they need to provide effective reading instruction. We highlight how administrators can leverage special educators’ working conditions to improve the reading instruction that students with EBD receive in self-contained settings.

Special Educators’ Working Conditions, Self-Efficacy, and Practices Use With Students With Emotional/Behavioral Disorders

Remedial and Special Education ◽

10.1177/0741932520924121 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 074193252092412

Author(s):

Michelle M. Cumming ◽

Kristen Merrill O’Brien ◽

Nelson C. Brunsting ◽

Elizabeth Bettini

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Working Conditions ◽

Self Efficacy ◽

Behavior Management ◽

Management Practices ◽

Special Educators ◽

Emotional Behavioral Disorders ◽

Equation Modeling ◽

Future Research ◽

Students with emotional/behavioral disorders (EBD) in self-contained settings depend on special educators to deliver high-quality instruction and behavior management, and special educators depend on administrators to create supportive working environments. Yet, to date, no studies have examined how working conditions relate to special educators’ provision of effective instructional or behavior management practices for students with EBD in self-contained settings. To fill this crucial gap, we conducted a national survey of 171 special educators serving students with EBD in self-contained settings. Using structural equation modeling, we found special educators who experienced more supportive working conditions (i.e., stronger logistical resources and lower demands) reported more manageable workloads, experienced less emotional exhaustion and stress, felt greater self-efficacy for instruction, and reported using evidence-supported instructional practices more often with their students. Results have implications for future research and practice.

Open Science in the Field of Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

10.35542/osf.io/duvf8 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Bryan G. Cook ◽

John Wills Lloyd ◽

William Therrien

Keyword(s):

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Open Data ◽

Open Science ◽

Effective Practices ◽

Effective Interventions ◽

Primary Means ◽

Research Findings ◽

Open Review ◽

Students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) present some of the greatest challenges faced by educators, and experience some of the most problematic outcomes. To increase the likelihood that students with EBD will be successful in school and in life, practitioners should implement effective interventions. Trustworthy research is the primary means to identify effective practices. Open science can be used to help verify research findings as trustworthy, as well as improve their accessibility. In this article, we discuss the open science movement and describe five open-science practices (i.e., preregistration, Registered Reports, open data and materials, open access and preprints, and open review) that may help increase the trustworthiness, efficiency, and impact of EBD research. We argue that the implementation of these practices may increase the field’s capacity to identify and verify truly effective practices, and facilitate broad accessibility of the research for all stakeholders; thereby improving policies and instructional practice for students with EBD.

Using Guided Practice for Students With EBD Within Explicit Instruction

Beyond Behavior ◽

10.1177/10742956211021616 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 107429562110216

Author(s):

Jared R. Morris ◽

Douglas D. Dexter ◽

William Hunter

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Behavioral Disorders ◽

Explicit Instruction ◽

Behavioral Skills ◽

Guided Practice ◽

Guided practice within explicit instruction has been shown to be an effective method for teaching academic and behavioral skills to students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). The support provided through guided practice allows students to acquire new skills confidently and successfully. This article provides practitioners of students with and at risk for EBD steps for incorporating guided practice into their instructional routine.