Inclusion of Socially Maladjusted Children and Youth in the Legal Definition of the Behaviorally Disordered Population: A Debate

Zabel, Robert H.; Peterson, Reece L.; Benson, David A.; Edwards, Linda L.; Rosell, Jon; White, Maureen

doi:10.1177/019874298601100302

Cited by 14 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Contrary to the benefits that can come from scientifically demonstrated treatments (e.g., Brestan & Eyeberg, 1998; Conduct Problem Prevention Group, 1992, 1999a, 1999b), which benefits the student and society, the debate over the inclusion of these children in the school system continues (Zabel, 1986; Hoagwood, 1991). Even the courts, who have championed the rights of the individual, have consistently ruled that students who have serious behavior problems are not entitled to services under IDEA (see A. E. v. Independent School District no.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence based practice in the home and school to help educate the socially maladjusted child.

Cautilli

Tillman

2004

Journal of Early and Intensive Behavior Intervention

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Educators often exclude socially maladjusted children (SMA) from a proper education due to serious disruptive behavior. Never the less, these children are entitled to services under section 504 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. While SMA children are indeed difficult to educate, review of the associated literature suggests that methods to remediate and manage behavior patterns exists. This paper will explore effective education for SMA children and effective ways to manage their behavior in the classroom. In addition, this paper will explore the research suggesting that SMA children are harmed by educating them with other children who are SMA. We conclude that meeting the educational needs of children with social maladjustment involves the combination of home and school programming in an inclusive setting.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evidence based practice in the home and school to help educate the socially maladjusted child.

Cautilli

Tillman

2004

Journal of Early and Intensive Behavior Intervention

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“…The federal criteria for identification of Seriously Emotionally Disturbed students excludes from identification those with social maladjustment (SM) unless they also have a serious emotional disturbance (SED) (U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, 1977). The difficult task of distinguishing between children with SED and children with SM only continues to present a problem for educators, primarily because the definition of social maladjustment has not been agreed upon (Center, 1990; Skiba &Grizzle, 1991 Weinberg & Weinberg, 1990; Zabel, 1986). In addition, many professionals disagree with the notion of arbitrarily distinguishing between categories, given the dearth of evidence supporting this practice (Bower, 1982; Kauffman, 1989).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…In the absence of any formal definition of social maladjustment, educators and researchers have dealt with the exclusionary clause through a variety of strategies, ranging from equating social maladjustment with conduct disorders (Cheney & Sampson, 1990; Slenkovich, 1983Slenkovich, , 1992 to ignoring the question of social maladjustment altogether and focusing only on the severity of the behavior problem (Weinberg & Weinberg, 1990; Zabel, 1986). Widely divergent state labels and different interpretations of the current federal SED definition have only served to make the decision-making process murkier and more unreliable (Cline, 1990; Cullinan, Epstein, & McLinden, 1986; Epstein, Cullinan, & Sabatino, 1977; National Association of State Directors of Special Education, 1982).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Critics argue that failure to discriminate between SED and SM in special education eligibility decisions will lead to the misappropriation of valuable limited resources to students who are not handicapped (CCBD, 1990). Others argue that even if special education services were provided for students with SM, there isn't sufficient evidence to suggest that special education would provide an effective treatment for these students (Zabel, 1986), so again, valuable resources may be wasted. Futhermore, educators have expressed concerns that providing special education services to both populations will likely result in the victimization and bullying of vulnerable students with SED by students with SM when placed in the same setting (Kelly, 1986;Zabel, 1986).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Differential perceptions of multidisciplinary team members: Seriously emotionally disturbed vs. socially maladjusted

Stein

Merrell

1992

Psychol. Schs.

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The difficult task of distinguishing between students with serious emotional disturbance (SED) and those with social maladjustment (SM) continues to present a problem for educators. Although many researchers in the field of special education and school psychology have strong opinions about the feasibility of differentially identifying these groups of students, very little information is available about how this distinction is actually made by educators in the field. The purpose of this study was to investigate the factors that multidisciplinary team (MDT) members, specifically school psychologists, special educators, and school principals, consider in making the distinction between SED and SM students and the degree of confidence they have in their ability to make this distinction. Although no significant difference in reported confidence was found between the three groups of professionals, there was a moderate degree of disagreement between the groups on the behavioral or background descriptors that differentially characterize SED and SM students, especially in regard to the diagnosis of conduct disorder. Overall, school psychologists tended to differ from special educators and principals in the number of descriptors identified as important and the relative number of respondents that endorsed each descriptor. Implications for special education decision making and recommendations for future research are discussed.

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Differentiating emotionally impaired from socially maladjusted students

Clarizio

1987

Psychol. Schs.

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This paper addresses the issue of whether serious emotional disturbance in children can be distinguished reliably from social maladjustment. Educational authorities at the local, state, and federal levels have expressed concern over the inclusion of socially maladjusted youths in special education programs for the seriously emotionally disturbed. For multidisciplinary teams to enforce the exclusionary clause of PL 94-142, which denies socially maladjusted students services for the seriously emotionally impaired unless it is determined that they are seriously emotionally disturbed, practitioners must be able to distinguish between these two conditions. The literature on taxonomies of childhood psychopathology was reviewed and a set of items based on research and clinical experience was developed to differentiate between these two groups. These items were submitted to eight school psychologists. Eleven items met the criterion of agreement by at least six of the eight psychologists. Implications for school psychologists are discussed. This paper deals with the controversial issue of whether it is really possible to distinguish between serious emotional disturbance (SED) and social maladjustment (SM). Its purpose is to attempt clarification of one aspect of the federal definition, namely that part dealing with the exclusionary clause stating that SM youth who are not also SED are ineligible for special education services.Public school personnel are concerned about the inability to distinguish between these two distinct but overlapping groups, only one of which is eligible for special education services. This concern is felt both at the state and federal levels. In Florida, a recent class action suit was filed in federal court on behalf of 8,000 predominantly black students who were placed in alternative schools due to their disruptive behavior. In essence, the suit charged that these students were denied the protections and services of PL 94-142 because the state used an exclusionary clause similar to the federal socially maladjusted exclusion. The case was settled out of court in favor of the plaintiffs, based largely on the testimony that disputed the differentiation of SM from SED and the assertion that SM are handicapped by their behavior (Benson, Edwards, Rosell, &

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Inclusion of Socially Maladjusted Children and Youth in the Legal Definition of the Behaviorally Disordered Population: A Debate

Cited by 14 publications

References 9 publications

Evidence based practice in the home and school to help educate the socially maladjusted child.

Evidence based practice in the home and school to help educate the socially maladjusted child.

Differential perceptions of multidisciplinary team members: Seriously emotionally disturbed vs. socially maladjusted

Differentiating emotionally impaired from socially maladjusted students

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