Preface

Abstract

Behavioral Disorders are divided into two volumes: Volume 22, Identification, Assessment and Instruction of Students with EBD, and Volume 23, Practice Concerns and Students with EBD. Since the beginning of the field of emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD), professionals have argued and debated about what society accepts as normal emotional and behavioral developmental patterns of children and youth in school environments. This situation has led to many approaches concerned with the identification, assessment, instruction, and clinical practices applied to students with EBD. Unfortunately, some of these approaches were unwarranted, inappropriate, misguided, misinterpreted, over generalized, unneeded, and lacking in fidelity of treatment. In addition, some of the approaches did not take into consideration how treatment and instruction needs to be modified as society changes in regard to opinions, beliefs, and knowledge base information about children and youth with EBD. Positively, special education EBD professionals have gravitated toward the utilization of scientific- and research-based analysis to evaluate past and current approaches. Such an approach produces greater fidelity of treatment as the EBD knowledge base evolves. This is the emphasis that is used by chapter authors as they analyze and discern current perspectives and issues in identification, assessment, instruction, and practice of working with children and youth with EBD.

Citation

Bakken, J.P., Obiakor, F.E. and Rotatori, A.F. (2012), "Preface", Bakken, J.P., Obiakor, F.E. and Rotatori, A.F. (Ed.) Behavioral Disorders: Practice Concerns and Students with EBD (Advances in Special Education, Vol. 23), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. xi-xii. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0270-4013(2012)0000023003