Chapter 1 Inclusion and Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

Abstract

There is a clear national trend toward the inclusion of students with disabilities in general education classrooms. This trend poses particularly vexing challenges for delivering appropriate programs for students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). This chapter describes the complexity of determining appropriate inclusive placements for students with EBD within the historical, legal, and philosophical context of inclusion and related to what we know about these students and how we can improve outcomes. Recommended practices for maximally appropriate placements include a comprehensive approach that integrates academic and behavioral interventions, and robust professional development in research-validated instructional practices for teachers. Shifting roles and shared responsibility of the professionals who are now working with students with EBD must be considered. Finally, issues currently being addressed that will shape the future direction of service delivery for students with EBD are discussed including the need for systematically and objectively manipulating key variables, including educational placement, to impact student achievement across settings.

Citation

Simpson, R. and Mundschenk, N.A. (2012), "Chapter 1 Inclusion and Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders", 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. 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1108/S0270-4013(2012)0000023004