Academic Performance of Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders Served in a Self-Contained Setting

• Published in: Journal of behavioral education Vol. 17; no. 1; pp. 43 - 62
• Main Authors: Lane, Kathleen Lynne, Barton-Arwood, Sally M., Nelson, J. Ron, Wehby, Joseph
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer Science and Business Media, Inc 01-03-2008; Springer US; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Academic Achievement; Adolescents; Behavior Disorders; Behavior Patterns; Behavior Problems; Behavioral disorders; Behavioral Science and Psychology; Child and School Psychology; Child psychology; Educational psychology; Elementary School Students; Emotional disorders; Emotional Disturbances; Learning and Instruction; Measures (Individuals); Modeling; Mood disorders; Original Paper; Prediction; Psychology; Reading Achievement; Reading Comprehension; School adjustment; Scores; Secondary School Students; Self Contained Classrooms; Social behavior; Social skills; Special education; Special needs students; Student Adjustment; Writing Skills; Academic outcome; Emotional and behavioral disorders
• ISSN: 1053-0819; 1573-3513
• DOI: 10.1007/s10864-007-9050-1

This study describes the academic, social, and behavioral performance of elementary and secondary students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) receiving services in a self-contained school for students with serious behavior problems, with an emphasis on how school adjustment and problem behavior patterns predict academic performance. Results revealed that elementary and secondary group scores were well below the 25th percentile on reading, math, and written expression measures. Further, a seven variable model representing academic, social, and behavioral domains was able to differentiate between age groups explaining 54% of the variance and correctly classifying 78.26% (n = 18) of the elementary students and 84.21% (n = 16) of the secondary students. Findings also suggested that behavioral variables (e.g., school adjustment, externalizing, and internalizing) were predictive of broad reading and broad written expression scores, with school adjustment (a protective factor) accounting for the most variance in the three-variable model. Limitations and recommendations for future research are addressed.