The document discusses issues with identifying and serving children with emotional disturbances in public schools. Three out of five such children are in restrictive settings, and schools are using out-of-school placement more than for any other special education category. Two out of five children in this category drop out of school. There is also a shortage of teachers in this category, which has the highest turnover rate.

2. “we simply do not know
enough about identifying
and serving children (with
emotional disturbance) in
our public schools. Three of
five of these children are in
restrictive school settings.
As a matter of fact,

3. we are using out-of-school
placement for these
children half again as much
as any other major category
of special education. We are
taking them out of their
homes and even out of their
communities in order to

4. serve them, rather than
developing school-based
programs. Two out of five
children we serve drop out
of school before graduation.
It is the highest dropout
rate of all ten categories of
special education.

5. Something is not working…
there is a shortage of
teachers in this category
and it is the worst of all ten
categories in special
education. It is especially
critical in recruiting
minority teachers.

6. Thirty percent of our
teachers leave after three
or four years, because of
the stress of this job.”

7. Delays in and limitation
of social or emotional
development are
important to early
childhood SPED
Children with
established conditions
or delays in other
domains of early
childhood development
may also have social or
emotional problems.

8. A child who is blind
arrives at a day-care
center or preschool
program not having had
the kinds or amount of
social interaction other
children take for
granted.

9. The child’s experiential
deprivation may
surface as age-
inappropriate behavior,
including excessive
withdrawal, self-
stimulation, and other
indicators that the
child needs assistance
in social and emotional
growth

10. Children who may have health
problems or physical
conditions placed them at risk
for accidents or illnesses
even in ordinary, everyday
activities, parental worries,
often internalized by child,
may lead them to avoid
activity and fear social
interaction; these children
are not emotionally disabled,
but their behavior may be
similar in some ways to the
behavior of children who are

11. Social or emotional development in early
childhood is of most concern in one or both
of two instances
When social or emotional problems
interfere with the child’s own learning
Ex. Excessive thumb-
sucking  she rarely
participates in
activities requiring
the use of both hands.

12. Social or emotional development in early
childhood is of most concern in one or both
of two instances
When these problems interfere with
learning by other children
Ex. Child’s temper
tantrum disrupts a
group activity

13. Social or emotional delays rarely are
reported by parents of infants and
toddlers; parental concerns in the birth-
to-two period focus much more on
sleeping and feeding problems

14. During the early preschool-age period,
especially from ages three to four, parental
complaints about behavior rise very sharply;
parents who accepted willfullness,
disobedience, and impulsivity as “to be
expected in the ‘terrible twos’” become
concerned when these patterns exist

15. Between ages 3-4
Major development changes take place,
featuring in most young children sharp
decline in aggressive and destructive
behaviors
Between ages 3-6
volatility in behavior is very common, and
changes are both abrupt and short-lived.

16. Emotional Disturbance/ Emotional
Behavior Disorder
Conduct Disorder
Attention Deficits
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
(ADHD)
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD)

17. Recognized as a disability under the IDEA;
sometimes referred to as “emotional
behavioral disorders”,
Refers to behavior in children that is age-,
culturally, and/or situation-inappropriate
and interferes with their education and/or
that of other children.

18. Includes a range of emotional conditions affecting
behavior, children appear to be “undersocialized”
in that they often do not exhibit socially approved
behavior
The child has not
internalized, or has not
made habitual. The
kinds of behaviors and
attitudes that society
tries to instill in all of
us

19. Children with
conduct disorders
use aggression as a
routine means of
getting their way
Children who
respond to authority
figures by doing
what they are told
not to do, and
refusing to do what
they are asked to
do, may also be
socially or
emotionally delayed

20. Serious problems may be indicated when children
display emotions that are inappropriate for a
situation
A child who laughs when
most children would cry
A child who becomes
inconsolably depressed when
most children would cry
briefly and recover quickly

21. A very different kind of conduct disorder occurs when
young children withdraw from social contact with both
adults and other children
While occasional withdrawal is normal and may reflect
problems at home, children who persist in isolation, actually
turning away from other children and from adults, may
require professional help.

23. A diagnosis made when
impulsivity and
hyperactivity are
present together with
distractibility and
short attention span

24. A diagnosis reached
when a child is
“unavailable for
learning” due to
distractibility and
short attention spans
The diagnosis is used if
hyperactivity is not
present

25. Social awareness for young children is designed
to help them understand and function in the
world in which they live
During their early years children are developing
their values and attitudes about themselves,
other children, and adults in their family and
community
They are developing their concept of self

26. It is important that they have a broad range of
experiences and are exposed to people and
materials with gender, racial, or cultural bias.
People with disabilities must be portrayed
accurately, including both their abilities and
disabilities