Emotional Disturbance (ED) is one category under which a student can be evaluated and determined eligible to receive special education and related services. Students who experience ED are at greater risk for a host of negative long-term outcomes that include poor social, behavioral, and academic achievement in school, which in turn may impact…

Underidentification of students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD; emotional disturbance or ED in federal language) is a critical issue, perhaps explainable in part by causal attributions of problem behavior associated with conservatism. Conservatism in 58 counties in the state of California was measured by finding the percentage of…

California's policies on eligibility and placement of learning and behavior disordered children are discussed regarding their impact in determining which children are served under categories of mental retardation, learning disabilities, and emotional disturbance, as defined in 94-142. Major differences in growth or decrease in numbers of children…

This article examines factors associated with the substantial under-identification, referral and service for students with emotional-behavioral adjustment problems (EBD). The validity of the EBD categorical certification is questioned. Disincentives to identification of behavior disorders are noted. It concludes that schools should abandon the EBD…

This article addresses the advantages, disadvantages, and possible solutions to increased administrative problems posed by five proposed new categories of behavioral disorders: (1) attention deficit disorder, (2) traumatic brain injury, (3) fetal alcohol syndrome, (4) prenatal substance abuse, and (5) fragile X syndrome. (DB)

During the implementation of a cross-agency, co-located service delivery system, the number of youths eligible for public mental health services in Santa Barbara County increased from 956 to 1,826 and the number of youths eligible for special education services for students with emotional/behavioral disorders increased from 101 to 204. (Contains…

This article examines the legal requirements of assessing students with disabilities, especially students with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD). It reviews assessment legislation and litigation in special education and explains specific requirements for assessing students with EBD. The article also examines school districts' obligations…

Canada is a country composed of 10 provinces and three territories with very limited federal control over the public K-12 education system. This lack of consistent direction has led to a range of diverse educational policies for educating students with emotional/behavioral disorders (E/BD). This article investigates the current state of policies…

This handbook is intended to serve as a procedural guide for Utah school districts to improve the assessment and classification process for students who are behavior disordered. The handbook reviews Utah's definition of behavior disorders and explains some of the ambiguous terminology in the definition. The topic of social maladjustment is…

This study examined the special education needs of school-aged children living in emergency homeless family shelters in Los Angeles (California). Specifically, the study: (1) identified the proportion of sheltered homeless children with a probable behavior problem, learning disability, or mental retardation; (2) examined the level of unmet need…

This study followed up a large national sample (N=4,161) of Head Start children in an attempt to identify children who are at risk for emotional or behavioral disorders and eligible for special education and to determine to what extent these children are actually identified in the natural progression of special education referral. Children were…

Analysis of 150 students (grades 2 through 4) referred to School Study Teams found 43 were classified with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and 12 with emotional/behavioral disorders, but most of these students were placed in learning disability programs. Differences in student achievement, intelligence, and social skills for the three…

This guide is intended to assist school authorities in Alberta (Canada) to complete required Student Review Forms for students with severe disabilities. A Special Needs Profile form to determine eligibility for Severe Disabilities funding precedes information specific severe disability categories. These categories are: severe mental disability;…

This book is designed as an introductory text on special education for children and youth with emotional and behavioral disorders. Part 1 addresses the problems in the definition of emotional and behavioral disorders, the prevalence of the disorders, the growth of the field of emotional and behavior disorders, and major current trends. Part 2…

This text presents 13 chapters on the assessment of students with emotional and/or behavioral disorders for the purpose of making educational placement and programming decisions consistent with federal and state diagnostic guidelines. Chapters are grouped into four sections focusing on: basic considerations for assessment of youth in this…