Reference no: EM133680972
Assignment:
Sarah: An Individual with an Emotional/Behavioral Disorder
Setting Information:
Sarah is an eighth grader. She was working on problems in her general education math class when, without warning, she shoved her book and papers to the floor, shouting, "This is boring and I'm NOT doing this any more!" This was the third time in ten days that she had disrupted the class and her general education teacher, Ms. Sipple reminded Sarah that, as she had agreed to do in her behavior contract, she would now need to take a pass and go to her special education teacher's (Mr. Quinn) classroom immediately. She initially refused to go and began shouting more defiant statements to Ms. Sipple. After about five minutes of resistant behavior, Sarah picked up the pass and stomped out of the class. Ms. Sipple wondered if the math assignment was really boring, too hard, or if something else was bothering Sarah.
Background Information:
Sarah is currently eligible for special education services as a student with an emotional/behavioral disorder. She has been receiving special education services since the fifth grade. For two years, she had been in a self-contained classroom, but her behavior was improving, so the IEP team determined that she should receive some of her coursework in a general education classroom and work with the resource room (special education) teacher for the half of the day. Currently, she receives math, gym, social studies, and science in general education classrooms.
From kindergarten through third grade, Sarah progressed at a typical rate. She learned to read and do grade level math. She had some friends in her class, but seemed shy and generally kept to herself. In the fourth grade, things began to change. Initially, she would cry for no reason, and, when someone approached her, she would become angry and tell him/her to go away. She quit taking homework home and often did not turn in her papers that were completed in school. Her fourth grade teacher was concerned and shared her concerns with Sarah's mom at a parent-teacher conference. Sarah's mom did not reveal any problems at home. She stated that, as a single mother, she had to work long hours, and she felt that Sarah was simply seeking attention. She indicated that she that things would improve after she married the man she'd been dating and the family had two incomes.
However, a few weeks after the conference, Sarah came to school with serious cuts and bruises that were not explained. As required by law, her teacher reported the injuries and the school principal made a referral to Child Protective Services on suspicion of abuse. CPS decided that the suspicions were founded, and after a lengthy investigation, they did remove Sarah from the home. They reported that Sarah's mother's boyfriend had been abusing Sarah and that the home environment was not safe. Sarah was placed in foster care in another school district for the remainder of fourth grade. In foster care, her behavior in the classroom and with the foster family declined steadily. She became angrier, defiant of authority, and physically and verbally lashed out at adults and classmates. She was referred and evaluated for special education services and found eligible under the ED label.
She was placed in a self-contained classroom. She received counseling through the foster care agency and her behavior began to slowly improve. For fifth and sixth grade, she remained with the foster family with supervised visits with her mother and the counseling continued. At the beginning of seventh grade, she was returned to her mother. Her mother had completed the court-required parenting classes and the boyfriend was out of the picture. The transition had been rocky initially, but things seemed to be working out. Sarah's school behavior improved and she began attending general education for one class. Counseling was discontinued. In her eighth grade year, she was placed in the resource room and more general education classes.
The academic testing completed at the end of the seventh grade indicated that Sarah continued to have some delays in reading and language arts, but her math skills were slightly above grade level. As noted previously, her intelligence tests scores were average. The primary concern was how to assist Sarah to manage her behavior in the general education classroom. Her outbursts tended to frustrate her teachers and alienate her peers.
Currently, Sarah was on a behavior contract that encouraged her to act appropriately in class. The contract included sections on classroom behavior and completing assignments. She could earn points toward a reward of her choosing (special lunch at her favorite fast food restaurant, purchase of a CD, etc.) It also provided her a method to leave the classroom appropriately if she was unable to follow the classroom rules, which is what Ms. Sipple had invoked in the Setting Information section.
It appeared that the contract might no longer be working and perhaps it was time to look additional alternatives. The IEP team was convened to discuss a transition plan for high school, modifying her behavior contract, modifying the math curriculum, modifying the grading system, incorporating additional positive behavioral supports, and/or changing her course schedule.
Discussion questions:
- What IDEA criteria did Sarah meet to be served under the ED label?
- What CCBD criteria did Sarah meet to be served under the ED label?
- What externalizing and internalizing behaviors did she exhibit?
- How seriously should Sarah's charge that the math work is boring be taken? Should the math work be accelerated for Sarah? What factors need to be taken into consideration before such a decision is made?
- Considering Sarah's age, what other factors may be influencing her behavior? How can the team investigate these potential influences?
- Should Sarah's behavioral contract be revised? Why or why not? What revisions would you recommend?
- Do you think that Sarah can reliably comment on her own behaviors? Should she be brought into the discussion before any decisions are made? Why or why not? If so, how would you approach/include Sarah in the team's deliberations?