School improvement in the context of the special school for children with emotional and behavioural difficulties

Abstract

This article examines the issues which are particular to the KEYWORDS development and improvement of schools for children and young people with emotional and behavioural difficulties. Key issues such as team formation and teamwork, cooperation, problem solving capabilities and the school’s capacity to take ownership of the change process are analysed against the background of a case study of one EBD school. The process of change in this school is tracked through the evolution of the ownership of change and the dynamics involved in that process.     

Using outdoor learning to augment social and emotional learning (SEL) skills in young people with social,emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD)

ABSTRACT

Under-developed social and emotional learning (SEL) skills limit educational progress and make it difficult for children and young people with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD) to form effective relationships with peers and ADULTS. This paper focuses on an SEL intervention set within an outdoor learning context. The research was practitioner led and used an action research (AR) approach to implement and evaluate the SEL intervention. Research participants (aged 12–13 years) were recruited from a UK special school and were all considered to have SEBD. The paper provides evidence for the specific SEL skills that participation in outdoor learning can enhance. The evidence suggests that outdoor learning can be an effective approach for educators wishing to augment the SEL skills of young people with SEBD.     

The social,emotional and behavioural difficulties of primary school children with poor attendance records

Two complementary studies of poor and better attenders are presented. To measure emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) different teacher-completed rating scales were employed, and to determine social difficulties, the studies used sociometry and some items from the scales. One study had a longitudinal design. It revealed that, after controlling for social class, gender and EBD in Year 2, poor attendance between Years 2 and 6 had the effect of significantly increasing EBD in Year 6. Both studies also had a cross-sectional design element which gave an indication of some of the poor attenders’ social difficulties and confirmed the longitudinal findings. The rating scales also provided measurements of “neurotic” and “antisocial” disorders. These suggested that a “neurotic” disorder may have played a bigger part than an “antisocial” disorder in the poor attenders’ EBD. The article ends with a list of recent references dealing with intervention issues.     

Effective schools,school segregation,and the link with school achievement

This study examines whether 3 teacher-rated aspects of school effectiveness differ across school segregation profiles in Stockholm, and to what extent these indicators are associated with the academic achievement of 9th-grade students. Analyses were based on 2 cross-sectional data collections performed in 2014 and 2016, respectively (147 school units), one among teachers (n = 2,024) and the other among 9th-grade students (n = 9,151). Multilevel analysis was applied, estimating 2-level random intercept linear regression models. Results show that teachers’ ratings of school leadership, teacher cooperation, and school ethos, as well as student-reported marks differ across school segregation profiles. Findings further reveal significant associations between these school effectiveness indicators and student performance, even when taking student family background and the school’s student body composition into consideration. In part, these associations are also identified within segregation profiles. Moreover, results show that school ethos acts as a mediator between school segregation profile and student achievement.     

Positive narratives: the stories young people with Social,Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (SEBD) tell about their futures

This research drew on positive psychology in order to offer an optimistic way of conceptualising the lives of young people who are often described as having ‘SEBD’ (social, emotional and behavioural difficulties), now SEMH (social, emotional, mental health) in the English 2014 Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice. Positive psychology places emphasis on: the future, strengths, resources and potential, and suggests that negative experiences can build positive qualities. The young people in this research identified a range of strengths and resources in their lives that they had built as a result of earlier negative experiences. Narrative Oriented Inquiry (NOI) was used to analyse the themes of potential and growth in their stories which reveal their hopes and aspirations for the future. By giving these young people the opportunity to tell their stories this research permitted them to focus on where they were going, rather than where they had been.     

The inclusion of pupils perceived as having social and emotional behavioural difficulties in mainstream schools: a focus upon learning

This article focuses upon the relationship between social and emotional behavioural difficulties (SEBD) and learning. It argues that, while inclusion is desirable in principle, it can be highly problematic in practice. Further, it explores the contested nature of the concept of SEBD and the nature of support for pupils categorised as such. The article draws upon a case study which evaluates a group work approach devised by the author to support pupils experiencing SEBD within a mainstream secondary school, within a deprived area. The study (N = 69) established benchmark measures relating to pupil attendance, discipline sanctions, attainment and pupil attitudes and followed the progress of the pupils until one to two years after completion of the intervention. The findings indicate that the intervention did not reduce the differential in performance in National Tests between the Support Group pupils and comparator groups but it did impact positively upon dispositions towards learning.     

The relations of parental supervision,parental school involvement,and child's social competence with school achievement in primary school

The aim of this study was to examine the relation of parental supervision, parental involvement at school and child's social competence with school achievement in primary school. A theoretical model was postulated that predicts direct and indirect effects of parental behaviors on adolescents’ school achievement. Participants were 1,024 adolescents attending Grades 5 through 8 in 20 primary schools in Croatia and one of their parents or guardians. Adolescents completed a scale assessing their self‐perceived social competence and data on their grade point average were collected. Parents completed scales measuring parental supervision and parental involvement at school and they rated their child's social competence. The results of model testing showed that parental behaviors have both direct and indirect effect on adolescents’ school achievement. Greater parental supervision and school involvement have a direct and an indirect, through their effects on child's social competence, positive effects on adolescents’ school achievement.     

‘A clash of two worlds’; disjuncture between the norms and values held by educational practitioners and parents of children with behavioural,emotional and social difficulties

This article, by Karen Broomhead of Liverpool John Moores University, discusses an exploration of the clashing norms, values and expectations of parenting behaviours between parents of children with behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (BESD) and practitioners. Semi‐structured interviews with 15 education professionals, employed in both mainstream and BESD schools, highlighted how parents of children with BESD were deemed to experience chaotic, dysfunctional home circumstances, with no boundaries in place for their children. This contrasted with the structure, routine and stability that educational practitioners perceived themselves to provide for pupils with BESD. Practitioners employed in BESD schools elaborated on the perceived norms of chaos and dysfunction held by these parents, and suggested that these were evident due to an intergenerational continuity of ineffective parenting. Problematically, educational practitioners displayed a tacit acceptance of parental norms. This questioned whether advocating for pupils with BESD was at the top of the agenda for professionals, or whether a conflict‐avoidance strategy was adopted instead.     

Emotional and behavioural difficulties among middle school students in Oman: an examination of prevalence rate and gender differences

Children with emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBDs) began to receive considerable attention in several countries in the Middle East and North Africa region including Oman. In the Omani context, there is lack of valid assessment instruments which can be used to obtain information on EBDs in schools. The current study used the Arabic self-report version of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (A-SDQ) to examine EBDs in a sample of middle school students. 816 middle school students from both genders, who were randomly selected from different schools in two big cities in Oman, filled out the A-SDQ. Results provided initial evidence of good psychometric properties of the A-SDQ reflecting that it can be a valid tool for use in schools in Oman. Further, the participants reported moderate to high rates of EBDs as measured by the different subscales of the A-SDQ. Significant gender differences were found in students self-report of EBDs. Compared to boys, girls reported more emotional symptoms, less conduct and peer problems. Implications of the study findings for the identification of students with EBDs in schools in Oman are presented.     

Supporting the inclusion of pupils with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties in the primary school: the role of teaching assistants

During the past ten years in the UK there has been a considerable increase in the number of teaching assistants (TAs) appointed to work alongside teachers in schools. A significant number of these colleagues are appointed to support pupils with special educational needs (SEN), including those with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD). This paper reports on the ways in which the role of the teaching assistant in supporting pupils with SEBD has been developed in schools for pupils aged 7–11 years in one English Local Education Authority (LEA). It suggests that there are several models of support emerging and that the role of the teaching assistant is perceived as crucial to the effective inclusion of pupils with SEBD in mainstream classrooms.     

Preferred social organization of learning formats among pupils experiencing different kinds of internalizing problems in secondary school

The aims of this study were to investigate the dimensionality of internalizing problems among secondary high school pupils and to find out about their preferences for the social organization of learning formats. We wanted to see if preferences varied for pupils reporting different kinds of internalizing problems. Five hundred and one pupils in Grades 8, 9 and 10 (aged 13–16 years) from two secondary schools in a city in the south of Norway participated in the study. The results indicate that internalizing problems can be sub‐divided into symptoms of depression, symptoms of anxiety and social passive behaviour. We found a high association between symptoms of depression and symptoms of anxiety. However, scores for social passivity showed relatively low associations with symptoms of anxiety and depression. Our results indicated that all pupils with internalizing difficulties had lower than average negative preferences for most of the learning formats. Our results also suggest that depressed pupils have a particularly low preference for individual work, whereas socially passive pupils are most negative about whole class interactions.     

中学生感恩影响学校归属感:社会支持的中介作用

探讨中学生感恩对学校归属感的影响,以及领悟社会支持的中介效应,以此为提升中学生的学校归属感提供相关建议。采用中学生感戴量表、领悟社会支持量表、中学生学校归属感量表对292名中学生进行问卷调查,结果发现:（1）感恩能够正向预测学校归属感;（2）社会支持能够正向预测学校归属感;（3）社会支持在感恩和学校归属感之间起部分中介作用。因此,学校要对中学生进行感恩能力的培养,帮助构建社会支持系统并学会领悟家庭支持、教师支持及同伴支持,从而提升对学校的归属感,以便更好地促进学业成绩与心理健康。     

Ambiguous belonging and the challenge of inclusion: parent perspectives on school membership

Boundary ambiguity occurs when members of a family are confused or uncertain regarding roles, responsibilities and subsystem configurations within the family. Research suggests that perception of boundary ambiguity is associated with family stress despite internal and external resource availability. It has been suggested that research on family boundary ambiguity be broadened beyond the family unit to the interface between family and community. This study utilised boundary ambiguity, and paradoxical dilemma as sensitising concepts to guide a secondary analysis of narrative data from interviews conducted with 28 parents of children with a range of disabilities pertaining to the interface between home and school. Findings confirmed evidence of boundary ambiguity and boundary intrusion in parents’ perception of whether the child and family were considered valued members of the school community, and in ambiguous parental role assignments, such as information gatherer, child advocate and teacher. In addition, ambiguous situations often triggered paradoxical dilemmas that affected home–school relationships.     

Academic hardiness as a mediator for the relationship between school belonging and academic stress

Academic stress is a commonly reported affective state by high school students that can be accompanied by unwanted and unhelpful short- and long-term implications including a low sense of school belonging. Understanding how academic stress may be alleviated or managed by students is an essential consideration for all schools concerned with student well-being. This study aimed to examine the relationship between academic stress and sense of school belonging, as well as the mediation effect of academic hardiness. Four hundred and five high school students from six schools in Tehran (Iran) were recruited in the study. Data analyses with Structural Equation Modeling revealed that a sense of belonging to school (β = −.38, p < .01) and academic hardiness (β = −.40, p < .01) were significant predictors of academic stress. Bootstrapping analysis showed that academic hardiness acted as a mediator between a sense of belonging to school and academic stress. The findings elucidate the underlying mechanism in how low school belonging may lead to academic stress in high school students. Creating a culture of school belonging and teaching and supporting skills related to academic hardiness should be key considerations for all schools seeking to reduce academic stress experienced by their students.     

The relationship between school belonging,sibling aggression and bullying involvement: implications for students with and without disabilities

Bullying is grounded in the interactions between an individual and complex social–ecological systems. Therefore, bullying involvement is not just confined to the classroom or school. Recent research suggests that sibling aggression may be a predictor for peer-level aggression. These findings may be more relevant for students with disabilities because studies suggest that students with disabilities are disproportionately involved in the bullying dynamic. Therefore, this study explored the intersection between sibling aggression and school belonging on bullying, victimisation and fighting for 14,508 students, including 1183 students with disabilities and 13,325 students without disabilities in grades 6 through 12. As hypothesised, students with disabilities reported higher levels of victimisation, bullying and fighting. Additionally, high levels of school belonging partially buffered fighting and bullying behaviours for students with and without disabilities. These findings demonstrate the importance of establishing an inclusive and safe environment for school-aged youth.     

Building productive relationships with young people with SEBD in transition: the role of identity

This article reports a study of the experiences of school leavers with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD), which identified supportive relationships as key elements in young people demonstrating resilience through this transitional period. Almost all the young people involved in the study had access to potential helpers, but few managed to establish productive relationships with them. Analysis of interviews, conducted over a 15 month period with a group of 15 school leavers, their parents and those who worked with them, suggested that barriers and facilitators to relationship development existed at two levels: institutional and individual. This article focuses on the individual level, in which identity processes appear to play a key role. These processes are used to explain why some school leavers built productive relationships and thrived, whilst many failed to do so, and struggled. These findings have implications for policy, practice and theory.     

The role of an epistemology of inclusivity on the pursuit of social justice: a case study

Social justice education emphasizes how schools can better serve traditionally marginalized students. This case study examines the pursuit of social justice education in an unlikely setting: a Catholic elementary school that both espouses inclusion of all children and effectively includes children with a wide range of disabilities. The article focuses on the way a school principal understands the concept of inclusivity and how this “epistemology of inclusivity” enacted by the leader impacts the pursuit of social justice in the school. The study illustrates that an epistemology of inclusivity can at once embolden and delimit the social justice practices.     

Peer relations and emotion regulation of children with emotional and behavioural difficulties with and without a developmental disorder

Children with emotional and behavioural difficulties (EBD) and those who also have developmental disorders, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), can experience the same adverse consequences in their peer interactions and relationships. This present study compared the emotion regulation and peer relationships of children aged 8–12 years (M = 9.86 years, SD = 1.49) with EBD (N = 33) and children with EBD plus a diagnosed developmental disorder (N = 28). Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) with Bonferroni adjusted alpha levels revealed no significant main effect for emotion regulation according to EBD status. There was, however, a multivariate main effect for sex, with females presenting with higher levels of negative emotional intensity (e.g., frustration, anger, aggression) than males. A second MANOVA revealed no significant main effect for peer relationships according to EBD status and sex. Significant correlations revealed that the EBD-only group experienced greater adverse peer interactions than the EBD-plus-developmental disorder group. These findings are important for educators and researchers involved in the development and evaluation of prevention and intervention programms for children with EBD.     

Personalised learning for young people with social,emotional and behavioural difficulties

Limited research evidence pertains to the inter-related themes of personalised learning and curricular reform with young people who are disaffected with school or experience social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD). The Extended New Directions (END) project aimed to provide flexible and individualised education to help re-engage secondary school-aged young people. A mixed method research design evaluated the project. Quantitative data were gathered in respect of attendance, exclusion and achievement for the entire cohort of 30 young people. Self-report measures (focus group, semi-structured interviews and questionnaires) were used with randomly selected young people, parents and all stakeholders (n = 52). Analysis suggested that END was generally achieving its aims, and implications for future research, policy and practice are discussed.     

‘We are trying to make them good citizens’: The utilisation of SEAL to develop ‘appropriate’ social,emotional and behavioural skills amongst pupils attending disadvantaged primary schools

This paper focuses on primary school staff members’ interpretations of the UK social and emotional learning initiative: SEAL. The data, collected through group and individual interviews with a range of staff members working in schools located in deprived areas, illustrate how the scheme has been used to encourage various behaviours. This utilisation of SEAL was influenced by staff members’ perceptions of the pupils’ parents, and particularly their in/ability to develop ‘appropriate’ social, emotional and behavioural skills. Staff members identified a range of objectionable behaviours, exhibited by the pupils, which were perceived to have been encouraged in the home. In response, schools operationalised SEAL to endorse alternative behaviours deemed ‘appropriate’. Implications of the findings, in terms of marginalising the values and ‘othering’ the practices of specific sections of society, are discussed, and recommendations are made for a more democratic approach to schooling which prioritises a mutual exchange of knowledge between school and home.