Students with Emotional and/or Behavior Disorders by Adrienne D. Hunter and Beverley H. Johns

Students with Emotional and/or Behavior Disorders

  My opinion: The story begins with the flashback classroom of Adrienne D. Hunter, who has many years of teaching experience. She taught how to make silk screen t-shirts when he first started teaching in an art class 30 years ago. The lack of experience at the time probably made her experience the error that many art teachers face. She said, for example, that she would have had a strong desire to show students how good she was, and to teach new technologies to students who knew nothing. Most teachers are unaware that their students know more. From their point of view, this will be busy judging whether this is right or wrong. In fact, even though there is no answer to art, the teachers try to have a kind of fight with the students first to show their ability. But unfortunately, when taking classes like this, neither the students nor the teachers can even get into the vicinity of the arts.

-Students may act out because they fear failure.
-This experience made me realize that not all students love art, especially those who have never experienced success in art.
-These are students who already have had many “wrong” experiences. They have never learned that in art, there isn’t a “right” or “wrong.”
-In art, there are so many different ways to accomplish a task.
-Art teachers can help students find what works best for them.
-Once their risk of failure is eliminated, students are much more cooperative and receptive to learning. 
-The teacher's attitude sets the tone for the class. 
- If you as the teacher are not excited about what you are teaching, how can your students be excited or even interested? 
-​Then you won't be surprised when students with emotional/behavior problems do act out.

---

- A teacher's attitude can be the most critical factor to the success of the student.
- A teacher's positive attitude reflects a willingness to accept students where they are.

​Students are more willing to work with a teacher who accentuates the positive and accepts the students’ strengths, weaknesses, and interests. It is also important to remember to leave your personal problems at the door. The art class is not about the teacher, it is about the students, and they don’t deserve to have a teacher's bad day passed on to them.

 ​ Art offers students with emotional/behavioral problems a socially appropriate outlet for their feelings. 

- ​IEPs. The old saying “knowledge is power” fits here because the more you know about your students, the better prepared you are to deal with their problems. 

-​Other factors including illegal drug use, homelessness, sexual abuse, physical and mental abuse, and the death and dying of friends and relatives can affect a student's behavior and his or her ability to learn. Once this information is given by the student, you must determine how to use it in the art classroom.

- ​ Art teachers can hear the most important things when they listen. It really is about trust.

Identifying, Evaluating, and Assessing Students Beverley’s District Let us look at the way our educational system identifies and defines students with emotional/behavioral disorders.

The Federal regulations of IDEA 2004-300.8 (c)  defines “emotional disturbance” as follows: “(1) The term means a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a student’s educational performance:

(A) An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors.
(B) An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers.
(C) Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances.
(D) A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression.
(E) A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. 

-​The IEP Process and Multidisciplinary Evaluation To meet the needs of any of the above students, the art teacher should know as much as possible about the student. The best opportunity to get information about the student is during the Individual Education Plan (IEP) process. 

- ​That evaluation provides a good overview of the student's ability level, achievement level, strengths, interests, and motivations/incentives. ‘The evaluation also indicates whether there is a specific learning disability and if so, what that learning disability is (e.g., visual motor integration, auditory memory deficit, written expression deficit).

- ​What is the functional assessment? Johns and Carr (2002) define “functional assessment” as an “in-depth look at the specific behaviors of a student and an understanding of why the student is behaving in a certain way” (p. 43). In order to do a functional assessment, there must be a thorough description of the behavior(s) that is (are) causing problems, the antecedents of the behavior/s (what happens before the behavior occurs? what are the triggering events?) and the consequences of the behavior (what happens after the student engages in the behavior?).

- Why, one might ask, is it important to decipher the function of a behavior in order to develop a behavioral intervention?
- ​ The art teacher can also use both formal and informal assessment (more on this below) to provide an assessment of possible strengths and weaknesses. Art teachers often contribute valuable information that other evaluators have not seen. Behavioral intervention plans are developed for each student based on the assessments completed by teachers and other school professionals. 

But, in the real world of schools, art teachers usually are not invited to IEP meetings and the
special educator may not contact the art teacher to give or collect information about the students.

-​Teacher rights. All who teach students with emotional and/or behavior disorders have the right to have these students identified to them and to access information about them. As an art teacher, you have the right to have a copy of the student's TEP and the right to be given as much information as possible to enable you to provide a student with an appropriate education within your classroom. The law requires that each student receive an appropriate education within a least restrictive environment.

-​It can be hard for them to take the emotional risks necessary to be creative and many of them are reluctant to show their ideas. It is sometimes easier for them to use photographs, photocopies, or to copy the styles and colors from picture cards of artists’ masterpieces rather than risk exposing their own soul.

-​ It is important to display students’ artwork and to get validation for them. Whenever possible, contact the local newspaper because publicity is an important part of art. 

-​Understanding and Giving Service to the Community It seems that I am constantly carrying water to what may be the world’s smallest art classroom. 

-​ Art lessons should be meaningful to students. 

-​It is important for my students to know they can contribute to their community, Whenever possible, I arrange to have my students’ work in public places and, as previously mentioned, to tell the newspapers what we are doing and publicize our activities.

-​When my students are able to shine through their artwork, both my program and the whole school district shine as well. 

-​When the wind blew, these mobiles made a soothing tinkling sound. Masks. An integrated mask project was planned by the art, language arts, and world culture teachers. Students were asked to research cultures (past, present, or future) that used masks. Next they created their own masks out of clay and glazed and fired them. The students then embellished their glazed masks with feathers, beads, raffia, or any other materials available to express their creative ideas. After completing their masks, the students wrote reports describing how masks were used in another culture. The reports were designed to encourage students’ creativity. They could choose to write a traditional report, a poem, a myth, or to describe a ceremony that used masks. The students used a digital camera to take photographs of their own masks and presented their reports using a PowerPoint™ format. This project combined their research and hands-on mask making with the use of high technology equipment.

-Classroom Rules ‘The key to the success of an effective classroom management system is the creation of a positive environment where students know what is expected of them and when they are frequently recognized for their positive behavior. Students with emotional and behavioral disorders have often lived in a “reinforcement desert” ‘They have not received a great deal of praise because oftentimes their behavior has been inappropriate. These students have been called “reprimand magnets.” They have received much negative attention, but not much positive reinforcement. To change this, it is important that the teacher looks for what the student does right and reinforces the student.

-​ By distilling the most important aspects of classroom management into a few simple, memorable points, the students can follow the rules without being overwhelmed or stifled by them. 

Five basic behavior management principles:

1. Build rapport. Find out what each student does well, capitalize on it and reinforce the student. Let students know that you are truly interested in them and that you want each student to be successful. 

2. Accentuate the positive. Good behavior should not be taken for granted. Tidwell, Flannery, and Lewis-Palmer (2003) review the features of effective classroom management systems and stress the need for using positive reinforcement to increase appropriate behavior.

3. Censure students in private. Just as you as an adult do not like to be reprimanded in front of your fellow teachers, students also don't like to be corrected in front of their peers. When the student needs a correction, the teacher should use proximity control and go over to the student. 

4. Be consistent. It is important for students to know exactly what you expect from them and that if certain behaviors do occur, you will consistently follow through with what you said you would do. 

 5. Remain calm when working with students. Even though the student may be agitated or getting on your nerves, the adult should keep calm and use a low tone of voice. A calm voice not only de-escalates a crisis but it also sets a good example for the student. 

Special education teachers use many ways to increase the motivation of a student in the classroom.

​° Providing choices whenever possible.
° Capitalizing on the student's interests.
° Capitalizing on the student's strengths.
° Using the Premack principle.

Any behavior the student is likely to perform can be used to strengthen a behavior that the student is less likely to perform (Martin & Pear, 2003). These principles were not developed for special education teachers alone. 

- ​Behavior Management in the Art Room: Failure Should Not be an Option

The case of the Allegheny Intermediate Unit's Alternative Education Program)

Many students come from homeless shelters, crisis centers, or even prisons. Some students’ lives transient and consequently, they are in the art class for only a short period of time. For these students, one teaching principle drives all others: Failure should not be an option! Students should experience success in my art class. Yet, sometimes it seems that 90% of my teaching is building self-confidence and self esteem in my students. 

-Task analysis.

​To avoid failure, task analysis is used to break the art lesson into small steps and to teach one step at a time. Task analysis is important because it helps locate where a student’s problem is occurring and find ways to overcome it. ​The task analysis process can factor out failure by anticipating potential problems before the lesson begins

- ​When a new project is introduced, step-by-step written directions, pictures, or diagrams accompany it. Written directions, with pictures or diagrams, help students with reading difficulties follow along. The directions are also posted on the wall to help students who are late or absent to catch up with the others. Written and posted directions help students work independently and allow them to work at their own pace. 

- ​We have a clear and concise policy for the safe use of tools and materials. 

-​ The tool outlines are a visual reminder where each tool belongs and where to put them back when finished using them. 

-​It is important to encourage students by praising their skills, even when you aren't excited by their choices of subject matter. 

-​Follow-up Activities e Classroom rules: List the five or six rules most important for your classroom. Or, conduct a class meeting to discuss and choose the rules the students would like for their class. What are some rewards for following the rules? What consequences would fit rules that are broken? Reinforcing incompatible behaviors

-​ Develop a game that will accomplish a behavioral goal for the students in your art room. Identify the behavior you want to change and the behavior/s that would make the negative behavior impossible or less likely to occur. What would be an appropriate reward for the students?