Comments: The terms "delinquent" and "disruptive" mean different things to different people. Delinquency and "disruptiveness" are expressed in behaviors that range from extreme hostility to extreme passivity. Effective educational programs for delinquent and disruptive students must directly address the unique needs of the individual student. Perhaps no other category of student requires a more focused assessment of the presenting behaviors. Unfortunately, students who are delinquent or disruptive are frequently referred for assessments and assistance after the teacher has given up on them. The most common phrase in requests for assistance is, "I’ve tried all I can. There’s nothing left for me to do." Often it is too late for meaningful classroom interventions. By then the student has been labeled "bad." Removal from the current educational placement, physically or psychologically (on the teacher's part), becomes the only acceptable intervention. The attitude of the teacher and his or her inability to describe the student’s problem functionally can be the reason that the student does not receive help when it is first needed. The following scenario illustrates this point.
Teacher: I have a problem student.
Consultant: What’s his problem?
Teacher: He’s bad.
Consultant: Be more specific.
Teacher: He’s real bad.
Consultant: How often is he real bad?
Teacher: All the time.
Consultant: What needs to be done?
Teacher: I think he needs placement in a program that can meet his needs better than I can.
Consultant: What are his needs?
Teacher: Learning to control himself so he won’t be bad.The lack of specificity and the attitude expressed here are not uncommon. However, too often the teacher’s assessments, both formal and informal, occur without specific and concise definitions or descriptions of the presenting problem. Without such a definition, it is not possible to determine the degree of severity of the problem, who has the problem (the teacher or the student), the extent to which interventions are needed, or how to monitor the effectiveness of the intervention. This section focuses on strategies for identifying delinquent and disruptive student behaviors in order to apply appropriate interventions. This requires functional descriptions of the presenting behaviors in terms that are observable, measurable, and educationally related. There must also be an operational definition of acceptable and unacceptable behaviors that reflects the beliefs of the student, the teacher, and the community. This section discusses the activities that must occur in the classroom if the student is to have a chance at receiving maximum benefits from the current educational placement. Specifically, this means the teacher must:
- Identify the presenting problem (target the behavior).
- Identify the behavior in an educational context.
- Define the behavior functionally.
- Develop a hypothesis, or "best guess," as to the reason for the behavior.
- Develop targeted facility outcomes or replacement behaviors for individual students.
Target the Behavior
Defining a student’s presenting problem is completed only when the following questions are answered:
- Does the presenting problem inhibit the student’s academic or vocational performance? How (extent-duration/severity)? As evidenced by?
- Does the presenting problem inhibit social development/interaction? How (extent-duration/severity)? As evidenced by?
Identify the Behavior in an Educational Context
A functional definition of student behaviors based solely on characteristics is not adequate for developing effective interventions or making appropriate placement decisions. The student’s presenting problem(s) should be described in a concise, educationally relevant manner, and within a geographical and temporal context.
Example: Student refuses to complete math assignments...
[concise description of event]during morning...[time context]in math class.[geographical context]When the presenting problem is defined in this context, teachers can begin to look for patterns of behavior. It is only through these levels of examination that root causes for the manifestations can be identified. Interventions based solely on manifestations have, at best, short-term success. Conversely, when presenting problems are defined using a concise description of the event as well as a time-limited and geographic context, the following questions can be answered. Thus, leading to a more focused intervention that addresses the root cause of the problem.
Example questions:
- Does the student only refuse to do math assignments?
- Does the student refuse to do assignments more in the morning than the afternoon?
- Does the student only refuse to do assignments in front of students in math class?
Creating functional definitions based on student performance is not as difficult or as time-consuming as it may appear on the surface. Many students with emotional disabilities exhibit similar behavioral, academic, and social problems. Most behaviors that impact student performance fall into seven distinct clusters:
- untrustworthy behavior
- withdrawal from others
- rebellious behavior
- violent and aggressive behavior
- inappropriate classroom behavior
- inappropriate interpersonal behavior
- bizarre behavior
Define the Behavior Functionally
Interventions for delinquent and disruptive students are most effective when they are developed for specific, well-defined behaviors. It is not possible to develop strategies for "bad" or "disruptive" students. It is possible to develop interventions for students who refuse to follow directions in math or who disturb peers by talking during quiet time. Teachers must define the characteristics of these individuals in functional terms - that is, terms that are very descriptive and clearly understood by the teacher and the student.
A behavior is appropriately defined when it can be observed and measured within a context that will allow the teacher or other interventionist to make an educated guess as to why the behavior is occurring.
Example:
Student refuses to do math assignment.
Vs.
Student is defiant.Example:
Student tore up history assignment.
Vs.
Student is destructive.Creating functional definitions based on student characteristics is not as difficult or as time-consuming as it may first appear because many exhibit similar behavioral, academic, and social problems. In Guide 8: Addressing Cultural Diversity Within the Classroom, the section entitled Behavior Characteristics displays a list of characteristics or behaviors frequently associated with delinquent or disruptive students. For these characteristics to be considered disabling they must be of sufficient severity or persistence that prevent the student from benefiting from educational opportunities afforded all other students. This information gives each characteristic a more educationally relevant meaning that can help the key people involved - the teacher and the student - assess the extent to which the characteristic is debilitating.
Defining the student’s presenting problem functionally is critical to the development of effective interventions. The teacher alone does not implement interventions for students. When both the teacher and the student have a clear understanding of the presenting problem, the possibility of a successful intervention is enhanced. This format becomes even more powerful when it is completed collaboratively with teachers and students.
Defining the student’s presenting problem in this context provides teachers and parents with a framework for the development of proactive prevention and early intervention strategies.
Identify the Reason for the Behavior
It is not possible to identify an effective strategy for a student who refuses to follow directions unless you know what is making the student refuse to do so. Trying to understand why the student is behaving in a certain way is as important in developing an effective intervention as the presenting problem itself.
Example: The student refuses to complete math assignment
Reason 1: The student does not understand the assignment and is afraid to ask for help.
Reason 2: The student is angry with the teacher and does not want to please him/her.
Reason 3: The student is worried about the situation at home; his father is terminally ill.
While the presenting problem is the same, the interventions designed to address reason 1 may not be effective for reasons 2 and 3. If the intervention is not matched carefully with the reason for the behavior as well as with the presenting problem, it may cause the behavior to worsen or may contribute to a new problem. Thus, problems may result from inappropriate as well as ineffective interventions. Unsuccessful inappropriate interventions should not be a sufficient reason to consider more restrictive placements or interventions. Determining the reason for a presenting problem is not easy and is not an exact science. Yet teachers do it all the time. Each time a teacher writes a referral for a negative behavior, he or she has made at least a subconscious decision as to the reason (e.g. "He did it because he challenged my authority."). The teacher who identifies and operationally defines the characteristics of students who exhibit problems, develops functional interventions that address the characteristics of the problem, and provides the "best guess" as to why the student is exhibiting the problem. This type of teacher is very likely to be successful in implementing an intervention.
KEY POINT: Develop intervention based on REASON rather than manifestation.
Sample Targeted Facility Outcomes:
- Reduce number of out-of-classroom referrals
- Reduce number of off task incidents
- Better communication between faculty
- Consistency in use of "plan"
Summary
To identify academic, behavioral, and social presenting problems so that effective prevention and early intervention strategies can be developed, the following process is recommended:
- Identify the presenting problem
- concise description of event [e.g., student refuses to complete math assignments]
- time context (A.M./P.M.) [... during morning...]
- geographical context [math class, PE, lunchroom, bus].
- Target the behavior
- observable
- measurable.
- Identify reason for behavior.
- Develop intervention based on REASON rather than manifestation.
- Evaluate success on the intervention and be willing to alter intervention if it has not been successful and resulted in the desired behavior change.
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Copyright ©, 2000. Lee R. Clark. All Rights Reserved.
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Last modified 2001-03-21.