Making Environmental Education Accessible for All Students: Inclusion of students with emotional and behavioral disabilities

One of the most difficult tasks of an educator is engaging students in rigorous learning opportunities. A greater challenge is finding ways in which environmental education can be accessible to all students, especially those with emotional and behavioral disabilities. This article and lesson provides best practices for engaging students with high incidence disabilities in environmental concepts through varied representations and expressions of content. In addition, teaching collaborative protocols to fully engage students with social skills challenges within the local environment are discussed. The instructional approaches are aligned to increasing academic discourse, building positive peer-peer relationships, and observation using multiple modalities.

iCoaching Behavior-Specific Praise in a Rural Classroom

The purpose of this study was to explore the efficacy of iCoaching to increase the use of behavior-specific praise (BSP) by three educators (one teacher, two paraprofessionals) working in a rural center–based classroom for students with emotional and behavioral disabilities using a short, focused professional development and iCoaching. Results of the single-case delayed multiple baseline design study suggest that iCoaching increased BSP delivery by participants. Furthermore, BSP rates were maintained after iCoaching was withdrawn. Implications for using iCoaching with rural educators and future research directions are discussed.

A Conceptual Framework: Creating Socially Just Schools for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities

Students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) are among the most marginalized group of students in ourschools. In essence, students with EBD are often denied their civil right to a free and appropriate public education(FAPE) which is a social justice issue. Teachers who become social justice allies are more likely to create a sociallyjust school when they promote the implementation of multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) throughevidence-based practices (EBP) for positive behavior interventions and supports through a social justice lens.Implementing these interventions while being social justice allies in socially just schools offer the best opportunityfor students with EBD to receive an equitable and socially just education in schools thereby achieving social justiceregarding their civil right to a FAPE.

Inclusion of Students With Learning, Emotional, and Behavioral Disabilities Through Strength-Based Approaches

As more and more students with learning disabilities (LD) and emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) find themselves in an inclusive, general education setting, there is a need to find ways to maximize their educational performance. One promising approach is to use growth mindset training to help students move away from deficit thinking and instead use strengths-based thinking. This column explains the meaning of growth mindset theory and includes a rationale that explains why this approach may be particularly beneficial for students with LD and EBD. A brief review of past studies investigating the use of growth mindset that highlights the positive potential of this inexpensive, easy-to-implement approach is presented. Finally, a nine-step process for incorporating a growth mindset into the inclusive classroom setting is provided and tools to be used by teachers working with students with LD and EBD are included.

Social Capital Considerations in Transition for Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities

Students with emotional and behavioral disabilities (EBD) continue to have poor transition outcomes despite the continued advancement of evidence-based transition planning practices. Strategies tailored to the specific needs of students with EBD must be researched and disseminated to practitioners. A social capital approach to transition planning for students with EBD is one way to target this population. Social capital, or the power of relationships and networks to provide resources and support, has been linked to improved academic, employment, and independent living outcomes. This article (a) defines social capital as it relates to relationships, networks, and social skills, (b) presents steps for a social capital approach to transition, and (c) discusses a graphic organizer to assist students and transition teams to track social capital over time.