Reflection on my Behavior in Class with Students with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders and their Impacts.

 

Reflection on my Behavior in Class with Students with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders and their Impacts.

Author: Santosh Kumar Biswa, Sr. Teacher, Damphu CS, Tsirang, Bhutan

 

Students with Emotional and behavioral disorders have adverse effects on students that give rise to learning and behavioral issues, which makes it difficult for teachers to have effective instruction due to the dual deficits of learning and behavior problems (Sutherland, Lewis, Stichter, and Morgan, 2008). We know that children in the classroom will have different educational needs due to varied disabilities and it is realized that we need to plan accordingly to provide intensive remedial support to help them overcome their disabilities. In such cases, certain adjustments should be made by the teacher regarding the amount of work and time such students are allotted so that they don’t get emotionally distracted. Emotional and behavioral disorders in students lower their motivation to learn. Instead, we can observe them with aggressive and disruptive behavior that often demotivates the teacher, which sometimes develops a negative pattern of interaction (Sutherland, Lewis, Stichter, and Morgan, 2008).

In such a situation, my behavior in the classroom would be positive and I should always stay calm and should not take their behavior personally as such students are suffering from mental health disorders. I should be concerned about their lives and should step in to help them overcome the extreme difficulties they are undergoing and help them regulate their emotions and behavior in an appropriate manner (Peterson, 2022) so that their academic outcomes wouldn’t be affected. In doing so, I should be patient enough to minimize distractions in the classroom by creating a calm environment so that their behavioral expectations reflect their behavioral abilities. In addition, instead of trying to discipline such students, I should be assisting them by providing them with social skills training in overcoming their problems with the help of a school counselor. In order to assist them in overcoming their problems, firstly, I should always be on time for the class, talk politely and with empathy with them by showing respect, and should always try my best to help them. I should never neglect such students on any account. Their success should be celebrated with positive and encouraging feedback so that they get encouraged to learn and develop positive behavior gradually.  Moreover, I should be compassionate enough to understand how such disorders would impact their learning and their emotional health. Such students need intensive care and support through appropriate support so that they are assisted in learning without hindrance (Rockets, 2022). Moreover, I should be using specialized Intrinsic Motivation strategies in the classroom with such students so that they are provided with special services (LaRose, Thoron, and Colclasure, 2021).

On the other hand, I should not be hurrying to solve the problem immediately. I should assure them that they are allowed to deal with their problems secretly, not in front of their mates, and I should always try to understand their situation when they explain their situations (UNCG, 2022). In the meantime, I should be collecting descriptive assessment data (Sutherland, Lewis, Stichter, and Morgan, 2008) based on observations made on their emotional and behavioral aspects, which are later submitted to the school counselor. Next, I should discuss the matter with the school counselor for the further evaluation process. In my milieu, any mental health care is first taken to the school counselor and the school emotional development head who evaluate the data collected by the teacher along with the data they collect and take the needful action as per the required procedure they follow from the counseling point of view. In this way, the students would be helped positively with the correct measurements so that they are helped to perform well academically. But if my behavior remains the same and I treat all students in the classroom equally without trying to understand their problems, they will be negatively impacted because by avoiding their problems we will be adding fuel to their situations. It later worsens their situation the consequences would be dangerous with negative academic outcomes.

 

References

LaRose, S. E., Thoron, A. C., and Colclasure, B. C. (2021). Teaching Students with Disabilities: Orthopedic Impairment. https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/WC262

Peterson, T. J. (2022). What Are Emotional and Behavioral Disorders? https://www.healthyplace.com/parenting/behavior-disorders/what-are-emotional-and-behavioral-disorders

Rockets, R. (2022). Accommodations and Modifications. https://www.readingrockets.org/article/accommodations-and-modifications

Sutherland, K., Lewis-Palmer, T., Stichter, J., & Morgan, P. L. (2008). Examining the influence of teacher behavior and classroom context on the behavioral and academic outcomes for students with emotional or behavioral disorders. The Journal of Special Education, 41(4), 223–233. https://my.uopeople.edu/pluginfile.php/1572330/mod_book/chapter/338239/Examining%20behavior%20%281%29.pdf

UNCG. (2022). Dealing with Classroom Behavioral Issues. https://utlc.uncg.edu/teaching/behavioral-issues/