Integration and the Behavior Disordered Student

by mommytotwo | More from this Blogger

24 Jul 2006 03:08 AM

After teaching children with behavior disorders for several years, I often wondered exactly what parents of general education students thought of my students. Many of you may wonder why parents of general education students would even care about my students? After all, my students never crossed paths with their children, did they?

In actuality, my students were often integrated into the general education classroom after they had exhibited appropriate behaviors in my special classroom. It always took a long time before my kids were integrated and we never made the choice in haste, it was well thought out. Many times my students were sent to a general education classroom with the assistance of an associate, or paraprofessional, depending on where you are from.

It was always inevitable, however, that my students, with this one step forward into general education, would take a big step backwards and have a blow-up in the general class. Let's face it, when my kid's blow, it can be big. They aren't in a classroom for behavior problems for no reason.

It happened every time one of my students was integrated into general education. It had nothing to do with them not being ready behavior-wise, it had to do with stress and being out of their comfort zone: my classroom. Usually after the one big blow-up, my students did pretty well behaviorally and earned more general education classes. Every once in awhile, I would have a student who we thought was ready and just wasn't. He would return to my class again instead of being integrated.

Whenever I went home from teaching after my student had a blow-up in a general education class, it often left me wondering what the students in that class went home and told their parents. It left me wondering what their parents thought of this whole integration scenario. I can see how so many of the parents would not be pleased.

Their children deserve an education free from interruptions or explosions from other students. Or did they think it was a great thing that these special education students were getting a chance to get back to the free and least-restrictive education they were entitled to? I am betting the majority of the parents leaned more towards thinking that their general education student shouldn't have to have his education interrupted because of a student who is in special education.

So, I wonder from all of you; how do you feel about the inclusion of special education students, especially those that may exhibit behavior problems, into the general education environment? Do you agree with this, or would you rather keep kids with behavior disorders out of the general class, even if they earn it?

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Sheri Fresonke Harper (4092) 04 Aug 2006 05:02 PM

Hi Kaye, Interesting article. I'm about to foster a child who has been in special education, but I thought it was because of needing more tutoring rather than for behavioral problems. Still, you don't actually explains what happens to the child when they "blow" -- is it handled one on one with the counselor?

mommytotwo (526) 04 Aug 2006 07:43 PM

Hi Sheri! When my kids had a blow-up, depending on the type of blow-up and how severe it was (in my classroom), I normally tried to handle it in my classroom myself. Often times I utilized a separate room we had available for the student in the behavior disorder classrooms (our school, at one time, had three classrooms for BD kids). My kids responded very well to me, so I was often able to talk to them and give them consequences in class. Other times, they were removed, sometimes by me restraining them (didn't happen often, which is good, they were middle school kids and I am 5'1 and was barely 100 pounds). Sometimes a counselor helped, sometimes the principal and sometimes our school liason officer. Most of the time though, the problem was able to be handled in class. Every school handles behavior disordered students differently. This is how we did it. I also taught in a segregated school specifically for kids with severe behavior problems, when they would blow up in class, we would removed them immediately and they were taken to an intervention room with trained staff to work through the problem and be given consequences related to what happened in class. I hope this helps somewhat, as to what I meant when they blow and how we handled it. Usually, the blow ups my kids had in general classes were a swearing or yelling episode, kicking things when I removed them from the classroom, etc. They were always removed from the general classroom setting at the first sign of a blow up, however, it still caused interruptions to the general education learners. Thanks for your comment!

goofyshaq (5) 26 Sep 2007 04:32 PM

In our high school the "BD" students are segrated in certain rooms. When we try to put them in electives to intergrate them, the teachers have a hissy fit. They never want to give them a chance. We are setting these kids up for failure by keeping them in these "BD" rooms. What will happen when they have to get a job someday and they need to be with the public.