EBD Blog

In “Failing Sam,” Jessica Shyu—who taught special education for two years at an American Indian reservation school in New Mexico—makes an important point about what we provide educationally for students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders. Teachers may become lulled by having a quiet, disruption-free classroom and overlook the need to provide beneficial instruction. She recalls a particularly challenging student named “Sam.”

His reputation preceded him. A week before he even arrived at school, the teachers were eagerly sharing horror stories they’d heard about the 12-year-old. It was a mix of rumor and truth. They told me about his alcohol problem. They told me about how he doused his cousin with gasoline and lit her on fire. They told me I would be lucky to get him to sit down and not hurt anyone.

She succeeded in getting Sam to work, but she realized that she was assigning him tasks that didn’t teach him new, needed academic skills. She changed her instruction and gave him competencies that no one could take from him.

It’s a story that I pass along with an endorsement. But, I also pass along an even-stronger endorsement for the importance of teaching students with EBD: Teaching them well—engaging them in learning activities with which they are successful and that make it obvious that they are acquiring academic competencies—will induce better behavior, reduce behavior problems in both the short and long runs.

I’m not just making this up out of whole cloth. The following studies document the effects I describe.

• Ayllon, T., Layman, D., & Burke, S. (1972). Disruptive behavior and reinforcement of academic performance. Psychological Record, 22, 315-323.
• Ayllon, T., & Roberts, M. (1974). Eliminating discipline problems by strengthening academic performance. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 7, 71-76.
• Lane, K., Wehby, J., Menzies, H., Gregg, R., Doukas, G., & Munton, S. (2002). Early literacy instruction for first-grade students at-risk for antisocial behavior. Education & Treatment of Children, 25, 438-458.

Link to Ms. Shyu’s commentary. Download a free copy of the study by Ayllon and Roberts (1974).