Identifying and Assessing Students with Emotional Disturbance

To help improve social and academic outcomes for all students, school psychologists must be ready to accurately identify, assess, and support students with emotional disturbance. This essential resource gives them the clear information, practical guidance, and up-to-date research they need. Ideal for use as a supplemental textbook or a key reference for in-service school psychologists, this book will clarify what constitutes emotional disturbance in educational settings, how it differs from the clinical definition, and how to assess and intervene effectively so students learn and thrive.

Gives school psychologists the information they need to:

• Differentiate social maladjustment from emotional disturbance (includes clear coverage of the exclusionary clause)
• Understand the RTI model as it relates to identification of behavioural and emotional issues
• Meet the legal requirements for assessment procedures
• Determine eligibility for the "emotional disturbance" identification
• Help ensure meaningful individualised educational programs for students
• Help teachers develop classroom supports that address the needs of students with emotional disturbance

Brief vignettes and excerpts from US court findings help illuminate the educational definition of emotional disturbance, and practical tables and charts aid with the assessment process and determining eligibility.

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Table of Contents

About the Author

Preface

Acknowledgments

1. Understanding Educational and Clinical Definitions of Emotional Disturbance: A Comparative Overview
2. Toward an Understanding of Educationally Based Emotional Disturbance
3. The Educational Definition of the Student with Emotional Disturbance
4. The Exclusionary Clause: Social Maladjustment and Behavior Disorders
5. Psychoeducational Components of Assessment
6. Clinical Considerations for Assessment
7. Response to Intervention: An Alternative Model of Assessment
8. Placement Characteristics

References

Index

"Guided by research and clinical best-practice at every step, this is the most thorough and cogent resource for assessment of emotional disturbance that I have encountered. I highly recommend this book and plan to use it myself!"
- Andrew Cole, licensed psychologist and co-author of Recognize and Respond to Emotional and Behavioral Issues in the Classroom: A Teacher's Guide

"Up-to-date and comprehensive coverage of issues related to identifying and assessing students with emotional disturbance . . . This text would be an excellent resource for school psychologists, counselors and teachers."
- Lisa Bloom, Professor, Western Carolina University