does special education really help for a child who has a behavioral problem?

Answer 1

It depends. If it really is a behavioral problem, no. The solution for that is counselling for thechild--and sometimes for the parents so they can learn to deal with the issues.

But some "behavioral problems" are actually symptoms of a disability. For example, a child who is disruptive in class and doing poorly could have dyslexia (or one of several other problems). Because the impairment is interfering with the child's ability to learn, he/she is simply sitting in a class getting bored. And any parent knows what happens if you have a bored child--they start looking for something to do.

In such cases, appropriate help, in the form of special accomodations, training, and/or special classes do help--when the child receives the kind of help needed. Unfortunately, that is not the case more often than not. Special education programs are often underfunded, resulting in too few teacchers and resources. Too make matters worse, it is routine for schools to label children with behavioral problems as "disabled" and use special ed classrooms as dumping grounds. That further overburdens the system and doesn't give those children the kind of help they need.

Answer 2

Does the student already have an IEP (Individual Education Plan)? If a Behavior Management Plan is available, it can be put in place to see what triggers the child's behavior and what may work to increase better behavior. If the behaviors are problematic and impacting the student's academic performance, special education services can help a great deal, with looking at other options for the student, like outside placements, social work services, etc.

Answer 3

There are so many factors that can effect this answer. First and foremost would be what sort of behavioral problems and where do they come from? If you have a child with autism or another developmental issues, you tend to see a wide range of behavioral issues. Children with ADHD have others. And children who are experiencing mental health issues or going through emotionally challanging times in thier lives have others. All of these kids could exhibit the same behavior, but knowing where and why the behavior is makes a huge differenct on how it may need to be handled.

The next step, once you know the why and where, is finding the best way to deal with it by coming up with a behavior modification program. These can be incredably effective when they are developed by a knowledgable team, are implemented with consistency and the teacher has the needed support inside and outside of the class to do so. Getting the program right can take time...a lot of it is trial and error until you find the right methods, the right incentives, the right goals for each child. Parents should play an active roll in developing and implementing the program and should, when able to, implement it at home as well. Many school systems have behavioral specialists to help devise, implement and support these plans and this is a resource that should be used whenever availalble.

But perhaps the biggest factor in the success of a behavioral mod program is going to be the class and the teacher. Many plans require consistency, structure and a lot of one to one time. In larger classrooms, many teachers simply do not have enough resources or time to implement the plan the way it should be. This is in no way an insult to teachers or a slap to public education. Teachers try to do the best they can for their class and thier students, but as testing demands have increased, class sizes continue to grow and more and more is expected as far as inclusion of increasing numbers of special ed students in these classes with shrinking budgets for supportive services and resources, there simply is not enough of the teacher to go around. I have known many truely gifted teachers who are given behavioral plans that could truely make a difference for the student, but are not getting the support or resources to be able to implement and follow the plan with the consistency it needs.

If you have a child who is labelled special ed due to behavioral issues you should know there are many options to help your child and be sure he progresses and has a positive, happy school experience, Know you will need to be a major part of it. Be ready to address the school and the district when you see a teacher struggling to follow the plan without the support (dedicated aides, learning or adaptive technology, overwhelming class sizes) they need. Be ready to follow the plan at home as well as at school and to do so with as much consistency as possible...and know we all have off days! I have seen the changes these plans can bring..in my own son as well as others.

Answer 4

Depends on what kind of special accommodations are being made. Some kids do well in the traditional classroom setting with an aide to keep them on task, something to work with(IE a squeeze ball) when they get overstimulated. Some kids cant handle transition and visual schedules are a lifesaver. It depends on the situation and child. If you don't already have and IEP or 504 behavioral management plan in place I would suggest one. These can get a child the services s/he needs for school success.

Answer 5

It truly depends on what kind of problem you are talking about. If a child has a psychiatric issue that requires medication, special education is not going to solve the problem. However, if the child chooses not to behave appropriate, sometimes it works, other times it doesn't.

Each child is different. It's really hard to generalize and give an adequate response.

Answer 6

Special Education has been proven to help students with behavior prloblems. I have a child who has ADHD and with the help of doctors, specialists, and a great support group we found out he needed a little one on one time in the classroom. Not that he was learning disabled, but he just couldn't stay focused. He now has a CBI Tech. His own "personal assistant" who sits beside him during class and helps remember assignments, stay focused and helps with homework. Now that he has this extra help he is doing much better.

Answer 7

With all the paper work aside, it really depends on the staff. If they are sincere about helping the child, then and only then will a child benefit from special education.

Answer 8

Yes, I believe that a highly structured public school special education classroom manned by a knowledgeable and energetic teacher in which negative behavior is not routinely ignored and positive behavior is rewarded can be effective in controlling and re-mediating the behavior of most "BD" students particularly those students whose behavior problems are ecologically based. (The behavior is caused by the school environment itself)

Answer 9

my son is in special education at school for being hyper active and with the extra help he is able to sit down and pay attention more because it is more one on one than regular class. i think that you should give it a try and see if it helps.

Answer 10

absolutley not!!! my niece who was diagnosed with adhd was put into special ed. for her behaviors , i think alot of kids with behavior issues get lumped in to special ed. because schools don't want to deal with them. which in my opinion is sad, teachers are paid to educate, teaching one how to deal with their behavior is part of their job, and they want raises!!!