Lecture 2 Flashcards
SEMH (36 cards)
How o we know if a child of compulsory school age has a learning difficulty/ disability
- they have signif greater difficulty learning than the majority of the same age
- they have a disability which prevents / hinders them from making use of facilities provided by a mainstream school
what is SEN
Special Educational needs
what does besd stand for
Behavioural, Emotional and Social Difficulties
what does semh stand for
Social, emotional and Mental Health Needs)
why was BESD changed to SEMH
to differentiate poor behaviour from special educational needs
poor behaviours can be addressed by disiplinary structures
aims to find the roo cause of the behaviour rather than focussing on the symptoms
Many children having Behavioural, Emotional and Social Difficulties (BESD) might experience mental health disorder
Children with SEMH have an Emotional and Behavioural problem within an educational context AND, within medical context, a mental health problem such as ADHD or conduct disorder.
explain what semh is
- Children/ young people may experience a wide range of social and emotional difficulties which manifest themselves in many ways, including:
o Challenging and disruptive behaviour
o Withdrawal or isolation
o Lack of concentration
o Hyperactivity - These behaviours may also reflect underlying MH difficulties such as
o ADHD, Anxiety, depression, self-harm, substance misuse, eating disorders..
how can semh manifest themselves in children
o Challenging and disruptive behaviour
o Withdrawal or isolation
o Lack of concentration
o Hyperactivity
how many children with mental health behaviours in school have issues
10-20% of 5-15 year olds have a mental health disorders
are boys or girls more likely to be diagnosed with an SEMH mental disorder
- boys- but it varies with the type of problem
what are social competence skills
“The ability to achieve personal goals in social interaction while simultaneously maintaining positive relationships with others over time and across situations” (Rubin and Rose-Krasnor, 1992)
how are there cultural differences in social competence skills
Different societies and cultures may approve and sanctions different behaviours
o Context-dependent may make them particularly challenging for children to acquire
o Chen et al, 1992: shyness sensitivity in Canada vs Chinese sample
how to social competence skills link to peer acceptance
- Peer acceptance linked to later school achievement, and negatively to problems of behaviour and adjustment
what is emotional competence/ skills
- “Ability to perceive accurately, appraise, and express emotions; the ability to access and/or generate feelings when they facilitate thought; the ability to understand emotions and emotional knowledge; the ability to regulate emotions to promote emotional and intellectual growth” (Salovey and Sluyter, 1997)
how do emotional competence skills mediate academic and social outcomes
o Regulates negative emotions (e.g. anxiety, fear stress) in learning
o Regulates impulse and delay gratification for better long term outcomes
o Helps with better relationship with peers increase group acceptance
what do individuals with mental health issues experience during school
o More difficulty maintaining social relationships
o Less academic and vocational success
o A greater risk for substantial physical illnesses (such as diabetes and heart disease)
o Are at higher risk for early mortality, including a substantially elevated risk for suicide
how are mental health issues in school translated into broader social problems
o Rates of mental disorders in the population of incarcerated youth as high as 70 (Kutcher &McDougall, 2009)
o School dropout (Kearney, 2008 review paper)
name the Theoretical approaches to behavioural difficulties- Interactive framework
based on work from Morton and Frith (1995)
there are three levels of description to explain developmental problems
- o Biological level : neural processes
o Cognitive level: including affective factors
o Behavioural level: directly observable behaviour
o Addition of environmental factors at three levels.
name the Theoretical approaches to behavioural difficulties- behavioural approach
- Primary focus is on behaviour that is observed
- Behaviour is learnt through what happens in environment changing environment to change pattern of behaviour
- Undesirable behaviour develops because associated with positive outcomes (positive reinforcement) avoiding negative outcome (punishment), removing triggers (negative reinforcement)
name the Theoretical approaches to behavioural difficulties- cognitive approach
- Primary focus on cognitive processes: how events are perceived, and problems planned and solved
- Depends on interpretation more than ‘reality’
- Changes the way children think about events, themselves and the world to ultimately change behaviour
- Different theories focus on different processes
o E.g. Attribution of cause and difficulties. Adapted to social and emotional difficulties
name the Theoretical approaches to behavioural difficulties- psychodynamic approach
- Based on assumption that the drives, wishes, anxieties etc that determine our behaviour are unconscious.
- Focuses on understanding and resolving internal conflict to tackle underlying problem rather than the observable behaviour.
- E.g. teacher set work that student finds difficult unconsciously linked to pattern with parents (feel they always fail) set for failure and may not want to do the exercise
- Attachment theory is one of them
- Teachers may play role as an attachment figure to provide secure base for children with disorganised attachment style
name the Theoretical approaches to behavioural difficulties- systemic approach
- Based on reciprocal interaction between individuals and their environment
- ‘The whole is greater than the sum of its parts’ (Gorrell-Barnes, 1985)
- Holistic investigation to build a picture of behaviour, knowledge, feelings, beliefs and attitudes of everyone involved (and particularly teachers and pupil) in the problematic situation.
- Not just looking at ABC but at reciprocal interactions and circular consequences.
o Good example p446 of Fredrickson Clive 3rd edition.
name the Theoretical approaches to behavioural difficulties- biological level influences
- Important but outside scope of expertise of teachers and educational psychologists.
- Collaboration with medical staff is necessary
- But advance in neuroscience helps understand typical issues with children and adolescents:
- e.g. development of limbic system (reward) before PFC (inhibition, top-down control) risky behaviour
o Casey, Jones, Hare, 2008; Blakemore & Choudhury 2006
o Spenrath, Clarke & Kutcher, 2011 - Medical, rather than psychological interventions
explain behavioural based methods for assessing mental health problems in schools
- Systematic observation
o Frequency and/or duration of behaviour
o Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gq6v59YoPUM
o Identify triggers for the behaviour ABC
o Allow for ‘real’ evaluation vs. overestimation
o Good for evaluating success of intervention
o But behave differently when observed - Documentary sources or questionnaires as behavioural descriptors
explain cognitive based methods for assessing mental health problems in schools
- Questionnaires to assess cognitive constructs: self perception, attribution, personal constructs
o But children tend to chose the most socially desirable option.
o Harter questionnaire measuring self perception
o 2 statements ‘some children often do not like the way they behave but other children usually like the way they behave’.
o Each statement is chosen by some children reduces social desirability factor - Capacity for self-analysis
- Language difficulties
