Meeting the Needs of Students With Emotional and Behavioral Disorders During the COVID-19 School Closures

Abstract

The COVID-19 global pandemic left many educators making an emergency transition to remote instruction when schools were initially closed. Although this transition was likely difficult for most students, it may have been particularly difficult for students with emotional or behavioral disorders who have complex and resource-intensive social, emotional, and behavioral needs. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which special educators and related service providers felt they were able to meet those needs in the context of the pandemic occurring in the Spring of 2020. Results indicated respondents’ perceptions of their ability to meet students’ needs and implement their students’ individualized education programs (IEPs) were moderated by policies on remote instruction and students’ access to technology. In addition, respondents suggested district- and school-level response strategies, professional development on remote instruction, access to the internet at home, and additional technology would be helpful in future school closures. Implications and limitations are discussed.

Prevalence and predictors of psychological distress and common mental health concerns among Filipino university teachers amid the COVID‐19 pandemic

“…They were left pondering questions, such as how to manage students in a virtual setting, keep track of students’ school tasks, and what assignments were construed as acceptable in remote learning (Dempsey et al, 2022). There is also uncertainty about the effectiveness of virtual instruction, even when implemented before the pandemic, compared to traditional face‐to‐face instruction (Kuhfeld et al, 2020)Teachers operated in a “crisis mode,” in which their tasks were forcibly expanded and intensified (Bruhn et al, 2022; Dempsey et al, 2022). This may have created enormous levels of pressure and disturbance to their professional roles and practices (Dempsey et al, 2022; Watermeyer et al, 2021), causing distress, anxiety, frustration, and depression.…”

Teacher mental health and workplace well-being in a global crisis: Learning from the challenges and supports identified by teachers one year into the COVID-19 pandemic in British Columbia, Canada

“…Prominent among our findings was that teachers’ perceptions of their ability to meet the needs of students was an important predictor of job-related positive affect. That teachers have struggled to meet the needs of students during the pandemic has been reported elsewhere [ 43 ]. Recent research has identified relations between teachers’ self-efficacy and well-being during the pandemic [ 44 , 45 ].…”