When parents get together, the subject of appropriately addressing the behavior of their children often comes to the forefront of conversations. Parents share various challenges they face with their children, including issues associated with listening, eating vegetables, doing chores, and a host of other discipline-related situations. The plethora…

Research has indicated that there are several common pathways through which children and adolescents develop conduct disorder, each with different risk factors and each with different underlying developmental mechanisms leading to the child's aggressive and antisocial behavior. The current article briefly summarizes research on these pathways,…

Physical educators often struggle to teach individual striking skills to upper level (3-5 grade) elementary students. Finding a developmentally appropriate striking activity with a high participation rate can be a challenge. And sports such as tennis, pickleball, and badminton are often not an option for a variety of reasons (e.g., space or…

This article offers some explanations for the simultaneous expansion of special educational services and personnel, with the increasing inclusion in mainstream education of more young people with disabilities and learning difficulties. Following discussions with some 70 professionals, administrators and others in a study in four countries, it…

Young children's challenging behavior can impact all aspects of the classroom environment, including relationships (peer-peer, student-teacher), learning, and safety. Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a program that focuses on supporting pro-social behaviors and preventing challenging behavior. PBIS begins with building a…

For a century, democratic values have called for abandoning coercive approaches and teaching children and youth to be responsible citizens. The authors explore strategies for creating respectful environments and positive group cultures with challenging youth. They offer suggestions to adult group facilitators to support youth in developing…

Unresolved issues from home often spill over into behavior problems at school. This article discusses the five-minute RAP techniques: (1) connect; (2) clarify; and (3) restore. The authors present a case study wherein this brief restorative intervention had been a successful alternative to punishment and exclusion.

To measure the outcomes of youth transitioning out of foster care, states are required to administer the national Youth in Transition Database (NYTD) survey to cohorts of youth at ages 17, 19 and 21. The Children's Bureau shares highlights that compare the outcomes reported by youth in the first NYTD cohort at ages 17 and 19. With the second wave…

When Nicholas Hobbs created the Re-EDucation model, he envisioned that this philosophy would inform multiple disciplines. Today, Re-ED is widely applied to work with troubled children in day treatment, school-based services, residential settings, and therapeutic wilderness programs. Hobbs outlined a dozen Principles of Re-EDucation that are…

This article is about a street-wise boy who is unaware that his younger brother has been using clever manipulation to get him into trouble. Nicholas is a 12-year-old boy whose father was recently given a life sentence for murder. Nicholas is in a boxing league and uses his fighting skills on the streets. Angel is Nicholas' nine-year-old brother…

The normal developmental challenges experienced during early childhood as well as more significant emotional and behavioral problems require that parents and caregivers communicate effectively. The manner in which parents and caregivers communicate with each other about children's behavior can have a significant and lasting impact on children,…

Although not trained as treatment providers, teachers are increasingly faced with students who present challenging behavioral issues that require intervention. Teachers often resort to reactive and punitive strategies that have many negative side effects and drawbacks because they lack specific training in managing problem behavior in the…

Three hypotheses have been posited as competing explanations for the comorbidity or co-occurrence of language difficulties and behavioural problems among children: (1) language difficulties confer risk for behaviour problems, (2) behaviour problems confer risk for language difficulties, and (3) shared risk factors account for their co-occurrence.…

Historically, most educators have recognized two primary aims of school discipline: (a) managing student behavior, relying primarily on the use of teacher-centered techniques for preventing and correcting misbehavior; and (b) developing self-discipline, combining teacher-centered techniques with more student-centered techniques that focus on…

Asperger syndrome (AS) is a "pervasive developmental disorder," characterized by social impairments and focused, circumscribed interests and activities in the absence of significant language impairment and cognitive delay. Since its inclusion in the DSM-IV, there has been a dramatic increase in its recognition both in children and adults. Some…