Educating the Child with Severe Behavioral Problems: Entitlement, Empiricism, and Ethics

Abstract

This article reviews the debate regarding the education of children who are classified as either seriously emotionally disturbed or socially maladjusted. It considers the debate from the standpoint of entitlement, including federal mandates, logical analysis, medical definition, and case law. The article examines how empirical research has supported or contradicted the notion of entitlement from the standpoint of prevalence, classification, intervention, and cost. Ethical guidelines are provided for the multidisciplinary team.