This lecture explores evidence based approaches to meeting the needs of students presenting with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties (SEBD) in mainstream schools. It is argued that the SEBD phenomenon, although omnipresent, comes to particular public prominence in education in times of change. It is not surprising, therefore, that in a world dominated by social, economic and sustainability concerns, and in the concomitant educational climate characterized by sometimes competing emphases on performativity and social inclusion, that SEBD is a topic of particular interest in Hong Kong and across the developed world. After considering issues of definition and aetiology the focus of the lecture shifts to intervention. Particular attention is given to evidence on the qualities and skills of effective teachers and teaching in relation to SEBD, and the need for educators’ understandings of SEBD to be located within a biopsychosocial paradigm. The fundamental significance of physiological issues is discussed and the value of various empirically validated psychologically based interventions (e.g. psychodynamic, humanistic, behavioural, cognitive-behavioural and ecosystemic) is explored. Consideration is given to the sometimes neglected needs of teachers and parents in relation to SEBD. Challenges and questions elating to the cultural assumptions underpinning some of the dominant thinking in this area are discussed are also explored. Finally, policy and practice implications are addressed.
[Copyright © 2012 The Hong Kong Institute of Education]