Behavioral Challenges in Children:
Linking School and Home
Research has established that students who have
sustained a TBI do best reentering the educational system when advanced
communication and coordination exists between their rehabilitation facility and
their school. Consistency is a crucial ingredient, necessary both within and
across school, medical, and home environments; frequently, however, this
synchronization can be difficult to achieve. This article highlights core
elements gleaned from the authors’ work at a Board of Cooperative Educational
Services (BOCES) TBI Program outside of New York City, in the hopes of setting
forth some effective guidelines for facilitating links between school and home.
To begin, the authors identify four broad factors
determining children’s behavior post-TBI: personality, neurological damage,
the family system, and the environment. The authors also discuss positive and
negative problem behaviors commonly observed in students who have sustained a
TBI: Positive behaviors include aggressiveness, impulsivity/disinhibition,
oppositional/defiance, and sexual acting out. Negative behaviors include lack of
initiation, social "cluelessness," depression/low self-esteem, and
other factors influencing behaviors (e.g., substance abuse, seizures, and
cultural differences).
Next, the authors discuss a range of behavioral
interventions focusing on consistent structuring, anticipation of control needs,
and communication skills, as well as on "soft" versus "hard"
behavioral modification systems. Formal therapeutic interventions are also
presented, and include individual counseling by brain injury-savvy therapists,
social skills groups, medications, and well-trained, intuitive aides. The
article concludes with principles of consistency, specifically highlighting
consistency and communication within the school, consistency and communication
between school and home, and communication among community professionals,
school, and family.
For more information on this topic, please refer
to the original article:
Behavioral Challenges in Children: Linking School and Home by
Kay, T., Spaulding, J., & Smerdon, L. Brain Injury Source, pages 19-22,41
2001
Rob Stewart, Ph.D., Staff Psychologist Jamaica
Hospital Department of PM&R
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