Wexford-Missaukee Intermediate School District Helping Schools Help Students

Emotional Impairment (EI) What is an Emotional Impairment? Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Students with an emotional impairment manifest behavioral problems over an extended period of time that negatively affect their ability to learn. Relationships are usually poor and behavior or feelings are inappropriate to the situation.

Application of IDEA to the Identification of an Emotional Impairment Inclusionary Criteria: There are specific characteristics that must be present and other characteristics that must not be present in order for the student to be considered as having an emotional impairment. Problem behaviors must be pervasive, occurring over an extended period of time across setting and situations despite targeted interventions. Over an extended period, this student has manifested problems primarily in the affective domain to the extent that he/she cannot benefit from learning experiences without special education support. The problems are characterized by 1 or more of the following behaviors: •

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Inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships within the school environment Interpersonal relationships refer to a student’s actions and reactions toward peers and adults in the school environment. Inappropriate types of behaviors or feelings under normal circumstance The team must take into account the intensity, duration and frequency of the behavior in relation to developmental expectations. The characteristic refers to an extreme over reaction or under reaction to a typical situation. General pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression A pervasive mood of unhappiness is one that negatively impacts a student’s ability to function within the school or other setting. Non-compliant behaviors may mask typical symptoms of depression.

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Tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems Behavior is excessive or unreasonable in proportional to the actual dangerousness of the object, activity or situation. This intense disabling anxiety often reaches panic proportions when the stressful situation or activity is approached on a regular basis.

Exclusionary Criteria: Consideration for eligibility must be given to frequency, intensity and duration of behaviors and the behaviors must deviate significantly from student’s age, gender, peer group, family norms and culture across different environments and educational settings. Behavioral differences among students of diverse cultures, environments and economic status are to be expected. The impact of these differences must be considered when behavior deviating from the norm is identified. While an emotional impairment may exist concurrently with other diagnoses or areas of disability, to be eligible under this rule the behaviors shall not be primarily the result of: •

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Social maladjustment Social maladjustment as conceptualized as a conduct problem in which students choose not to conform to socially acceptable rules and norms. Intellectual, sensory or health factors Special Education eligibility can only occur if there is an overall adverse effect on educational performance.