Chair: Carmel Cefai (University of Malta) Discussant: Paul Cooper (University of Leicester) This symposium brings together researchers from four countries who present studies addressing social, emotional, and behavioural difficulties (SEBD) in pupils. SEBD in pupils are a cause for concern for many teachers, since providing education to these pupils poses a challenge to teachers (Visser, Cole, & Daniels, 2002). Compared with other special needs groups, pupils with SEBD are more likely to have problems in completing their education successfully and to obtain lower reading and math scores (Groom & Rose, 2004). They are twice as likely to drop out of school prematurely as pupils without SEBD (Landrum, Tankersley, & Kaufmann, 2003). Moreover, children and young people with severe behaviour problems run a serious risk of developing lifelong patterns of social maladjustment (Kauffman, 2005). Clearly, the prevention of, and intervention with, SEBD in schools is of utmost importance. The first two contributions in this symposium focus on SEBD in schools, in Malta and The Netherlands respectively. The two presentations discuss the extent of the problem of SEBD in mainstream schools in these two countries, and the challenges faced by both the teachers and the pupils themselves. They identify the factors at the pupil, class and school level which have been found to be related to the development, prevention and management of SEBD in school. The focus of the following three contributions is on prevention of and intervention with SEBD. The third presentation highlights the effectiveness of nurture groups in promoting generalised positive, social emotional and educational development of young children with SEBD in England. In this study the impact of nurture groups upon reintegration in the mainstream school is examined as well. In the fourth contribution a whole-school approach to prevention and intervention is presented. This includes several initiatives and actions aiming at reducing SEBD and promoting social competence amongst pupils. The final contribution of the symposium describes how Information and Communication Technology (ICT) may be applied in the prevention and reduction of SEBD in schools. On the whole this symposium provides an interesting overview of several aspects of the problem of SEBD in mainstream schools, as well as on various approaches to prevention and intervention.

see the added proposals of the contributions

see the added proposals of the contributions