Relationships Among Behavioral Profiles, Reading Performance, and Disability Labels: A Latent Class Analysis

• In Event: 77.058 - MTCC Roundtable Session 36
  In Roundtable Session: 77.058-9 - Context Matters: Identification and Instruction in Special Education

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the variation in student behavior across the Emotional Disturbance (ED), Learning Disabilities (LD), and Other Health Impairments (OHI) disability categories and to examine demographic, behavioral, and academic factors that may place students at risk for negative outcomes. This study used teachers’ rating of students’ in-class behavior to identify latent classes of students in the ED, LD, and OHI special education categories. Results demonstrated that the classroom behavior of these students was heterogeneous both within and across these disability categories, and that the co-occurrence of externalizing, internalizing, and learning behavior challenges was common for many students. Additionally, results suggested that latent class membership was associated with students’ disability classification and longitudinal reading achievement.

Authors

• Zachary Weingarten, The American Institutes for Research

• Elisabeth K. Hess Rice, The George Washington University