Examining Gender and the Academic Achievement of Students with Emotional Disturbance

Students with emotional disturbance (ED) have significant academic deficits (Trout, Nordness, Pierce, & Epstein, 2003; Lane, 2004). Even after identification and school intervention, students with ED continue to demonstrate limited academic achievement and high rates of drop out and school failure, with 80-90% scoring below grade level on tests of reading and math achievement (Anderson, Kutash, & Duchnowski, 2001). In two recent reviews of the academic performance of students with ED both Lane (2004) and Reid, Gonzalez, Nordness, Trout, & Epstein (2004) conclude that students with ED have broad academic deficits evident in multiple areas that do not appear to improve over time. While we have a preliminary understanding of the academic achievement of students with ED over time, the current literature is limited with regard to gender and ethnicity. The purpose of this paper is to share the findings from an analysis of the academic achievement of a nationally representative sample of students with ED over time. In this analysis, linear mixed model analyses were used to investigate data collected from the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS) database in 2001-2004 to explore gender as a predictor of academic performance. Preliminary findings with regard to gender are discussed.