Evaluating the Developmental Benefits of Pupils with Social and Emotional Disabilities

Branislava Popović-Ćitić and Lidija Bukvić’s paper Evaluating the Developmental Benefits of Pupils with Social and Emotional Disabilities presents research whose goal was to evaluate the internal and external developmental benefits of pupils with social and emotional disabilities. The basic findings show that pupils with social and emotional developmental disabilities gain fewer developmental benefits than their peers who do not demonstrate the symptoms of emotional and behavioural problems. The authors emphasise that priority action should be directed towards external developmental benefits, particularly those connected to the support and validation of pupils, i.e. the creation of a school environment which supports, encourage and values the progress of all pupils, models positive behaviour, provides a feeling of safety and develops a climate of tolerance, approval and acceptance. Also, it would be important to initiate interventions making it possible to work on aspects of pupils’ positive identity, in the sense of strengthening self-respect, selfefficacy and beliefs in the future.Naziv zbirke: Biblioteka „Pedagoška teorija i praksa” 4