Semantic Mapping as a Communication Tool in Classrooms for the Seriously Emotionally Handicapped

Abstract

Special education teachers working with seriously emotionally handicapped adolescents often are faced with the task of dealing with a student's thoughts and feelings in response to a crisis situation. This situation requires that positive teacher-student relationships have been established. The purpose of this article is to describe how the technique of semantic mapping can be used to (a) help seriously emotionally handicapped adolescents organize and disclose their thoughts and feelings in stress-engendering situations; (b) structure teacher-student interaction by providing a format; and (c) enable the teacher to collect specific notes for later consultation with staff. A case study is presented illustrating this procedure and implications for further use of this technique to facilitate teacher-student communication are discussed.

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