Jacob is a ninth grader who receives special education services as a student with an emotional disturbance. In looking at the behavior rating scales that were given to his teachers and parents, the results were much different at home than they were at school. What is MOST likely the reason for this variance?

• A. Jacob only exhibits certain behaviors at school
• B. Jacob's parents don't want the school to know his behaviors at home
• C. Jacob's teachers all see different behaviors at school
• D. Jacob's teachers and parents have different interpretations of the questions

Answer: (D)

Ratings on behavior checklists often vary because different people interpret the questions in different ways. Parents and teachers bring their own experiences, thresholds, and vocabularies to how they judge what counts as a problem behavior, so even observing the same student, they may rate items differently. In Jacob’s case, the school setting highlights certain behaviors that look different from those seen at home, and the people completing the scales may interpret the items differently, producing the differing results. This is why gathering input from multiple informants and ensuring clear, shared definitions for each item helps create a more accurate overall picture.