Educating Special Needs Students

Educating Special Needs Students

Successful teaching, in general, calls for creativity, patience, flexibility, patience, expertise and a lot of patience. Successful teaching of special needs students magnifies the importance of these traits even more so. Mental retardation, autism, severe and even multiple disabilities, while posing additional impact and challenges on the education process for students, these issues are in no way insurmountable. Well thought out curriculum plans implemented through special policy, services, and programs are necessary to ensure that any student has every opportunity available to them for a successful education experience that will carry through beyond their student years. Mental retardation is descriptive of a disability that includes both intellectual as well as behavioral problems and until recently, was often used as a blanket statement to cover a wide variety, if not all, disabilities. In 2006, The American Association on Mental Retardation changed its name to The American Association of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAID, 2009) to reflect a change in this attitude. They state that “intellectual disability is one that is characterized by significant limits both in intellectual functioning and in adaptive behavior as expressed in conceptual, social, and practical adaptive skills (AAID, 2009). While a number of the causes of intellectual disabilities are still being studied, fetal alcohol and Down’s syndromes, and fragile X all have connections to mental retardation (Prevention News 1997). Autism is defined as a complex developmental disability that typically appears during the first two years of life and is the result of a neurological disorder that affects brain functions impacting development in social interaction and communication skill areas. It is typically classified as a severe disability for this very reason. Both children as well as adults on the autism spectrum will typically show difficulty in both verbal and non verbal communication as well as social, leisure and play interactions and activities (Autism Society, 2009). Despite the most recent increased attention to autism garnered by the involvement of high profile celebrities, the true cause of autism remains largely unknown but there is however, continued speculation over links to genetic and environmental factors. One factor that is still considered controversial but gaining acceptance as a possible reality in the causation of autism is that of the link between the different types of autism and childhood immunizations and their suspension ingredients (Rudy, 2009). As with all disabilities, physical or mental, the levels of involvement, or severity, can vary greatly from case to case. It is mentioned earlier that autism is generally included as a severe disability; but what constitutes a severe disability? In the dictionary of special education and rehabilitation it is defines individuals with severe disabilities as “having physical, mental, or emotional problems to a degree requiring educational, social, psychological, and/or medical services beyond those traditionally offered by regular and special education” (Kelly & Vergason p. 156). This might mean that the student is unable to sit up or walk without assistance and most likely could not talk or communicate needs. In addition, everyday self help tasks like dressing, personal hygiene skills such as dental care and showering would be difficult at best, and further, these students would be unable to, or may at least exhibit difficulty in, performing everyday survival tasks like eating and show difficulty understanding and coping with stress or discomfort (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, 1997). Multiple disabilities include two or more of these developmental issues in combination and create difficulties in meeting the extra needs of the multiply disabled child in classrooms designed to serve students with only one type of disability. Severe disabilities, often times are as the result of a biologic influence that causes brain damage. “Chromosomal abnormalities, genetic disorders, complications during pregnancy or the birthing process, as well as head trauma, can all cause severe disabilities. The specific cause of many severely disabling conditions, however, is not known” (Heward, 2010). Maternal substance abuse, HIV infection, rubella, oxygen deprivation, toxoplasmosis and post natal infections are all known to increase the chances of disability (Hardman, Drew, & Egan, 2011). Whether the diagnosis is that of intellectual disability, autism or one that involves one or even more severe disabilities, these students will face challenges to their success as individual as they are. While a portion of this population may never learn to read, write or even perform basic tasks that the general population takes for granted, they all have the capability to learn. Even at the most profound levels of involvement, learning can take place if only manifested in what feels good as a result of tactile stimulation. Providing free and appropriate education for these students is without a doubt challenging. Curriculums must be adjusted and readjusted, and instruction differentiated in order to provide special needs students with the chance for academic, social, and behavioral success. Apart from differentiating instruction in the classroom the special education teacher must be prepared to assist or guide students through a number of additional and unique issues. Helping students on and off transportation, lunch time requirements, receiving prescribed medications through the school nurse all are tasks that may be difficult for these children and regular classroom curriculum would never be adequate in these cases. Library, computer lab or physical education times are useless to the disabled student when the use of adaptive equipment that allows them to utilize or participate in these programs is not also included in the instruction. Finally, disabled student instruction, like regular education should include not only help and information but how to locate further assistance for transitions to the next setting whether educational or vocational in nature. Special education is available to students who are between the ages of three and twenty-four years of age from the Gwinnett County School District in Georgia. Within the elementary, middle and high schools, there are resource classes, push-in assistance, and separate, self-contained classrooms available. Center-based programs are available outside of the regular education settings. Gwinnett County addresses the additional areas of curriculum needs by including adaptive physical education, assistive technology devices and service, audiology services, interpreter services, occupational therapy, physical therapy, related vocational instruction, social work services, special education nursing, and transportation” (GCPS, 2007). The additional impact and challenges of educating the special needs student can never be overstated and the special policies, services and programs that allow for curriculums to be adapted to meet the needs of those with disabilities of any level can only help in their continued educational success.

References
AAIDD (2008). Frequently asked questions on intellectual disability and the AAIDD definition. Retrieved March 23, 2012 from http://www.aamr.org/

Autism Society (2009). What is autism? Retrieved March 23, 2012, from http://www.autism- society.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_whatis

Gwinnett County Public Schools (2012) Instructional services. Special education. Retrieved March 23, 2012 from http://www.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/gcps-mainweb01.nsf

Hardman, M. L., Drew, C. J., & Egan, M. W. (2011). Human exceptionality: School, community, family. Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Heward, W. (2010). Exceptional children: an introduction to special education. Retrieved March 24,2012 from http://wps.prenhall.com/chet_heward_exceptional_8/

Kelly, L., & Vergason, G. (1985). Dictionary of special education and rehabilitation (2nd ed.). Denver: Love Publishing.

Rudy, L. (2009). Autism spectrum disorders. What causes autism? Retrieved March 23, 2012, from http://autism.about.com/od/whatisautism/p/autismcauses.htm

The Prevention News (1997). What causes mental retardation. Retreived March 23, 2012 from http://www.prevention-news.com/1997/causes.htm

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (1997). Does developmentally disabled meet the threshold of criteria for the Bureau of Census definition of “severely disabled" Retrieved March 24, 2012, from http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/communitydevelopment /rulesandregs/memoranda/disabledpersons1997.cfm