This book provides readers with a comprehensive description of procedures and practices that can enhance special education collaboration, consultation and cooperation in classroom learning environments and ancillary educational services. Experts in the field of special education provide detailed information on critical topics such as fostering the collaboration between regular education and special education teachers. Detailed discussions also focus on the role of mental health providers in special education, and the innovative use of technology in enhancing partnerships in general and special education. Unique chapters include the psychologist in the special education process, the role of the government as a partner to enhance special education services, and the vital role that principals play as school leaders to insure that special education students garner the necessary services to maximize their learning potential. Lastly, the critical roles that speech and language and physical education specialists play are discussed with regard to optimizing the overall development of students with special needs.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 has placed a renewed emphasis on the importance of the regular classroom, the regular classroom teacher and the general curriculum as the primary focus of special education. This book contains over 100 topics that deal with real issues and concerns regarding the regular classroom and the special education process. These concerns range from requirements for referring a child for an individual evaluation, school discipline, classroom-based assessment, IEP meetings, inclusion and mainstreaming, and various legal requirements relating to IDEA, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the No Child Left Behind act. It stresses the importance that every child with a disability must have goals to enable the child to be involved in and make progress in the general education curriculum.OCO Other issues interspersed within this text include classroom needs, the planning of individualized education programs, and participation in all aspects of the general curriculum. In order to achieve these goals, support for the regular classroom teacher must be provided so that children with disabilities can be involved in, and make progress in, the curriculum and participate in nonacademic activities."

A great resource for teaching assistants, NQTs, and school leaders and principlas wishing to establish a collaborative and consistent SEN setting where their students feel safe and successful.

The mission of higher education in the 21st century must focus on optimizing learning for all students. In a shift from prioritizing effective teaching to active learning, it is understood that computer-enhanced environments provide a variety of ways to reach a wide range of learners who have differing backgrounds, ages, learning needs, and expectations. Integrating technology into teaching assumes greater importance to improve the learning experience. Optimizing Higher Education Learning Through Activities and Assessments is a collection of innovative research that explores the link between effective course design and student engagement and optimizes learning and assessments in technology-enhanced environments and among diverse student populations. Its focus is on providing an understanding of the essential link between practices for effective “activities” and strategies for effective “assessments,” as well as providing examples of course designs aligned with assessments, positioning college educators both as leaders and followers in the cycle of lifelong learning. While highlighting a broad range of topics including collaborative teaching, active learning, and flipped classroom methods, this book is ideally designed for educators, curriculum developers, instructional designers, administrators, researchers, academicians, and students.

Enduring Issues in Special Education is aimed at any course in the undergraduate or graduate special education curriculum that is wholly or partly devoted to a critical examination of current issues in special education. The book organizes 28 chapters into seven sections using familiar structuring principles—what, who, where, how, when, why, and whither. Each section begins with an introduction that provides historical, legal, and theoretical background information and organizing commentary for the chapters that follow. The book’s objective, in addition to informing readers about the issues, is to develop critical thinking skills in the context of special education. Key features include the following: Dialectic Format – Each of the 28 chapters presents compelling reasons for addressing the issue at hand and specific ways to do so. Because each issue is written from different perspectives and focuses on a variety of aspects, readers are encouraged to weigh the arguments, seek additional information, and come up with synthesized positions of their own. Organizing Framework – The book’s seven sections have been arranged according to a scheme that is the essence of most investigative reporting and provides a coherent, easy-to-understand framework for readers. Expertise – All chapters are written by leading scholars who are highly regarded experts in their fields and conclude with suggested readings and discussion questions for additional study.

Much has been written about special education and about inclusive education, but there have been few attempts to pull these two concepts and approaches together. This book does just that: sets special education within the context of inclusive education. It posits that to include, effectively, all children with special educational needs in schools requires an integration of both concepts, approaches, and techniques. It has never been more timely to publish a book that helps professionals who work with schools, such as psychologists, special education professionals, and counselors, to identify effective practices for children with special needs and provide guidelines for implementing these in inclusive schools.

"An opportunity for aligning educational programming within schools to provide a comprehensive PreK–12 experience with the results districts are looking for: students exceeding their potential and having the skills, knowledge, and long-term understandings that can be applied to real-world problems." —Brian T. Pulvino, Director of Special Education Syracuse City School District, NY "A must-read for teachers, principals, directors, and superintendents as they advance equity and excellence for all children." —Barbara J. Sramek, Director of Special Education Marshall Public Schools, WI An insightful guide for integrating comprehensive services to benefit all students. Acknowledging that student achievement increases in inclusive learning environments and decreases when groups are taught separately, this easily accessible guide examines methods for raising the achievement of English Language Learners and students with special needs, who are sometimes overlooked in a culture of high-stakes testing. The authors provide a step-by-step process for conducting a formative analysis to help schools integrate schoolwide change through proactive support services. Readers will find ways to: Examine discrepancies between current practice and research Build a school climate that supports students with challenging behaviors Implement programs focused on continuous equity-driven accountability Develop curriculum, instruction, and teacher capacity Ideal for special education teachers, directors of special education, and other district administrators, this excellent resource can help you develop an instructional climate to promote success for every student!

Building and supporting effective special education programs School leaders and special educators are expected to be experts on all levels and types of special education law and services, types of disability, and aspects of academic and functional programming. With the increasing demands of the job and the ever-changing legal and educational climate, many administrators and teachers are overwhelmed, and few feel adequately prepared to meet the demands. Trends and Legal Issues in Special Education helps you build and support timely, legally sound, and effective special education services and programs. Readers will find: the most up-to-date information on how to effectively implement special education programs, processes, and procedures examination of a wide variety of issues, from developing and implementing individual education programs (IEPs) that confer a free appropriate public education, Section 504, least restrictive environment (LRE), and successfully collaborating with parents, to issues regarding accountability, staffing, bullying, early childhood special education, multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS), evidence-based practices, transition, discipline, and the school-to-prison pipeline extensive references and resources Written as a comprehensive reference for all who work with students with disabilities, this book offers the most up-to-date research and field-tested strategies from a range of experts that special education professionals can confidently and immediately apply.

Part 1: FOUNDATIONS OF SPECIAL EDUCATION. 1. Special Education in Context: People, Concepts, and Perspectives. 2. Policies, Practices, and Programs. 3. Cultural and Linguistic Diversity and Exceptionality. 4. Parents, Families, and Exceptionality. Part 2: A STUDY OF PERSONS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS. 5. Persons with Mental Retardation. 6. Persons with Learning Disabilities. 7. Persons with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. 8. Persons with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders. 9. Persons Who Are Gifted and Talented. 10. Persons with Speech and Language Disorders. 11. Persons with Hearing Impairments. 12. Persons with Visual Impairments. 13. Persons with Autism Spectrum Disorder. 14. Persons with Physical Disabilities, Health Disabilities, and Traumatic Brain Injury. Appendix A: Federal Definitions of Disabilities. Appendix B: Sample Individualized Education Program. Appendix C: Sample Individualized Family Services Plan. Glossary. Name Index. Subject Index.