SPE-226: Educating Special Needs Students

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Amelia White November 17, 2013 SPE-226 Crystal McCabe Educating Special Needs Students There are numerous types of disabilities a child may have that affect different areas; intellectual disability, autism, severe disabilities, and multiple disabilities are a few disabilities that affect learning.Children with disabilities can learn and are entitled to a free appropriate education. Disabled children being placed in general education classes allows them to interact and learn with their peers but it is important to remember that many times curricula for severely disabled individuals are home and personal skills. Severe or multiple disabilities children will require accommodations and modification to insure they obtain an appropriate education.…show more content…
Autism covers a large array of complex developmental brain disorders such as Pervasive Developmental Disorders Pervasive Developmental Disorder – Not Otherwise Specified, Asperger's Syndrome, Rett Syndrome and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder. Autism disorder is characterized by extreme withdrawal, self-stimulation, intellectual deficits and language disorder. These symptoms can be noticed as young as 24 months. It is important to identify Autism as early as possible so that an appropriate treatment and educational program can be developed. The early intervention has proven to improve behavioral outcome. Research has shown that 1 in 88 children are on the autism spectrum. This is a ten-fold increase in the last 40 years. The increased awareness and improved diagnostic testing are cause for this increase (“What is Autism”, 2013). Students with autism need to have short and long term goals that address functional communication, social skills and focuses on their personal strengths and skills. Depending on the level of autism, some accommodations what may be required are smaller classes, avoidance of slang, idioms, or sarcasm, and required a identified “safe” place to go when feeling overwhelmed (Hardman, Drew & Egan,…show more content…
The Scio School District also provides services based on the students IEP. If Scio does not have a program that meets the students need as stated in their IEP, the student will be transferred to a local school district that can meet the student’s needs. Parents of special needs children have rights and need to be aware of these rights in order to advocate for their child. Special education teachers need to keep open communication with parents and invite parents to attend IEP meetings. References: AAIDD. (2013). Definition of intellectual disability. Retrieved from http://aaidd.org/intellectual-disability/definition Hardman, M., Drew, C., & Egan, M. (2011). Human exceptionality: School, community, and family. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. What is autism? What is autism spectrum disorder? (2013). Retrieved from

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