Special education

Special education, also called SPED, special ed, aided education, alternative provision, exceptional student education, or special day class (SDC), is the practice of educating students in a way that accommodates their individual differences, disabilities, and special needs.^[1] This involves the individually planned and systematically monitored arrangement of teaching procedures, adapted equipment and materials, and accessible settings. These interventions are designed to help individuals with special needs achieve a higher level of personal self-sufficiency and success in school and in their community. This may not be available if the student were only given access to a typical classroom education.

Special education aims to provide accommodated education for students with disabilities such as learning disabilities or difficulties (such as dyslexia), communication disorders, emotional and behavioral disorders, physical disabilities (such as osteogenesis imperfecta, down syndrome, and muscular dystrophy), developmental disabilities (such as autism spectrum disorder, and intellectual disabilities) and other disabilities.^[2] Students with disabilities are likely to benefit from additional educational services such as different approaches to teaching, the use of technology, a specifically adapted teaching area, a resource room, or a separate classroom altogether.

In the Western world, educators modify teaching methods, curriculum materials, and environments so that the maximum number of students are served in general education environments.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7] Integration can reduce social stigmas and improve academic achievement for many students.^[8]

Different kinds of education

Gifted education is sometimes confused with special education. Gifted education is tailored to intellectual giftedness which is a difference in learning. These students can also benefit from specialized teaching techniques or different educational programs, but the term "special education" is generally used to specifically indicate instruction of students with disabilities.

Whereas special education is designed specifically for students with learning disabilities, remedial education can be designed for any students, with or without special needs. The defining trait is simply that they have reached a point of unpreparedness, regardless of why. For example, if a person's education was disrupted, for example, by internal displacement during civil disorder or a war.

The opposite of special education is general education, also known as mainstream education. General education is the standard curriculum presented without special teaching methods or supports. Sometimes special education classrooms and general special education classrooms mix. This is called an inclusive classroom.

History

Until the early 19th century, children with special needs were often isolated and received no education at all. This was the case until specialized schools began to appear in the United States and Europe.

Individual needs

A special education program should be customized to address each student's needs. Special educators provide a continuum of services, in which students with various disabilities receive multiple degrees of support based on their individual needs. It is crucial for special education programs to be individualized so that they address the unique combination of needs of a given student.^[9]

In the United States, Canada, and the UK, educational professionals use a student's Individualized Education Program (IEP). Another name for a student's Individualized Education Plan is a student's Individual Learning Plan (ILP).

In the US, for children who are not yet three years old, an Individual Family Service Plan (IFSP) serves as the service document and, like an IEP, includes present levels of development and plans for services the child and family will receive.

Students with all forms of special needs are assessed to determine their specific strengths and weaknesses.^[9] The earlier these students with special needs are assessed, the faster they get the accommodations that they need, and the better it is for their education.^[10] Placement, resources, and goals are determined on the basis of the student's needs. Accommodations and modifications to the regular program may include changes in the curriculum, supplementary aids or equipment, and the provision of specialized physical adaptations that allow students to participate in the educational environment as much as possible.^[11] Students may need this help to access subject matter, physically gain access to the school, or meet their emotional needs. For example, if the assessment determines that the student cannot write by hand because of a physical disability, then the school might provide a computer for typing assignments, or allow the student to answer questions verbally instead. If the school determines that the student is severely distracted by the normal activities in a large, busy classroom, then the student might be placed in a smaller classroom such as a separate classroom or resource room.

Methods of provision

In most developed countries, schools use different approaches to providing special education services to students. These approaches can be broadly grouped into four categories, according to how much contact the student with special needs has with non-disabled students (using North American terminology):

Inclusion: In this approach, students with special needs spend all, or most, of the school day with students who do not have special needs. Due to the fact that inclusion can require substantial modification of the general curriculum, most schools use it only for selected students with mild to moderate special needs, which is accepted as a best practice.^[12]^[13] Some of the modifications include a slow pace of instruction, more breaks, sensory toys, et cetera. Specialized services may be provided inside or outside the regular classroom, depending on the type of service. Students may occasionally leave the regular classroom to attend smaller, more intensive instructional sessions in separate classrooms usually referred to as "resource rooms". They may also receive other related services that require specialized equipment and would be disruptive to the rest of the class. Such services include speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, or rehabilitation counseling. They might also leave the regular classroom for services that require privacy, such as counseling sessions with a social worker.^[14]
Mainstreaming refers to the practice of educating students with special needs in classes with non-disabled students during specific time periods. This is based on their skills. Students with special needs are segregated in separate classrooms exclusively for adapted education for the rest of the school day.^[15]^[16]
Another method is segregation in a separate classroom or special school for students with special needs. In this model, students with special needs do not attend classes with non-disabled students. Segregated students may attend the same school where regular classes are provided, but they spend all instructional time exclusively in a separate classroom for students with various disabilities. If their special class is located in a typical school, they may be provided opportunities for social integration outside the classroom, such as by eating meals with students without disabilities.^[17] Alternatively, these students may attend a special school.^[15] It may also occur when a student is in a hospital, housebound, or detained by the criminal justice system. These students may receive one-on-one instruction or group instruction. Students who have been suspended or expelled are not considered segregated in this same sense.

Co-teaching: In this setting, students with special needs are placed in a general education classroom to learn along with their disabled peers and non-disabled peers. A general education teacher and a special education teacher work as partners in instruction. Types of co-teaching include "one teaching/one helping" in which one teacher instructs while the other circulates around the class to evaluate and offer help, "parallel teaching" in which both teachers teach the same content to two groups of students of equal size, "station teaching" in which both teachers present differing content to different groups of students simultaneously and students rotate through each station, "alternative teaching" in which one teacher works with a smaller group or individual students while the other works with the rest of the class, or "team teaching" in which both teachers plan and teach a lesson together.^[18]

Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS) is an educational framework increasingly adopted to meet the academic, behavioral, and social-emotional needs of all students, including those receiving special education services. MTSS typically consists of three tiers of support: an educational framework increasingly adopted to meet the academic, behavioral, and social-emotional needs of all students, including those receiving special education services. MTSS typically consists of three tiers of support:

Tier 1: High-quality, universal instruction for all students.

Tier 2: Targeted interventions for students at risk of academic or behavioral challenges.

Tier 3: Intensive, individualized support, often overlapping with special education services.

This approach promotes early identification of needs and reduces inappropriate referrals to special education by providing timely, data-driven support within general education settings. MTSS is also aligned with Response to Intervention (RTI) models and is increasingly integrated with Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) to support inclusive practices across school systems.^[19]

Effective instruction for students with disabilities

Goal-directed: Each child must have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) that distinguishes their particular needs. The child must get the services that are designed for them. These services will allow them to reach their annual goals which will be assessed at the end of each term along with short-term goals that will be assessed every few months.
Research-based methods: A lot of research has been conducted on how best to teach students with disabilities. Testing, IQs, interviews, the discrepancy model, et cetera should all be used to determine where to place the child. Once that is determined, the next step is the best way for the child to learn. There are a number of different programs such as the Wilson Reading Program and Direct Instruction.
Guided by student performance: While the IEP goals may be assessed every few months to a year, constant informal assessments must take place. These assessments will guide instruction for the teacher. The teacher will be able to determine if the material is too difficult or too easy.^[20]

Special schools

A special school is a school catered for students who have special educational needs due to learning difficulties, physical disabilities, or behavioral problems. Special schools may be specifically designed, staffed, and resourced to provide appropriate special education for children with additional needs. Students attending special schools generally do not attend any classes in mainstream schools.

Special schools provide individualized education with the ability to address specific needs. Student to teacher ratios are kept low, often 6:1 or lower, depending upon the needs of the children. Special schools will also have other facilities for children with special needs, such as soft play areas, sensory rooms, or swimming pools, all of which are necessary for treating students with certain conditions.

In recent times, places available in special schools are declining as more children with special needs are educated in mainstream schools. However, there will always be some children, whose learning needs cannot be appropriately met in a regular classroom setting and will require specialized education and resources to provide the level of support they require. An example of a disability that may require a student to attend a special school is intellectual disability. However, this practice is often frowned upon by school districts in the US in the light of the least restrictive environment as mandated in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.^[21]

An alternative is a special unit or special classroom, also called a self-contained classroom, which is a separate classroom dedicated solely to the education of students with special needs within a larger school that also provides general education.^[22] This classroom is typically staffed by a specially trained teacher, who provides specific, individualized instruction to individuals and small groups of students with special needs. Separate classrooms, because they are located in a general education school, may have students who remain in the separate classroom full-time, or students who are mainstreamed in certain general education classes. An alternative to the separate classroom full-time for a student would be a one-to-one aide in the general education setting. In the United States, a one-on-one aide for a student with a disability is called a paraprofessional. In the United States a part-time choice that is appropriate for some students is sometimes called a resource room. Another option would be attending a separate classroom for a specific subject such as social studies.

Seclusion is the practice of involuntarily locking a student in an isolated room, utility closet or office alone without the ability to leave until school staff allows. The use of a seclusion room is often misused as a form of punishment for disrespecting staff or leaving the classroom.^[23]^[24]^[25]

History of special schools

One of the first special schools in the world was the Institut National des Jeunes Aveugles in Paris, which was founded in 1784. It was the first school in the world to teach blind students.^[26] The first school in U.K. for the Deaf was established in 1760^[27]^[28] in Edinburgh by Thomas Braidwood, with education for visually impaired people beginning in the Edinburgh and Bristol in 1765.

In the 19th century, people with disabilities and the inhumane conditions where they were supposedly housed and educated were addressed in the literature of Charles Dickens. Dickens characterized people with severe disabilities as having the same, if not more, compassion and insight in Bleak House and Little Dorrit.^[29]

Such attention to the downtrodden conditions of people with disabilities brought resulted in reforms in Europe including the re-evaluation of special schools. In the United States, reform came more slowly. Throughout the mid half of the 20th century, special schools, termed institutions, were not only accepted, but they were encouraged. Disabled students were housed with people with mental illnesses, and they were not educated much, if at all.^[30]

Deinstitutionalization proceeded in the US beginning in the 1970s following the exposes of the institutions. It has taken some time before the Education for All Handicapped Children's Act of 1974, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Individuals with Disabilities Educational Improvement Act (IDEIA) to come into fruition.^[31] School integration was supported as early as the 1970s, and teacher preparation programs in higher education have carefully taught and instructed graduates on inclusion at the individual, classroom, school, and district levels for decades resulting in dual certification of "regular teachers".

With the Amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1997, school districts in the United States began to slowly integrate students with moderate and severe special needs into regular school systems. This changed the form and function of special education services in many school districts and special schools subsequently saw a steady decrease in enrollment as districts weighed the cost per student. It also posed general funding dilemmas to certain local schools and districts, changed how schools viewed assessments, and formally introduced the concept of inclusion to many educators, students and parents.^[32]

Instructional strategies

The student can be taught in either a classroom or outside environment. Both environments can be interactive for the student to engage better with the subject.^[33] Different instructional techniques are used for some students with special educational needs. Instructional strategies are classified as being either accommodations or modifications.

Accommodation

An accommodation is a reasonable adjustment to teaching practices so that the student learns the same material, but in a format that is more accessible to the student. Accommodations may be classified by whether they change the presentation, response, setting, or scheduling of lessons.^[34] For example, the school may accommodate a student with visual impairments by providing a large-print textbook. This is a presentation accommodation.

Examples of accommodations

Response accommodations:^[34] typing homework assignments rather than hand-writing them (considered a modification if the subject is learning to write by hand) or having someone else write down answers given verbally
Presentation accommodations:^[34] listening to audiobooks rather than reading printed books (these may be used as substitutes for the text, or as supplements intended to improve the students' reading fluency and phonetic skills), designating a person to read to the student, or providing text to speech software (this is considered a modification if the purpose of the assignment is reading skills acquisition), designating a person to take notes during lectures, or using a talking calculator rather than one with only a visual display
Setting accommodations:^[34] taking a test in a quieter room, moving the class to a room that is physically accessible (e.g., on the first floor of a building or near an elevator), arranging seating assignments to benefit the student (e.g., by sitting at the front of the classroom)
Scheduling accommodations:^[34] rest breaks or extended time on tests (may be considered a modification, if speed is a factor in the test), use a timer to help with time management, students with a disability that can flare up unexpectedly may be allowed to turn in an assignment or take a test shortly after the episode has resolved^[35], (this system, called flexible deadlines, treats an occasional, unexpected episode of illness or incapacity caused by a disability similar to an equivalent episode of an unexpected viral infection, these students or their families should inform the teachers of the problem and turn in the missed work soon after the student is well enough to return to school- typically, one to three days after the return to class).^[35]
Students can be offered a flexible setting in which to take tests. These settings can be a new location to provide for minimal distractions.

All developed countries permit or require some degree of accommodation for students with special needs, and special provisions are usually made in examinations which take place at the end of formal schooling.^[34]

Modification

A modification changes or adapts the material to make it simpler.^[36] Modifications may change what is learned, how difficult the material is, what level of mastery the student is expected to achieve, how the student is assessed if at all, or any other aspect of the curriculum.^[37] For example, the school may modify a reading assignment for a student with reading difficulties by substituting a shorter, easier book. A student may receive both accommodations and modifications.

Examples of modifications

Skipping subjects: students may be taught less information than typical students- skipping over material that the school deems inappropriate for the student's abilities or less important than other subjects (for example, students with poor fine motor skills may be taught to print block letters, but not cursive handwriting)
Simplified assignments: students may read the same literature as their peers but have a simpler version, such as Shakespeare with both the original text and a modern paraphrase available^[38]
Shorter assignments: students may do shorter homework assignments or take shorter tests
Extra aids: if students have deficiencies in working memory, a list of vocabulary words, called a word bank, can be provided during tests, to reduce lack of recall and increase chances of comprehension, students might use a calculator when other students do not
Extended time: students with a slower processing speed may benefit from extended time for assignments and tests in order to have more time to comprehend questions, recall information, and synthesize knowledge

Non-academic services

In addition to how the student is taught the academic curriculum, schools may provide non-academic services to the student. These are intended ultimately to increase the student's personal and academic abilities. Related services include developmental, corrective, and other supportive services as are required to assist a student with learning disabilities. These services include, but are not limited to, speech and language pathology, audiology, psychological services, physical therapy, occupational therapy, counseling services, or music therapy.^[39] In some countries, most related services are provided by the schools. In other countries, they are provided by the normal healthcare and social services systems.

As an example, students who have poor impulse control, behavioral challenges, or are autistic may learn self-management techniques, be kept closely on a comfortingly predictable schedule, or be given extra cues to signal activities.^[40]

An educational field, termed severe disabilities, is taught throughout the US university sector in schools. Advanced instruction is based upon community-referenced instruction, and alignment with transition to adulthood and progressive community practices.^[41]

Rehabilitation counseling personnel are often association with supported employment services, and typically with "transition to adulthood"^[42]^[43] in which multi-decade recommendations for better coordination between the school and the community service sectors have been made at the federal and university levels.

Integrating technology in special education classrooms

Autism

Autism, or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), refers to a range of conditions. These conditions involve challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication. They also involve unique strengths and differences.

Autism is a disability that impairs the social interactions and communication skills of a person. People who are autistic tend to think and act differently from others. Many autistic children find themselves comfortable with a device in their hands.^[

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