Special Education for Young Learners with Disabilities: Volume 34

The field of special education has come a long way with regard to providing services for young children with disabilities; but, more investigative research is needed. From the very beginning, young children with disabilities were not served in our public schools. This created turmoil for families and parents, and advocacy groups then got involved to spearhead the development of federal laws to support these young children. Through these federal laws and with the help of teachers, researchers, and other key professionals, young children with disabilities were more openly identified, assessments were created and evaluated, and interventions for their success were created and measured. Family-centered services were created so that parents could be involved with the development of their children. In the same vein, evidence-based practices were developed and enacted. Another area that has helped these children is assistive technology with a focus on literacy, communication, and other educational areas. While the field of special education has come a long way, there is more to do. This chapter and volume highlight what has been done and what can be done to enhance the education of young children with an array of disabilities.

A substantial number of students read significantly below grade level, and students with disabilities perform far below their non-disabled peers. Reading achievement data indicate that many students with and at-risk for reading disabilities require more intensive reading interventions. This chapter utilizes the theoretical model of the Simple View of Reading to describe the benefit of early reading instruction, targeting both word reading and word meaning. In addition, evidence is presented supporting the use of word meaning instruction to improve accurate and efficient word reading for students who have failed to respond to explicit decoding instruction.

This chapter reviews recent research regarding behavior interventions for young children. We first consider the implications of allowing maladaptive behavior to remain untreated in young children. The reasons that people may select for inaction are illustrated through a case example of an individual who manifested behavior problems that were allowed to continue through accommodations rather than being addressed through interventions. We then consider several examples of promising behavior interventions for very young children that can be carried out in home and preschool environments. Next, we review promising interventions that are appropriate for school-based settings. We conclude with the observation that while it is absolutely necessary to deal with urgent situations evoked by maladaptive behavior, it is critical to keep sight of the goal that we should always work to promote more mature, self-regulated, and acceptable behaviors across settings.

The term intellectual disability is broad and encompassing. Regardless of the severity of a child’s intellectual disability, early education is important. This chapter discusses educational considerations of young learners with intellectual disability. Specially, the chapter focuses on academics, life skills, social skills and social development, and behavior. Instructional content and instructional strategies are shared for these areas considering young children, although particular attention in paid to preschool and early elementary age students.

Hearing loss impacts language and communication, a building block for relationships and society. Most teachers and professionals rarely have a young child with hearing loss in their classroom. The “unknown” can be a source of stress for the professionals and the families alike. Understanding the characteristics of this population of students, the diagnostic process, the possible early intervention supports, and practices to use with young children with hearing loss may help teachers and professionals approach students and families with more confidence. This chapter will outline each of the aforementioned with an emphasis on understanding parental perspective.

This chapter outlines the role of vision-specific service providers for young children with visual impairments. The responsibilities of teachers of students with visual impairments (TVIs) and orientation and mobility (O&M) specialists in special education programming for young children with visual impairments are overviewed. Basic information about the signs and symptoms of eye conditions that commonly occur during the early childhood years are presented. Commonly used assessments and instructional methods for working with young children who are visually impaired are discussed. Additionally, there is an emphasis on the critical aspect of family involvement during these early childhood years and suggested resources are provided.

In 2018, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released the statistic that 1 out of every 59 children had a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Young children with ASD have unique needs specifically related to the characteristics that impact their communication and social emotional and behavioral development. These unique needs require early and intensive intervention to minimize their lifelong impact. It is important to identify and use evidence-based interventions to help parents support their children at home, and as a continuation of the skills they are being taught in other settings. This chapter will address the prevalence of young children with ASD, the impact and need for family involvement in intervention, and service provision and potential interventions.

Ensuring that young children with severe and multiple disabilities are active participants in all aspects of their lives and that they make meaningful progress toward valued life outcomes can be a daunting endeavor for families and early educators. In this chapter, we describe evidence-based strategies that can be harnessed to ensure that each child is provided with high-quality inclusive education. Initially, we lay the foundation for the chapter by asserting shared assumptions fundamental to early childhood/early childhood special education practices with topics including strengths-based approach, self-determination, all does mean all, and play as a right for all children. Next, components of a high-quality inclusive program for young children designed to support access, participation, and meaningful progress are described. These components include the following: (1) collaborative teaming; (2) family–professional partnerships; (3) authentic assessment linked to meaningful outcomes; (4) discipline-free, functional outcomes or goals; (5) responsive, developmentally appropriate environments; and (6) levels of instructional support (e.g. universal design for learning (UDL), differentiation, and individualization). A vignette is used to further illustrate how to apply the practices discussed.

Young children under the age of five are particularly overrepresented in traumatic brain injury (TBI) due to accidents and falls. To remediate the problems, confronting young children with TBI, is critical that they are introduced to opportunities to be placed in general education classrooms at the earliest possible point. The purposes of this chapter are to (1) describe causes, symptoms, and challenges following TBI (e.g., physical, emotional, and cognitive difficulties), (2) distinguish mild TBI (MTBI) from other mild categories of disability, (3) identify classroom interventions and strategies, and (4) identify parenting strategies that may provide essential support for them in adjusting to and managing their young child’s difficulties.

We reviewed three existing reviews of literature: two related to cultural and linguistic diversity in well-regarded special education research outlets including Advances in Special Education, and the third regarding constructions of culture, race, disability, and risk in early childhood and early childhood special education (ECSE) literature. Some of our findings reflected ongoing oppressions for young children at the intersections of race, disability, and other forms of social difference to which negative treatment has been attached, including static and deficit-based framings of disability, reliance on whiteness, and English as the norm for developmental benchmarks, and failure to account for disability beyond medical models. We present a preliminary framework for special education research and practice considerations in order to remediate these issues in ECSE for young learners of color, among others, with disabilities.

This chapter is structured for teaching young learners with physical (orthopedic) disabilities in special education. Orthopedic impairments encompass a range of disabling conditions. Orthopedic impairments are typically grouped into three main categories: (1) congenital anomalies (CA) such as absence of a member or clubfoot, (2) impairments caused by disease such as bone tuberculosis (TB) or poliomyelitis, or (3) impairments for other causes to include amputations, fractures, cerebral palsy (CP), burns, or fractures. In the chapter, the authors present definitions of various orthopedic impairments and discuss their respective etiologies followed by discussions of specific disabling conditions. Students with orthopedic impairments present both challenges and opportunities to special education teachers as is evident in the following case of Amira, a girl with asthma and CP.

This chapter is structured for teaching young learners with other health impairments in special education. Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA, 2004), other health impairments represent chronic or acute health problems such as asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, and sickle cell anemia and adversely affect a child’s educational performance. The chapter is organized around definitions, prevalence, etiologies, intervention strategies, and teaching considerations for selected disabling conditions in this disability category.

Children with disabilities are made to be invisible, excluded from school, hidden by their families, and abandoned by their governments, especially in developing countries. These children are less likely to start school; and if they do, they are unlikely to transition to secondary school. Access to quality programs or schools for children with disabilities is often limited by the lack of understanding about their needs, well-prepared or trained teachers, classroom supports, learning resources, and facilities. Denying these children their right to education has a lifelong impact on learning, achievement, and employment opportunities, and thus hinder their potential economic, social, and human developments. To ensure that all children enjoy their basic human rights without discrimination, the inclusion of children with disabilities should be promoted in all programs and schools. In addition, they must be included to ensure their presence, participation, and achievement. Regardless of ability, all children have a right to reach their full potential. It is critical to build the political will, policies, and infrastructure for truly inclusive programs. In this chapter, we examine historical trends, important relevant issues, and legislations that protect young learners with disabilities (the 13 categories) and the challenges and advances made in special education advocacy and policy to enable or enhance positive direction for the education of young learners with disabilities.