Students with Special Needs: Making them Visible in Today's Classrooms

Special education provides service and access to students and families who have varied life experiences that manifest as divergence in development, learning, and behavior. If the initial statement is true and we, as a field, understand that the children and youth we serve are different, why is special education couched in a deficit service provision model? This question provides the framework for this chapter that discusses the notion of the divergence of students who receive special education services and aligning pedagogical practices with student learning, and cultural differences. Acknowledging distinction results in increased probability to identify individual students’ needs and implement programming based on their differences, which is directly aligned with the explicit purpose of the individualized education plan (IEP). Consequently, special education requires a change in perspective regarding how disability is conceptualized to improve the educational experience of children and youth with exceptionalities. The thesis of this chapter supports the notion of refocusing our efforts, taking into greater consideration cultural variance and its impact on student performance to inform teaching and learning in special education.