Introduction to Special Education

Caring for Our People Training: Improving Care for Tribal Members with Disabilities and Special Health Care Needs

WHY SPECIAL EDUCATION?
Not every student who enters school is able to complete their assignments and interact with their peers without assistance. About 11% of students are serviced by special education, which is a program that provides children who have disabilities with individualized attention. These children are dealing with obstacles imposed by mental, physical, or physical limitations. Special education allows them to learn and receive the proper means to an education.

SPECIAL EDUCATION LAW
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is a law that requires quality services for students with disabilities, including preschool children and infants. By law, each student in special education is provided with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP), through which the student, parents, teachers, and administration work together to find the best plan for this particular student in terms of a successful learning environment. During the IEP meeting, everyone involved discusses the student’s progress, goals, and methods to reach these goals. These students should receive special help when needed, but the law also requires that they be mainstreamed into regular classes whenever possible. Studies have shown that this inclusion actually makes an improvement on the student’s learning process, especially when it comes to social skills.

WHAT BEGINNING STAFF MEMBERS SHOULD KNOW
Anyone working within the special education field needs to be aware of the differences among students with disabilities and the various categories of disability served by special education programs. Not every student in the special education program is the same and students with different disabilities require different types of assistance. There are eight categories of students served in special education programs. These categories were discussed in the Introduction to Disability module of the Caring for Our People Training. If you did not take the introductory course, or just did not memorize it, the eight categories are listed below. If you click on any of these, you will be transferred to the web page in the introductory page, be sure to use the back arrow at the top of your browser to return you to this page The eight categories of disability provided services by special education programs are:

  • mental retardation, .... a condition in which a person has trouble learning, absorbing, and practicing everyday skills, which delays them from being able to take care of themselves and interact with others,
  • Learning Disabilities - obstacles to the learning process that hinder a person’s full ability to be educated. These disabilities still allow the person to learn, he/she just has to find alternate ways to do this.
  • emotional/behavioral disorders,
  • Physical Disabilities– impairment of movement, speech, vision, and muscle use caused by birth defects, injuries or illnesses.
  • visual impairment,
  • auditory impairment,
  • communication or language disorders,
  • and other health impairments - cover a variety of diseases and disorders. This refers to people who have limited strength, energy or alertness that affects their ability to learn in a normal classroom.