Special Education Multicultural Education And School Reform

Also discussed are current issues affecting the education of multicultural students with mild disabilities, the selection of appropriate service delivery options in inclusive settings, the implementation of effective instructional programs, and the utilization of services by families. In this book, Utley and Obiakor offer practical solutions to create partnerships between multicultural students, their families, local service providers, general and special educators, and community members."--Jacket.

In the late 20th century, a tidal wave of calls for reform and inclusion of special needs students swept over public special education. The current debates over implementing these themes today are authoritatively addressed by 19 distinguished scholars in this thorough volume. Organized into three cohesive sections, it begins with the issues of educational reform and the emerging discourses of disability and integration in the inclusion movement. Respective chapters appraise specific arguments for inclusion and the federal legislation and litigation surrounding and supporting special education. The second part features the thorny issue of assessment, the technological revolution in special education, and the disposition of teacher training. The third section scrutinizes the inclusion of various populations of students with exceptional needs, particularly how teachers can make an easy transition from ideology to educational practice. Special Education in the 21st Century sets the standard for extrapolating future directions by wisely weighing classroom practices for different groups and the technical problems of resources, management, social groupings, instructional design, and the supposition that teachers will automatically change to accommodate an even greater diversity of learners.

This book is about how special education policy and practice is being negotiated within the context of educational reform in two countries. The political climate of recent years in both Britain and the USA led to many changes along similar lines, with a move towards placing greater power and choice in the hands of those individuals with special educational needs. Each chapter provides an overview and comparative analysis of the origins and evolution of specific educational reforms in the USA and the UK. The themes explored include: *providing parents with greater choice *decentralising decision making *making the whole curriculum available to all *accountability *funding the necessary changes.

This book is a panoramic view of inclusive education, past, present, and future. Grounded in historical perspective and fueled by contemporary accomplishments, the insightful discussions in this volume cover a wide range of issues, from program implementation and classroom supports to court decisions and financing. The authors compare successes and setbacks from schools and studies nationwide, drawing the big picture of practice and research. Complementing their highly informed, balanced analysis of special education and inclusion programs are highlights of the results from a revealing national study of inclusive education. Emphasizing the need for the concurrent development of inclusion and school restructuring, this book gives policy makers, administrators, school board members, teachers and parents a solid understanding of the process of school reform, as well as a vision for the 21st century. - Back cover.

This book covers issues that pertain to high-need schools but the authors challenge the distinctions made in the research and reason that the issues are relevant to all schools. From the rise of accountability in the 1960s to now, high-need schools have been dealing with curriculum, program initiatives, and responding to diverse populations, typically without the resources necessary to implement change. In this book we discuss important issues that have to be tackled if we as educators will succeed in meeting the needs of the next generation. From education laws, use of technology, leadership, diversity and multicultural issues, teaching in high-need schools, curriculum and teaching student with special needs, the book explores both problems and solutions, changing the dialogue from one of blame and stasis to one of action and hope.

Education Reform and Social Change is about addressing and changing the structures, policies, and practices of schools that differentially advantage white, middle class, native English speakers over students of color for whom English may be a second or additional language. It is also about helping people to think critically about what it is schools do and to consider more democratic, participatory, and equitable approaches. The chapters in the text provide first-hand documentation of the voices, struggles, and visions of students, parent activists, advocates, attorneys, and educators involved in educational and social change processes. It chronicles real-life efforts of people challenging the status quo and working to build a more participatory, equitable, and transformative future. The goal of this book is twofold: first, to consider the structures, policies, and practices that shape and limit educational change, and learning and teaching; and second, to document grassroots collaborative and creative efforts to change them. It offers a critical framework both for conceptualizing and for actualizing educational change. Organized into four sections, this book provides a theoretical and practical framework for thinking about educational reform and social change -- one that moves from the broader structural concerns that are embedded in policy, to case studies that document activism and collaborative efforts to change school, city, and state policies, to classroom-based directions and initiatives, and to the construction of personal and collective visions for a more democratic, equitable, and just education. Each section includes an overview of the chapters, necessary background information to help the reader contextualize what follows, and guiding questions to encourage reflective thought and engagement with the text and to invite personal linkages. Two resource sections are included at the end of the volume: "Radical Educational Reform, Critical Pedagogy, and Multicultural Education: Selected Readings and Resources" and "National Organization Networks and Resources with a Critical Perspective."

As diversity continues to increase in the United States, ethnic, cultural, social-class, and linguistic gaps are widening between teachers and their students. The rapidly changing educational landscape presents unique challenges and opportunities for addressing diversity both creatively and constructively in schools. Multicultural Education helps current and future educators fully understand sophisticated concepts of culture; become more effective practitioners in diverse classrooms; and view race, class, gender, social class, and exceptionality as intersectional concepts. Now in its tenth edition, this bestselling textbook assists educators to effectively respond to the ways race, social class, and gender interact to influence student behavior and learning. Contributions from leading authorities in multicultural education discuss the effects of class and religion on education; differences in educational opportunities for male, female, and LGBTQ students; and issues surrounding non-native English speakers, students of color, and students with disabilities. Contemporary in relevance, this timely volume promotes multicultural education as a process of school reform. Practical advice helps teachers increase student academic achievement, work effectively with parents, improve classroom assessment, and benefit from diversity.

Multicultural Education for Learners with Special Needs in the Twenty-First Century provides general and special educators innovative information that address the road blocks to effective practice such that diverse learners will be appropriately; identified, assessed, categorized, placed and instructed. The book provides those who instruct diverse learners comprehensive, creative and best practice chapters by scholars in the area of multicultural education. Chapter One presents a system to reduce traditional education road blocks that confront diverse learners called Culturally and Linguistically Responsive Teaching (CLRT). The CLTR system is designed to accomplish three objectives, namely, to increase student achievement, to help students develop skills to achieve economic sufficiency and to allow students to acquire citizenship skills based on a realistic and thorough understanding of the political system. Chapter Two discusses the pervasive problem of disproportionate representation of students from diverse backgrounds in special education by examining what it is, who is impacted by it, why it is occurring, and how it can be addressed using promising strategies. Chapter Three examines the use of authentic assessment to provide feedback for teachers and students, and guide the instructional process by differentiating teaching to meet the educational needs of diverse learners. Chapters Four, Five, Six and Seven address issues related to educating Latina/o Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans and Native Americans learners with special needs. Chapter Eight is a unique chapter that addresses the growing need to educate foreign-born immigrants who are now being referred to as “Today’s Special Learners in Schools”. This chapter delineates the use of the Comprehensive Support Model (CSM) to educate foreign-born learners who are identified by the authors as foreign-born English Language Learners. The CSM is recommended as a culturally sensitive intervention that integrates efforts of the self, (i.e., learner), families, school, community, and government in responding to the needs of diverse learners. Chapter Nine provides a comprehensive discussion of how Culturally Relevant Leadership (CRL) can impact educational theory and practice. The authors delineate how CRL leads to reflective practices which position teachers and administrators to become leaders in school change that can increase student success for diverse learners. Chapter Ten provides the reader with illustrative content regarding the use of technology to educate multicultural learners with special needs. Chapter Eleven delineates the culturally responsive infusion of effective behavior modification strategies that are designed to strengthen and facilitate positive behaviors for culturally and linguistically diverse learners with special needs. The book is an important addition to the education of multicultural learners with special needs as it provides much needed direction for the effective instructional practices for today’s diverse students. The book can be used as current best practices for special and general educators as well as school administrators.

Who Benefits From Special Education?: Remediating (Fixing) Other People's Children addresses the negative consequences of labeling and separating education for students with "disabilities," the cultural biases inherent in the way that we view children's learning difficulties, the social construction of disability, the commercialization of special education, and related issues. The theme that unifies the chapters is that tension exists between professional ideology and practice, and the wishes and expectations of the recipients of professional practice--children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities and their families. These voices have rarely taken center stage in formulating important decisions about the quality and characteristics of appropriate practice. The dominant view in the field of special education has been that disability is a problem in certain children, rather than an artifact that results from the general structure of schooling; it does not take into consideration the voices of people with disabilities, their families, or their teachers. Offering an alternative perspective, this book deconstructs mainstream special education ideologies and highlights the personal perspectives of students, families, and front-line professionals such as teachers and mental health personnel. It is particularly relevant for special education/disabilities studies graduate students and faculty and for readers in general education, curriculum studies, instruction theory, and critical theory.

This ground-breaking book considers current perspective on educational reform in the Asia-Pacific regions with a focus on a new era of special education, particularly as this relates to the educational reform towards inclusive education.