Specific Disabilities Books

This is a great book that talks about many approaches and techniques to use for students with multiple disabilities. Is is an easy & quick read. Good for teachers and parents.

I found this book while browsing one day. It's subtitle is Students with Disabilities and Standards-based Reform. In the midst of the outcry from politicians and parents for reform of the public school system, one group has been steadfastly ignored. That is those who have disabilities. For example, the American Association for the Advancement of Science put out a book in 1990 called Science for All Americans...Project 2061. This book stressed many of the much needed reforms concerning science literacy, but in their forward they mentioned every neglected group EXCEPT the disabled. Now since then, the AAAS has changed their lists of neglected groups to include the disabled, but a friend at the National Science Foundation who is blind, said that he went to a Congressional Meeting on school reform and especially science reform, and once again Congress neglected to mention including the disabled. As a Deaf person who struggled with bad attitudes of teachers and professors, interpreters with no training in science, outright illegal behavior on the part of two Universities, and being active in accessiblity and discrimination groups, I know how hard it is going to be to get the reforms and the eductional society together in such a way to make them work together. This book is a good first step towards that goal. The National Research Council has done its statistical work on just how many disabled drop out of school and are unemployed, due directly to educators who ignore them at best and have no intention of including those with disabilities in this march for better educational systems in the U.S. What neither Congress or educators seem to understand is that the impact of education which is below par and doesn't include the disabled in the reforms will ultimately be paid for by the American public. The disabled want to work, want to be part of society, and want to be accepted for who they are, not for what educators think they should become (ie., Deaf turning into English speakers). We also want the chance to choose for ourselves the right to make decisions as to what we want to spend our lifetime doing. For all educators, this book is a must-read since the inclusion movement is gaining momentum, and regular teachers are going to see us, the disabled, in their classes, and in regular universities. Neither we or the Americans with Disabilities Act is going away, and educators better be prepared for dealing with diverse students in their classes. This book will help them achieve that goal. Karen L. Sadler, Science Education, University of Pittsburgh, klsst23@pitt.edu

Education for All is a collection of diverse perspectives of the many parents, individuals, and professionals involved in the development of exceptional education principles, policy, and procedures over the last forty years. Chapters are written by well-known professionals who address current issues such as early intervention, family collaborations, implementation of special education law, and disproportionate representation of minorities in special education programs. An added feature that makes this book unique is the inclusion of an insightful essay at the end of each chapter. These personal experiences offer the reader a glimpse into how classroom teachers, parents, individuals with disabilities and others were affected by each particular aspect of exceptional education. Several reflections will bring the reader to tears. The book also contains chapter by chapter questions which promote discussion. The publication of this book provides a valuable resource for educators, parents, and lawmakers as it recounts the history behind the historic 1975 Education for All Handicapped Children Act which guaranteed all pupils with disabilities the right to a free and appropriate public education.

"Enabling Communication in Children with Autism" is a very practical book which helps teachers ,parents and others working with Autistic childen to provide an environment which will optimise the opportunities for communication to take place. I found the book easy to read in clear "bite sized" chapters with a good mix of case studies and practical examples. As a teacher I found I could apply it well to my own setting.

It does not require expensive resources, or staff to completely re-organise classroom settings. Rather, it emphasises how crucial it is for adults to examine their own communication strategies with childen, and how this can be vital in extending children's own communicative acts.

Two of the main stategies are the use of minimal speech and proximal communication. In applying these approaches described I felt very comfortable, and I have observed positve changes as a result over a period of a few weeks. These ,and other strategies are clearly and easily explained with practical examples. The approaches described fit well with other techniques for teaching children with Autism, eg PECs and TEACCH.

Engaging the Disengaged: How Schools Can Help Struggling Student Succeed by Lois Brown Easton (Corwin Press, 304 pages, $37.95), reviewed by Dan Condon

Far too many young people sit in classes disengaged; far too many drop out of school altogether. The drop-out statistics are frightening enough, but no one really knows how many more students merely endure school, sitting in the back of the room, tuned out. Engaging the Disengaged is addressed to those of us who work with such students, and also to those who work with the teachers and principals who work with such students - district administrators, for example. Finally, it speaks to teacher education and continuing education programs that prepare teachers and administrators to work in schools that "house" such students. The reader will encounter many different voices from K-12 schools throughout the country in this book: voices of students, voices of their teachers, and voices of those who observe these students and teachers working together.

This book is about changing the culture of schools so that they are more humane and habitable for struggling learners - really, for all learners. Easton argues that schools should make important changes, such as creating whole-school learning communities. Teachers can certainly change their own classrooms, but school wide change is likely to have a greater effect. In fact, redesigned schools - not just high schools but all schools that serve struggling students - can help keep such students in school, learning, graduating, and contributing to a society that needs them.

Easton organizes her ideas into two sections: Culture and Curriculum, and Instruction and Assessment. The final chapter pulls it all together by looking at the effect of school on the whole student. Topics include a testing culture vs. a learning culture; the importance of building relationships and creating community; how principles govern a school better than rules; building a democracy in schools; how really to be standards-based; innovative instructional strategies; and performance assessment for learning.

For over a decade, I have been working with young people who have found success to be elusive in their high school experiences. Few were on track to graduating and many had dropped out. Easton's book shares realistic and inspiring examples of the kind of engagement that transforms such kids' lives.

Based in Estes Park, Colorado, Dan Condon is the Associate Director of the Professional Development Center, a CES Affiliate Center, at Eagle Rock School, a CES Mentor School.

This is the text I used in my graduate studies at Arizona State University. It is an excellent book--very well orangized and easy to read. It was used for grad students as well as undergraduates. It provides a comprehensive overview for all the exceptionalities of students. Each chapter provides the following: historical overview, definition of the disability, characteristics, causes, incidence and prevalence, assessment, classroom adaptations and modifications, family perspectives, current issues and future trends. Each chapter ends with a five-minute summary and study questions. This is one of the better textbooks I have used in my studies.

I have been teaching a course on Exceptional Development for a university for about 5 years now, and have used this textbook all the way through. This book is FANTASTIC. It is easy to read, easy to follow, and set up in a logical manner. It gives a nice broad overview of exceptional development, and I recommend my students keep this book to refer to in the futre as well. Highly recommended!

This textbook is a well-respected overview of various special learning needs. The readable style uses a concrete and understandable approach. The book provides an excellent introduction to the field of special education or may be helpful to teachers preparing for the PRAXIS special education examination.

Designed for educators, key topics include (a) exceptionality, (b) programs and services, (c) learning and behavior disorders, (d) physical, sensory, and communicative impairments, (e) giftedness, (f) at-risk youth, (g) life-span services, and (h) parent and family involvement.

A helpful companion website provides additional support for teachers and students.

Parents may find the book helpful.

Rosemarie Garland Thomson has written a book that is groundbreaking and essential reading for anyone interested in the fields of disability theory, disability studies, and literary criticism. She has skillfully examined how the figure of the disabled body has been used in literature in different periods as a marker or boundary line for defining what the "normal" body is or should be. The disabled figure operates to displace anxiety from more "normal" folks, and in the process shows how what we consider to be normal functioning changes across historical periods and cultures. Thomson also compares the disabled figure to the cyborg, as both are figures that are not seen as "natural," and both are places/signifiers where we can then interrogate what the natural is, has been thought to be, and what it could include. This is an excellent book, and should not be missed.

This book has given me a wonderful insight into family roles and how siblings are affected by having a brother or sister with a special need.

The book has been compiled by parents of a special needs child and has been constructed from the heart. It aims to provide proffesionals with a different angle of perspective when working with children with a special need and their familes.

It highlights some important contempory issues and offers cultural perspectives.

I used the book to assist me in my Early Childhood Studies Degree, and consider it to be an invaluable resource. I highly recommend it for parents, students and educational professionals wishing to find out more about special needs.