Special education is the practice of teaching students who require special attention due to their individual needs and differences. Theoretical these forms of education involve an individually planned and systematic arrangement that is monitored way of teaching. Also, it requires the use of adapted materials and equipment and a teaching setting that is accessible. These interventions were designed to help special needs learners to achieve levels of self-sufficiency and success that are higher in school and the general community. The most common special needs are physical disabilities, learning disabilities, emotional and behavioral disorders, communication disorders and development disabilities. Special education programs are carefully designed in such a way that they are customized to address every individual student’s unique needs. These students are assessed to understand their personal strengths and weakness.
Issues pertaining special education
At-risk students have often been placed together with the students with disabilities. This has caused most people to criticize the move by saying that it impedes the academic progress of those who are disabled. The act of inclusion that is practiced in the mainstream classroom has been criticized by both parents and advocates who say that special needs students require an instructional method of communication which is not witnessed in a typical classroom. In most cases, the instructors are forced to communicate in two or more instructional methods in the same class making it an awkward way of teaching. Parents have the fear that a single special needs student in a classroom will take a lot of attention and energy away from the remaining class hence impairing academic achievement of the other students. Some subjects have been difficult to teach students with special needs like mathematics whereby the students can have problems in writing math symbols and not being able to master the whole mathematical procedures.
Methods of provision of special education
Different schools use different approaches to providing special education. These approaches are categorized into four groups that include inclusion, mainstreaming, segregation and exclusion. Inclusion approach is one in which an individual needs student spend all his school days with students without any disabilities. It entails the provision of specialized services like counseling and instructional sessions. Mainstreaming is where students with special needs are educated in a class with students who are not disabled during specified time periods but are segregated in the specific classes during different time periods. Segregation is done by having different classroom or school for special needs students and attends classes without nondisabled students. Exclusion occurs to those students who do not receive any instruction from any school making them be excluded from school