Although professional organizations in the United States have recommended genetic testing for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), uptake rates of genetic testing remain low. This review lists the recommendations made by professional medical organizations including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of…

Although federal law has provided guidelines for autism eligibility for special education, school-based autism assessment and eligibility vary widely across states and identification continues to lag behind national prevalence data. The main role of the school psychologist continues to be conducting evaluations for special education eligibility,…

Although considerable research has focused on engaging parents or guardians in education, little research has addressed engaging parents or guardians to meet the needs of English learners (ELs) with disabilities in the United States. In this article, we summarize literature from general education, special education, and EL education to provide…

Teachers are obligated to support students with developmental writing disorders, referred to as dysgraphia, in line with policy and legislation related to disability. Dysgraphia is a relatively unknown writing disorder within English classrooms, with an estimated 3-5% of school-aged students bearing this hidden disability. Within the field of…

When an English learner is referred for an evaluation for disability and possible special education services, educators must establish a trusting relationship with that student's family, clarifying the process for them and making the family part of all decision making. Urtubey explains cultural differences we should be aware of in how many Latinx…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) emphasizes that state and local education agencies (SEAs/LEAs) must provide sufficiently trained staff so that English learners have equal opportunities for attaining English language proficiency and academic achievement across content areas without being "unnecessarily" segregated from non-ELs, thus…

The first international declaration of inclusive education through the Salamanca Statement (UNESCO, 1994) underlined the importance and necessity of inclusive practices and recommended that all students should benefit from the same educational approaches in the same environment. In addition to that, growth in field applications, published research…

All children need access to equitable opportunities for developmental screening. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in gaps in well-child visits, and greater inequities in overall health. Young children who show signs of a delay or disability need effective screening practices so that prevention and/or early intervention can begin as soon as…

The British Columbia Teachers' Federation (BCTF) represents 43,000 teachers and associated professionals in public schools across BC. We are committed to the inclusion of all students in BC's public schools, believing that every student can learn, and every student is entitled to an appropriate education and full range of education services in…

This article synthesizes policy and intervention options for youth with disabilities based on recent reports from the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the Department of Labor Office of Disability Employment Policy. To frame findings from both reports, we utilize a life course approach. This approach is important as…

There is substantial empirical evidence that the Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) process is an effective means to reduce student problem behavior and increase desirable behaviors (e.g., What Works Clearinghouse, 2016). The use of an FBA as the basis for a behavior intervention plan (BIP) has been a requirement for certain disciplinary…

Visual-spatial ability is important for mathematics learning but also for future STEM participation. Some studies report children with dyslexia have superior visual-spatial skills and other studies report a deficit. We sought to further explore the relationship between children formally identified as having dyslexia and visual-spatial ability.…

Over the past decade there has been a substantial increase in research addressing the needs of children in China who have an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Despite the fact the country has the largest educational system in the world and has numerous policies to ensure all children's rights to an education, opportunities are limited for children…

Since the enactment of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (IDEA's forerunner) in 1975, an important requirement has been Child Find activities. According to Shapiro and Derrington (2004), Child Find is broadly defined as the entire range of activities, including public awareness, identification, referral, eligibility determination, and…

Each year, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC) releases a list of scientific advances that represent significant progress in the field of autism research. The "Summary of Advances" provides short, plain language summaries of the top research breakthroughs selected by the IACC from a pool of research articles nominated by…