The purpose of this article is to explore the intersectionality of autism and sociocultural factors as well as discuss the complexities associated with appropriate assessment, diagnosis, and intervention. Based on a review of the literature, the authors present a brief history of the emergence of the term autism and highlight factors that have…

This article explores the role of dyslexia identification within the broader shift toward inclusive education. While dyslexia is widely recognised as a neurobiological condition, ongoing debates question its validity, diagnostic criteria, and the fairness of access to support. Additionally, research presents conflicting findings on the impact of…

To propose novel differential criteria of the DSM-5 for diagnosing transient Autistic-like behaviors in children with congenital blindness as a secondary condition. Most references indicate a significantly higher prevalence of autism in children with congenital blindness compared to sighted children. These behavioral symptoms may be transient…

Although specific learning disabilities (SLD) represent the largest category for which school-age children receive special education services, the science and practice of SLD identification continues to evade consensus. Our goal is to bring together trainers and researchers with different perspectives on SLD identification to help spur a move…

Though there is evidence autism identification has been inequitable for populations who are culturally and linguistically minoritized, there is limited research that explains the issue of disproportionality and factors contributing to its occurrence, especially within an educational setting. To explore contributors to racial/ethnic disparities in…

According to Article 24 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), state parties recognize the right of persons with disabilities to education. In this paper we focus on access to higher education for persons with intellectual disabilities and the recognition or non-recognition of these persons as students…

Multifactorial models of dyslexia have expanded how we consider heterogeneity within the population of children with dyslexia. These models are predicated on the idea that cognitive/linguistic risk factors are not deterministic but instead probabilistic, with the likelihood of difficulties involving an interaction between risk and protective…

Adaptive behavior skills are often delayed in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and these behaviors are significantly associated with poor outcomes in adulthood, especially for autistic individuals that have no cognitive and/or language delays. Therefore, despite having the capacity to be self-sufficient, the vast majority of autistic adults fail to…

The author argues that despite the vast proliferation of scientific research, our understanding of dyslexia is marked by serious weaknesses of conceptualization, definition, and operationalization that are not only unscientific but also result in impoverished practice in schools, social inequity in both understanding and provision for many…

More than 725,000 of California's K-12 students qualified for special education services in 2018-19, but they entered a system that is often ill equipped to serve them. This brief summarizes the findings from 13 research publications produced as part of the PACE Policy Research Panel "Special Education: Organizing Schools to Serve Students…

We address defining and identifying students with dyslexia within the context of multi-tier systems of support (MTSS). We review proposed definitions of dyslexia, evidence for proposed definitional attributes, and emphasize the role of response to intervention in identifying students with dyslexia. We identify dyslexia as individuals with specific…

This article questions the ways autism knowledge is racially assembled. Of specific interest is how clinical and cultural definitions of autism routinely deny the existence of autistics of colour and regularly instantiate autism as a White condition. Employing a contrapuntal reading of autism knowledge, which foregrounds the life-writings of…

National Surveys of Children's Health (NSCH, 2016-2018) data were analyzed to determine if conjoint monitoring and screening showed stronger associations with children under 5 identified with ASD compared to monitoring alone, screening alone or no monitoring or screening; and investigate relationships between monitoring and screening across…

Public health and policy planning for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) is imperiled by the lack of ongoing national surveillance data on prevalence and health status. In 2018, the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities appointed a workgroup of representatives from key federal agencies and…

This brief examines California's Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), which is a framework designed to identify and assist students performing below grade level. MTSS involves at least three tiers of support; Tier 2 includes personalized assistance. Unfortunately, Tier 2 services are not adequately resourced so it is not surprising that…