The primary aim of this paper is to address how empathy curriculum can be applied to training needs of paraprofessionals working with students who have multiple disabilities. A thorough review of the literature on the role of the paraprofessional and implications for training and supervision is provided. This is juxtaposed with a review of the…

The IDEA requires schools to evaluate and provide services to students who have a mental health issue that is deemed an educational disability or a mental health issue that is comorbid with an educational disability. Etscheidt and colleagues (this issue) propose a six component approach to securing school-based mental health services for students…

This brief, co-produced by the National Center on Deaf-Blindness (NCDB) and Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems (ATLAS), provides important information about students with dual sensory loss who also have significant cognitive disabilities, as well as recommendations for identification and implications for instruction. The…

Families raising young children diagnosed with multiple disabilities encounter experiences that are often unique and extend well beyond the early childhood years due to the intensity and severity of their child's needs. The contexts of these families must be understood to provide meaningful services and supports, particularly during the child's…

With increases in the number of students enrolling in virtual schools, increases in students with disabilities can also be expected at virtual schools. Further, not all of these students enrolling in virtual schools will live with their biological parents. As students with disabilities move online, they continue to be protected under the…

Introduction: The purpose of this study was to determine how many young children and students (birth to 22 years old) were identified with visual impairments and receiving special education services in the United States. Professionals estimate at least 50% of students with visual impairments have additional disabilities and are not identified as…

Federal legislation such as IDEA (1997) and NCLB (2001) have led to an increase in the number of students with significant disabilities receiving instruction in the general education classroom. This inclusionary movement has established a more diverse student population in which general and special education teachers are responsible for providing…

This study used data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS 2012) to explore the individualized education program (IEP)/transition planning participation and role of students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, compared to students with other disabilities. We viewed students with the most significant cognitive…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), as amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), signed into law on December 10, 2015, requires that state education agencies (SEAs) establish standardized, statewide entrance and exit procedures for their English learners (ELs), including ELs with disabilities. For certain ELs with…

This article explores transdisciplinary collaboration and role-release strategies that would allow physical therapists and orientation and mobility (O&M) specialists to more effectively support students with visual impairments (that is, those who are blind or have low vision) and additional disabilities with their expanded core curriculum…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires 95% participation in state achievement testing. Students with the most significant cognitive disabilities participate in states' alternate assessments based on alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS). A growing number of these students are also English learners (Christensen et al., 2018).…

This report describes a project that uses existing data sets to describe the population of students with significant cognitive disabilities and known or suspected dual sensory loss. It includes students with suspected dual sensory loss because students with significant cognitive disabilities are reported to have unidentified sensory loss (Erickson…

The transition to life after high school for students with disabilities and the vital role that school counselors have in assisting the students and their families to achieve success are discussed. As there may be unique requirements for these students in making this transition, it is important that school counselors are acquainted with particular…

The term "multiple disabilities" is general and broad. From the term, you cannot tell how many disabilities a child has; which disabilities are involved; or how severe each disability is. Many combinations of disabilities are possible. The different disabilities will also have a combined impact. That is why it is also important to ask:…

Surveying 15 states and 39,837 students, this study examined the extent to which students who took an alternate assessment based on alternate achievement standards in the 2010--2011 school year had access to regular education settings and the extent to which that access correlated with expressive communication, use of an augmentative or…