The purpose of this project was to explore strategies of how to help special needs children adapt according to their own abilities. Contributing factors, such as discrimination practices, served as the foundational components that led to the formation of special education services. At one time, "special needs children," also referred to as "exceptional children," were denied a quality education and suffered with the inability to attend regular school facilities. Public laws were formulated to better serve individuals that fell into the category of being exceptional. With the formation of special education services within the public school system brought the stigma or labeling students that were associated with disabilities. Inquires based upon state assessments, as well as assessments from various educational groups on the validity of special education curriculum, revealed that both special education and general education teachers have contributed to the decline that has prevented exceptional children from performing according to their own abilities. Exceptional children are often denied proper educational assistance; additionally, minority students tend to be categorized as, and thus inaccurately overrepresented within, the exceptional student population. Within the educational arena, there have been constant debates over strategies that would best meet the needs of special needs children. This project examined conflicting and reliable suggestions for addressing the needs of exceptional children. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]