International Advances in Education: Global Initiatives for Equity and Social Justice is an international research monograph series of scholarly works that primarily focus on empowering students (children, adolescents, and young adults) from diverse current circumstances and historic beliefs and traditions to become non-exploited/non-exploitive contributing members of the 21st century. The series draws on the research and innovative practices of investigators, academics, and community organizers around the globe that have contributed to the evidence base for developing sound educational policies, practices, and programs that optimize all students' potential. Each volume includes multidisciplinary theory, research, and practices that provide an enriched understanding of the drivers of human potential via education to assist others in exploring, adapting, and replicating innovative strategies that enable ALL students to realize their full potential. Chapters in this volume are drawn from a wide range of countries including: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, Georgia, Haiti, India, Italy, Kyrgyzstan, Portugal, Slovenia, Tanzania and The United States all addressing issues of educational inequity, economic constraint, class bias and the links between education, poverty and social status. The individual chapters provide examples of theory, research, and practice that collectively present a lively, informative, cross-perspective, international conversation highlighting the significant gross economic and social injustices that abound in a wide variety of educational contexts around the world while spotlighting important, inspirational, and innovative remedies. Taken together, the chapter's advance our understanding of best practices in the education of economically disadvantaged and socially marginalized populations while collectively rejecting institutional policies and traditional practices that reinforce the roots of economic and social discrimination. Chapter authors, utilize a range of methodologies including empirical research, historical reviews, case studies and personal reflections to demonstrate that poverty and class status are socio-political conditions, rather than individual identities. In addition, that education is an absolute human right and a powerful mechanism to promote individual, national, and international upward social and economic mobility, national stability and citizen wellbeing.

For courses in speech and language intervention, language disorders, reading disorders and special education. Written by leading experts, this third edition maintains a strong clinical focus and thorough coverage of the identification, assessment, and treatment of reading and writing disorders. Fully updated, this edition includes a new chapter on reading comprehension, a new chapter on spelling, and consolidated information on defining and classifying reading disabilities. New sections feature the latest on comprehension development, RTI, auditory processing deficits, literate vocabulary, and cognitive linguistic skills in writing. Offering the varied perspective of well-known contributors, the text successfully keeps pace with the rapid changes in the knowledge of language and reading disabilities and provides readers with the most up-to-date advances in the field.

Auditory processing disorders, reading and writing disorders, language disorders, and other related disorders - these disorders seem distinct among one another from historical and professional practice perspectives but more and more research suggests that they in fact overlap in many ways including clinical presentations, suspected underlying causes, diagnostic criteria, and re/habilitation strategies. On January 4-7, 2012, the conference Global Conference on Disorders in Auditory Processing, Literacy, Language & Related Sciences (APLL 2012) was held in The Hong Kong Institute of Education. This was the world's first platform for interdisciplinary discussions and collaborations on ways we can better serve children who suffer from the above closely related disorders through future research. Due to the huge success of APLL2012, to promote continuous discussions of the conference theme, the conference organizing committee decided to invite scholars, scientists, and practitioners to contribute their work to the eleventh volume in the Research on Sociocultural Influences on Motivation and Learning research monograph series. This volume is focused on issues in typical and disordered developments in auditory processing, literacy, and language across different cultural and linguistic contexts in Asia, Europe and North America. The contributors of this volume offer insightful theoretical and practical ideas to shape future directions in research, assessment, intervention, and education. This is an intriguing and inspiring volume for students, researchers, and practitioners in the fields of speech-language pathology, audiology, developmental psychology, educational psychology, neuropsychology, and other related disciplines. By bringing in respective leaders in the fields, we hope that this book will open new windows to promote advancements in related research initiatives, continuing cross disciplinary discussions and collaborations on ways that we can better service individuals suffer from these closely related disorders through future research.

This edited volume explores various issues pertaining to the education of children with disabilities in Africa, the Caribbean and Middle East. As a group, persons with disabilities have been subjected to social, cultural and educational exclusions of various forms and for various socially-scripted reasons. In education, for instance, individuals with disabilities have been altogether excluded from educational participation in many parts of the developing world or they have been excluded from pursuing meaningfully beneficial higher levels of education in developed countries like the United States. One of the social responses/remedies to the widely-acknowledged exclusionary practices experienced by learners with disabilities has been the widespread implementation of inclusive practices in the education of individuals with disabilities across countries, in the west and the developing regions of the world. A distinctive marker of difference in the way inclusive practices have been enacted in western countries versus those in the developing world has primarily stemmed from the fact that majority of western countries operate under funded mandates that also regulate the provision of education to persons with disabilities. While the ideal of inclusion has been highly desirable, many of countries in the developing world have floundered in their implementation due to lack sound legislative framework to guide implementation coupled with socio-cultural factors related to negative perceptions of disabilities and limited funding sources. Chapters in this volume explore inclusive education from a variety of perspectives.

Written for administrators, teachers, and resource professionals, this book is designed for anyone who works with children or who may serve in an administrative capacity. The text is designed to assist in enhancing or developing an understanding of emotional intelligence and its implications for the classroom, the workplace, and church.

Teaching adolescents and learning from them is the paradigm elaborated throughout this second edition of Adolescents in the Internet Age. The premise is based upon four assumptions: (1) Adolescents have unique experiences that qualify them as the most credible source on what growing up is like in the current environment; (2) Adolescents are more competent than many adults with tools of technology that will be needed for learning in the future; (3) Adolescents and adults can support mutual development by adopting the concept of reciprocal learning; and (4) The common quest of adolescents to gain adult identity could be attained before employment. Expectations are the theme for every chapter. The reason expectations are so important is because they influence goals, determine priorities, and are used to evaluate progress and achievements of individuals and institutions. When teacher expectations correspond with the abilities and interests of students, achievement and satisfaction are common outcomes. In contrast, if teachers expect too little, student potential can be undermined. There is also concern if expectations that students have for themselves surpass their abilities. This occurs if teachers do not inform students about their deficits. Multitasking, doing too many things at the same time, detracts from productivity. Sharing accountability depends upon complimentary and attainable expectations that can be met by students, teachers, and parents. To support appropriate expectations, tthis book for secondary teachers and high school students seeking a broader understanding of their own generation is organized in four parts about aspects of learning and development. (1) Identity expectations introduce traditional perspectives on adolescence, changes related to sources of learning, evolving emphasis of schools, and ways to support motivation, goal setting, and formation of identity. (2) Cognitive expectations examine mental abilities, academic standards, emergence of the Internet as a learning tool, development of media literacy, creative problem solving, and encouragement of higher order thinking skills. (3) Social expectations explore the need for giving greater attention to social development, importance of teamwork skills, involvement with social networking, adoption of civil behavior, school safety, and values as a basis for ethical behavior and character. (4) Health expectations center on decisions that influence physical health, well-being, and lifestyle choice. Consideration is given to stress management, emotional intelligence, and risk assessment strategies for individual teenagers and the schools that they attend.

Different regions of the world are making increasing demands for educational reform, especially when institutions are dissatisfied with the level of proficiency of their graduates. Since the realization of how important English education is to global success, reform to English education is becoming progressively vital in societies all over the world. Curriculum Reform Initiatives in English Education provides research exploring the theoretical and practical aspects of a variety of areas related to English education and reform, as well as applications within curriculum development and instructional design. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as teachers' roles, teaching methods, and professional development, this book is ideally designed for researchers, educators, administrators, policymakers, interpreters, translators, and linguists seeking current research on the existing body of knowledge about curriculum reform in English education in an international context.

The purpose of this book is to provide a forum for an interdisciplinary scholarly dialogue with regard to preparing teachers for early childhood special education. In addition, it is aimed at examining and making available relevant and most recent scholarship to practitioners and at addressing critical issues and perspectives around preparing effective educators for the 21 century classroom and the future. This book intends to illuminate a complex and challenging task of preparing effective educators through the lenses of several educational disciplines, including but not limited to, teacher education, general education, special education, early childhood education, and urban education. The information in this work will focus on several educational disciplines that have the most immediate implications for teacher preparation and practice. The overall educational knowledge base will be enhanced due to the educational interdisciplinary approach. This has additional implications for teacher education, special education, educational leadership, curriculum and instruction, educational policy, and urban education, to name a few. The multidimensional nature of the book gives it the freedom to highlight multiple and diverse voices while at the same time providing a forum for different (and sometimes divergent) methodologies, philosophies, and ideologies.

Stories that explain is a one-stop support guide to helping children understand social situations through stories. This practical book is packed full of support, advice and tips for teachers, teaching assistants, SENCos and parents to help support children in gaining a better understanding of common primary school experiences that can cause misunderstanding or stress. This resource provides a concise explanation of the use of stories, why they are important, and advice on how to write/edit stories, including tips on how to present them. The accompanying CD includes a comprehensive and editable bank of stories to share with children to aid their understanding of social situations.

Rehabilitation professionals working with students with disabilities and the families of those students face unique challenges in providing inclusive services to special education student populations. There needs to be a focus on adaptive teaching methods that provide quality experience for students with varying disabilities to promote student success and inclusivity. Critical issues within these practices span autism, diverse students, gifted education, learning disabilities, behavioral and emotional disorders, and more. With having many different types of students with vastly different situations, it is important for rehabilitation professionals to understand the best practices and learning systems for special education students who have a wide range of needs and challenges. The Handbook of Research on Critical Issues in Special Education for School Rehabilitation Practices focuses on the issues and challenges rehabilitation professionals face in special education and how they can provide inclusive and effective services to diverse student populations. This book highlights topics such as culturally responsive teacher preparation, artificial intelligence in the classroom, universal design, inclusive development, and school rehabilitation and explores the effects these newfound practices in education have on various types of students with disabilities. This book is essential for special education teachers, administrators, counselors, practitioners, researchers, academicians, and students interested in the new methods, theories, and solutions for the best practices in inclusive and effective special education.

This book synthesizes the most current evidence-based research and practices on prevention, assessment, intervention, and treatment of pediatric intellectual developmental disabilities. It provides a broad empirical framework for innovative practices and discusses their possible impact on children's future development, ability to learn, social skills, and quality of life. The book highlights important findings in cognitive and behavioral development for children with such disorders as 22q13 Deletion syndrome (i.e., Phelan McDermid syndrome), Prader-Willi syndrome, Williams syndrome, and sex chromosome disorders (e.g., Klinefelter syndrome) - children often considered untestable, unteachable, and unknowable. In addition, the book includes case studies that emphasize a team approach with physicians, families, school psychologists, and teachers for providing quality research-based psychological, educational, and mental health services. Topics featured in this book include: Up-to-date findings on the causes and symptoms of intellectual disability disorders. Common medical treatments for children with intellectual disabilities. Therapeutic interventions for children with intellectual disabilities. Psychoeducational assessment practices for children requiring special education assistance. Future directions to support people with intellectual disabilities. Pediatric Intellectual Disabilities at School is a must-have resource for researchers, graduate students, and other professionals in child and school psychology, psychiatry, social work, special and general education, public health, and counseling.

Understanding Gifted Adolescents: Accepting the Exceptional addresses the basis of exclusive education for gifted adolescents from the theoretical perspective of social identity. Using the lens of social identity theory and adolescent development related to giftedness, this book builds the case for a curriculum for gifted adolescents. By providing a comprehensive foundation for exploring the concept of a more exclusive education scholastically, and debunking the "elitist" concept of gifted education, this book is a well-organized and clearly-structured exposition for the philosophy of gifted education, as well as a means of putting a curricular model into practice in American high schools. With pointed critiques of differentiated instruction in the general education classroom and the current trend of standardization and normalization in the current educational climate, a new philosophy for addressing gifted education is presented.

Human-computer interaction studies the users and their interaction with an interactive software system (ISS). However, these studies are designed for people without any type of disability, causing there to be few existing techniques or tools that focus on the characteristics of a specific user, thus causing accessibility and utility issues for neglected segments of the population. This reference source intends to remedy this lack of research by supporting an ISS focused on people with visual impairment. User-Centered Software Development for the Blind and Visually Impaired: Emerging Research and Opportunities is a collection of innovative research on techniques, applications, and methods for carrying out software projects in which the main users are people with visual impairments. While highlighting topics including mobile technology, assistive technologies, and human-computer interaction, this book is ideally designed for software developers, computer engineers, designers, academics, researchers, professionals, and educators interested in current research on usable and accessible technologies.

Have you emotionally suffered through sabotage and administrative loopholes in your place of employment, which resulted in wrongful discharge? Crystal E. Emerson has written an extraordinary and poignant documentation of truth. She has experienced the unethical behavior of administrators and other professionals while working in a public school district in the state of Pennsylvania. During the 2003-2004 academic year, Crystal experienced divided professional loyalties and lived and worked through this emotional dichotomy for 180 days of employment. This was a test of personal and emotional strength and a time to trust her instincts. The law assumes that public school administrators will behave in an ethical manner. The PSEA (Pennsylvania State Education Association) members assume that union representatives will support them during times of professional adversity. This book is a personal account, of a professional position, in which these two assumptions have failed to occur. There is a need for all public school administrators to abide by more strict laws. There is a need to implement a law that requires all observations and evaluations performed by public school administrators to video record the session; this video recording should be submitted to the state department of education due to a mandating law. Such a law would help teachers in extreme situations who have been subjected to heinous actions of administrative personnel. It is Crystal's hope that her 180-day experience of emotional adversity, sabotage, harassment, and undermining has not occurred in vain. Never before has a book been so poignant and honest This is an account of utter emotional and professional strength. You will be enticed as you enjoy reading 180 DAYS

In the USA, racism is the most widespread root of oppression. Black people in America, specifically, have suffered from centuries of discrimination and still struggle to receive the same privileges as their white peers. In other countries, however, there are other groups that face similar struggles. Discrimination and oppression based on religion, ethnicity, socio-economic status, political affiliation, and caste are just a few categories. However, education is a root for widespread societal change, making it essential that educators and systems of education enact the changes that need to occur to achieve equity for the groups being oppressed. Education as the Driving Force of Equity for the Marginalized highlights international research from the past decade about the role education is playing in the disruption and dismantling of perpetuated systems of oppression. This research presents the context, ideas, and mechanics behind impactful efforts to dismantle systems of oppression. Covering topics such as teacher preparation, gender inequality, and social justice, this work is essential for teachers, policymakers, college students, education faculty, researchers, administrators, professors, and academicians.