Resource roundup: Special education and inclusion

Students with special needs often experience challenges related to being included in the classroom. Through inclusion strategies and instructional practices tailored for children with special needs, general education and special education teachers can better meet the needs of these students. As an introduction, we rounded up resources from across the U.S. Department of Education’s Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) network and Institute of Education Sciences (IES).

Inclusion

• This Ask A REL reference desk response from REL Southwest provides research references on promising strategies for addressing the academic needs of students with low-incidence special needs in inclusion settings.
• For teachers at the secondary level, this Ask A REL response from REL Southeast sums up the research on effective models for high school inclusion for special education students.
• Learn more about the inclusion of students with disabilities in school accountability systems in this report from the National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance (NCEE).
• Watch this webinar from REL Southwest to learn about effective classroom practices that general education teachers can use to increase access to core curriculum and instruction for students with low-incidence disabilities.
• Then follow up with this webinar from REL West to support the needs of students in special education by implementing quality services through the use of inclusive models.

Instructional strategies

• This resource from the What Works Clearinghouse provides research-based instructional strategies for preschoolers with special needs as well as links to learn more about the research supporting phonological awareness training and behavioral therapy.
• Check out this Ask A REL response from REL West to browse the research on the use of setting and communicating learning goals with students in special education.

Special education research and data

• This REL Northwest report examines the developmental functioning levels of young children in early intervention and early childhood special education services in Oregon.
• NCEE and researchers from around the country are appraising the state of preschool special education practices in this nationwide evaluation.
• This REL Southwest report examines special education enrollment in Louisiana charter schools and traditional schools. A related webinar highlights the key findings and implications.
• This multivolume NCEE report presents information from the 2012 National Longitudinal Transition Study on the characteristics, experiences, and post–high school outcomes of youth in special education.