The inclusion of students with disabilities with special education services into general education classes has been an integral part of education for over 3 decades. It is a worldwide movement that continues to grow. Yet, some Special Education researchers remain highly critical, even cynical, of inclusion, despite decades of research that have…

There is a strong connection between word reading and spelling development. Students' spelling can provide insights into their word-level reading skills and inform intensive reading interventions delivered within a data-based individualization framework. The purpose of this article is to describe the linguistic knowledge bases that connect word…

Behavior skills training (BST) with ongoing coaching is an effective form of professional development that creates sustained educator practice change and improves student outcomes. We provide a model for how BST can be used to improve the implementation of evidence-based practices with both teachers and paraprofessionals, the latter of whom often…

Journalists have reported large-scale lead poisoning affecting children in cities such as Flint, Michigan. Unfortunately, children's exposure to lead is not isolated and occurs throughout the country in both urban and rural settings. The effects of lead exposure can cause children to develop disabilities, potentially requiring special education…

Special educators are increasingly drawing from intersectionality and Black feminist theory to make sense of the disproportionate deleterious outcomes experienced by racialized students labeled with disabilities. While intersectionality gains a stronger hold in special education discourse, agencies like the Florida Department of Education are…

This article presents engaging and practical methods of helping educators to "remix" the evidence-based and high-leverage practices they are already familiar with to include the new capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI). Transformational modern technologies can be powerful and disruptive, possessing the potential to impact…

Considering the salience of emotions in their work, special educators should think of them as an important source of data to inform and improve their practice. Special educators' emotions and emotional labor are a rich and accessible form of data that can directly inform their delivery of high-quality instruction. Although special educators…

There are numerous reasons why students with disabilities struggle in school. A key reason is professionals in the field may not pay enough attention to students' overwhelmed cognitive capacity. Cognitive load theory explains that all humans have limited capacity at any given time to use their auditory, visual, and tactile inputs (independently or…

Supporting beginning teachers continues to be problematic for education systems across the nation. Issues concerning recruitment and retention have long plagued the profession. The onset of the global pandemic exacerbated these issues, particularly across rural communities. Researchers continue to advocate for the need to provide beginning…

This article provides foundational information to stimulate and facilitate assessment of the distinctive role of law in this field. For example, has the balance of costs and benefits reached the point of over-legalization? Similarly, to what extent is legal literacy essential for special education teachers and related service personnel as compared…

Youth with disabilities encounter multiple systemic barriers to post-school success, including racism and discrimination. Critical consciousness is the foundation of culturally responsive and anti-racist work and supports self-determination and vocational outcomes expectations among marginalized youth. While secondary special educators are…

COVID-19 shocked the education system, disrupting the policies and practices of special education over multiple school years. This essay brings together the institutional logics perspective and racialized organization theory to first examine aspects of special education and then describe how leaders and teachers can improve special education to…

Inquiry learning through engagement with scientific practices has proven to be an effective instructional practice for general education students. Although students with complex support needs (CSN) are required to have access to the same grade-appropriate academic content in science as their peers without CSN, it remains a challenge for special…

This article is written by a dyslexic scholar in opposition to the psychological discourse on dyslexia. The methodological approach adopted is ordinary language philosophy; I argue that dyslexia is a paradoxical concept. As such, dyslexia as a concept lacks clarity and cohesion. The alternative concept of Lexism (the Othering of and discrimination…

Over one-third of preschoolers with disabilities are fully included in the classroom with their typically developing peers and another large percentage receive some instruction in the inclusive classroom. In order to support young children and increase the likelihood of the desired learning and behavior outcomes, teachers must use individual data…