Special Schools (special + school)

Distribution by Scientific Domains


Selected Abstracts


Patterns of offending among people with intellectual disability: a systematic review.

JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY RESEARCH, Issue 5 2001
Part I: methodology, prevalence data
Abstract A systematic review of research on offenders with intellectual disability (ID) was conducted. In the present study, the first of a two-part presentation of the findings, the authors outline the methodology of the review and present data on the prevalence of offending by adults with ID. The review highlights the methodological problems of the research and the low level of rigour in many of the studies. The organization of the penal and ,care' systems are seen to have a huge impact on research findings. In addition, studies which adopt an IQ-based concept of ID show low rates of offending, whilst those which use wider definitions (e.g. attendance at special school) show higher ones. There is also preliminary evidence for believing that the prevalence of arson and sexual offences may be higher relative to other kinds of crimes for people with ID than for other offenders. [source]


The Self,Concept of Students with Learning Disabilities: A Meta,Analysis of Comparisons Across Different Placements

LEARNING DISABILITIES RESEARCH & PRACTICE, Issue 4 2002
Batya ElbaumArticle first published online: 17 DEC 200
Although placement in less restrictive settings is generally believed to be associated with more positive social outcomes for students with disabilities, the empirical research has yielded equivocal findings. The purpose of this study was to synthesize the empirical research comparing the self,concept of students with learning disabilities (LD) in different educational placements. Meta,analysis revealed no overall association between self,concept and educational placement for four out of five comparisons: regular class vs. resource room, regular class vs. self,contained class, resource room vs. self,contained class, and regular class vs. special school. Students with LD receiving instruction in self,contained classrooms in regular schools exhibited lower self,concept compared to students with LD attending special schools. Follow,up analyses were conducted to explore whether the variability of effect sizes in regular class,resource room comparisons was associated with any of several potential moderator variables; the only variable for which the association approached significance was whether students in the regular classroom were provided with appropriate special education supports and services. The findings are discussed in light of documented individual variation in students' placement preferences. [source]


Neurodevelopmental outcome in high-risk patients after renal transplantation in early childhood

PEDIATRIC TRANSPLANTATION, Issue 1 2002
Erik Qvist
Abstract: Patient and graft survival rates of pediatric renal transplant recipients are currently excellent, but there are few reports regarding the long-term neurodevelopmental outcome after renal transplantation (Tx) in early childhood. Children with renal failure from infancy would be expected to have a less favorable developmental prognosis. We report the neurodevelopmental outcome in 33 school-age children transplanted between 1987 and 1995 when < 5 yr of age. We prospectively performed a neurological examination, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain, electroencephalograms (EEGs), audiometry, and neuropsychological tests (NEPSY), and measured cognitive performance (WISC-R); we related these results to school performance and to retrospective risk factors prior to Tx. Twenty-six (79%) children attended normal school and 76% had normal motor performance. Six of the seven children attending a special school had brain infarcts on MRI. The EEG was abnormal in 11 (35%), and five (15%) received anti-convulsive treatment after Tx. Sensorineural hearing loss was documented in six patients. The mean intelligence quotient (IQ) was 87, and 6,24% showed impairment in neuropsychological tests. The children attending a special school had been more premature, but had not had a greater number of pre- or neonatal complications. They had experienced a greater number of hypertensive crises (p =,0.002) and seizures (p =,0.03), mainly during dialysis, but the number of septic infections and the mean serum aluminum levels were not significantly greater than in the children with normal school performance. In these previously lethal diseases, the overall neurodevelopmental outcome is reassuring. However, it is of crucial importance to further minimize the risk factors prior to Tx. [source]


Inclusion and the transition: Transfer from special to mainstream,ten years later

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SPECIAL EDUCATION, Issue 1 2001
Garry Hornby
In this article, Garry Hornby and Roger Kidd provide a follow-up to their own investigation of the outcomes of an inclusion project in Yorkshire ten years ago. Twenty-nine students were transferred from their special school for pupils with moderate learning difficulties into mainstream schools. Hornby and Kidd now report high levels of unemployment amongst these young people and indications that the quality of their adult lives is less than satisfactory. The results of this small-scale survey will raise important questions for all those concerned with current trends in the education of pupils with learning difficulties and their transition into adulthood. [source]


Traumatised permanent teeth in 11,16-year-old Saudi Arabian children with a sensory impairment attending special schools

DENTAL TRAUMATOLOGY, Issue 3 2003
M. AlSarheed
Abstract ,,,The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of traumatised permanent teeth among sensory (visual (VI) and hearing (HI)) impaired children attending special schools in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. All the dental injuries involved incisor teeth, and trauma was noted in 33 (6.7%) children attending government schools (control group) compared to 7 (9%) VI children and 24 (11.4%) HI children. Differences in the dental trauma only reached statistical significance between the HI and control group (P < 0.05). Gender differences were only apparent in the HI group, with males having higher levels of traumatised teeth. In addition, HI children aged 11,12 years were more prone to trauma than children in the control group of the same age (P < 0.05). In conclusion, sensory impaired children do have a tendency for more dental trauma. However, this was only statistically significant for HI children. Whereas a gender difference was most noticeable for the HI group, with males having higher levels of trauma, this was noticeable by its absence among VI children. [source]


Parental negotiations of the moral terrain of risk in relation to young people with intellectual disabilities

JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY & APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2009
Kathryn Almack
Abstract This paper draws upon parental accounts from a study of the process of transition for a cohort of 28 young people with relatively severe intellectual disabilities who left special schools in 2004 and 2005 in two adjacent English localities. This paper examines how parents negotiate these boundaries and position themselves in relation to risk. A primary concern identified by parents during this transition period focuses on the risk of harm facing these vulnerable young people (whether through accidents or through sexual, emotional, physical or financial abuse) as they move into the adult world. These concerns are juxtaposed with discourses that increasingly promote the possibilities for people with intellectual disabilities to express and follow their own wishes and aspirations. For example, the policy agenda in England and Wales actively endorses the start of adult life as a time of opportunity for young people and promotes the values of independence and choice. In accounting for the management of risk in the young people's lives, we conclude that parents navigate complex boundaries between being seen to be over-protective and ,letting go'; between trusting others to act in the young adults' best interests and allowing these young people the autonomy to negotiate risk. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]


Characteristics and experiences of children and young people with severe intellectual disabilities and challenging behaviour attending 52-week residential special schools

JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY RESEARCH, Issue 3 2007
N. Pilling
Abstract Background This study sought to gather information about the characteristics and experiences of children and young people with severe intellectual disabilities and severe challenging behaviour attending 52-week residential special schools. Method Staff of nine schools completed postal questionnaires on the characteristics and experiences of 156 pupils. Results Those attending residential schools are predominantly male, teenagers and in long-term placements. Most have limited communication skills and autistic spectrum disorders. All display high numbers of challenging behaviours, many of them serious. Children have a greater range and complexity of needs than pupils at day severe learning difficulties (SLD) schools, albeit with some overlap. Conclusions Children at 52-week residential schools present needs that both families and local services struggle to meet. Residential placement may provide the intensity of educational input and social support that is required, but may increase the vulnerability of the children. Local alternatives to residential schools should be investigated. [source]


Risk factors for psychopathology in children with intellectual disability: a prospective longitudinal population-based study

JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY RESEARCH, Issue 4 2006
J. L. Wallander
Abstract Background This study examined risk factors for the development of psychopathology in children with intellectual disability (ID) in the developmental, biological, family and social-ecological domains. Methods A population sample of 968 children, aged 6,18, enrolled in special schools in the Netherlands for educable and trainable ID were assessed at Time 1. A random 58% were re-contacted about 1 year later, resulting in a sample of 474 at Time 2. Results Psychopathology was highly consistent over 1 year. Risk factors jointly accounted for significant, but small, portions of the variance in development of psychopathology. Child physical symptoms, family dysfunction and previous parental mental health treatment reported at Time 1 were uniquely associated with new psychopathology at Time 2. Conclusions Prevention and early intervention research to find ways to reduce the incidence of psychopathology, possibly targeting family functioning, appear important. [source]


Handicaps and the development of skills between childhood and early adolescence in young people with severe intellectual disabilities

JOURNAL OF INTELLECTUAL DISABILITY RESEARCH, Issue 12 2005
O. Chadwick
Abstract Background While a number of studies have examined the development of skills in children with intellectual disabilities (ID), most have been cross-sectional, most have been concerned with particular syndromes such as Down's syndrome or autism and few have attempted to identify factors associated with improvements in skills. Methods From a sample of 111 children with severe ID who had been identified from the registers of six special schools at 4,11 years of age, 82 were traced and reassessed 5 years later at the age of 11,17 years. On both occasions, information on the children's handicaps and skills was collected by interviewing their main carers using a shortened version of the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales and the Disability Assessment Schedule. Results and conclusions There were small but statistically significant improvements in Vineland age-equivalent communication and daily living skills scores, but not in Vineland Socialization scores, over the 5-year period of follow-up. This pattern of improvement was observed in most aetiological subgroups. Improvement in skills was greatest in younger children, and was associated with reductions in behaviour problems and in levels of parental stress. In spite of the improvements in age-equivalent scores, Vineland standard scores showed significant declines over the same period of time, indicating that the improvements observed were smaller than would be expected in a general population sample of children of the same age. The dangers of using standard scores or quotients to quantify the level of functioning of children with severe ID are highlighted. [source]


The Self,Concept of Students with Learning Disabilities: A Meta,Analysis of Comparisons Across Different Placements

LEARNING DISABILITIES RESEARCH & PRACTICE, Issue 4 2002
Batya ElbaumArticle first published online: 17 DEC 200
Although placement in less restrictive settings is generally believed to be associated with more positive social outcomes for students with disabilities, the empirical research has yielded equivocal findings. The purpose of this study was to synthesize the empirical research comparing the self,concept of students with learning disabilities (LD) in different educational placements. Meta,analysis revealed no overall association between self,concept and educational placement for four out of five comparisons: regular class vs. resource room, regular class vs. self,contained class, resource room vs. self,contained class, and regular class vs. special school. Students with LD receiving instruction in self,contained classrooms in regular schools exhibited lower self,concept compared to students with LD attending special schools. Follow,up analyses were conducted to explore whether the variability of effect sizes in regular class,resource room comparisons was associated with any of several potential moderator variables; the only variable for which the association approached significance was whether students in the regular classroom were provided with appropriate special education supports and services. The findings are discussed in light of documented individual variation in students' placement preferences. [source]


Strengthening the special educational needs element of initial teacher training and education

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SPECIAL EDUCATION, Issue 4 2009
Gill Golder
In the academic year 2006,2007, the Training and Development Agency (TDA) set up a development programme to enable Initial Teacher Training and Education (ITTE) placements in specialist special education provision. The goal of the programme was to enhance the knowledge, skills and understanding of inclusive practice for special educational needs and disability among those joining and those who are relatively new to the teaching workforce. This article, by Gill Golder, Nicky Jones and Erica Eaton Quinn, all Senior Lecturers at the College of St Mark and St John in Plymouth, outlines one project related to this TDA programme. The authors explore the outcomes of their work on a three-year BEd (Honours) Secondary Physical Education course in the south-west against the TDA's objectives for both trainee teachers and the special schools to which they were attached. Results confirm the importance of preparing trainee teachers for a future career in more inclusive schools. [source]


MENTAL HEALTH AND SEN: Mental health and special educational needs: exploring a complex relationship

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SPECIAL EDUCATION, Issue 1 2009
Richard Rose
The relationship between mental health and special educational needs is both complex and misunderstood. In this article, Richard Rose, Professor of Special and Inclusive Education, Marie Howley, Senior Lecturer, Ann Fergusson, Senior Lecturer, and Johnson Jament, a PhD student, all from the Centre for Special Needs Education and Research directed by Richard Rose at the University of Northampton, discuss findings from a national research project which explored the perceptions of pupil mental health needs by staff working in residential special schools. Teachers and other professional colleagues often feel ill-prepared to address mental health difficulties experienced by their pupils. This is, at times, exacerbated by a wider confusion when atypical behaviours are attributed to a diagnosed learning difficulty rather than being recognised as symptomatic of a mental health problem. The article suggests a need for clarification of the relationship between complex special educational needs and mental health and for increases in training opportunities and the development of resources for teaching about and supporting mental health and emotional well-being. [source]


Developing the role of schools as research organisations: the Sunfield experience

BRITISH JOURNAL OF SPECIAL EDUCATION, Issue 2 2007
Barry Carpenter
We are entering a new phase in learning about childhood disabilities. While we have found out much of what we need to know about their causes and aetiology, solutions to many of the challenges we will face in the future will come from the evidence base held by practitioners. Practitioners are ideally placed to carry out ,real world' research but they often need support in carrying out setting-based enquiry. In this article, Barry Carpenter, Chief Executive and Director of Research at Sunfield, discusses the relationship between academic and practitioner research and the role of practitioners as researchers. He goes on to explore the development of a research culture in special schools, focusing on Sunfield, a residential special school for children with severe and complex learning disabilities. Barry Carpenter shows how research projects at Sunfield have generated evidence which has guided the school's development. The inter-disciplinary approach adopted in this setting has encouraged involvement in research from many staff in diverse professions throughout the school. [source]