Chapter 4: Issues and Trends in Special

Education
In recent decades, the prospects for individuals who are exceptional have altered dramatically.
Together with a significant increase in public awareness and understanding, current social
philosophy aims to provide such individuals with an education and a lifestyle that is as close to
normal as possible. A field as historically complex and diverse as special education is bound to
reveal controversial issues and to reflect major trends and movements. Today, the most hotly
debated issue concerns inclusion, or inclusive schooling. A broad spectrum of other trends and
movements, all related in some way to inclusion, are germane to contemporary special education,
as educators continue their efforts to reform, revamp, and generally improve services for students
with special needs.

Changing Views of Exceptionality

Changing conceptions of exceptionality have arisen because of increased public awareness and
understanding of individuals who are exceptional. Real change can be traced to the 1960s; one
major impetus was the normalization movement. Normalization is the philosophical belief that
all
individuals who are exceptional, no matter what their level and type of disability, should be
provided with an education and living environment that is as close to normal as possible.

LEGAL BASES IN SPECIAL EDUCATION IN THE PHILIPPINES

1. Commonwealth Act No. 3203 - Articles 356 and 259 of the Civil Code of the Philippines mention
“the right of every child to live in an atmosphere conclusive to his physical, moral and intellectual
development”, and the concomitant duty of the government to “promote the full growth of the faculties of
every child”.

2. The Declaration of the Rights of the Child - This declaration adopted by the United Nations General
Assembly in 1959, affirmed that mankind owes to the child the best it has to give. One of the principles
concerned with the education of children with special needs runs: “The child who is physically, mentally
or visually handicapped shall be given the special treatment, education that are required of his particular
condition.”

3. Republic Act Nos. 3562 and 5250 - Approved on June 13, 1968 respectively, these Acts provided that
teachers, administrators, and supervisors of special education should be trained by the Department of
Education and impoverished.

4. Presidential Decree No. 603 (PD 603) - The Child and Youth Welfare Code, Article 3, Rights of the
Child. Equally important is Article 74 which provides for the creation of special classes. The Article
reads: “Where needs warrant, there shall be at least one special class in every province, and if possible,
special
schools for the physically handicapped, the mentally retarded, the emotionally disturbed and the
specially gifted.”

5. Proclamation No. 1604 - declaring 1977-1987, as the “decade of the Filipino child” and calling a
national conference on the development of children.
6. Republic Act 7277 - Approved on January 22, 1992, Republic Act 7277, otherwise known as the
Magna Carta for Disabled Persons affirms the full participation and total integration of persons with
disabilities into the mainstream of our society.

7. Republic Act 9442 – Approved on July 24, 2006, an act amending Republic Act no. 7277,
otherwise known as the "Magna Carta for Disabled Persons, and for other purposes While
reforms in special education are not new, contemporary special education is deeply involved in
reform efforts and is being pressured to change by both internal and external forces. Inclusive
schooling is one of the manifestations of current reform mandates. Over the past four decades
there has been a gradual increase in the numbers and proportions of children with disabilities
who receive their special education while enrolled in general education classes and schools.

Inclusive Education
In the 1950s and 1960s, integration was the common term used to refer to the education of
students with exceptionalities into general classrooms. In the 1970s, mainstreaming emerged.
Under mainstreaming principles, the instruction of children with learning, behavioral, physical,
or other
problems took place with normally developing peers to the greatest extent possible. The amount
of integration depended upon the unique patterns of strengths and weaknesses in each child. In
the 1980s, the concepts and ideals of inclusive schooling for students with special needs
emerged. The current stress is on inclusive schooling. Although there are many conceptions of
the term, it basically means that all students are to be educated in the classrooms or schools they
would attend if they were not exceptional. Schools should change to welcome all the types of
diversity seen in students. Inclusion is both evolving and changing. The current movement hosts
a range of theoretical positions related to the underlying philosophy, the relationship of those
targeted for inclusion, the nature of the general educational provision, and the manner in which
supports are provided. In this text, we define inclusion as "a system of equity for students with
exceptionalities that expresses a commitment to educate each child to the maximum extent
through placement, instruction, and support in the most heterogeneous and appropriate
environment." There is not an area in special education more difficult than inclusion. At the root
of the difficulties is the fact that inclusion is both a philosophy and a practice. While the
philosophy is fairly well accepted, the major difficulties come with attempting to translate the
principles into efficient school-based service delivery models. Philosophical strands supporting
inclusive schooling include general school reform, civil rights, educational equity, and the
difficulties of a dual system. However, many barriers exist with regard to inclusion and there
remain divisive debates among educators, policy makers, and parents. Successfully
implementing inclusionary practices is a major challenge
to school systems today. The barriers to inclusive schooling include:

a. teacher expectations, attitudes, and acceptance of inclusive schooling;

b. the skills of general and special educators;
c. lack of supports and increased workload for teachers;
d. outside forces;
e. funding;
f. lack of empirical research evidence.
Although inclusion is a mindset, there are some principles that underlie successful practice.
These include:
1. positive teacher attitudes;
2. a supportive school administration;
3. resources and personnel to support teachers and to assist children with special needs;
4. curriculum matched to the needs of each student;
5. accurate and ongoing assessment;
6. social integration of students with special needs;
7. collaboration and co-operation among regular classroom teachers, special education personnel,
classroom paraeducators, and other support services;
8. parental support;
9. team approaches where different people share information and
expertise.

Trends and Movements

Many trends and movements may be seen in today's special education. These include, but are not
restricted to, the issues discussed below.

Expansion of Services.
Today's special education is reaching down to include preschoolers at-risk or with disabilities,
and reaching up to assist adolescents with transition into adult life.

Multicultural Special Education.

Recent demographic data suggest that public schools are faced with increasing linguistic and
cultural diversity. One result of these demographic changes is that the special education system
is
increasingly serving students who are in the process of acquiring a second language or who come
from home backgrounds that differ culturally or linguistically. One solution to the needs of
students who are from different cultures or linguistic backgrounds than the majority is the
process of multicultural education. Students with exceptionalities also need multicultural
perspectives infused into the curriculum. Teachers need to celebrate the first language and
culture while building a second language and accommodating to the new culture.

Early Intervention
Early identification and early intervention, both broader constructs of early childhood special
education, are two of the most promising areas of contemporary special education.

Early identification is used to identify children with established disabilities, those who are at
risk for problems, and those experiencing lags and delays.

Early intervention refers to the establishment of educational and support services for preschool
children and infants who are at risk for disabilities, and their families.

Transition. Transition programs are designed to ease the movement of adolescents with
disabilities into the adult world.
Parent Involvement. Teachers should stress parental involvement if they wish to enhance the
educational experience for all their students. When educators involve parents as partners in their
children's education, parents appear to develop a sense of efficacy that communicates itself to
children with positive academic consequences.

Technological Advances. Significant advances in many areas of technology have brought major
advances for people with disabilities. Students benefit from both instructional and assistive
technology.

Assessment Practices
Assessment is designed to present a detailed picture of a child's unique pattern of strengths and
weaknesses in a variety of areas. Recent years have witnessed major advances in assessment
practices that include who administers measures, where they are administered, the procedures
used, and the variety of tools. There are different types of assessment, which employ different
strategies and personnel. The major areas are screening, specific (psycho- educational)
assessment, and intensive or medical diagnosis. Procedures overlap and complement each other,
and each provides important information regarding a child's present and past functioning as well
as potential.

Screening, a term used in both medicine and education, refers to the examination of large groups
of children to find those performing above or below the norm. Screening is designed to separate
at-risk children from those who are functioning within acceptable limits. Educational screening
devices include observations, interviews, past records, developmental checklists, behavior-rating
scales, skill inventories, teacher-made tests, criterion-referenced tests, curriculumbased
assessment, and group achievement tests.

Specific Assessment
Psycho-educational assessment provides more information on children considered as high-risk in
the screening phase. The diagnostic process should confirm or discount the existence of a
problem and help in determining treatment and intervention for children identified. Tests are
controlled and structured procedures that attempt to elicit particular responses that a child might
not demonstrate spontaneously. Direct testing refers to testing children across a variety of
relevant domains. Many of the tests used in psycho-educational assessment are norm-referenced.
Most cover a variety of developmental domains and include skills within each area. IQ tests
provide an intelligence quotient. The most critical notion underlying IQ tests is that of a normal
distribution; that is, a continuum of scores that vary from the average by predictable amounts.

Medical Assessment
Professionals involved at the medical level include specialists, physicians, nurses, audiologists
and ophthalmologists, to mention only a few.