1. Chapter 7 Counseling with Exceptional Children

2. Making a Case for Counseling Exceptional Children  Include those children receiving special education services  Include those who are gifted and twice exceptional  Special Education personnel are the primary service providers for exceptional groups  Counselors needs to clarify their feelings and attitudes about exceptional groups  Counselors need to gain knowledge and training for working with these groups

3. Overview and History of Special Education  1950’s: civil rights movement  1960’s and 1970’s: parents of disabled children forced public schools to stop segregation  Two federal laws prohibited discrimination of disabled children by 1975  Landmark Public Law 94-142: access to public education for all students from age 3 to 21  Today this law is known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education ACT (IDEA, 1997)  Six provisions: child find, nondiscriminatory assessment, individualized education program, least restrictive environment, due process safeguards, parental involvement  Additional educational provisions were added in the most recent revision of IDEA in 2004

4. Special Education are provided for:  Specific learning disabilities  Speech and language impairments  Serious emotional disturbances  Mental retardation  Multiple disabilities  Hearing/visual impairments  Orthopedic impairments  Traumatic brain injury  autism

5. Section 504 of Rehabilitation Act  Provides for educational modifications and services to persons with disabilities that do not adversely affect their educational performan modifications: reduced/modified class work, different testing approaches, teacher’s aide, sitting in front rows, etc.

6. Culture and Special Education  Federal law prohibits disproportionate representation of exceptional children by race and ethnicity  Despite these laws, African American, American Indian, and Latino students are over-represented in special education  There are numerous causes for culture inequities  Prevention of inequalities: pre-service teacher training, culturally sensitive screening, culture fair identification and assessment measures: early, effective educational supports; involvement of family and acceptance of family culture Culture and Gifted Programs  Lower rate of culturally diverse students in gifted programs  Prevention of inequalities: pre-service teacher training, culturally sensitive screening, culture fair identification and assessment measures: early, effective educational supports; involvement of family and acceptance of family culture

7. Gifted Education  Started to be a legal topic in 1972: laws support research and programming for the gifted and talented  Definition of giftedness: a complex group of talents  Funding for gifted education has become more limited

8. Twice Exceptional Students  Have both a learning disability and gifted talents  Often are not included in gifted programs  Can be assisted by advocating for accurate identification, facilitating communication among service providers and family, collaborating on academic programming, offering emotional support, providing educational and vocational planning

9. Students With Developmental Disabilities Categorical Descriptions SPECIFIC LEARNING DISABILITIES:  Experience difficulties in an encapsulated areas of cognitive functioning  Adaptive functioning is mostly intact  Low self esteem, poorly defined self concept  Difficulties in language skills and perceptual- motor functioning EMOTIONAL DISTURBANCE  At least low-average to average intellectual functioning  Academic difficulties and discipline problems  Poor relationships with students without disabilities  Poor self concept and low self esteem MILD MENTAL RETARDATION  Prevalence: 2% in the school age population  Delayed in terms of social and emotional functioning  Lower levels of self esteem: more unfavorable self concept  Poor adaptive behaviors (low tolerance, low frustration levels)  Perceptual- motor and language functioning are significantly delayed

10. Counseling students with developmental disabilities  Understand characteristics and needs of these groups  Be familiar with laws and rights pertaining to these groups  Provide parents with referrals  Consult with teachers  Plan educational and social interventions  Include these groups fully in the general classroom  Help promote social and emotional adjustment  Act as role models for working with disabled students  Build positive self esteem and empower these students  Train self advocacy skills  work with the whole family

11. Counseling students with specific learning disabilities  Note the need for remedial services for specific areas of functioning  Know that a federal law mandates inclusion of these students in regular classrooms  Consult with teachers about accommodations  Do team work with the resources specialist  Provide early post secondary planning  Work on social adjustment issues with these students  Consult with a psychiatrist about medication  Offer support to parents

12. Counseling students with emotional disturbances  Provide a stable, supportive environment with clear rules and limits  Be familiar with childhood and adolescent disorders  Advocate for accommodations for these students  Provide teachers with social skills and behavioral strategies for dealing with these students  Have training in crisis counseling and mandated reporting laws for child abuse  Recommend family therapy

13. Counseling students with mild mental retardation  Coordinate multiple services due to developmental delays in most areas of functioning  Advocate for appropriate accommodations  Promote tolerance for students with mental retardation  Teach behavioral modification techniques to teachers and parents  Consider appropriate individual counseling services despite cognitive limitations

14. Counseling students with physical and neurological disabilities In General:  Work closely with disciplinary team  Offer counseling and self advocacy skill training  Transition plan should be in place for child by age 16 Orthopedic impairments:  Recognize child’s strengths and coordinate services with specialists  Assist parents in advocating for appropriate assessment and services at school and through community resources Multiple Disabilities:  Have understanding of disabilities  Work with all involved parties  Assist parents in advocating for school and community resources  Develop plan to promote the long term adjustment of these students  Work on areas of self esteem, self help, and social skills

15. Students with Physical and Neurological Disabilities  Categorical descriptions:  Orthopedic impairments: .2% of school age pop. in US  Musculoskeletal, spinal cord, and neurological impairments  Multiple Disabilities: .3% of school age pop. In US  Difficulties experienced are more than the sum of difficulties with individual disabilities  Many combinations of disabilities are possible

16. Students with ADHD disorder  7.4% of children and adolescents truly suffer from the disorder  Developmentally inappropriate hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity symptoms must be evident in child by 7  Three subtypes of ADHD: predominately inattentive type, predominately hyperactive- impulsive type, combined type  Linked to difficulties in behavioral inhibition, executive functioning, and self regulation  Children with ADHD may or may not qualify for educational services

17. Counseling Students with ADHD comprehensive approach to include:  Behavioral modification  Self management strategies  Social skills training  Stimulant medication  Teacher consultation  Family counseling  Support groups  Parenting programs  Direct counseling

18. Gifted Children and Adolescents  One of the most misunderstood and least served groups  Stereotype of gifted students being emotionally unstable is not accurate for many students  Adjustment issues most often occur in highly gifted group, such as sensitivity, isolation, perfectionism  Giftedness is often times not seen as a special educational category  Educational services for the gifted are inadequate or nonexistent  Definition of giftedness is more than having a high IQ

19. Counseling gifted children  Children are oftentimes overly sensitive and over-excitable  Are often misunderstood as difficulty in adjusting to a normal education setting  What we can do:  Teach cognitive strategies (self discipline, self monitoring)  Group counseling to increase peer support  Teach coping with perfectionism  Teach how to set realistic short and long term goals