Encyclopedia of Special Education, Volume 2

A Reference for the Education of Children, Adolescents, and Adults Disabilities and Other Exceptional Individuals

Cecil R. Reynolds, Kimberly J. Vannest, Elaine Fletcher-Janzen, Cecil R. Reynolds, Kimberly J. Vannest, Elaine Fletcher-Janzen

• Publisher: Wiley
• Year: 2018
• Print ISBN: 9780470949399
• eBook ISBN: 9781119520009
• Edition: 4
• Topic: Education
• Subtopic: Inclusive Education

The only comprehensive reference devoted to special education
The highly acclaimed Encyclopedia of Special Education addresses issues of importance ranging from theory to practice and is a critical reference for researchers as well as those working in the special education field. This completely updated and comprehensive A-Z reference includes about 200 new entries, with increased attention given to those topics that have grown in importance since the publication of the third edition, such as technology, service delivery policies, international issues, neuropsychology, and RTI. The latest editions of assessment instruments frequently administered in special education settings are discussed.

• Only encyclopedia or comprehensive reference devoted to special education
• Edited and written by leading researchers and scholars in the field
• New edition includes over 200 more entries than previous edition, with increased attention given to those topics that have grown in importance since the publication of the third edition—such as technology, service delivery policies, international issues, neuropsychology, and Response to Intervention, Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), Autism and Applied Behavior Analysis
• Entries will be updated to cover the latest editions of the assessment instruments frequently administered in special education settings
• Includes an international list of authors and descriptions of special education in 35 countries
• Includes technology and legal updates to reflect a rapidly changing environment

Comprehensive and thoroughly up to date, this is the essential, A-Z compilation of authoritative information on the education of those with special needs.

D

DAILY LIVING SKILLS

The purpose of a functional life skills curriculum for students with disabilities is to maximize their independent functioning in everyday settings where people without disabilities live, work, and spend time. Early instructional programs in Madison, Wisconsin schools that addressed naturally occurring, functional activities in everyday contexts, including general education and the community, resulted in improved postschool outcomes for students, including increased employment in integrated settings with coworkers without disabilities (Van Deventer et al., 1981). Similarly, Benz, Lindstrom, and Yovanoff (2000) demonstrated that a functional skills curriculum (Youth Transition Program) was associated with improved postschool outcomes for participating students, including higher rates of graduation, employment, and participation in postsecondary education.

More than 30 years after the first of these early demonstrations of the effectiveness of a functional curriculum for students with disabilities, the field of special education appears to be in a quandary about what comprises an appropriate curriculum for these students (Alper, Ryndak, Hughes, & McDonnell, 2011; Hughes, 2011). On the one hand, federal legislation (e.g., No Child Left Behind Act [NCLB] of 2001) calls for an increased access to general education curricula and focus on academic outcomes and standardized testing. On the other hand, special education is not producing the positive postschool outcomes nationwide demonstrated in the early studies. Having a disability is persistently associated with poor postschool outcomes, such as low graduation and postsecondary enrollment rates and increased unengagement, unemployment, and underemployment (Newman, Wagner, Cameto, & Knokey, 2009). For example, Newman et al. (2009) reported that, after leaving high school, only 33% of youth with intellectual disabilities are employed (primarily part time), only 7% attend postsecondary school as a sole postschool activity, only 14% live independently or semi-independently, only 26% have a checking account, and only 11% participate in a community group, such as a sports team or church club. One factor related to such poor postschool outcomes may be the inappropriateness of the prevailing special education curriculum, instructional strategies, and service delivery model, which have increasingly deemphasized a functional skills curriculum.

Balancing Academic and Functional Skills

Increasing numbers of special educators are beginning to question the relevance of a curriculum strictly focused on achieving grade-level general education standards versus functional skills (e.g., Bouck, 2009; Patton, Polloway, & Smith, 2000; Wehman, 2009). For example, Storey and Miner (2011) remind us that “although specific curriculum content decisions must be based on standards and benchmarks as well as more individualized preferences and interests, the general goal of all instruction must be to enhance a person’s capacity to function successfully in the community” (p. 4). Therefore, the curriculum should comprise skills that teach a person to function in employment, residential, community living, and recreational/leisure domains and that are personally meaningful and valuable to the individual (Hughes, 2011). Similarly, the curriculum should consist of skills that are useful in an immediate (e.g., learning to operate a microwave in order to cook and eat breakfast) or future environment (e.g., learning to ride the bus to get to work). When we consider the poor adult outcomes generally experienced by individuals with disabilities (e.g., Newman et al., 2009), a renewed emphasis in the curriculum on the “criterion of ultimate functioning”—the skills a person must possess “to function as productively and independently as possible in socially, vocationally, and domestically integrated adult community environments” (Brown, Nietupski, & Hamre-Nietupski, 1976, p. 8)—is invaluable as we enter an era of “curriculum wars” in special education.

Critical Skills Areas

Test, Walker, and Richter (2008) referred to functional skills as “skills that help a person to live in, and get around in, the community” (p. 132). The breadth of such skills is extensive, given the range of community and home environments and sub-environments that individuals frequent. Test et al. suggest five general skills areas: travel and community safety (e.g., transportation, pedestrian safety), grocery and general shopping (e.g., preparing a shopping list, finding items, purchasing), eating out (e.g., ordering and paying for meals), community services (e.g., using medical and recreational services, post office), and money and budgeting (e.g., banking, using credit cards). The extent to which individuals achieve mastery in these skills areas will clearly enhance their independence and competence and both increase and broaden their participation in their respective communities.

Additional skills areas include those skills needed to function independently at home. Steere and Burcroff (2004) suggest competence in nine general activity areas is necessary. These areas include: planning and preparing meals; self-care, bathing, and hygiene; cleaning and care of the home; cleaning and care of clothing; telephone use; leisure activities; safety procedures; time management and scheduling; and negotiating with others (roommates) and self-advocacy.

Successful performance of these and the community functional skills mentioned earlier require that individuals know when to perform these skills, how their actions may impact others (e.g., waiting to use the shower), and what support they may need to complete tasks. Also, one issue that warrants serious attention is that participants need to be aware of the numerous risks that exist in home and community environments (e.g., crosswalks, appliances) (Agran, 2004). Learning how to recognize such risks (e.g., spilled water on kitchen floor) and appropriately responding to risk stimuli (e.g., extinguishing a fire) must be included in instruction.

Teaching in Community and Home Settings

As discussed in the entry Community-Based Instruction, there is considerable controversy regarding where the instruction of independent living skills should be conducted. Numerous researchers have suggested that instruction should be delivered in natural settings in which the tasks are typically performed (e.g., using a public Laundromat). That said, this focus precludes or limits student participation in inclusive, general education setting (Fisher & Sax, 1999) and may limit instruction in academics. Conversely, proponents of community-based instruction maintain that failure to teach independent living skills in community environments will only compromise generalization and skill transfer. When planning instructional programs, it is critical that the planning team consider the relative benefits of both approaches when determining the instructional site. As a reasonable compromise, several researchers suggest that both general education and community settings be used (e.g., teach skill in school but probe in community) (Agran et al., 1999; Test et al., 2008).

Systematic Instruction and Promoting Generalization

Direct instruction in the actual settings in which students are expected to perform valued behavior has been shown to be effective in teaching critical functional and independent living skills to students, especially those with severe disabilities (e.g., Downing, 2010; McDonnell & Hardman, 2010). The first step is to analyze the performance demands in a setting or across different settings and then observe the student performing these skills. Areas in which the student is not performing required skills should then be taught by direct instructional methods, such as modeling, prompting, reinforcing, and providing corrective feedback (Downing, 2010). As the student acquires targeted skills, the teacher, job coach, or other instructor should begin fading assistance to promote the student’s independent performance. For example, if a teacher has been accompanying a student on a bus route from school to a job site, the teacher can begin fading assistance by sitting in a different section of the bus, checking to see that the student gets off at the correct bus stop. When the student is performing all steps of the bus riding routine independently (e.g., boarding the correct bus, paying for the ride, finding and sitting in an unoccupied seat, signaling for and disembarking at the correct bus stop), the teacher can replace accompanying the student on each ride with occasional spot checks.

To promote generalization of acquired skills across people, settings, tasks, and time, instructional personnel should introduce into training...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Table of Contents
• Title
• Copyright
• EDITORIAL STAFF
• CONTRIBUTORS
• PREFACE TO THE FOURTH EDITION
• D
• E
• F
• G
• H
• I
• J
• End User License Agreement