Teaching Individuals With Physical or Multiple Disabilities

This text was originally authored by June L. Bigge with invited contributors; Sherwood J. Best and Kathryn Wolff Heller joined her in the fourth edition. It has become the preeminent text for teachers of students who have physical, health, or multiple disabilities. This edition builds on the foundation of the previous editions, and June Bigge continues to guide and inspire our efforts. The book is designed for use by family members, educators, related-service providers, administrators, paraprofessionals, and others who provide services to individuals with physical, health, or multiple disabilities. It meets the needs of service providers in three ways. First, it describes specific physical and health impairments with attention to their educational and psychosocial implications. Second, it illustrates accommodations and modifications that promote access to the curriculum and participation in home and community environments. Third, it addresses curricular issues in a comprehensive manner, thereby serving as a resource for family members and service providers. This edition contains both similarities to and differences from the fourth edition. The focus on assistive technology has been retained, as have most chapters from the previous edition. Knowledge and skill statements, questions for discussion, and "Focus on the Net" remain to extend the reader's interaction with the subject matter. The differences are in the conceptual and structural improvements to this edition. ORGANIZATION OF THE BOOK This fifth edition contains 16 chapters organized within four major parts. Part I, "Impact and Implications of Physical, Health, and Multiple Disabilities," provides foundational knowledge and describes a variety of specific physical and health impairments and their implications. Chapter 1 provides definitions, explains current laws, and explores issues in the lives of individuals with physical, health, or multiple disabilities. This chapter orients educators and others to historical and current perspectives on disability that shape policy and practice in education. Chapters 2, 3, and 4 introduce specific physical and health disabilities, with definitions; descriptions of associated medical conditions; and discussions of the impact of disability on physical, cognitive, and psychosocial development. Readers are urged to explore these and other disabilities further through Internet resources. Part II, "Accommodations for Curricular Access," contains information that assists educators in individualizing curricula for individuals with physical or multiple disabilities, with an emphasis on improved academic access and quality of life. Chapter 5 introduces the theme of accommodation by providing a model for planning and designing courses of study for students with disabilities. It includes accommodations and modifications of the general education curriculum and curricula in modified means of communication and task performance. Chapter 6 adds explanatory power to the model presented in the previous chapter by providing strategies for developing task and situation analyses to individualize curricula. An important aspect of this chapter is differentiating task difficulties that arise from either motor or cognitive challenges. Chapter 7 incorporates materials from two chapters in the previous edition. The first half of the chapter is focused on assistive technology (AT) assessment, and the second half provides practical AT solutions. This chapter also addresses the critical need for appropriate positioning, seating, and mobility. Chapter 8 concludes this part of the book with a focused discussion of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), one of the fastest-growing knowledge areas in special education and related services. Part III, "Specialized Curricula," focuses on unique needs of individuals with physical, health, or multiple disabilities. Feeding and swallowing issues are addressed in Chapter 9. A disBest, Sherwood J. is the author of 'Teaching Individuals With Physical or Multiple Disabilities', published 2004 under ISBN 9780131121225 and ISBN 0131121227.