Special education
is the education of students with special
needs in a way that addresses the students' individual differences
and needs. Ideally, this process involves the individually planned
and systematically monitored arrangement of teaching procedures,
adapted equipment and materials, accessible settings, and other
interventions designed to help learners with special needs achieve
a higher level of personal self-sufficiency and success in school
and community than would be available if the student were only
given access to a typical classroom education.
Common special needs
include challenges with
learning,
communication
challenges,
emotional and behavioral
disorders,
physical
disabilities, and
developmental
disorders. Students with these
kinds of special needs are likely to benefit from additional
educational services such as different approaches to teaching, use
of technology, a specifically adapted teaching area, or resource
room. Some children are easily identified as candidates for
special needs from their medical history. They may have been
diagnosed with a genetic condition that is associated with
mental
retardation, may have various
forms of brain
damage, may have a
developmental
disorder, may have
visual or hearing
disabilities, or other
disabilities.
Intellectual giftedness is a difference in
learning and can also benefit from specialized teaching techniques
or different educational programs, but the term "special education"
is generally used to specifically indicate instruction of students
whose special needs reduce their ability to learn independently or
in an ordinary classroom, and gifted education is handled
separately.
In most developed countries, educators are
modifying teaching methods and environments so that the maximum
number of students are served in general education environments.
Special education in developed countries is often regarded less as
a "place" and more as "a range of services, available in every
school." Integration can reduce social stigmas and improve academic
achievement for many students.
The opposite of
special education is general
education. General education is
the standard curriculum presented with standard teaching methods
and without additional supports.
The above is an extraction from Wikipedia and
much more information regarding special needs education is
available. Some of these individuals will be able to live
relative normal lives one day and other very limited lives which
entails permanent supervision and specialised care for the rest of
their lives.