The philosophy of inclusive education aims at enabling all children to learn in the regular education classrooms. It is widely believed that the successful implementation of any inclusive policy is largely influenced by teachers being positive about the expectations.Grounded in Positioning Theory, this study was conducted to examine the attitude, perceptions and concerns of Kenyan teachers toward the inclusion of children with disabilities in the regular education classrooms. The study participants were 142 Primary School teachers from 10 Primary Schools in a school district in Western Kenya deliberately selected from schools identified as actively implementing inclusive education programs. The overall findings indicate that teachers have a positive attitude towards inclusion of children with disabilities in regular classrooms. Overall, the study showed that attitudes, perceptions, and concerns of the teachers influence their acceptance and commitment to the implementation and success of inclusive education.

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) signals the federal government's strong belief in the value of literacy. A concentrated focus on can be found in the Reading First subpart, which is considered by the U.S. Department of Education to be the academic cornerstone of NCLB. Reading First proposes that through the use of scientifically based research, teachers will be able to implement instruction that ensures that all children will be able to read by the end of third grade, regardless of their disability. Before they are literate, children progress through the emergent phase of development. Emergent is the process of awareness of reading and writing that begins at birth and ends when children begin to engage in conventional reading and writing; it is assumed by educators that the development of begins long before formal instruction (Sulzby & Teale, 1991). The areas of environment, teaching strategies and activities, and the role of the teacher are of particular interest in research on emergent literacy. Environments that encourage growth in emergent are both rich in print (Miller, 2000) and organized into centers or educational learning areas (Genisio & Drecktrah, 1999). The strategies and activities that are used in the classroom are another important factor in promoting the development of emergent (Miller, 2000). In addition, the teacher's roles of observing, assessing, planning, modeling, setting up a supportive environment ... or directly instructing (Soderman, Gregory, & O'Neill, 1999, p. 67) are essential. The importance of these three areas has been supported by research on the emergent of students with disabilities (Justice & Pullen, 2003). The incomplete or distorted information that students who are deaf-blind receive from vision and hearing has the potential to have profound effects on the students' overall development (Prickett & Welch, 1995), thus making it necessary to consider a broader definition of literacy. In defining literacy, Holbrook, Koenig, and Smith (1996, p. 171) included the ability to access information and to communicate thoughts and ideas to others. Langley (2000, p. 323) stated that literacy is communication especially when the concepts and issues are applied to students with visual impairments and additional disabilities. Yanden, Rowe, and MacGillivray (1999) recommended that researchers and educators consider both linguistic and nonlinguistic communication as important in the acquisition of literacy. A review of the literature yielded no research on emergent for students who are deaf-blind. Although some articles were found that related to emergent in students with visual impairments and hearing impairments, no peer-reviewed articles addressing deaf-blindness and were found, and only one DB-Link fact sheet on was located (Miles, 2000). METHOD Participants and settings The case study reported here was conducted at a school for students who are blind that is not named to protect its anonymity. The study was conducted in the school's program for preschool-age students who are deaf-blind, which was made up of two classes in one classroom. One class was composed of younger students (the preschool group), and the other was composed of older students (the group). Before the data were collected, the study was approved by the Texas Tech University Institutional Review Board. Informed consent was obtained from the teachers and the students' parents. Students. Three of the six students were eligible for special education services as students who are deaf-blind, as defined by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004--a criterion of the study. Cameron was in the group, and Jack and Katie were in the transition group (all the names are pseudonyms). …

Professionals in the field of deaf-blindness are challenged to use instructional practices that have been tested using experimental methodology. Single-subject design has been examined as a form of research that assists in substantiating practice. In a review of the literature, the authors identified 54 single-subject studies from 1969 to 2006 that provided emerging evidence for practitioners.

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are frequently called to serve children with sensory impairments. Although a great deal of literature will support SLPs in providing services to children with hearing impairments, there is significantly less data concerning communication development in the child with visual impairments or deafblindness. As such, SLPs may be poorly prepared to perform evaluative, program planning, and intervention activities with this population. Survey methodology was used to reveal striking differences in the preparation and competence of SLPs regarding various types of sensory impairment. Recommendations for changes in personnel preparation are also discussed, as are implications for future research.