Historical Perspectives in Special Education A brief review

Ancient Views (BC) n Seriously affected seldom survived birth n Mildly disabled survived and contributed n Belief in supernatural led to (2) different views: n Demons; therefore kill them n Unique; therefore revere and honor n Regardless, those with disabilities were isolated

An Ethical Dilemma n Over 400, 000 babies are born in the US premature n They are at risk for life long disabilities n Often policy to resuscitate all babies weighing 1 lb or more

Greek and Roman n Early: Away from supernatural to natural causes n Holistic interventions such as: n Diet n Exercise n Natural herbs etc n Mind, body, spirit

Greek and Roman (con’t) n Later in this period: n Need for military superiority n Therefore, needed society free of “defectives” n Returned to previous views of disability n Called Era of Extermination n Individual is what he is, now and forever

Greek & Roman(con’t) n Consequences of Philosophy: n Punishment: Chaining n Left on hills to die n Thrown off cliffs n Locked away n Drown n Father had right to terminate child’s life

Greek and Roman treatment of the disabled Thrown off cliffs Locked away Chained

Middle Ages n Rigid caste system n Era of Ridicule n Those with disabilities were: n Used as servants or fools n Some were still put to death n Dwarfs were used as clowns n Overall, ridiculed for deformities and behavior

Middle Ages Judy Becky

Renaissance n Era of Asylum n Catholic Church accepts those with disabilities as wards of state n Cared for in isolation n No education at first, but humane treatment n Belief: Once disabled, always disabled

Industrial Revolution n Era of Education n Need for mass education, literate society, and good workers n Vocational Emphasis n Sheltered workshops emerged

Early Education Efforts n Itard-wolf boy, multi-sensory learning n Sequin-training sequence n Montessori-individualized and discovery learning n These were some seeds of special education

Pioneers in Special Education Eduard Seguin Maria Montessori Jean-Marc Itard

Turn of the Century (early 1900’s) n Early: Biological emphasis n Institutional Care/medical model n 1900 -1950’s some classes for the mentally retarded

Turn of the Century (con’t) n Late: Environmental emphasis n Veterans-rise in litigation and legislation n Civil Rights movement in 50’s and 60’s

Contemporary Issues n Inclusion n Zero Reject n Litigation/legislation n Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) n Parents as equal members n Collaboration between general ed and special ed