WEEK IN REVIEW

NewNASETPublications and Articles of Interest in Special Education and Disabilities That Were Reported This Week

September 16, 2011 - Vol 7, Issue 33

New This Week on NASET

Classroom Management Series

Early Child Sleep Loss Increases ADHD Symptoms

Preschoolers who get less sleep are more likely to be hyperactive and inattentive in kindergarten, U.S. researchers found. Lead author Erika Gaylor, a senior researcher for SRI International, an independent, non-profit research institute in Menlo Park, Calif., says although less sleep in preschool-age children predicted worse parent-reported hyperactivity and inattention at kindergarten, but hyperactivity and inattention at preschool did not predict sleep duration at kindergarten. The study involves about 6,860 children with analyses controlled for gender, ethnicity and family income. To read more,click here

College, Independence Hurdles For Young Adults With Disabilities

Young adults with disabilities are less likely to participate in traditional rights of passage like going to college or living independently than their typically developing peers, new research indicates. In the six years following high school, just 55 percent of those with disabilities continued their education compared to 62 percent of those without special needs. Moreover, 36 percent said they lived alone, with a partner or roommate, as opposed to living with their parents. That compared to 44 percent of those without disabilities who said they lived independently. To read more,click here

The United States of Adderall

Last week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) released analysis of datarevealing a major increasein the incidence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among children in the United States. The number of children between the ages of five and 17 reported by their parents to "have" ADHD or the non-hyperactive form of the disorder (ADD) had risen from 7 to 9 percent over a decade ending in 2009. Nine percent translates to 4,858,210 children according to 2010U.S. Census data. In actuality, the researchers do not know for certain whether these children actually meet criteria for ADHD/ADD. The data is culled from a national telephone survey which asks parents the question, "whether or not a doctor or other health-care provider had ever told them that their child had attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactive disorder, that is, ADD or ADHD.'" To read more,click here

Did You Know That....

Life Paths Diverge for Young Adults With, Without Disabilities

Six years after high school, students with disabilities are less likely to have gone on to postsecondary schools than their classmates without disabilities and less likely to be financially independent, but a little more likely to have children, according to a new report from theNational Center for Special Education Research. The reportfound that 55 percent of young people with disabilities reported having continued on to postsecondary school since leaving high school, compared with 62 percent of their peers in the general population. These and other conclusions were based on 10-year-long study of the characteristics, experiences, and outcomes of a nationally representative sample of youth with disabilities. The National Longitudinal Transition Study-2 focuses on students who were 13 to 16 years old and receiving special education services in grade 7 or above on Dec. 1, 2000. To read more,click here

Georgia State Scholarships Benefit Students with Special Needs

Ava White has tutored children in the Hall County area since the early 1980s. She was encouraged to start a school of her own, but it wasn't until 2007 when the opportunity opened up. That was the year the Georgia legislature passed Senate Bill 10, which established the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program. The scholarship gives students money, usually between $2,500 and $13,500, to offset private school tuition and fees. "I've seen a lot of students come and go, and the parents asked if there was something more that could be done for their child," White said. "This really spoke to me as the right thing to do. Public schools have the incredible job of educating everyone with less money and fewer teachers. This gives students with learning differences the opportunity to get what they need with smaller groups and a highly specialized program." To read more,click here

Did You Know That....

Jury Awards Florida Parents of Child Born with  No Arms, One Leg $4.5 million

After nearly nine hours of deliberation over two days, a Palm Beach County jury today awarded a West Palm Beach couple $4.5 million to care for their son who was born with no arms and one leg. With the heartbreaking image of the small boy etched into their minds, jurors found Palm Beach Gardens obstetrician Dr. Marie Morel, OB/GYN Specialists of the Palm Beaches and Perinatal Specialists of the Palm Beaches responsible for not detecting the boy's horrific disabilities before he was born. The amount they awarded is half of the $9 million Ana Mejia and Rodolfo Santana were seeking for their son, Bryan. The teary-eyed couple said they were overjoyed by the verdict. "I have no words," Mejia said in her native Spanish. Both agreed the award will make a huge difference in their son's life. To read more,click here

Bill Helping Children with Autism Passes California Assembly

Health insurance plans would be required to provide coverage for children with autism or other developmental disorders under a bill passed by the Assembly on Friday. The bill by Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, would ensure that physicians would be able to provide medical treatment for children with autism. Currently, insurance providers deny coverage of development disorders because they classify them as an education service. Opponents of the measure said it will increase health insurance premiums by millions of dollars at a time when budgets are tight. "This bill is going to cost over $200 million dollars and will likely cost the state twice as much by 2014," said Republican Assemblyman Dan Logue of Chico, referring to the year individuals will be required to have insurance under federal health care reforms. To read more,click here

TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Violence During Pregnancy Linked to Reduced Birth Weight

Pregnant women who are assaulted by an intimate partner are at increased risk of giving birth to infants of reduced weight, according to a population-level analysis of domestic violence supported by the National Institutes of Health.The study analyzed medical records of more than 5 million pregnant women in California over a 10-year period. Although the results showed a pattern of low-weight births among women who experienced an assault, the study was not designed to establish cause and effect, and so could not prove that violence caused the reduced birth weights.Similarly, the study was not designed to provide a biological explanation for how violence against an expectant mother might cause her child to be of lower birth weight. To read more,click here

Mother's Care for Children with Special Needs Sparks Business

As an occupational therapist, Aviva Weiss often spotted shortcomings in toys aimed at special-needs kids. It wasn't until her own daughter was slow to develop that she did something about it, eventually building a thriving business. "There's no reason why parents shouldn't have products that don't just help kids, but feel good, look good and are affordable," said Weiss, the 31-year-old founder of Fun and Function, which sells everything from clothing to gym equipment and games for kids with developmental disabilities such as autism. She began hatching the idea for the company eight years ago after one of her daughters was delayed when learning to crawl, and eventually required therapy. Weiss became disillusioned with the selection of clothes designed to soothe the nervous system of children with hypersensitivity to their environment. To read more,click here

Mother Says Her Child with a Disability Is Missing Classes Because of Disability

Gabby Delgado loves to watch "Barney," but her favorite thing to do is read. The 7-year-old Sabal Palms Elementary student's mother said Gabby isn't getting the education she deserves. "She's missing classes. She's missing going to the library. She's not even going to the cafeteria," said Raquel Diaz. Gabby, who attends the special education program at Sabal Palm, has autism and heart problems. She needs a wheelchair to get to some classes, but she does not yet have a one and the school system does not provide them. Her mom said when Gabby has to walk more than 25 to 50 feet, she loses her breath. "She will feel it. She will have to slow down or sit." That means Gabby isn't able to get to some of her classes, which are mainstream and not special ed. But Diaz is trying to buy a wheelchair so her daughter doesn't miss a thing.

She doesn't have the money yet and the school isn't providing a wheelchair. To read more,click here

Researcher Pumps Tobacco Smoke on to Child's Skin

At a clinic in East Java, a 3-year-old boy named Satrio lies on a medical table, squirming. His father holds him and his mother looks on as a technician blows tobacco smoke through a small tube onto the boy's skin. Satrio, whose parents say he has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is part of a controversial study by Sutiman Bambang Sumitro, a molecular biology professor at the University of Brawijaya in Malang, Indonesia. Sutiman and his colleagues believe that tobacco can be manipulated to treat illnesses, including cancer. It has been decades since anyone in the U.S. proclaimed any possible health benefits from smoking. Thousands of international studies show tobacco is addictive and harmful to health. The World Health Organization says tobacco kills about half its users, or more than 5 million people annually. Even tobacco manufacturers have admitted smoking is dangerous and addictive. To read more,click here

Early Motor Experiences Give Infants a Social Jump Start

In a new study published September 9 in the journal Developmental Science, researchers from the Kennedy Krieger Institute and Vanderbilt University found that early motor experiences can shape infants' preferences for objects and faces. The study findings demonstrate that providing infants with "sticky mittens" to manipulate toys increases their subsequent interest in faces, suggesting advanced social development. This study supports a growing body of evidence that early motor development and self-produced motor experiences contribute to infants' understanding of the social world around them. Conversely, this implies that when motor skills are delayed or impaired -- as in autism -- future social interactions and development could be negatively impacted. To read more,click here

Mother's Diet Influences Baby's Allergies, Research Suggests

A possible link between what a mother eats during pregnancy and the risk of her child developing allergies has been identified in new research published in this month's The Journal of Physiology.  The research found that if a mother's diet contains a certain group of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) -- such as those found in fish, walnut oil or flaxseed -- the baby's gut develops differently. The PUFAs are thought to improve how gut immune cells respond to bacteria and foreign substances, making the baby less likely to suffer from allergies. Until now, several clinical trials have shown that fish and walnut oil supplementation in pregnant women reduces the risk of allergy in their children, but the mechanism was unknown. To read more,click here

Did You Know That....

Panel Calls On Feds To Limit Restraint, Seclusion

A government advisory panel wants the Obama administration to do more to address the use of restraint and seclusion among people with disabilities. In a letter that the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee, or IACC, agreed to send Wednesday, the group is asking U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to coordinate with federal education and justice officials on the use of the controversial practices in schools and other settings.

Specifically, the IACC is urging Sebelius to work with her counterparts to establish regulations, increase data collection and promote alternatives, among other steps. To read more,click here

Researchers Identify Two Different Strains of Autism

Researchers have for the first time identified two biologically different strains of autism in a breakthrough being compared with the discovery of different forms of cancer in the 1960s, The Australian reported last Thursday. The findings, to be announced at an international autism conference in Perth,Australia, Thursday, are seen as a key step towards understanding the causes of autism and developing effective treatments as well as a cure. The findings bring hope that the communication, socialization and other difficulties that children with autism experience can be tackled more easily and earlier. Researchers from the University of California Davis's MIND Institute in Sacramento began the Autism Phenome Project in 2006. They have been studying the brain growth, environmental exposure and genetic make-up of 350 children aged between two and 3.5 years, and have so far found two biologically distinct subtypes of autistic brain development. To read more,click here

Can Mobile Phones Help Teachers Manage Classroom Behavior?

We can talk all we want about what students should learn in the classroom. But the reality is that most teachers have to balance "academics" with a multitude of other lessons: how to be good students, how to be good citizens, and simply how to behave. Behavior management is actually a significant part of what teachers have to do every day, and while there's a wealth of information to help them with tips and tricks, there isn't a lot of technology in place to help them with the implementation of best practices. To read more,click here