Bilingualism and Special Education

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This book has a practical focus in that it examines the effectiveness of alternatives to traditional assessment and pedagogical practices for bilingual children. However, a central theme of the book is that progress can be made in improving practice only by means of a thorough re-examination of the assumptions underlying the entire special education enterprise, and particularly the diagnostic-prescriptive medical model that dominates much current practice. It argues that despite its laudable intentions, much special education practice with respect to bilingual students is fundamentally misdirected. Concrete suggestions are made both for changing the structure of special education services for bilingual students and for instituting more appropriate assessment and pedagogical practices.