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Equity and excellence in teaching and learning.
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When it comes to understanding students, we are always learners
By Suzanne Bouffard
October 2023
The great promise of public schools is that they serve all children equitably and effectively. Doing so is essential and complex because students’ needs are so diverse. Ideally, educators have a broad knowledge base and skill set for meeting learners’ needs from Day One in the classroom. But it’s also vital to have opportunities, methods, and habits for continuing to learn because student needs evolve and educators’ positions change. This issue of The Learning Professional focuses on students with complex learning needs that have not always been met fully. We spotlight students with a range of disabilities, diagnoses, and learning needs. While the articles don’t represent the full spectrum of diverse learning needs that students bring to school, the professional learning lessons within them can
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References
National Center for Education Statistics. (2023, May). Students with disabilities. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cgg/students-with-disabilities
National Center on Disability and Journalism. (2021, August). Disability language style guide. Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, Arizona State University. ncdj.org/style-guide/
Suzanne Bouffard is senior vice president of communications and publications at Learning Forward. She is the editor of The Learning Professional, Learning Forward’s flagship publication. She also contributes to the Learning Forward blog and webinars. With a background in child development, she has a passion for making research and best practices accessible to educators, policymakers, and families. She has written for many national publications including The New York Times and the Atlantic, and previously worked as a writer and researcher at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. She has a Ph.D. in developmental psychology from Duke University and a B.A. from Wesleyan University. She loves working with authors to help them develop their ideas and voices for publication.
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