Persons with special needs are individuals who need individually planned and systematically monitored arrangement of physical settings, specialized teaching, materials, instructions and intervention strategies for them to achieve maximum possible independence and academic success. They include persons with sensory, physical, intellectual, social, emotional and other conditions that pose difficulties in benefitting from the general classroom requirements. Traditional areas of physical, learning, intellectual, emotional, psychological, sensory impairments have been the focus of research and intervention for these categories of persons with special needs all over the world. Despite attempts to provide evidence based intervention programmes and services for these groups of persons; some areas of contents are sparingly being taught and researched in schools and institutions. These contents need to be developed into full-fledged programmes to enable certification and professionalism that will meet the increasing needs of persons with special needs especially among third world countries and emerging economies.

Developing areas in the field of Special Needs Education with less attention in terms of research, content expansion, curriculum adaptation, admission procedures and certification in schools and colleges especially in developing countries are: Sign Language Interpreting, Speech and language Pathology, Audiology, Brailing, Orientation and Mobility, Community Based Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy. Others are Autism Spectrum Disorders, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders, Down syndrome, Micronutrients and clinical practice in special education.

Aims and Scope: