Special Education Needs and Environment

Based on the current laws and regulations the definition of special education is teaching and educating exceptionally needy children with in the least restrictive environment. Many people are involved in the implementation and determination of special needs. Many public and private schools offer a variety of special education programs.

Several of the different types of special education programs available are learning disabled, hearing impaired, and autism specific programs. Programs for the gifted used be included in with government funding, however, it has been dropped from the federally approved guidelines.

The goal of these target educational programs is to try to help children reach their full potential in the least restrictive environment that is possible. One of the first steps to this process is identifying a need. A parent, teacher, or guidance counselor must place a request with the school for an assessment hearing. At the hearing there will be a social work, educational development specialist, and exceptional needs specialist. The child will be tested and evaluated. If it is further determined that there is a need for services there will be a subsequent meeting in which the purpose will be to set up the IEP.

An IEP is a very import federally required Individualized Education Plan that is required for all special education students. In the IEP goals for the child, disciplinary requirements, curriculum adaptation, and primary goals are included. Often, a parent will have his/her own specialist attend the meeting in order to make sure that your child's best interests are being provided for. In order to have a specialist you must fill out a form stating so before the IEP hearing.

It is very important that the child be educated in the least restrictive environment. Contained classrooms are used very judiciously. Occasionally, a child will have to leave the main classroom in order to receive services that may not be able to be acquired otherwise.

When the schools, parents, and government work together in special education in the least restrictive is attainable. Parents and schools are always working to increase funding with students with special needs.

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Getting Learning Disability Testing

If your child's performance in his class is a cause of concern for you, a number of thoughts may clutter your mind. You may think, your child is not serious of his studies, may be he is concentrating in something else or may be he is he is not competent enough. Many books are available on the upbringing of children.

While these books are worth looking at and giving the time to find out what it suggests, the answer to your question may always be not conclusive. It may be good idea to evaluate your child on possible learning disability. This would eliminate any other possibilities.

Before taking your child for any disability evaluation, first thing to rule out is any problem with his vision and hearing. You might have checked his eyes and ears soon after his birth or may be few times when he was younger. But you never know, he might have developed a problem at a later stage and that could be the cause of his poor performance.

If the child has difficulties in seeing or hearing, it quite obviously will affect his performance in the class. Once you have ruled out this possibility then only you should consider taking him for education deficiency evaluation. There could be a number of factors responsible for the trouble faced by your child in his educations. One of them is Dyslexia.

People suffering from this disease read words or numbers backwards. Hence students struggle in reading and mathematics. The easiest reading or mathematic assignments becomes difficult for them. Many intelligent people, who were not diagnosed with the problem had fallen prey to this disease and have ruined their life. A learning handicap problem evaluation problem could have saved the suffering of their lives.

Two very common symptoms are ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and ADD (attention deficit disorder) that may affect your child's normal progress in his class in spite of the fact that children with these disabilities are generally very intelligent. Because of their inability of paying attention in the class they can not concentrate in their work and as a result they cannot stick on their work for long.

Hence no one can judge what their capabilities are. Many times these children cause disruption in the class and their teachers tag them as trouble maker in the class with low intelligence, while the fact is that they are they children with very high intelligence and they have no control over their behavior. So if your child is showing these types of behavior, think of education handicap assessment, the children suffering from these disabilities quite often suffer from emotional setback. You have to build the confidence in him. You should make it clear to him that he is no less intelligent than other children neither he is different from other children.

They might need a new methodology for learning. If you feel that the child is suffering from depression, seek advice from the school counselor. See if you can arrange some extra assistance for recovering from the emotional problems.

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Talent - Nature or Nurture?

Watching a child prodigy that hit high aria notes flawlessly or a young piano virtuoso that impeccably plays a Chopin piece seems to awe many people. For a long time, the public holds the view that such talents are acquired at birth; they frowned upon the idea that it is a result of intensive, repetitive practice rather than genetics.

The traditional view is not without scientific back-up. Scholars and scientists around the world has studied savants - the most outstanding among the gifted - and found that they tend to have a slightly better brain. These 'slight difference', however, usually comes with a cost: statistics shown that a big percentage of these geniuses suffer from autism. However, it seems hard to justify this view because a large proportion of those we perceived as 'gifted' does not appear to be of such category; most of them are normal.

This leads us to an opposing view that has been raised recently, which interestingly claims that one's talent is not primarily acquired by genes; it is rather gained by a series of continuous self improvement and practice. Yes, there are those who progress at a much faster speed than the others because of their acquired-genes; however it only amounts to a tiny fraction to their talent. A large part of the so-called talent, as the findings show, is commonly gained by practice, practice, and practice.

While the notion that talent is not acquired at birth may sounds unbelievable for some, modern studies have confirmed that hard work and intensive practice indeed plays an important role in forming the talent within a person. It is also discovered that a majority of those who are regarded as gifted individuals usually spend significantly more time to practice, compared to the others.

For these reasons I firmly believe that instead of being acquired at birth, talent is a result of considerable amount of hard work and practice, thus anyone who is willing to do so in a consistent manner will surely be able to claim the title "Gifted".

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Is It a Learning Disability?

March is an important month in education. For parents, it is crunch time for academic decision making. Parents who have students who are falling behind in elementary school may start to consider grade retention. Plans for summer vacations may have to be scrapped to allow secondary students to attend makeup classes. However, grade retention and repeating classes only allows for another exposure to the same material. The underlying reasons for the student's failure are not addressed. School failure often is the result of specific circumstances such as poor motivation, illness, immaturity, or family issues. But some students fail due to the presence of learning disabilities.

Unlike physical disabilities, learning disabilities are not visible but their influence is seen in the student's inability to learn at the same pace and in the same way as other students. There are no real answers as to how these disabilities happen. It may be related to family genetics, prematurity, birth trauma, or any number of factors that will never be identified. The impact of the disability may vary from mild to severe but it invariably manifests itself in the student's inability to learn despite average level intelligence and academic supports.

There are many types of learning disabilities but they all interfere with how well the student is able to make sense of and use information for learning purposes. For some students, the issue is one of inability to memorize facts and figures. For others, it may be an inability to copy information from the board or from books onto paper. Still others may need much more time to correctly interpret and follow verbal directions. The effects of these invisible handicaps are sometimes seen in academic output, such as when a student has slow processing speed, but other types may primarily affect intake of information from the environment. Sadly, students who have learning disabilities often become frustrated and begin to see themselves as less intelligent than their peers.

Fortunately, there are techniques which allow us to identify and understand the student's learning processes. Through psychoeducational testing one can determine what the child's cognitive strengths and weaknesses are so that parents and teachers can help the child learn more effectively. This type of testing provides information about the brain's ability to use information from one's senses and to understand how the individual uses that incoming information to solve problems.

Every Spring parents are forced to make difficult choices regarding their child's education. Many times those choices are made with limited information. When parents understand the underlying reasons for school failure it is much easier to plan and implement interventions that will help the student succeed. Knowing 'why' a student fails is particularly important for students who have learning disabilities.

Ramona Hall is a Licensed Educational Psychologist and Nationally Certified School Psychologist. Ramona provides testing, therapy, consultation, and case management services to adults and to children in need of educational support and intervention. Additional articles and information about educational....

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Special Education - Keeping Hopes Alive

SPED otherwise known as Special Education is the term for schools or any education system that offers education for students with learning problems due to mental health issues, behavior problems, speech and language problems, visual impairments, autism, deafness, trauma and other health impairments. At the beginning we can say that SPED students are not capable of attending normal school, SPED teachers teach them on specialized schools, home, hospitals and other institutions. But soon after years of specialized education offers a transition program for SPED students that will allow them to attend normal school just like anyone does.

To become a Special Education teacher, is to become an unsung hero. SPED teachers are always patient and understanding of their students. They must be passionate about their profession and set a good inspiration for their students. Motivate his or her students to learn the basics of life and education.

Indeed being a SPED teacher is a good Samaritan act, but not everyone can be a teacher specialized on this type of education since it requires some standardized education in order to become a SPED teacher - Technically you can't but you still can help through simple ways.

You can be a volunteer on schools where you can assist the teachers to lighten up their load on handling special people. You can donate some stuff like notebooks, pens, writing boards and other stuffs. Donation is a good way to provide support on SPED institutions.

Education should have no limits. Everyone has the right to be educated including those special people, those people that has god given gift to be special. They have the right to normal lives and no one can take it away from them. For people concerned, we should keep their hopes alive.
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Special School Supplies

All children deserve education especially children with special needs. Special education is created to address the special needs and differences of students; to help in this cause, there are many teachers as well as institutions that uniquely design lesson plans so that children with special needs can cope up, grow and develop without feeling inferior and discouraged. Challenges to expect if you are teaching children with special needs include emotional and behavioral disorders, development disorders, physical disabilities and other learning hindrances. Of course before considering enrolling your child at any special education, it is important that you are certain that they really need such; to determine if your child needs special care and attention, you can just refer to your child's medical history or conduct detailed tests and exams carefully designed for them. But regardless, what is important at the end of the day is giving your child equal opportunity to grow, develop and learn.

Children with special needs can use specialized approaches to teaching, strategies, technology equipments and a presentable teaching area. Planning and implementing approaches takes time but it is effective and surely worth the money. Meanwhile technologies can help make your child's learning experience fun and exciting; for sure it will never bore them. You should also consider giving them special teaching area; these should store materials that will play part in their learning; of course you don't want them to be uncomfortable right? In the room, you have to put books, CDs, props, software and videos, teacher supply, school science supplies and many other materials offered by the market.

It is basic to bring along extra patience, extra effort and understanding for these children; it is important that as parents and teachers, you bring along extra of everything because teaching these kids is challenging and not that easy. For instance, children with special needs need a lot of understanding and concern so pressuring them and asking something more than what they can give is not actually helping them; teach them the easy and soft way that way they will never feel inferior or out of place. It is crucial that children with special needs feel the love through out because that keeps them strong and persistent. You should show to these children that all people are equal if they want to learn; for short, just keep on encouraging them every time so that they can find the strength to move on at the same time pursue them.

These materials are not hard to look for you can easily find one on nearest bookstores and online stores for your convenience; what is great is that when you order online, there are discounts and freebies waiting for you. The good news is that these materials are not that expensive so you can have as many as your child needs. Children with special needs should be prioritized right? Consider these materials and enroll them to schools that offer special needs education and for sure they will never go home empty handed.
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Online Safety Training Programs May Even Save a Life

No one can ensure one hundred percent safety anywhere be it at work, in school or even while crossing the road. There are unsafe people all over, there are unsafe surroundings and the best you can do to be safe is to get adequate safety training. Take for instance schools today; schools are become like social parades where students come dressed like they want to, they do bad stuff to the other students they dislike and they even sometimes indulge in drugs and alcohol. To ensure the safety of the school students it first becomes necessary for the school staff, those who are in contact with these students every day to be well trained in taking safety measures. There are websites which offer online safety training programs especially for school staff members because these days there are many violent and undesirable incidents happening on the school campuses.

Schools have become less of educational institutions and more of "doing what I want" places and this is exactly why you hear of many violent incidents in schools. Studies have pointed to the fact that teenagers have become more aggressive over the years. They have also become more rebellious and daring. They are not scared to take risks anymore just to prove a point. All this negativity and aggression which builds inside the school goers has to be addressed otherwise it will eventually spill out in the form of violent and anti social activities on the school campus, which has already begun.

School staff members should be adequately trained to handle such incidents of emergency. If the staff and teachers panic then there is going to be even more havoc on the campus. Online Safety Training programs ensure that the staff members know how to react in violent situations, how to deal with violent students, how to spot potentially violent school goers and even what to do when the damage has already been done. Schools are houses of knowledge, they are places where students spend more than half their life and they can either pick up the right things or the wrong things. Thus it becomes very pertinent to ensure a safe and secure school environment to all the students.

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Finding the Best Educational Consultant for Your Student

If you type the phrase "Educational Consultant" into Google, you will get over eight million results. That's a pretty daunting place to start a search when you need to find the best individual to help your student achieve success. Whether you're looking for a consultant to help you navigate the maze of special education requirements and Individualized Education Plans or you're a student from another country trying to find the best college in the United States for your field of study, a good educational consultant can be the difference between success and frustration.

So, once you've narrowed down your selection from eight million to a few consultants that you are considering, how do you make that final decision?

Below are five things to consider when trying to find the right consultant.

Licensed Education Psychologist

A licensed educational psychologist is typically a master's level practitioner who is licensed by the Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS). This is a license that is unique to California. The requirement for an LEP is a master's degree and proof of 3 years of working in the educational system. When you find that someone is a licensed educational psychologist, you know that they have the experience and education to handle the multitude of challenges you may be faced with during the consultation process.

Experience Working With Schools and Individuals

Working with your student's school is a critical part of most issues that require involvement from an educational consultant. Seeing that this is such an important part of the overall process, it's best to find a consultant who has worked in schools as a counselor or school psychologist. When you are researching or interviewing a consultant, ask them whether they have this type of experience. If they do it means that they most likely have in-depth familiarity of all steps of the process from both sides of the equation, what tests and assessments are best, what schools look for in certain situations, etc.

Experience in area of need/specialty - (admissions, IEP, Special Education, etc.)

One of the first questions you should ask a prospective consultant is: "Can you give us an overview of your experience dealing with __________________?" Then you can ask them to take through the process step-by-step so you can get an understanding of what you're up against. This will serve two purposes: 1.) it will educate you to the process; and 2.) it will give you some insight into the consultant's true understanding of how things will play out. If they can take you through the milestones off the top of their head without hesitation, it usually means it's not their first rodeo.

Knowledge of Testing/Assessments

Whether you're trying to get into a top US college or you need to find out if your student qualifies for special educational accommodations under state or Federal laws, assessments are a large part of the process. Sometimes the consultant will be administering these assessments and other times they will be reviewing the results of assessments administered by someone else. You want to make sure that your consultant knows the testing scenarios for your particular area of need backward and forward. To determine this, ask them to describe the testing procedures and briefly explain what each test is trying to determine.

Good Chemistry with Your Student

Make sure the consultant and your student have a good enough relationship to be able to make continual progress. They don't have to be best friends, but you want to make sure the relationship is strong enough that your student will feel comfortable sharing information about their educational limitations and frustrations. Open communication with your consultant is important to a successful outcome. Ask your student what he/she thought of the consultant during the initial meeting.

There are a lot of excellent consultants available for a variety of educational challenges. The above list is by no means exhaustive, but it can help you quickly identify consultants who are experienced, knowledgeable and have the disposition to work well with your student throughout the process.

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Free Information on The Best Private Schools in the US

Many people will agree that sending your child to boarding schools is one of the best ways to provide them with topnotch quality education and opportunities to develop new skills and interests. There are many different kinds of private schools, each with a different purpose. There are therapeutic boarding schools which focuses on giving intensive individual psychotherapy while students are earning academic credits. There are specialized schools that are specifically established to help students excel in a particular field of study like performing arts, science, math, and more. There are military schools which are patterned after military academies and upholds the honor code and the drive for excellence and achievement that characterizes military education. There are also traditional private schools us where the main focus is preparing children for college.

There are several top private schools US and many of them have a high rate of students that pass standardized tests and college tests yearly. Here are some examples of the best private schools US:

Phillips Exeter Academy - One of the oldest educational institutions in the country (established in 1781). The school is located at Exeter, New Hampshire. It has a strong ESL (English as a Second Language) program for foreign student and accepts international students to their school. The teacher to student ratio is 1:5, and class sizes are very small. It gives teachers a lot of opportunities to become more involved with educating and nurturing young minds according to school tradition.

Deerfield Academy - A co-educational college preparatory school established in 1797 for students grades 9 to 12, including a postgraduate year. More than half of the faculty hold advanced degrees as a proof of the school's commitment to have the students learn from quality instructors. The teacher to student ratio is 1:6. Deerfield is one of the top boarding schools in the US to produce high-scoring students in standardized exams like the SATs.

Choate Rosemary Hall - Also one of the top schools in the US that produces the most number of students with high SAT scores. It offers over 24 courses including advanced placement prep courses and honor courses. The student to teacher ratio is 6:1. About 12% of their students come from international communities and they offer a strong ESL course to help them learn English as a second language.

Linden Hall - This is one of the oldest exclusive girls boarding schools in the US. It was founded in 1746 and offers classes for students grades 6 to 12. It also offers one postgraduate year. The drive of Linden hall is to focus on the four C's of their program; curriculum, character, culture and conditioning (physical fitness). The school is a firm believer of developing fine young women through excellent education and exemplary sports programs. Linden Hall's student to teacher ratio is 8:1.

Milton Academy - A coeducational college preparatory school located south of Boston, MA. The school offers classes for students grades 9 to 12. They also have a wide variety of sports programs to offer such as interscholastic basketball, ice hockey, swimming, lacross, football, baseball, and more. Aside from sports, there are also arts and music programs and other extracurricular activities that can help develop young minds. The student to teacher ratio is 5:1.

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Dealing a Behavioral Problem Child

Let me start my answer through this line "A good teacher tells, a mediocre teacher explains, an experienced teacher demonstrates and the best teacher inspires"

Dealing with a student with behavioral problem should undergo some steps. However, the steps vary from country to country, places to places and from one student to another.

The first thing that I should do in dealing with these learners is to undergo mind setting. From the psychology subject I learned that the mind of the child when he was born has a blank space or "tabula rasa". That the child has two instincts, the EROS which means life and the THANATOS which means death. The EROS will help the child to feel happy and enjoy life as it is, while the THANATOS will drive the child to be pessimistic. It will eventually depends to the nurturing of the child which will be stronger than the other.

Another psychologist explained that the child has to face controversies in life, the good versus bad. A child has to develop either good and bad depending on his values as taught by the parents at home and the significant others around.

Second, being a teacher, I have to interview the parents, or persons very close to the child to gather more information on the like, dislike, strengths and weaknesses of the child. Moreover, from the interview I gathered I will be able to note down what cause the child to behave defiantly.

Third, I have to study the child's record, medical, scholastic and child history and some very informative records to get the overview of the child.

Fourth, I have to interview the child himself/ herself. I have to talk the child personally with the subject of his/her interests cautiously and be the keen observer of his and my actions, words and moves to avoid driving him into undesirable behavior that may take place during the interview. Of course I have to accustom him/her to me prior to the interview so he/she feels at ease with me. My being keen observer is the key to success.

Fifth, I have to be a good model to him/her that is, to set as an example to him/her. I have to live on what I teach to the child. With my modest words and innovativeness, resourcefulness, creativity and experience in teaching field, I can assure I can deal this child in friendly atmosphere.

Sixth, after friendship is established between me and the child, this is now the right time for me to teach the lesson of the day loaded with morals and values for him as a growing person. Kohlberge, a psychologist once said that a child should undergo stages of morality until he is ready and able to decide what is right and wrong as weighted by his conscience. Telling stories such as fables, fairy tales and myth with morals will help me teach this behavioral- problem child into a well-mannered person.

Seventh, the best element of dealing this child is to let him feel that he is loved and important. In that way he returns that love, respect and honor to such persons around him. This is to remind you that this type of personality is a personality of attention getter. Thus, if this child is given attention, he behaves on the way we expect him to be. Showing him he is cherished, valued, cared and loved is the same as he is important and that everybody loves him will be desperate once he behaves negatively among others even to himself.

Lastly, to deal with this kind of child is to posses the attitude of being patient, perseverance, understanding, kind and with self control. It is in these attitudes that the child fails to have and that acquiring him will mean happiness to him and others around.

If then after all the the steps have been given but there is no effect to the child, then use the behavioral contract forms and ask assistance from the school psychologist or guidance counselor in your school to deal this child.

The process is not so easy then but let's remember that " A long journey begins with a single step."

SUSAN TAN APAREJO is a Master of Arts in Teaching Special Education ( MAT-SPED) graduate at Mindanao St University of Science and Technology (MUST) Cagayan de Oro, Mindanao, Philippines. She is a SPED teacher at Gingoog City Comprehensive National High School ( GCCNHS ) Gingoog City and currently working in her dissertation writing for the degree in PhD. EPM at the same university.

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Relationship of Memory to Smart Drugs

All of us are living in a competitive world, where it is very important to be updated in every field; otherwise, one can stay behind in professional as well as personal aspects. Our memory plays a fundamental role to maintain our ranking in every field, so if one is good at grasping or retaining the things, then he can very easily outshine in his career. Our Memory is similar to the hard drive of a computer, the more storage capacity it has, more useful it would be. Some of the scientists are researching on the substances, which would be useful to enhance the memory. Smart Drugs can do wonders for us in the following ways:

* Improvise learning capabilities
* Increase the brain metabolism
* Increase the problem solving capabilities and presence of mind
* Protects the brain from physical or other chemical damage

Apart from smart drugs, one can improvise the memory with some of the changes in the study habits, which is very useful specifically for the college students, as college is the foundation of any student that helps in the professional life as well.

In college, most of us may have had a little tough time to remember so many things at ones, due to more number of subjects or lack of grasping power. Here are a few College Study Tips that can help the upcoming college students to retain the things quickly:

* Surroundings: It is better to surround yourself with the people who are smart or intelligent, as it would help you to get the latest updates about the several subjects, and you will get motivation from them.
* Place of study: The ideal place to study requires a desk, a comfortable chair along with good lightings and silence.
* Breaks: It is very important to take breaks after a limited amount of interval, as it eases you from extra burden of studies.
* Study Time: Always start your studies at the time when you feel at the most comfortable level for the day, as you can study better at the time, when you feel yourself more comfortable for it.
* Level of Comfort: Its better to start with the subject that interests you more, as it helps you to maintain a good pace at starting that helps you take over other complex subjects.
* Make notes: It is better to make notes for the topics that you study, so that you can recall and retain them in your mind.
* Review and Recite: It is one of the best Memory Techniques to review and recite the work, which you perform, as more we visualize and review the work, better we can retain that in our mind.

By following the above mentioned measures, one can very easily enhance the learning capabilities, and follow the path of success in his/her life.

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The Difference Between Autism and Aspergers

In order to more fully understand the difference between Autism and Aspergers it is helpful to understand that Autism, also referred to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), covers a range of developmental and cognitive abilities ranging from mild to significant impairments. A person who has been diagnosed with autism may be so severely affected that there are significant impairments to social, language, and cognitive development. On the other hand, autism may be so mild that a person my function at a very high level intellectually while continuing to struggle with social interactions.

One of the primary areas of difficulty for a person with autism is in the area of language development. Since the early 1990's many young people diagnosed with Autism have made progress (approximately 85%) with language development partly due to early intervention and increased awareness and understanding. Although speech can be developed, many individuals with autism continue to struggle with repetition of words they have recently heard (echolalia), and an inconsistent style of speech with respect to language patterns. Grammatical structure may also present difficulty. The development of vocabulary may be inconsistent. It is not unusual for children and adults with high-functioning autism to have patterns of language that are not expressively different then individuals with high functioning Asperger's syndrome.

What stands out as a characteristic trait in individuals with Asperger's is a heightened awareness and interest in a specific area. The intensity of the focus on a subject is often more significant than the desire to interact socially. When autism signs are diagnosed the focus often tends to be centered on order, structure, and routine. Although, once again, the difference is harder to discern when comparing high-functioning autism to Asperger's syndrome.

By definition of ASD, for a person with autism, cognitive impairment is often a marked deficit. In addition to language deficits, functional and self-help skills often present substantial difficulty. Individuals with Asperger's, on the other hand, characteristically have average to above average intellectual skills. While social skills present difficulty, language and self-help skills are often close to age appropriate.

When considering the types of autism and Asperger's symptoms the lines are not always clear. As previously mentioned, mild autism and Asperger's syndrome may look very similar. The difficulty lies in the fact that every individual is different. No two people react and behave in the same way. To better understand the difference between autism and Aspergers one must look at the specific symptoms, behaviors, and their frequency, while continuing to gather information on autism and the symptoms of Aspergers.
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