QUICK GUIDE
SUPPORTING
CHILDREN AND YOUTH FROM
LOW-INCIDENCE
POPULATIONS
If we are to achieve a richer culture, we
must weave one in which each diverse
human gift will find a fitting place.
― MARGARET MEADE
P R E PA R E D B Y
Low-Incidence Province-Wide Collaborative Support:
A collaborative project with Regional Collaborative
Service Delivery (RCSD) and Alberta Education
March 2015
Meet Gabby
Meet Nolan
Gabby is an 18-year-old grade twelve student
who loves to socialize with her friends and use
social media. As a result of her physical challenges
with cerebral palsy, Gabby cannot coordinate the
breath and movements necessary to produce
understandable speech. In order to communicate
with others, she can spell out words, use a variety
of facial expressions to communicate her feelings,
or use a speech generating device (SGD) that
she accesses through two switches mounted
to her wheelchair on either side of her head. With
these switches, Gabby can select icons to say just
about anything she wants through her device. It can
also allow her to write using a combination of her
communication icons and an onscreen keyboard
with word prediction. Like most teens, Gabby has
a social media page and uses email. Her biggest
frustration is that any time she is out of her chair,
she cannot talk, text or type, as she needs her
Nolan is an enthusiastic and energetic grade two
student who loves to be active and try new
things. Nolan has a severe visual impairment and is
legally blind. He reads and writes in braille and is
currently learning the new Unified English Braille
code. Nolan is learning to navigate his new laptop
system and has daily touch typing lessons where
he uses speech output to gain access. Nolan is
very independent, and with his white cane in hand,
he travels safely within his school and is learning
more orientation and mobility techniques within
his community. At recess time he can be found
climbing or swinging on playground apparatus with
his sighted peers.
switches to access her device.
Stacey is a grade three student who enjoys ballet,
drumming and painting. She has a profound
bilateral sensorineural hearing loss and uses a
cochlear implant with an FM system for English
Language Arts and Social Studies class. In Science
and Math, Stacey prefers to use sign language
interpreters without amplification devices so
that she can visually see the concepts and
processes in sign language. Stacey has very
strong language skills in written English and
American Sign Language (ASL), with emerging
oral language skills in English. Stacey and her
parents work closely with a number of professionals
who are fluent in American Sign Language (ASL)
and English. The development of self-advocacy
and self-determination allows Stacey to develop
independence and to pursue a wide range of her
own personal interests and goals.
Meet Susie
Susie is a grade eight student who loves animals,
reading and playing on the computer. She
dreams of being a veterinary assistant and is
currently researching ways to achieve that goal.
Susie was born hard of hearing with a progressive
visual impairment. She is fluent in American
Sign Language (ASL) and spoken English and is
developing her written English language skills. She
is also beginning to learn braille. Susie often prefers
to use tools that will enlarge her text materials, a
sign language interpreter for classroom instruction,
an oral/aural approach to one-to-one conversations
with friends and staff in quiet locations, and a tablet
with a 10X zoom lens for visual access to the
environment just outside of her field of sight. She
loves to hang out with her friends and enjoys being
able to make decisions for herself, especially in
social and academic situations.
Meet Stacey
2
Meet Thomas
Thomas is a high school student with athletic
talent and academic ability who enjoys texting
with his friends. Left blind and Deaf as a result of
bacterial meningitis, Thomas needed new ways to
communicate and almost miraculously learned to
read and write the braille code. Today, Thomas is
an avid braille reader and a capable braille writer.
He uses his BrailleNote APEX extensively for
reading e-books and writing essays. Thomas
texts his friends and family using the APEX input
keys and the smart phone text messaging app.
His friends respond using their smart phones
which Thomas reads on his braille display. Life has
changed dramatically for Thomas, and there are
many challenges he will still face moving forward.
Nonetheless, Thomas continues to work toward
the goals that he sets for himself, and he continues
to do the best he can to make his life a success.
Thomas is a young man with a life to live and a story
that has yet to unfold.
Meet Jordan
Jordan is a 15-year-old student gifted in
mathematics and art. He remembers the sounds
he grew up with from his childhood. Jordan was
born hearing and is now hard of hearing from
a progressive, conductive hearing loss caused
by Otosclerosis. He is currently learning sign
language as a second language, uses hearing
aids and appreciates using an FM system in
his classes. Often teachers may believe Jordan
understands instructions, as he nods in agreement
easily, and teachers may not notice when he is
actually struggling to keep up. The use of openended questions to check for, clarify and extend
understanding is also very helpful. Although
Jordan is shy, he is able to clearly communicate
his personal preferences and what works best for
him when he feels safe and trusting of those he is
working with.
Meet Vernon
Meet Jacob
Jacob is in grade four and loves superheroes,
especially Batman. He has a collection of
superhero action figures which he loves to show
to his teachers and his friends. However, like
many students with autism, Jacob also has a
severe speech impairment. Jacob can say a few
words and phrases but often from echoing what
he hears others saying. It is difficult to know if
Jacob’s response has meaning, or if he is just
repeating what he hears. Jacob is learning to
use Picture Communication Symbols both to
help him understand language and to express
himself. A visual schedule helps him understand
classroom routines and expectations. He has a
communication book that his teachers use to
speak with him by pointing to various symbols
as they are talking. The symbols have added to
the ways he can effectively communicate with
others. Jacob is much calmer and happier since the
introduction of his communication system.
Vernon is an active grade one student who loves
to explore the world around him and strives to
be independent. He was born blind and he has
some developmental delays. Vernon learns best
when things are presented directly to him and the
use of concrete language is much more successful
in developing concept awareness and overall
understanding. Vernon is learning braille on the
Mountbatten Brailler, as using a manual brailler
is difficult for Vernon because of diminished
hand dexterity and strength. Vernon now has a
roller ball added to the tip of his white cane which
enables him to continue his orientation and mobility
lessons outside, also enabling him in different
weather conditions. Learning to travel safely is an
important goal for Vernon and his learning team
as this will assist in fostering his independence.
Safety and independence within his home and
school, as well as expanding his world to include his
community, is a significant part of his educational
programming.
3
Blind or Visually Impaired (BVI)
“The opportunity to be equal and the right to be different.”
― DR. PHIL HATLEN (Internationally recognized expert on braille literacy)
Who are children and youth with
visual impairments?
Visual impairment generically covers a continuum of
visual functioning and can include the following terms:
blind, legally blind, partially sighted, low vision, or
cortically visually impaired. For educational purposes,
an individual with visual impairment is one whose visual
acuity is not sufficient for the student to participate
with ease in everyday activities. The impairment
interferes with optimal learning achievement and can
result in a substantial educational disadvantage unless
adaptations are made in the methods of presenting
learning opportunities, the materials used and/or the
learning environment.
What are some of the unique
learning needs at school and in the
community?
In order to participate fully within educational and
community environments, children and youth who
are blind or visually impaired require instruction in
disability-specific skills. Widely used throughout
North America, the Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC)
proposes that instruction for children and youth with
visual impairments should include all the traditional
areas of academic instruction, as well as instruction in
the following nine areas: compensatory or access skills,
career education, independent living skills, orientation
and mobility skills and concepts, recreational and leisure
skills, self-determination skills, social interaction skills,
use of assistive technology and sensory efficiency skills.
It takes a team.
Children and youth with visual impairments have unique
educational needs that are most effectively met using
a team of professionals, peers, a braille transcriber,
paraprofessionals and family members. An important
professional supporting the classroom teacher is a
teacher who specializes in teaching students with
visual impairments and whose training and experience
often makes them best qualified to address the unique
learning needs. Additional specialists in such areas
as physical and/or occupational therapy, speech/
communication, psychology and adapted physical
education may also be involved, depending on need.
Did you know?
• There are 665 students registered in Alberta
who receive materials from Alberta Education’s
Services for Students with Visual Impairments
(SSVI).
• Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) is a term used
to describe visual impairment that occurs due
to brain injury.
• Because visual impairment or blindness is a
low-incidence disability, a child with vision loss
is frequently the only child with this disability in
his/her school or community.
• In 2010, Canada adopted the Unified English
Braille (UEB) code. UEB was designed to
provide a single code that can be used for
literary and technical materials throughout the
English-speaking world.
• In 1824, Louis Braille developed a tactile
system of dots that could allow persons
who are blind to read and write quickly
and efficiently. His system remains known
worldwide simply as ‘braille’.
4
Deaf or Hard of Hearing (DHH)
“Deaf people can do anything hearing people can do, except hear.”
― IRVING KING JORDAN (First Deaf president of Gallaudet University in 1988)
Who are Deaf or hard of hearing
children and youth?
Children and youth who are Deaf or hard of hearing
(DHH) make up a very diverse population, making it
difficult to make general statements about them as
a group. Some of this diversity is rooted in factors
like cultural, linguistic, social, medical, and physical
variables.
What are some of the unique
learning needs at school and in the
community?
Because the Deaf or hard of hearing population is so
diverse, it is critical to address the individual’s unique
set of strengths and needs when planning to support
teaching, learning and development. It is important
to assist children and youth to develop the ability to
exercise self-advocacy and self-determination and
develop ways to access communication. This may
include visual and signed language such as American
Sign Language (ASL), acoustic communication through
audiological interventions, and technologies such as
hearing aids, cochlear implants, and amplification
systems. A strengths-based approach also considers
the ways in which children and youth who are Deaf or
hard of hearing may best be able to access, understand
and use information. Universal Design for Learning
(UDL) principles, combined with a responsive, wholeperson approach, can support effective teaching,
learning, and inclusion while addressing individual
needs and preferences.
It takes a team.
Best practice suggests that learners, families and
classroom teachers have access to a diverse team of
trained professionals. This team may include teachers
of the Deaf, audiologists, sign language interpreters,
DHH educational assistants, speech and language
pathologists, occupational therapists, registered
psychologists and social workers, and any other
professionals with specific training in an area of need
for the individual learner. Ideally, these professionals will
have specialized training in both education and Deaf or
hard of hearing support.
Did you know?
• Children and youth who have full access to a
complete and full language, including American
Sign Language (ASL), often perform better in
reading, writing and overall language learning
than their peers who do not have early and full
access to ASL or another accessible language.
• High levels of background noise and
reverberation adversely affect learning
environments for young children who
require optimal conditions for hearing and
comprehension. Acoustic modifications, voice
amplification devices, and UDL teaching
strategies can help remedy this concern.
• There are universities in North America
that specialize in offering accessible postsecondary education and post-secondary
preparation opportunities for learners who are
Deaf or hard of hearing.
• The World Health Organization in 2012
estimated that there are 278 million people with
moderate or profound hearing impairments.
5
Complex Communication Needs (CCN)
“The silence of speechlessness is never golden… we all need to communicate and connect
with each other.” – BOB WILLIAMS (an expert communicator via augmentative and alternative communication)
Who are children and youth with
Complex Communication Needs?
Children and youth with complex communication needs
(CCN) are a diverse group of individuals who are not
able to communicate effectively through speech alone.
This could be attributed to developmental disabilities
such as autism and cerebral palsy, or could be a result
of a traumatic brain injury. For many of these children
and youth, their challenges may come in multiples.
Some children with CCN have intellectual disabilities
that may or may not be associated with autism or other
physical, hearing or vision impairments.
What are some of the unique
learning needs at school and in the
community?
The ability to effectively communicate impacts every
aspect of our lives, including learning, recreation
and employment. We communicate to socialize and
interact with those around us, to share information and
sometimes to make requests. In order to foster success
for children and youth with complex communication
needs, the goal must be to provide the most effective
communication system possible across all aspects
of their lives. This includes a means to support
face-to-face communication with the people in their
environment such as teachers, peers, paraprofessionals
and family members, written communication and access
to the wide range of telecommunications and social
media tools that are so important in today’s society.
It takes a team.
Developing a child’s communication system involves
the child, their parents and their teachers. Classroom
teachers are supported by specialist educators, speech
language pathologists and occupational therapists
who are well versed in Augmentative and Alternative
Communication (AAC). All members of the team play a
critical role in contributing their insights, knowledge and
expertise in order to develop the best communication
systems students can use in order to develop language
and literacy. Such communication is the cornerstone of
active and meaningful participation in school and in life.
Did you know?
• Augmentative and Alternative Communication
(AAC) systems are used to supplement or
replace speech.
• AAC systems may include sign language,
letter or communication boards/books, small
message cards, basic or complex electronic
devices, and mainstream tablets with
communication apps.
• Use of AAC does not stop children from
speaking. Research shows that AAC actually
improves speech and language development.
• Just as we do not wait to communicate
verbally with a typically developed child who
cannot yet talk, we should not wait to surround
a child with CCN with a wealth of language
(verbal, gestural and symbol-based).
• In order to express themselves, children and
youth with CCN must master their native
language as spoken by the community and
master the linguistic code required by their
AAC system.
6
Deafblind (DB)
“I see with my hands and I hear with my body. I feel what you see and I hear through
vibrations.” ― ANONYMOUS
Who are children and youth who are
deafblind?
Children and youth who are deafblind comprise a
diverse group of individuals with unique strengths,
preferences, and needs. They may vary greatly in
their degree of deafness and/or blindness or visual
impairment and may experience congenital, acquired,
or progressive deafness and/or blindness or visual
impairment. Individuals who are deafblind may also be
intellectually or otherwise gifted or may have disabilities,
medical conditions or other special needs.
What are some of the unique
learning needs at school and in the
community?
As each individual is unique, it is important to involve
the child or youth who is deafblind in decision-making,
to find out and support his or her unique interests and
to find personalized ways to modify the environment so
that it is as accessible as possible. Flexibility, equitable
access and strengths-based approaches allow each
deafblind individual to engage in a wide range of
opportunities that support their growth, independence,
safety, and achievement. Kinesthetic, sensory-based
and meaningful learning activities can help the individual
who is deafblind develop strong connections to their
environment. Signed language such as American
Sign Language (ASL), tactile sign language, tactile
speech-reading, braille writing and reading, residual
or aided hearing, fingerspelling, gestures or visual
aids, and touch cues can all be used to support the
communication, access and language development of
deafblind individuals.
It takes a team.
Children and youth, their families and classroom
teachers should have access to a diverse team of
professionals who are trained in specific aspects of the
field such as Deaf or hard of hearing education, blind or
visually impaired education and/or are proficient in the
language and communication methods best matched
to the deafblind individual. These professionals may
include teachers of the Deaf, teachers of the blind and
visually impaired, qualified interpreters and intervenors,
braille transcribers, orientation and mobility specialists,
occupational therapists and physiotherapists, speech
and language pathologists, registered psychologists
and social workers, and trained assistants or aides.
Did you know?
• Children and youth who are deafblind are
not blind learners who cannot hear, nor Deaf
students who cannot see. Deafblindness is
unique in that it is not simply Deaf plus blind,
but rather Deaf multiplied by blind.
• The configurations of deafness and
blindness vary widely. Only about 6% of
children and youth who are deafblind are
without any hearing or any sight. As the
range is so expansive, and because it
involves a combination of deafness and
visual impairment, the term “dual-sensory
impairment” is also often used.
• Helen Keller was the first person who was
deafblind to graduate from college in 1904.
• A 2004 report from Statistics Canada states
there are approximately 69,000 Canadians over
the age of 12 living with the dual disability of
deafblindness.
7
LEARN MORE
Low-incidence refers to conditions that impact learning where the prevalence within the general population is rare. These
learners have a unique combination of strengths and needs that may require a broad range of individualized supports,
services, and accessibility considerations, not only with learning the curriculum, but also with all aspects of active
participation across one’s lifespan.
Blind or Visually Impaired
Deaf or Hard of Hearing
• Alberta Education’s Services for Students with Visual
Impairments (SSVI) provides supports for students in the
Alberta K-12 system who are blind or visually impaired
by loaning schools alternate format learning resources,
specialized learning kits and specialized equipment.
www.education.alberta.ca/teachers/resources/prb/ssvi.aspx
• Associations for the Deaf or hard of hearing provide useful
information and support: Alberta Association of the Deaf
(AAD) www.aadnews.ca; Canadian Association of the Deaf
(CAD) www.cad.ca; Canadian Hard of Hearing Association
www.chha.ca
• Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) is a nonprofit organization that is a resource for children and families
living with vision loss. www.cnib.ca
• Alberta Society for the Visually Impaired (ASVI) is a
registered non-profit society that provides educational and
social opportunities for families and service providers.
www.asvicalgary.com
• Vision Education Alberta is a website that supports the
educational programming of students who are blind or
visually impaired in Alberta. www.vision.alberta.ca
• Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority provides
Canadian National Standards for the education of children
and youth who are blind or visually impaired including those
with additional disabilities. www.apsea.ca
• Societies for the Deaf or hard of hearing provide useful
activities and learning opportunities: Canadian Cultural
Society of the Deaf (CCSD) www.deafculturecentre.ca;
Canadian Hearing Society www.chs.ca
• Research, education, and information on the brain and
language can be found at: Minerva Deaf Research Lab
www.mdrltoolkit.ualberta.ca; Visual Language and Visual
Learning (VL2) http://vl2.gallaudet.edu; Success for Kids
with Hearing Loss www.successforkidswithhearingloss.com;
Deaf Education www.deafed.net; Canadian Association of
Educators of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (CAEDHH)
www.CAEDHH.ca
• Deaf Professional Arts Network www.d-pan.org and
DeafPlanet www.deafplanet.com provide information on
arts & entertainment.
Complex Communication Needs
Deafblind
• The Special Education Technology British Columbia (SET
BC) Learning Centre has several resources for Augmentative
and Alternative Communication (AAC). www.setbc.org
• Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) is a nonprofit organization that provides support and programs for
persons who are deafblind to build the skills and confidence
to fully participate in life. www.cnib.ca
• The International Society for Augmentative and Alternative
Communication (ISAAC) works to improve the lives of
children and adults who use AAC.
www.isaac-online.org/english/home
• ISAAC Canada provides education information to local,
provincial and federal governments within Canada.
www.isaac-canada.org
• Communication Disabilities Access Canada (CDAC)
promotes human rights, accessibility and inclusion for
people who have speech and language disabilities.
www.cdacanada.com
• Communication Matters is committed to supporting people
of all ages who find communication difficult because they
have little or no clear speech.
www.communicationmatters.org.uk
• The AAC Institute is a worldwide resource for people with
severe communication disorders, their families and friends,
their educators and other support professionals.
www.aacinstitute.org
• Canadian Deaf Blind Association (CDBA) promotes services
to enable a good quality of life for individuals who are
deafblind. www.cdbanational.com
• The Provincial Outreach Program for Students with
Deafblindness (POPDEAF-BLIND) was established in 1990
by the B.C. Ministry of Education to meet the needs of
school authorities supporting one or more students with
deafblindness.
http://popdb.sd38.bc.ca/
• National Center on Deaf-Blindness provides information
about deafblindness for resources, events and training
opportunities. www.nationaldb.org
• Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and
Adults provides support through services, programs and
training. www.hknc.org
• American Association for the Deaf-Blind provides
information about deafblindness for learning,
technology and support services. www.aadb.org
8