Introduction to Domain I: Foundations of Special Education

Domain I of the NES Special Education K-12 (602) exam accounts for approximately 20% of the total test and spans two competencies. Competency 0001 addresses the historical, philosophical, professional, and legal foundations of special education, including critical legislation, universal design for learning, IEP and IFSP development, and accommodations and modifications. Competency 0002 covers human development from birth through adolescence and the implications of disability characteristics on students and their families.

Together, these competencies require you to understand how the field of special education has evolved, which legal protections govern the education of students with disabilities, and how developmental knowledge informs instructional decision-making. This study guide provides thorough coverage of every knowledge statement within both competencies.

Competency 0001: Historical, Philosophical, Professional, and Legal Foundations of Special Education

Core Concepts, Principles, and Theories

Special education rests on a set of foundational principles that guide how educators design, deliver, and evaluate instruction for students with disabilities. Understanding these concepts is essential for both the exam and professional practice.

Evidence-Based Practice

Evidence-based practice (EBP) is the integration of the best available research evidence with professional judgment and knowledge of student characteristics to make instructional decisions. Special educators are expected to select and implement interventions that have been validated through rigorous research methodologies, including randomized controlled trials, single-subject designs, quasi-experimental studies, and systematic reviews.

Hierarchy of evidence: The strongest evidence comes from meta-analyses and systematic reviews, followed by randomized controlled trials, quasi-experimental studies, single-subject research, and expert opinion. When choosing interventions, educators should prioritize those supported by the highest level of available evidence.
Fidelity of implementation: An evidence-based practice produces expected outcomes only when delivered as designed. Fidelity refers to the degree to which the educator follows the intervention's prescribed procedures, dosage, and conditions. Partial or modified implementation may reduce or eliminate effectiveness.
Data-based decision-making: Evidence-based practice does not end with selecting an intervention. Educators must continuously collect student performance data, analyze progress toward goals, and adjust instruction when data indicate that the current approach is not producing adequate growth.
Clearinghouses and resources: Reliable sources for identifying evidence-based practices include the What Works Clearinghouse, the National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorder, the IRIS Center, and the Council for Exceptional Children's practice guidelines.

Specially Designed Instruction

Specially designed instruction (SDI) is the hallmark of special education under IDEA. SDI involves adapting the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction to address the unique needs identified in a student's Individualized Education Program. It is distinct from general education differentiation in that SDI is individually designed, documented in a legal plan, and monitored through measurable goals.

Content adaptations: Modifying what is taught, such as reducing the complexity of material, prioritizing essential standards, or using alternative curricular materials that address the same learning objectives at a different level.
Methodology adaptations: Changing how instruction is delivered, such as using explicit instruction, systematic prompting hierarchies, task analysis, mnemonic strategies, or multisensory approaches.
Delivery adaptations: Adjusting the context or conditions of instruction, such as changing group size, pacing, setting, amount of practice, or level of scaffolding provided during instruction.

Learning Strategies Approach

The learning strategies approach teaches students how to learn rather than simply what to learn. This approach is grounded in cognitive and metacognitive theory and equips students with generalizable strategies they can apply independently across content areas, grade levels, and settings.

Metacognitive strategies: Self-monitoring, self-questioning, planning, and evaluating one's own comprehension and performance. Students learn to ask themselves questions such as "Do I understand what I just read?" and "What should I do next?"
Cognitive strategies: Mnemonic devices, graphic organizers, summarization techniques, note-taking systems, and test-taking strategies that help students acquire, organize, store, and retrieve information.
Self-regulation: Goal setting, time management, self-reinforcement, and progress monitoring skills that enable students to take ownership of their own learning process.
Explicit instruction in strategy use: The teacher models the strategy, provides guided practice with feedback, and gradually releases responsibility to the student. Strategy instruction follows a clear sequence: describe it, model it, practice it, and generalize it.

Access for All

The principle of access for all holds that every student, regardless of disability type or severity, has a right to meaningful participation in educational programs. This principle drives the legal mandate that students with disabilities receive access to the general education curriculum to the maximum extent appropriate and informs the design of supports, services, and instructional environments.

Access extends beyond physical presence in a classroom to include cognitive engagement with grade-level content, social participation with peers, and communication access through appropriate modes and technologies.
For students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, access to the general curriculum may involve alternate achievement standards aligned to grade-level content, with instruction targeting functional applications of academic skills.
Access also encompasses the availability of assistive technology, augmentative and alternative communication systems, sensory supports, and environmental modifications that enable participation.

Critical Legal Frameworks

Three major federal laws form the legal backbone of disability rights in education. Each law serves a distinct purpose, protects different populations, and operates through different mechanisms. The NES 602 exam expects you to understand the key provisions of each law and how they work together.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

IDEA is the primary federal law governing special education. Originally enacted in 1975 as the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (P.L. 94-142), IDEA has been reauthorized several times, most recently in 2004 (IDEA 2004). It guarantees a free appropriate public education to all eligible children and youth with disabilities from birth through age 21.

Six core principles:
- Zero reject (Child Find): No child with a disability may be excluded from a free public education. Schools must actively locate, identify, and evaluate all children suspected of having disabilities, including those who are homeless, wards of the state, or attending private schools.
- Nondiscriminatory evaluation: Assessments must be administered in the student's native language or other mode of communication, must use multiple measures, must be technically sound, and must be free from cultural or racial bias. No single measure may serve as the sole criterion for determining eligibility.
- Free appropriate public education (FAPE): Every eligible student is entitled to special education and related services at no cost to the family. FAPE is defined individually for each student through the IEP and must be designed to provide meaningful educational benefit.
- Least restrictive environment (LRE): Students with disabilities must be educated alongside nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. Removal from general education may occur only when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in general education settings, even with supplementary aids and services, cannot be achieved satisfactorily.
- Due process: Families have the right to participate in all decisions about their child's identification, evaluation, placement, and services. Procedural safeguards include prior written notice, informed consent, access to records, mediation, and the right to an impartial due process hearing.
- Parent and student participation: Parents are equal members of the IEP team. Students should participate when appropriate, and beginning no later than age 16, students must be invited to IEP meetings where transition is discussed.
Part B vs. Part C: Part B covers special education services for children ages 3 through 21. Part C covers early intervention services for infants and toddlers (birth through age 2) and their families, using an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) rather than an IEP.
13 disability categories: Eligibility under IDEA Part B requires identification in one of 13 disability categories (e.g., specific learning disabilities, autism, intellectual disability, emotional disturbance, other health impairment, speech or language impairment, etc.) AND evidence that the disability adversely affects educational performance.
Discipline protections: IDEA includes protections against excessive disciplinary removal. Manifestation determination reviews must be conducted when a student with a disability faces suspension exceeding 10 consecutive school days or a pattern of removals to determine whether the behavior was caused by or had a direct relationship to the disability.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

Section 504 is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. In schools, Section 504 provides protections and accommodations for students whose disabilities substantially limit one or more major life activities but who may not qualify for special education under IDEA.

Broader definition of disability: Section 504 uses a wider definition than IDEA. A person has a disability under Section 504 if they have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, have a record of such impairment, or are regarded as having such an impairment.
504 Plan: Students eligible under Section 504 receive a written accommodation plan (commonly called a 504 Plan) that specifies the supports and services the school will provide. Unlike an IEP, a 504 Plan does not require measurable annual goals or specialized instruction.
No funding attached: Section 504 is an unfunded mandate. Schools must provide accommodations but do not receive additional federal funding specifically for Section 504 compliance.
Common examples: Students with ADHD, diabetes, severe allergies, anxiety disorders, or other health conditions that affect learning may qualify under Section 504 when they do not meet IDEA eligibility criteria.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), enacted in 1990 and amended in 2008 (ADA Amendments Act), is a broad civil rights law that prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in employment, public services, public accommodations, and telecommunications. In education, the ADA reinforces and extends the protections of Section 504.

Title II: Applies to state and local government entities, including public schools. Requires that programs, services, and facilities be accessible to individuals with disabilities.
Physical accessibility: Schools must ensure that buildings, classrooms, and facilities are physically accessible to students, families, and staff with disabilities.
Communication access: Schools must provide effective communication for individuals who are deaf, hard of hearing, blind, or have low vision, including through the use of sign language interpreters, captioning, Braille, and assistive listening devices.
Relationship to IDEA and Section 504: The ADA complements both laws. A student may be protected under all three statutes simultaneously. The ADA's broader scope ensures protection in community settings and activities beyond the school building.

Feature	IDEA	Section 504	ADA
Type of law	Education law (funding statute)	Civil rights law	Civil rights law
Eligibility	13 disability categories + adverse educational impact	Physical or mental impairment substantially limiting a major life activity	Same broad definition as Section 504
Plan type	IEP (or IFSP for ages 0-2)	504 Plan	No specific plan required
Provides FAPE?	Yes	Yes (but defined differently)	No (anti-discrimination only)
Federal funding	Yes (Part B grants to states)	No (unfunded mandate)	No
Age range	Birth through 21	All ages	All ages
Enforcement	U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs	Office for Civil Rights (OCR)	Department of Justice, EEOC, OCR

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

The least restrictive environment principle requires that students with disabilities be educated alongside their nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate. This is not a presumption of full inclusion in every case; rather, it establishes a strong preference for general education placement as the starting point for every IEP team discussion.

The IEP team must consider what supplementary aids and services could enable the student to succeed in the general education environment before considering a more restrictive placement.
The continuum of alternative placements required under IDEA includes general education classrooms with supplementary aids and services, resource rooms, self-contained special education classrooms, special schools, homebound instruction, and hospital or institutional settings.
Placement decisions must be based on the individual student's needs as documented in the IEP, not on administrative convenience, disability category, or availability of services in a particular school.
Courts have applied various tests to evaluate LRE compliance, including the Daniel R.R. two-part test (Can education in the general classroom be achieved satisfactorily with supplementary aids and services? If not, has the school mainstreamed to the maximum extent appropriate?) and the Roncker portability test (Can the services that make a segregated setting superior be feasibly provided in a less restrictive setting?).

Due Process

Due process refers to the procedural safeguards that protect the rights of students with disabilities and their families throughout the special education process. IDEA mandates specific procedures that schools must follow and establishes mechanisms for resolving disputes.

Prior written notice: Schools must provide written notice to parents before proposing or refusing to initiate or change the identification, evaluation, placement, or provision of FAPE. The notice must describe the action proposed or refused, explain why, describe the evaluation data used, and inform parents of their procedural rights.
Informed consent: Schools must obtain written parental consent before conducting an initial evaluation, before initial placement in special education, and before conducting a reevaluation (unless the parent fails to respond after reasonable attempts).
Mediation: IDEA requires that states offer mediation as a voluntary, confidential process for resolving disputes between families and schools. A trained mediator facilitates discussion, but any agreement must be voluntary.
Due process hearing: Either party (parent or school) may request an impartial due process hearing to resolve disputes about identification, evaluation, placement, or services. The hearing is conducted by an impartial hearing officer, and the decision is binding unless appealed.
Resolution session: Before a due process hearing can proceed, the school must convene a resolution session within 15 days of receiving the complaint, giving both parties an opportunity to resolve the dispute without a formal hearing.
State complaint: Parents may also file a complaint with the state education agency alleging that the school has violated IDEA requirements. The state must investigate and resolve the complaint within 60 days.

Disproportionality

Disproportionality refers to the over-representation or under-representation of particular racial, ethnic, or linguistic groups in special education identification, specific disability categories, educational placements, and disciplinary actions. IDEA requires states to monitor for significant disproportionality and take corrective action when it is identified.

Black, Latino, and Native American students have historically been overrepresented in categories such as intellectual disability, emotional disturbance, and specific learning disabilities.
Factors contributing to disproportionality include implicit bias in referral processes, culturally biased assessment tools, inadequate pre-referral interventions, poverty-related factors, and systemic inequities in access to quality general education instruction.
Schools found to have significant disproportionality must reserve 15% of their IDEA Part B funds for comprehensive coordinated early intervening services (CCEIS) to address the root causes.
Addressing disproportionality requires culturally responsive evaluation practices, bias training for referral teams, high-quality instruction in general education (such as multi-tiered systems of support), and ongoing data analysis at the school and district level.

Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)

FAPE is the central entitlement under IDEA. It means that every eligible student with a disability is entitled to special education and related services that are provided at public expense, meet state standards, and are provided in conformity with an appropriately developed IEP.

The U.S. Supreme Court defined FAPE in Board of Education v. Rowley (1982) as requiring that schools provide an IEP reasonably calculated to enable the student to receive educational benefit. The Court did not require schools to maximize each student's potential.
In Endrew F. v. Douglas County School District (2017), the Supreme Court raised the FAPE standard, ruling that an IEP must be reasonably calculated to enable a child to make progress appropriate in light of the child's circumstances. For students fully integrated in general education, this generally means progress sufficient to advance from grade to grade. For students with more significant disabilities, the IEP must be appropriately ambitious in light of the student's present levels and potential for growth.
FAPE includes related services such as speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, school health services, transportation, counseling, and assistive technology when needed for the student to benefit from special education.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

Universal Design for Learning is a framework for designing flexible curricula and instructional environments that reduce barriers and optimize learning for all students from the outset, rather than retrofitting accommodations after the fact. UDL is grounded in neuroscience research showing that learners differ in how they engage with content, perceive and comprehend information, and demonstrate what they know.

UDL is organized around three core principles, each aligned to a brain network:

Multiple means of engagement (the "why" of learning): Addresses the affective network. Provides options for recruiting interest (choice, relevance, authenticity), sustaining effort and persistence (varied challenge levels, collaboration, mastery-oriented feedback), and self-regulation (self-assessment, reflection, coping strategies). Example: Allowing students to choose between topics for a research project or providing varied levels of scaffolding for the same assignment.
Multiple means of representation (the "what" of learning): Addresses the recognition network. Provides options for perception (visual, auditory, and tactile formats), language and symbols (vocabulary pre-teaching, translation, symbol decoding), and comprehension (activating background knowledge, highlighting patterns, guiding information processing). Example: Presenting content through text, video, audio recording, and graphic organizer simultaneously.
Multiple means of action and expression (the "how" of learning): Addresses the strategic network. Provides options for physical action (varied response methods, assistive technology), expression and communication (multiple media for demonstrating knowledge), and executive functions (goal setting, planning tools, progress monitoring). Example: Allowing students to demonstrate understanding through a written essay, oral presentation, visual diagram, or multimedia project.

UDL is proactive and systemic: it builds flexibility into the design of instruction from the beginning rather than making individual retrofits. However, UDL does not replace the need for individualized accommodations and modifications specified in a student's IEP or 504 Plan. Instead, UDL reduces the number of individual accommodations needed by making the learning environment inherently more accessible.

Major Components of IEPs and IFSPs

The Individualized Education Program (IEP)

The IEP is the foundational document of special education under IDEA Part B. It is both a legal contract and an instructional roadmap, developed collaboratively by a multidisciplinary team and reviewed at least annually.

Required IEP components under IDEA:

Present levels of academic achievement and functional performance (PLAAFP): A comprehensive description of the student's current performance, including strengths, needs, and the impact of the disability on involvement and progress in the general education curriculum.
Measurable annual goals: Statements of what the student can reasonably be expected to achieve within one year. Goals must be measurable, aligned to the student's identified needs, and connected to grade-level standards when appropriate. For students assessed against alternate achievement standards, the IEP must include benchmarks or short-term objectives.
Special education and related services: A description of the specially designed instruction, related services (e.g., speech therapy, occupational therapy, counseling), and supplementary aids and services the student will receive, including frequency, duration, location, and start date.
Participation with nondisabled peers: An explanation of the extent, if any, to which the student will not participate with nondisabled children in the general education classroom and other school activities. This section addresses the LRE requirement.
Accommodations for assessments: A description of any individual accommodations needed for state and district assessments, or a justification for why the student will take an alternate assessment and a description of that assessment.
Service dates and frequency: The projected date for the beginning of services and the anticipated frequency, location, and duration of each service.
Progress measurement: A description of how the student's progress toward annual goals will be measured and when periodic reports on progress will be provided to parents.
Transition services: Beginning no later than the IEP in effect when the student turns 16 (or earlier if appropriate), the IEP must include measurable postsecondary goals related to training, education, employment, and independent living skills, along with transition services needed to help the student reach those goals.
Transfer of rights: At least one year before the student reaches the age of majority, the IEP must include a statement that the student has been informed of the rights that will transfer upon reaching the age of majority.

IEP team members:

Parent(s) or guardian(s): Equal decision-making partners who provide critical information about the student's strengths, needs, history, and priorities.
At least one general education teacher: Provides expertise on the general curriculum and classroom expectations. Required when the student is or may be participating in general education.
At least one special education teacher or provider: Provides expertise on specially designed instruction, evidence-based strategies, and disability-specific needs.
Local education agency (LEA) representative: A school administrator or designee authorized to commit district resources and who is knowledgeable about the general curriculum and the availability of district resources.
Individual who can interpret evaluation results: May be one of the above team members who can explain the instructional implications of evaluation data.
The student: When appropriate, and required when transition services are being discussed (age 16 and older).
Related service providers: As appropriate, including speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists, school psychologists, counselors, and others.
Other individuals with knowledge or special expertise: At the discretion of the parent or the agency, such as advocates, behavior analysts, or medical professionals.

The Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP)

The IFSP is the service plan used under IDEA Part C for infants and toddlers (birth through age 2) with disabilities or developmental delays and their families. The IFSP reflects the family-centered philosophy of early intervention, recognizing that the family is the primary context for the child's development.

Required IFSP components:

Present levels of development: Statements of the child's current physical, cognitive, communication, social-emotional, and adaptive development, based on objective criteria.
Family information: With the family's consent, a statement of the family's resources, priorities, and concerns related to enhancing the child's development.
Measurable outcomes: Statements of the results expected for the child and family, including criteria, procedures, and timelines for determining progress.
Early intervention services: A description of specific services (e.g., speech therapy, physical therapy, special instruction, family training) needed to meet the unique needs of the child and family, including frequency, intensity, method, and duration.
Natural environments: A statement of the natural environments in which early intervention services will be provided, and justification for any services not delivered in a natural environment. Natural environments include the home and community settings where typically developing children participate.
Service coordinator: Identification of the service coordinator from the profession most relevant to the child's and family's needs, responsible for implementing the IFSP and coordinating with other agencies and providers.
Transition plan: Steps to support the child's transition to Part B preschool services (or other appropriate services) upon turning three, including discussions beginning at least 90 days before the child's third birthday.

Feature	IEP (Part B)	IFSP (Part C)
Age range	3 through 21	Birth through 2
Focus	Student-centered (educational needs)	Family-centered (child and family needs)
Service setting	Least restrictive environment (school-based)	Natural environments (home, community)
Review cycle	Annually (reevaluation every 3 years)	Every 6 months (annual review)
Coordinator role	Case manager (usually special ed teacher)	Service coordinator (named in IFSP)
Includes family goals?	No (focuses on student)	Yes (family resources, priorities, concerns)

Accommodations and Modifications

Understanding the distinction between accommodations and modifications is essential for the NES 602 exam. Both are tools for ensuring access, but they differ fundamentally in what they change.

Accommodations change how a student accesses content or demonstrates learning without altering the learning expectations or standards. The student is still held to the same performance standards as peers. Accommodations level the playing field by removing barriers related to the disability.

Modifications change what a student is expected to learn or the level at which the student is expected to demonstrate mastery. Modifications alter the curriculum content, complexity, or performance standards.

Type	Accommodations	Modifications
What changes	How the student accesses or demonstrates learning	What the student is expected to learn or the level of mastery
Standards	Same grade-level standards	Altered standards or reduced expectations
Curriculum examples	Extended time, preferential seating, text-to-speech, graphic organizers, reduced distractions, audio recordings of text	Simplified reading passages, fewer answer choices, reduced number of problems, alternate assignments, lower-level texts
Assessment examples	Extended time on tests, separate testing location, large print, read-aloud of directions, use of calculator (when math computation is not being assessed)	Alternate assessment aligned to alternate achievement standards, portfolio-based assessment, reduced test items
Communication examples	Sign language interpreter, FM system, captioning, visual schedules, communication boards, speech-generating devices	Simplified language in directions, reduced vocabulary requirements, use of picture symbols in place of written text

Accommodations should always be considered first. Modifications are used when accommodations alone are insufficient for the student to access the curriculum meaningfully.
All accommodations and modifications must be documented in the student's IEP or 504 Plan and implemented consistently across all relevant settings.
Accommodations used during classroom instruction should also be available during assessments, unless they would invalidate what the assessment is measuring.

Assessment Practices for All Students

IDEA requires that evaluation and assessment practices be fair, comprehensive, and nondiscriminatory for all students, with particular attention to students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Legal Requirements for Assessment

Assessments must be administered in the student's native language or other mode of communication unless it is clearly not feasible to do so.
Tests and evaluation materials must be validated for the specific purpose for which they are used and must be administered by trained and knowledgeable personnel in accordance with the producer's instructions.
Multiple measures are required. No single procedure may be used as the sole criterion for determining eligibility or educational programming.
Assessments must be selected and administered so as not to be discriminatory on a racial or cultural basis.
The evaluation must be sufficiently comprehensive to identify all of the student's special education and related service needs, whether or not commonly linked to the disability category.

English Learners (ELs)

Evaluating students who are English learners requires particular care to distinguish between language differences and true disabilities. Misidentification occurs when educators mistake limited English proficiency for a learning disability, cognitive impairment, or language disorder.

Assess in both the student's home language and English to determine the student's language proficiency and to establish whether learning difficulties are present across both languages (which suggests a disability rather than a language difference).
Use bilingual evaluators or qualified interpreters when assessments must be conducted in a language other than English.
Consider the student's educational history, including the quality and consistency of prior instruction, interruptions in schooling, and the amount of formal instruction in both the home language and English.
Gather information from parents, teachers, and other knowledgeable individuals about the student's development, behavior, and performance in both the home language and English.
Be cautious with standardized assessments that were normed on English-speaking populations, as these may not yield valid results for English learners.

Students Using AAC Systems/Devices and Signed Communication

Students who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems or signed communication require assessment practices that accurately capture their knowledge and abilities rather than penalizing them for their communication modality.

AAC systems range from low-technology options (picture boards, communication books, symbol-based systems) to high-technology devices (speech-generating devices, tablet-based communication apps). Assessments must allow students to respond using their primary communication mode.
When evaluating students who use AAC, ensure that response formats are compatible with the student's communication system. Allow sufficient response time, as generating responses through AAC devices is often slower than spoken language.
For students who use signed communication (American Sign Language or signed English systems), evaluations should be conducted by professionals proficient in the student's sign system, or through qualified sign language interpreters.
Distinguish between the student's language competence and the limitations of the communication system. A student who uses a communication device with a limited vocabulary set may know more than the device allows them to express.
Assessment reports should describe the communication system used, the conditions of assessment, and any limitations on the validity of results related to communication access.

Competency 0002: Human Development and Implications of Disability Characteristics

Developmental Stages and Progressions

Understanding typical development from birth through adolescence across all domains is foundational for special educators. Knowledge of developmental milestones allows educators to identify when development deviates from expected patterns, to set appropriate goals, and to design instruction that meets students where they are developmentally.

Physical and Motor Development

Infancy and toddlerhood (birth-2): Rapid growth in both gross and fine motor skills. Gross motor milestones include head control (2-4 months), sitting independently (6-8 months), pulling to stand (9-12 months), and walking (12-15 months). Fine motor development progresses from reflexive grasping to intentional reaching, pincer grasp (9-12 months), and early tool use (feeding with a spoon, stacking blocks).
Early childhood (3-5): Refinement of gross motor skills (running, jumping, climbing, pedaling a tricycle) and fine motor skills (drawing simple shapes, cutting with scissors, beginning to form letters). Handedness typically becomes established.
School age (6-12): Continued motor refinement, increased coordination and strength. Fine motor skills support handwriting, keyboarding, and manipulation of tools. Physical growth is relatively steady.
Adolescence (12-18): Puberty brings rapid physical changes, growth spurts, and hormonal shifts. Motor skills continue to refine, and physical coordination may temporarily decrease during growth spurts.

Cognitive Development

Infancy and toddlerhood: Sensorimotor development (Piaget): learning through sensory experiences and physical actions. Object permanence develops around 8-12 months. Symbolic thought and early representational play emerge near the end of this period.
Early childhood: Preoperational thinking (Piaget): rapid language growth, symbolic play, egocentrism, animism, and centration. Children struggle with conservation tasks and tend to focus on one dimension of a problem at a time.
School age: Concrete operational thinking (Piaget): logical reasoning about concrete events, understanding of conservation, classification, and seriation. Working memory capacity expands, and metacognitive skills begin to develop.
Adolescence: Formal operational thinking (Piaget): abstract reasoning, hypothetical-deductive thinking, systematic problem-solving. Not all adolescents fully reach this stage, and cultural and educational experiences influence the degree to which formal operations are applied.

Language and Communication Development

Infancy: Cooing (2-3 months), babbling (6-8 months), first words (10-14 months). Receptive language consistently precedes expressive language. Joint attention and early communicative gestures (pointing, reaching, showing) emerge.
Toddlerhood: Vocabulary explosion (18-24 months), two-word combinations, rapid expansion of expressive language. By age 2, most children have 200-300 words and are combining words into simple sentences.
Early childhood: Complex sentences, questions, narratives. Phonological awareness develops (rhyming, syllable segmentation). Pragmatic skills expand (turn-taking, topic maintenance, adjusting language for different listeners).
School age: Academic language proficiency develops. Reading and writing skills expand. Vocabulary grows through reading exposure. Pragmatic complexity increases (understanding idioms, humor, perspective-taking in communication).
Adolescence: Abstract and figurative language, persuasive and argumentative discourse, metalinguistic awareness. Social communication becomes increasingly complex and peer-influenced.

Social-Emotional Development

Infancy: Attachment to primary caregivers (secure, insecure-avoidant, insecure-resistant, disorganized). Social smiling, stranger anxiety, separation anxiety. Early emotional regulation depends on responsive caregiving.
Toddlerhood: Autonomy vs. shame and doubt (Erikson). Beginnings of self-awareness, empathy, and emotional expression. Parallel play emerges.
Early childhood: Initiative vs. guilt (Erikson). Cooperative play, friendships, early understanding of social rules. Emotional vocabulary expands, and self-regulation improves with adult support.
School age: Industry vs. inferiority (Erikson). Peer relationships become central. Self-concept, self-esteem, and social comparison develop. Children learn to navigate group dynamics, resolve conflicts, and follow social norms.
Adolescence: Identity vs. role confusion (Erikson). Peer influence peaks, identity exploration intensifies, and risk-taking behavior may increase. Abstract moral reasoning develops, and romantic relationships emerge.

Adaptive Behavior and Daily Living Skills

Infancy and toddlerhood: Feeding (breast/bottle to self-feeding), sleeping patterns, early toileting readiness, dressing assistance.
Early childhood: Increasing independence in feeding, dressing, toileting, and hygiene. Following simple routines and rules.
School age: Independent self-care, organization of belongings, time management, and participation in household chores. Community safety skills develop.
Adolescence: Independent daily living, money management, transportation, meal preparation, and vocational awareness. Transition planning for postsecondary independence begins.

Developmental Differences and Factors Affecting Learning, Communication, and Behavior

Not all children progress through developmental stages at the same rate. Special educators must understand the wide range of factors that can affect developmental trajectories and contribute to differences in learning, communication, and behavior.

Biological factors: Genetic conditions (e.g., Down syndrome, Fragile X syndrome), prenatal exposure to toxins (fetal alcohol spectrum disorders), prematurity, birth complications, acquired brain injuries, and chronic health conditions can alter developmental trajectories across all domains.
Environmental factors: Quality of caregiving, nutrition, exposure to environmental toxins (lead), access to healthcare, socioeconomic status, and the richness of the home language environment all influence development.
Cultural and linguistic factors: Children develop within cultural contexts that shape communication styles, behavioral expectations, learning preferences, and social norms. Educators must distinguish between cultural differences and developmental delays or disabilities.
Experiential factors: Limited exposure to educational opportunities, interrupted schooling, adverse childhood experiences, and institutional deprivation can affect development in ways that may mimic or coexist with disabilities.
Interrelationships among domains: Development across physical, cognitive, communication, social-emotional, and adaptive domains is interconnected. A delay or disability in one domain frequently affects functioning in other domains. For example, a significant language delay may affect social development (difficulty forming peer relationships), cognitive development (difficulty accessing verbal instruction), and academic achievement (reading and writing difficulties).

Etiologies and Characteristics of Disability Categories

Special educators must understand the causes, defining features, and educational implications of disabilities across major categories. The following section organizes disabilities by type.

Cognitive Disabilities

Intellectual disability (ID): Characterized by significant limitations in both intellectual functioning (IQ approximately two or more standard deviations below the mean) and adaptive behavior (conceptual, social, and practical skills) originating before age 22. Etiologies include genetic conditions (Down syndrome, Fragile X), prenatal factors (fetal alcohol exposure, maternal infections), perinatal complications (anoxia, prematurity), and postnatal causes (traumatic brain injury, lead exposure, meningitis). Educational implications include the need for explicit, systematic instruction, concrete and functional skill development, extended practice opportunities, and generalization training.
Specific learning disabilities (SLD): A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or using language, spoken or written, resulting in difficulty with listening, thinking, speaking, reading, writing, spelling, or mathematical calculations. SLD is a neurodevelopmental condition not attributable to intellectual disability, sensory impairment, emotional disturbance, cultural factors, or inadequate instruction. Subtypes include dyslexia (reading), dysgraphia (writing), and dyscalculia (mathematics). Educational implications include the need for specialized, evidence-based interventions, explicit instruction in deficit areas, and accommodations to access the curriculum.

Neurological Disabilities

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD): A neurodevelopmental condition characterized by persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction across multiple contexts, and restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior, interests, or activities. ASD is a spectrum, with wide variation in severity, cognitive ability, and language development. Etiologies are primarily genetic, with complex gene-environment interactions. Educational implications include the need for structured, predictable environments; visual supports; explicit social skills instruction; sensory accommodations; and evidence-based practices such as applied behavior analysis, structured teaching, and social narratives.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI): An acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both. TBI can affect cognition (memory, attention, processing speed, executive functioning), behavior (impulsivity, emotional lability, aggression), communication (word-finding, pragmatics), and motor function. Educational implications include the need for environmental modifications, cognitive rehabilitation strategies, flexible programming, and ongoing monitoring as recovery can be nonlinear.
Epilepsy and seizure disorders: Neurological conditions characterized by recurrent seizures that can affect consciousness, movement, sensation, and cognition. Medications may cause side effects (drowsiness, attention difficulties) that affect school performance. Educators must be trained in seizure recognition and response protocols.
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): While not one of the 13 IDEA categories by name, students with ADHD may qualify under "other health impairment" (IDEA) or Section 504. ADHD is characterized by persistent patterns of inattention, hyperactivity-impulsivity, or both, that interfere with functioning. Executive function deficits (planning, organization, working memory, self-monitoring) are central features.

Sensory Disabilities

Visual impairment (including blindness): Encompasses a range of visual functioning from low vision to total blindness. Etiologies include congenital conditions (retinopathy of prematurity, optic nerve hypoplasia), genetic conditions (retinitis pigmentosa), and acquired causes (injury, disease). Educational implications include the need for orientation and mobility instruction, Braille literacy (for students who are functionally blind), large print and magnification devices, assistive technology (screen readers, refreshable Braille displays), and environmental adaptations (lighting, contrast, clutter reduction).
Hearing impairment (including deafness): Ranges from mild hearing loss to profound deafness. Etiologies include genetic factors (connexin 26 gene mutations), prenatal infections (CMV, rubella), perinatal complications, ototoxic medications, noise exposure, and chronic ear infections. Educational implications vary based on degree and type of hearing loss, age of onset, communication modality (spoken language, sign language, total communication), and use of amplification or cochlear implants. Access to language is the central educational concern.
Deaf-blindness: Combined hearing and visual impairments that cause severe communication and educational needs that cannot be accommodated in programs solely for children who are deaf or children who are blind. Requires highly specialized instruction, one-on-one support, and tactile communication approaches.

Emotional and Behavioral Disabilities

Emotional disturbance (ED): Under IDEA, defined as a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects educational performance: (a) inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors; (b) inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; (c) inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances; (d) a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; (e) a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. Includes schizophrenia but does not include children who are socially maladjusted unless they also have an emotional disturbance.
Educational implications include the need for positive behavioral interventions and supports, social skills instruction, mental health services, structured environments, crisis prevention planning, functional behavioral assessments, and behavior intervention plans.

Physical Disabilities

Orthopedic impairments: Include congenital conditions (e.g., clubfoot, spina bifida, limb deficiency), disease-related conditions (e.g., muscular dystrophy, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis), and conditions caused by other factors (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations, fractures, burns). Educational implications include accessibility needs, assistive technology for mobility and classroom participation, adapted physical education, and accommodations for fatigue and medical appointments.
Other health impairments (OHI): Chronic or acute health conditions that result in limited strength, vitality, or alertness, including heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that adversely affect educational performance. Examples include asthma, diabetes, epilepsy, heart conditions, sickle cell anemia, and ADHD. Educational implications include the need for health care plans, emergency protocols, flexible attendance and pacing accommodations, and coordination with medical professionals.
Multiple disabilities: Combination of two or more impairments (e.g., intellectual disability and orthopedic impairment) that cause severe educational needs not addressable in a program for any one impairment alone. Requires comprehensive, integrated service planning.

Interrelationships Among Developmental Domains

A core concept for the NES 602 exam is that development does not occur in isolated compartments. Physical, cognitive, communication, social-emotional, and adaptive development are deeply interconnected, and a disability affecting one domain typically has ripple effects across others.

Motor-cognitive connections: A child with significant motor impairments may have reduced opportunities to explore the environment, manipulate objects, and engage in hands-on learning, potentially affecting cognitive development. Providing adapted materials and assistive technology can help bridge this gap.
Language-social connections: Communication skills are the gateway to social interaction. Students with language delays or disorders often experience difficulty forming and maintaining friendships, participating in group activities, and navigating social situations. Social isolation can, in turn, reduce opportunities for language practice.
Cognitive-adaptive connections: Students with intellectual disabilities experience challenges not only in academic learning but also in adaptive behavior, including self-care, community participation, and independent living skills. Instruction must address both academic and functional domains.
Social-emotional-academic connections: Emotional and behavioral difficulties interfere with attention, engagement, motivation, and relationships with teachers and peers, all of which are necessary for academic success. Conversely, chronic academic failure can contribute to frustration, low self-esteem, and behavioral problems.
Sensory-communication connections: Hearing loss directly affects spoken language development. Visual impairment affects the ability to read social cues, access print-based instruction, and navigate environments. These sensory barriers have cascading effects on communication, social development, and academic achievement.

Auditory/Visual Processing Disorders and Executive Functioning

Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)

Auditory processing disorder is a deficit in the neural processing of auditory information that is not attributable to hearing loss or intellectual disability. Students with APD can hear sounds but have difficulty making sense of what they hear, particularly in challenging listening environments.

Characteristics: Difficulty following spoken directions (especially multi-step), distinguishing between similar-sounding words, filtering background noise, understanding rapid speech, and remembering auditory information.
Educational implications: Preferential seating away from noise sources, use of FM/DM systems, visual supports to supplement auditory instruction, pre-teaching vocabulary, reducing background noise, checking for understanding frequently, providing written directions, and allowing additional processing time.

Visual Processing Disorder

Visual processing disorder is a deficit in the brain's ability to interpret visual information, distinct from visual acuity problems. Students may have normal eyesight but struggle to make sense of what they see.

Characteristics: Difficulty distinguishing between similar letters or shapes (visual discrimination), tracking lines of text (visual tracking), remembering what was seen (visual memory), understanding spatial relationships (visual-spatial processing), and perceiving figure-ground distinctions.
Educational implications: Enlarged or simplified visual materials, reduced visual clutter on worksheets, use of reading guides or rulers to support tracking, color-coded organizational systems, verbal descriptions to supplement visual information, and multisensory instructional approaches.

Executive Functioning

Executive functions are a set of cognitive processes controlled primarily by the prefrontal cortex that enable goal-directed behavior, including planning, organizing, initiating tasks, sustaining attention, inhibiting impulses, managing time, regulating emotions, and monitoring one's own performance.

Components: Working memory (holding and manipulating information), cognitive flexibility (shifting between tasks or perspectives), inhibitory control (resisting impulses and distractions), planning and organization, self-monitoring, and emotional regulation.
Conditions associated with executive functioning deficits: ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, traumatic brain injury, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, learning disabilities, and emotional and behavioral disorders. Executive functioning difficulties are often a unifying thread across multiple disability categories.
Educational implications: Explicit instruction in organizational and study skills, visual schedules and checklists, breaking tasks into smaller steps, providing external structure and routines, teaching self-monitoring strategies, using graphic organizers, allowing extra time for transitions and task initiation, and reducing cognitive load through scaffolded instruction.

Factors Influencing Development Across Families, Languages, and Communities

Child development occurs within nested ecological systems (Bronfenbrenner's bioecological model), and special educators must understand the many contextual factors that shape a student's growth and learning.

Family structure and dynamics: Family composition (single-parent, two-parent, blended, multigenerational, foster care), parenting styles, sibling relationships, and family expectations all influence child development. Families of children with disabilities may experience unique stressors, including navigating complex service systems, managing medical needs, and advocating for their child's rights.
Cultural context: Cultural beliefs about disability, child-rearing practices, educational expectations, communication styles, and help-seeking behavior vary across communities. Educators must approach families with cultural humility, recognizing that their own cultural lens may differ from the family's perspective.
Linguistic diversity: Children who grow up in bilingual or multilingual environments follow developmental patterns that may differ from monolingual peers but are not indicative of disability. Code-switching, language transfer effects, and silent periods during second language acquisition are typical developmental phenomena, not signs of language disorder.
Socioeconomic factors: Poverty is associated with increased exposure to environmental risks (lead, poor nutrition, limited healthcare), reduced access to enriching learning experiences, and chronic stress that can affect brain development and academic readiness. Socioeconomic status alone does not cause disability, and educators must guard against conflating poverty with disability.
Community resources: The availability of early intervention programs, quality childcare, healthcare services, recreational opportunities, and family support services varies widely across communities and affects developmental outcomes.

Stress, Trauma, Protective Factors, and Resilience

An increasing body of research demonstrates that adverse experiences and chronic stress can profoundly affect child development, while protective factors and resilience-building supports can mitigate these effects.

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and Trauma

Types of adverse experiences: Abuse (physical, emotional, sexual), neglect (physical, emotional), household dysfunction (domestic violence, substance abuse, mental illness, incarceration, divorce), community violence, and systemic discrimination.
Effects on development: Chronic stress and trauma activate the body's stress response system, and prolonged activation (toxic stress) can disrupt brain architecture, impair executive functioning, weaken immune function, and alter the development of neural pathways involved in learning, memory, and emotional regulation.
Behavioral manifestations in school: Hypervigilance, difficulty concentrating, emotional dysregulation, aggression, withdrawal, distrust of adults, difficulty forming relationships, sleep disturbances, and somatic complaints. Trauma-affected behavior may be misidentified as ADHD, emotional disturbance, or oppositional defiant disorder.
Trauma-informed practices: Educators should create physically and emotionally safe environments, build predictable routines, establish trusting relationships, avoid punitive discipline approaches, provide choices and control when possible, and collaborate with mental health professionals.

Protective Factors and Resilience

Protective factors: Stable, nurturing relationships with at least one caring adult; strong social-emotional skills; positive school climate; connection to cultural identity and community; access to mental health services; and economic stability.
Resilience: The capacity to recover from adversity and maintain positive functioning. Resilience is not an innate trait but is developed through the interaction of individual characteristics (temperament, cognitive ability, self-regulation) with environmental supports (relationships, opportunities, resources).
Role of educators: Teachers and school staff can serve as critical protective factors by providing consistent, caring relationships; maintaining high expectations with appropriate support; teaching coping and self-regulation skills; and connecting families with community resources.

Parental Roles and Home/Community Influences

Parents and families are the most influential context for child development, and their role in the education of children with disabilities is both legally protected and practically essential.

Parents as first teachers: The home environment provides the foundation for language development, social skills, self-regulation, and early learning. The quality of parent-child interaction, including responsiveness, warmth, and cognitive stimulation, is a strong predictor of developmental outcomes.
Home-school collaboration: Effective special education requires consistent communication and partnership between school and home. Parents contribute irreplaceable knowledge about their child's strengths, needs, history, preferences, and daily functioning. Educators should actively seek and value parental input in goal-setting, intervention planning, and progress monitoring.
Community influences: Neighborhood safety, access to parks and recreational facilities, availability of after-school programs, religious and cultural community organizations, and extended family networks all shape developmental opportunities and outcomes.
Parental advocacy: Parents of children with disabilities often serve as advocates within the school system, at IEP meetings, and in the broader community. Supporting parents in understanding their rights, navigating the special education process, and developing advocacy skills is an important professional responsibility.
Generalization of skills: Skills taught at school must be practiced and reinforced across home and community settings to achieve generalization. Collaboration with families ensures that instruction is meaningful, relevant, and supported outside the school day.

Family Dynamics in Building Supportive Relationships

The diagnosis of a disability affects the entire family system. Special educators must understand family dynamics and build relationships that support both the student and the family unit.

Stages of adjustment: Families may experience a range of emotions upon learning of a child's disability, including shock, denial, grief, anger, guilt, and eventual adaptation. These responses are not linear, may recur at key transition points (school entry, puberty, transition to adulthood), and vary across individuals and cultural contexts.
Sibling dynamics: Siblings of children with disabilities may experience jealousy, resentment, embarrassment, worry, or heightened responsibility. They may also develop exceptional empathy, patience, and advocacy skills. Educators should be aware of sibling needs and help families access sibling support resources when appropriate.
Caregiver stress: Parents and caregivers of children with disabilities may experience elevated stress related to the demands of caregiving, financial strain, navigating service systems, social isolation, and uncertainty about the future. Chronic caregiver stress can affect mental health, marital relationships, and the quality of parent-child interaction.
Strengths-based approach: Effective family partnerships focus on family strengths, resources, and priorities rather than deficits. Educators should approach families as experts on their own children and collaborate in ways that empower rather than diminish family agency.
Communication practices: Regular, respectful, two-way communication is the foundation of effective family-educator relationships. This includes sharing positive information (not only problems), using jargon-free language, offering multiple modes of communication (phone, email, written notes, in-person meetings), and being responsive to family preferences for communication frequency and format.
Cultural considerations in family partnerships: Definitions of family, expectations for family involvement in education, attitudes toward disability, and preferred communication styles vary across cultures. Educators must avoid imposing their own cultural assumptions and instead ask families about their preferences, beliefs, and priorities.

Basic Health and Medical Knowledge for Student Physical Management

Special educators frequently work with students who have complex health needs. While teachers are not medical professionals, they must have sufficient knowledge to ensure student safety, implement health-related accommodations, and communicate effectively with families and healthcare providers.

Seizure management: Recognizing different seizure types (tonic-clonic, absence, focal), knowing first aid protocols (protect from injury, time the seizure, position on side, do not restrain or place objects in mouth), understanding when to call emergency services, and documenting seizure activity for medical providers and families.
Medication awareness: Understanding the purpose, common side effects, and potential educational impacts of medications commonly used by students with disabilities, including stimulant medications (for ADHD), anticonvulsants (for seizures), psychotropic medications (for behavioral and emotional disorders), and asthma medications. Educators should observe and report changes in student behavior or functioning that may be medication-related.
Positioning and physical management: For students with orthopedic impairments or motor disabilities, understanding proper positioning (wheelchair positioning, use of adaptive seating, positioning for feeding and breathing), safe transfer techniques, and the use of adaptive equipment. Collaboration with physical and occupational therapists is essential.
Feeding and nutrition: Some students require modified diets (thickened liquids, pureed foods) or tube feeding due to swallowing difficulties (dysphagia). Educators must follow individualized health plans, understand choking prevention, and know emergency response procedures.
Personal care and hygiene: Assisting with toileting, catheterization (clean intermittent catheterization may be performed by trained school personnel), diapering, and other personal care needs while maintaining student dignity and privacy.
Allergies and anaphylaxis: Recognizing symptoms of allergic reactions, understanding anaphylaxis protocols, knowing how to administer emergency epinephrine (EpiPen), and maintaining allergen-safe environments as specified in health plans.
Diabetes management: Understanding blood glucose monitoring, recognizing signs of hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia, knowing emergency response procedures, and accommodating the need for snacks, bathroom access, and insulin administration during the school day.
Universal precautions: Following standard procedures for bloodborne pathogen exposure prevention, including proper use of gloves, handwashing, and disposal of contaminated materials. Universal precautions apply to all students, regardless of known health status.
Individualized Health Plans (IHPs): Written plans developed for students with chronic health conditions that specify the student's medical needs, daily management procedures, emergency protocols, medication administration, activity restrictions, and communication procedures between school staff and medical providers. The school nurse typically develops the IHP in collaboration with the family and healthcare provider.

Key Takeaways

Evidence-based practice is the standard: Special educators must select interventions validated by rigorous research, implement them with fidelity, and use data to monitor outcomes. Specially designed instruction adapts content, methodology, or delivery to address individual student needs documented in the IEP.
Three laws form the legal foundation: IDEA provides FAPE through special education services (IEP/IFSP). Section 504 provides accommodations for students with disabilities that substantially limit major life activities. The ADA provides broad civil rights protections against disability discrimination. Know how they differ in eligibility, coverage, and requirements.
LRE is a presumption for general education: The IEP team must consider supplementary aids and services that could enable success in the general education setting before moving to more restrictive placements along the continuum.
UDL builds flexibility into design: The three UDL principles (engagement, representation, action and expression) reduce barriers proactively but do not replace individualized IEP accommodations and modifications.
Accommodations change access; modifications change expectations: Always consider accommodations first. Document all supports in the IEP or 504 Plan and implement them consistently.
The IEP is a collaborative, legally binding document: It must include all required components (PLAAFP, goals, services, LRE justification, transition plan by age 16) and be developed by a team that includes parents as equal partners.
The IFSP is family-centered: Early intervention under Part C focuses on the family unit, provides services in natural environments, uses a service coordinator model, and transitions to Part B services at age 3.
Assessment must be nondiscriminatory: Evaluate in the student's native language, use multiple measures, distinguish language differences from disabilities for English learners, and ensure assessment formats are compatible with AAC systems and signed communication.
Development is interconnected across domains: Physical, cognitive, communication, social-emotional, and adaptive development influence each other. A disability in one domain typically affects functioning in other domains.
Know disability characteristics and educational implications: Understand the etiologies and features of cognitive, neurological, sensory, emotional, and physical disabilities, and how each category affects learning, communication, and behavior.
Auditory/visual processing and executive functioning cross categories: Processing disorders and executive function deficits occur across many disability types and require targeted instructional strategies including environmental modifications, explicit skill instruction, and scaffolding.
Context shapes development: Family dynamics, cultural backgrounds, linguistic environments, socioeconomic conditions, and community resources all influence developmental trajectories. Educators must approach families with cultural humility and a strengths-based perspective.
Trauma affects the whole child: Adverse childhood experiences and chronic stress can disrupt brain development, impair learning, and produce behaviors that may be misidentified as disabilities. Trauma-informed practices create safe, predictable, and supportive learning environments.
Family partnership is essential: Effective special education requires genuine collaboration with families, recognizing parents as experts on their children and supporting them through the adjustment process, advocacy, and skill generalization across settings.
Basic health knowledge ensures safety: Special educators must understand seizure management, medication effects, positioning and physical management, feeding protocols, allergy and diabetes management, and universal precautions to keep students safe and healthy throughout the school day.

What You'll Learn

Free Study Guide - Lesson 1