In this article, I address some of the fundamental notions that must be explored to prepare urban special educators to serve today's students. To address the needs of a highly heterogeneous population of students with regard to language, culture, and disability characteristics, this triad of essential child characteristics (language, culture, disability) is explored to draw implications for instruction and teacher preparation. The article is accompanied by a resource listing for teacher educators engaged in the preparation of urban special educators who will work with culturally and linguistically diverse exceptional students.
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