Special Education in the Early Years

Professor Heidi Harju-Luukkainen holds a Ph.D. in education, special education teacher qualification and qualification in leadership and management from Finland. She has published more than 100 international books, journal articles and reports as well as worked on more than 35 projects globally. Harju-Luukkainen has worked at top-ranked universities in the USA like UCLA, USC as well as in many Nordic research universities. She has developed education programs for universities, been a PI of PISA sub-assessments in Finland and functioned as a board professional. Her research areas are early childhood education, justice in education and international student assessment.​   Natallia Bahdanovich Hanssen, Ph.D., an associate professor at the Faculty of Education and Arts at Nord University in Bodø, Norway, and Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences, Lillehammer. She has an aesthetic education, with a major in music, singing, and art history from the Belarusian State Pedagogical University and adaptive training and special needs education from Nord University in Bodø, Norway. Natallia’s research is currently linked to early childhood education, special needs education, inclusive education, comparative studies, developmental language disorder, aesthetic and special needs education.  Christel Sundqvist, Ph.D., is an associate professor in special education at Nord University in Norway and at Åbo Akademi University in Finland. Her research interest concerns inclusive education, the special education teachers’ role, multi-professional collaboration and consultation in special needs education.

Chapter 1 Introduction to Special Education in the Early Years-Policies and Practices across the Nordic Countries.- Part I: Policy Perspectives.- Chapter 2 Early Childhood Special Education in Finland.- Chapter 3 Children with Autism Spectrum Conditions: Social Norms and Expectations in Swedish Preschools.- Chapter 4 Implicit and Inclusive Early Education for Gifted Children Swedish Policy and International Possibilities.- Chapter 5 Gaps in Care-(E)Quality Ecec in Nordic Early Childhoods.- Chapter 6 Autism and Young Children in Sweden.- Chapter 7. Swedish Early Childhood Preservice Teachers and Inclusive Education.- Part Ii: Practice Perspectives.- Chapter 8. Developing Inclusive Learning Environments - When Collaboration is (Not) The Answer.- Chapter 9. How do Children Describe Learning Self-Regulation Skills in the Kids' Skills Intervention?.- Chapter 10. Experiences of Educational Support for Mathematical High-Ability Children in Finland. A Netnography of Parental Perspective from Ece to the School Context.- Chapter 11. A Survey of the Views of Graduates of Early Childhood Teacher Education in Norway on Special Needs Education.- Chapter 12. Inclusive Practices in Early Childhood Education in Norway.- Chapter 13. Late Talkers and Language Learning in Norwegian Ececs for Children under Three.- Chapter 14. Finger Patterns as Tools for Learning the Basic Meaning of Numbers.- Chapter 15. Support of Language and Communication in Swedish Preschools.- Chapter 16. Communities of Practice: A Model for Professional Development in Early Childhood Education and Care to Support Children with Communication Barriers?.- Chapter 17. Teacher Perceptions of Language Challenges among Children in Three Different Language-Medium Settings in Finland.- Chapter 18. Behind the Practice: Finnish Early Childhood Education and Care Professionals' Perceptions and Beliefs Concerning Children in Need of Social and Emotional Support.- Chapter 19. Special Education in the Early Years: Summary andOutlook.