Developmental Disabilities

Though some recognize that children with disabilities are bullied more often than children without disabilities, it is not actually acknowledged as more of a problem than the bullying of other non-disabled students. Children with developmental disabilities are especially vulnerable because they may not want to, or may not know how to, communicate that they are being bullied. This is a crucial difference because for many, the first step to stopping a bullying problem is to talk about it with an authority figure.
Developmental disabilities impact many children, and it is important to note how bullying troubles them. These disabled students are ostracized because many of their peers view them as easy targets. This selective exclusion could not

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2015), a developmental disability is “…a group of conditions due to an impairment in physical, learning, language, or behavior areas. These conditions begin during the developmental period, may impact day-to-day functioning and usually last throughout a person’s lifetime” (Facts About Disabilities Section, para. 1). One in six children in the United States has at least one developmental disability (CDC, 2015). Some developmental disabilities include Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Hearing Loss, Tourette Syndrome, Vision Impairment, and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactive Disorder (CDC, 2015).
Secondly, it is key to define the characteristics of bullying. Nathaniel Levy et al., the authors of the study Bullying in a networked era: A literature review, defines bullying as having the following qualities: the bullying is deliberately done, the bully is in charge of the situation, and the victim is bullied with consistency (as cited in Thaler, 2013). This could very easily cause great emotional

Because the student does not come to class, it is logical to conclude that they do not learn as much, and, therefore, have poorer grades. Swearer (n.d.) has found that when a student is not bullied there is a greater chance that they are doing well academically, while also staying more engaged in their academics.
Young et al. (n.d.) verifies this when listing the academic costs a student experiences when being bullied. These can include frequent absences, poorer academic work or grades, and lower ambitions of what they can, and want, to do with their education. Developmentally disabled students often excel in certain areas, though they may not excel socially. Some may receive the label of being “gifted,” or superiorly intelligent in one area or another.
Because of this superior intelligence, or gift, children may be excluded by their peers and might even begin to feel embarrassed of their gift, because it is out of the ordinary when all they want is to be like the other students (Boodman, 2006). Boodman (2006) incorporates in her article an amazing quote from Jean Sunde Peterson, who is an associate professor at Purdue University. Peterson says, “It is important to remember that although cognitively these children are advanced, physically, socially, and emotionally they may not be” (para.