Culturally and linguistically diverse children and youth with low incidence disabilities

The number of students from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds attending schools in the United States is increasing rapidly, with census data indicating that, in 2000, approximately 39% of public school students were considered to be part of a minority group (National Center of Education Statistics, 2004). In fact, in almost every major city what was once the minority is now the majority, with conservative estimates suggesting that approximately 10 million students come from homes where a language other than English is spoken (Yates & Ortiz, 2004).