ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the essential issues within the context of staff development for teachers and special school assistants. One school for pupils with severe learning difficulties in the Midlands encourages the religious leaders of both Afro-Caribbean and Asian communities to accompany out-reach workers on visits to the family, and to take an active part in curriculum delivery. It is important for the staff of a school as a whole to discuss the standards and principles on which their curriculum is based. Teachers need a range of information about the pupils themselves and about their cultural traditions and life-styles. Care must be taken that such information does not produce cultural stereotyping and labelling on the one hand, or a 'tokenism' curriculum on the other. In planning a curriculum for pupils with severe learning difficulties from ethnic minorities, teachers should be aware of specific cultural factors, although it should be emphasized that it is important to avoid generalizations and consequent 'cultural stereotyping'.
