ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the context of language learning within special schools by focusing on the pupils and the school staff. It discusses the teacher's formal responsibilities in respect of language and communication, the use of sign and symbol systems in the schools and the way in which language activities are integrated within the school day. Schools provide a context for language development which is already shaped by the design of the buildings, the way in which children are organised into teaching groups and the expectations of teachers regarding the forms of educational experiences which will be most beneficial. The chapter provides an overview of the numbers and general characteristics of the pupils within the schools. It emphasises the enormous variability among children in these schools and the difficulties posed by any attempt to group them into classes or groups on the basis of age, ability or educational need.
