Being a general education teacher, I have had limited opportunities to work with students who were diagnosed with profound or severe disabilities. But one student that I’ve had the opportunity to know and work with was diagnosed with Phelan-McDermid Syndrome (PMS). PMS is a genetic disorders that is caused by a deletion or loss of chromosome 22, and is referred to as an autism-related syndrome. Phelan-McDermid Syndrome is considered a profound or severe disability since individuals diagnosed with PMS often exhibit intellectual disabilities, seizures, little to no functional language skills, low muscle tones, and poor motor control. The student that I worked with did exhibit intellectual disabilities and loss of functional language skills,
