Specialized services training

SPECIALIZED SERVICESCICS: Irving Park

Elementary 2011-2012

Introductions

Director of Specialized Services:

-Rhonda StoneSpecial Education Teachers: -Jeannie Chang -Katie Clark-Keene -Nick Cunningham -Stacey GyumishevSocial Worker: -Katie Weiss

Types of Special Education Services

1. Inclusion:- Student remains in the GenEd classroom- Special Ed Teacher ‘pushes in’ to the GenEd classroomfor academic, behavioral and/or independent functioning needs

2. Resource:- Student is ‘pulled out’ of the GenEd classroom to receive services in a SpEd setting with a smaller student/teacher ratio-For academic, behavioral and/or independent functioning needs

Types of Special Education Services,

continued3. Related: -Any additional support

services that may benefit a Special Education student

-Examples include: Speech/Language therapy, Occupational Therapy, Social Work, Nursing services, Physical Therapy, Vision Therapy, Psychological services, etc.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

(IDEA)- US Federal law that states how Special Education

and related services must be provided

- Identifies the 13 recognized categories of disability: <Autism, Cognitive Impairment, Deaf, Deaf-Blindness, Developmental Delay,

Emotional Disorder, Hearing Impaired, Learning Disabled, Multiple Handicaps, Other Health Impaired, Physically Handicapped, Speech/Language Impairment, Traumatic Brain Injury>

- Eligibility determined by whether the student’s disability adversely affects their learning

- States that all students must be provided a free, appropriate public education (FAPE)

www.cpsspecialeducation.org

IDEA, continued

- Under IDEA, Special Education and related services should:

1)be designed to meet the individualized needs of students with disabilities, preschool through age 21.

1)prepare students with disabilities for further education, employment, and independent living

Excerpt from www.idea.ed.gov

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

- The U.S. Dept. Education, 2005a regulations implementing IDEA states:

- "...to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities including children in public or private institutions or care facilities, are educated with children who are nondisabled; and special classes, separate schooling or other removal of children with disabilities from regular educational environment occurs only if the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.”

Excerpt from www.idea.ed.gov

LRE, continued- Basically, the LRE is the setting(s)

that provides the most access to GenEd peers in which the student with a disability can succeed academically

- Important questions when determining LRE:

1.Can an appropriate education in the general education classroom with the use of supplementary aids and services be achieved satisfactorily?

2.If a student is placed in a more restrictive setting, is the student "integrated" to the "maximum extent appropriate"?

Referral Process• Referral request-

1) Made by a faculty member:- if student is not responding to Tier 3 interventions- teacher will include all RtI data and work samples-meeting will be held with parents

2) Made by a parent: -specialized services team will meet to determine if

evaluation is warranted and notify parents of decision

What is an Individualized Education Program (IEP)?

- A required educational plan for all students found eligible under the federal and state disability standards

- Designed to meet the unique educational needs of that one child in the most appropriate LRE in which the child is most capable of learning

Gen Ed Teacher’s role in the IEP process

-To participate in the development of the IEP of the child

-Assist in the determination of appropriate positive behavior interventions and strategies for the child; and

-Assist in the determination of supplementary aids and services, program modifications, or supports for school personnel that will be provided for the child

Teacher Input Form (TIF) - is a comprehensive input form used in the

creation of the IEP document

-Must be thorough, objective and specific

- Fair, factual, thorough, non-partisan reporting

-TIF is needed for :1) new evaluations through RtI process2) all Annual IEP meetings3) three year or Special Re-evaluations

** Should be submitted, by GenEd teacher to SpEd team, 3 weeks prior to the to all IEP and Evaluation meetings

TIF Activity

Section of the TIF-Academic Needs: Specific information and

effectiveness of past interventions regarding academic needs and skill acquisition

Example Entry: Jess is below grade level in reading. Jess has a hard time paying attention in class

***In a small group: Rewrite the above entry keeping objectivity and specificity in mind

Learning Environment Screener (LES)

- Identifies any areas of concern

-LES is needed for new referral evaluations, 3 year, or Special re-evaluations where the student is suspected of having a specific Learning Disability only

- must include specific interventions, with ‘start’ and ‘end’ date and outcomes (should use RtI data and/or accommodations and modifications for this)

What is a Section 504 plan?

- Eligibility- student has a mental or physical disability which substantially limits major life activity, in the educational setting

- Birth to death

- May include: academic support, testing accommodations, related services, health/medical support, transportation support

**A 504 plan is not Special Education

What do I do with the Section 504 plans and IEP documents?

- Read them

- Come to the SpEd team with any questions/concerns you may have

- Keep documents in a locked cabinet (if you do not have a locking cabinet, please see Katie Clark-Keene, Case Manager)

Accommodations/Modifications Cheat

Sheets- Read them- Learn them- Honor them- Come to the Case Manager with

any questions/concerns you may have

- Keep a copy (paper or electronic) for fast, easy reference

- Attach an electronic copy to all lesson plans, submitted to administration

Co-Planning

between GenEd and SpEd teachers should:

1. occur for inclusionary services

2. include shared planning, grading

3. be effective for targeted differentiated instruction

Consultation

(with GenEd teachers, para-professionals, Specials Teachers)

- Indicated in the student’s 504/IEP

- May be daily, weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, quarterly

- Purposes may include, but are not limited to: grading, accommodations/modifications, assessments, academic progress/concerns, behavior plan

**Consultation should never interfere with your teaching. If you are approached for consultation that has not been previously scheduled and are unavailable—please request that the teacher/clinician contact you to schedule another time

Co-Planning, continuedA. with SpEd Teacher(s):• SpEd Teacher(s) should initiate a time/schedule

for consult • SpEd Teacher(s) should track topics and

minutes

B. with Clinicians:• Clinician(s) should initiate a time/schedule for

consult • Clinicians(s) should track topics and minutes• Will often need to take place on ‘Team Day’

(Wednesday)

Grading for Special Education Students

-decided by the IEP team

-**If a student exceeds or fails to meet GenEd or IEP modified standards, the report card should reflect that achievement.

Grading is determined based on the student’s % of time in Special Education for each academic area

Grading Scenarios• Scenario One: Student receives the entirety of her

Math minutes from a SpEd teacher---SpEd Teacher will provide Math grade for student. SpEd Teacher responsible for tracking grades.

• Scenario Two: Student receives the majority (greater than 50%) of Math minutes in a SpEd resource setting---GenEd Teacher and Special Ed Teacher will collaborate for grading. Both GenEd and SpEd Teachers responsible for tracking grades.

• Scenario Three: Student receives minority (under 50%) SpEd resource services for Math--- GenEd Teacher and Special Ed Teacher will collaborate for grading. Gen Ed Teacher responsible for tracking grades in PowerSchool.

• Scenario Four: Student receives inclusionary SpEd services for Math--- GenEd Teacher and Special Ed Teacher will collaborate for grading. Gen Ed Teacher responsible for tracking grades in PowerSchool

Promotion Criterion

• Standard Promotion Criterion apply unless otherwise noted in the IEP

• For benchmark years: if criterion is modified, it should be based on student’s annual goals.

Discipline of a child with a disability

- When disciplining a student with a disability, one must consider whether the behavior may have been a manifestation of the disability

- Teachers (GenEd and Specials) must consult with the SpEd team prior to giving a ‘Red Letter’ to any student with an IEP

- Team must determine if the offense is due to a manifestation of the student’s disability prior to making a final disciplinary decision

- Students with a disability may not be suspended for more than 10 days in an IEP cycle without having a Manifestation Determination review/hearing (MDR)

www.cpsspecialeducation.org

Discipline of a child with a disability, continued

- Team must determine if the offense is due to a manifestation of the student’s disability prior to making a final disciplinary decision

- Students with a disability may not be suspended for more than 10 days in an IEP cycle without having a Manifestation Determination review/hearing (MDR)

Para-Professionals

-Role is based off individualized student needs and indicated in the ‘Special Accommodations’ section of the IEP document

-identified as ‘Dedicated’ or ‘Shared’ 1) Dedicated- a dedicated para is only to work with one identified student during a given time 2) Shared-a shared para may work with more than one student, as identified in IEPs, during a given time

Para-Professionals, continued

- Para-pros are not Teaching Assistants (I.e. paras may not be asked to assist with classroom duties, house-keeping, etc. when they are servicing students)

- Paras are trained and monitored by the Special Education team

- Paras may be asked to collect data (academic, IEP goals, behavioral, prompting, etc.)

Specialized Services Meetings

<Medical 504 plans, IEPs, Initial Evaluations, Reevaluations>

- Take place either in the NWEA testing room OR the Case Management Office (inside room 207) on Wednesdays

- When you are part of the IEP team, you will receive a ‘Notice of Conference’ from the Case Manager stating the date and time of when the meeting is scheduled to take place.

- Subbing will be provided and scheduled by the Case Manager

- Please have sub plans prepared

Specialized Service Meetings, continued

- Prior to the meetings, SpEd teachers may request a meeting to discuss current programming (I.e. what is working, what may need to be changed, goals, service minutes, etc.)

- Please come to the meeting prepared to discuss the student’s needs/progress (with RtI data, work samples, assessments, behavioral data, TIF, LES, etc.).

The End