ABC

Elementarys
Special
Education
Program
2014-2015 School Year

Welcome!
We have a lot to discuss, including:

Faces in our Special Education Program

Common vocabulary you may hear
The Identification, Assessment, and
Evaluation process
Common Questions
Useful Resources

Terms you may

hear:
Special Education- services offered to individuals
who meet the criteria of the IDEA act. It allows
individualized learning to help meet the needs
of each child. Helps support academic,
functional, and behavioral needs of the student.
SPED Eligibility- to be eligible for services, the
individual must show at least one of the 13
disabilities as defined on the IDEA act.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)The act that protects all students and their
families by setting standards for all children with
disabilities.
The act specifically says that all individuals are
entitled to:
1. Evaluation and Identification
2. Individualized Education Program and
Related Services
3. Placement
4. Funding
5. Procedural Safeguards

The thirteen disabilities under IDEA are:

1. Autism
2. Deaf-Blindness
3. Deafness
4. Emotional Disturbance
5. Hearing Impairment
6. Intellectual Disability
7. Multiple Disabilities
8. Orthopedic Impairment
9. Other Health Impairment
10. Specific Learning Disability
11. Speech of Language Impairment
12. Traumatic Brain Injury
13. Visual impairment including Blindness
For more information specifically on IDEA please consult
your SPED teacher or referring to this site:
http://idea.ed.gov/explore/home

Terms (continued)
Individualized Education Plan (IEP)- The specialized plan of current
achievement levels, placements, and goals developed by the IEP team.
IEP Team: The set of individuals chosen by the parents and school staff who
interact most with the child throughout their day and must know the IEP to
properly provide the education to the individual.
The team consists of:

The Parents
Special Education Teacher
General Education Teacher
Local Education Agency Representative (Typically the principle or
special education supervisor)
Interpreter of the Results (could be the SPED teacher, SPED supervisor,
or the LEA rep)
Specialist (if applicable) in disability area
The child (if appropriate)
Transition specialist (if the child is in high school)

Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)The federal regulation that establishes that all public educational
institutions must provide equal educational opportunities for all children,
even for children with disabilities.
Non-Discriminatory Evaluation- a fair assessment that allows the student to
take it at the appropriate academic level that is in the individuals native
language.
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act
(FERPA)- The act that protects a students academic records so only
authorized persons can see them.

Terms (continued)
Present Levels (of) Academic Achievement
(and) Functional Performance (PLAAFP)The part of the IEP that presents where the student is academically.
This includes if they have met goals or not and if any new
academic achievements have been reached.
Individualized Transition Plan (ITP)- The plan that normally starts in
high school, which allows the student information for appropriate
postsecondary options.
Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)- A plan established in an IEP that
allows all teachers, professionals, and parents to know the methods of intervening with difficult behaviors that
may be negatively effecting the childs education.
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)- A notion established under IDEA that states that any child with a disability
has the right to be educated along side of their peers in a general education classroom as long as it brings no
harm to peers or staff.

The Process:

Identification,
Assessment, and Evaluation.

This process can be stressful, but keep in mind that everyones intentions are to
provide the best education to your child!

Lets start by noting that you, as a parent, have the legal right to terminate
services when ever you feel necessary. It does not matter if an IEP is already in
place, services will be discontinued upon notification.

In those regards, if you feel you are having any troubles through this
process, or feel you are being treated unfairly, we strongly suggest you
notify us first! We just want what's best for your child
and if that means more meetings or a clean slate to
best accommodate to the student or the parents
wishes, we will do it!

We Promise!

Identification
1.

Starts with a concern from

a teacher or parent about if
additional support is
needed for the student to
succeed.

2.

A team of professionals at
the school consider if the
student should undergo a
more complete evaluation.

3.

Parental consent is
obtained before any more
evaluations may be given
(215).

Assessment
1.

Students are given an

individualized assessment that is
fair in regards to:

Native Language
Approximate difficulty
level (not to easy or hard)
Assessed in several ways to
provide the student to
accurately demonstrate
their knowledge
(215).

Evaluation
A team of professionals,
generally including:
an administrator

school psychologist
special education teacher
regular education teacher
consider the data and
compare to benchmarks at
that age level to determine if
the student is eligible under
IDEAs thirteen categories of
disabilities to receive services
(215).
(13 categories listed on slide 4)

Another view of The Process:

Identification:
1. Concern,
2. Professionals look into the case and
decide if the student need further
assessment
3. parental consent is obtained for
further evaluation

Assessment:
Data is collected from a
variety of fair assessments

Evaluation:
A team of professionals
determines if the student
qualifies for services
under IDEAs 13
categories of disabilities

Questions so far?

Common Questions:
Question:
What are some main laws
protecting our rights?
The top three laws to know about are:
The Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA)
This Act protects the rights of students and
their families in several important safe guards to set
standards that allow for a truly equal opportunity for
students with disabilities.
(Slide 4 on this presentation and page 2 of the SPED
Law Handbook)

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

This is a civil rights law written to further
protect all student rights who receive any services
that are federally funded.
(page 3 of the SPED Law Handbook)

No Child Left Behind (NCLB)

This law holds schools and districts
accountable for student progress and regulates
schools involvement in accountable assessment
and providing necessary resources for every child
to succeed.

We know the specific laws can be

confusing, so please refer to the SPED law
handbook we designed to explain these
and other laws in far more detail.

Question:
Why do we need an IEP?
An IEP (Individualized Education Program), is a legal
document designed to explain exactly what
services a student needs to succeed and why they
need those services.
It is written so any professional who has the student
(and access to the IEP) can fully understand their
program and what must be done to fully
accommodate all
Needs of the student.
Without an IEP, the
Process becomes difficult
And unorganized. The IEP
is used to fully commit to
a program and provide
the best education. It also
Is designed to keep
record and hold schools
accountable for lack of
services or support.

(continued) Common questions:

Question:

Question:

What if I disagree with the IEP team

on what is best for my child?

What about the more functional

skills my student needs to learn?

Parents have the right, under section 504 of

the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, to report any
unsatisfactory standards or rights that are
not being properly taken care of. If you feel
something should be reported, here are the
options:
1. Filing a grievance
2. Request a due process hearing
3. File a complaint to the OCR of the U.S.
Department of Education
4. File a suit in federal court
(119).
Of course, we as a school always strive to serve
our students the best we can, so we highly
encourage you to contact us first!

IEPs are designed to best support growth

academically and to support any
functional skills too. When considering
services, the IEP team may chose to write
both academic and functional goals
because it supports the childs ability to
function in any environment, not just the
academic one.
So if applicable in the case, the IEP will
certainly consider functional skills the
student needs everyday life.

(continued) Common questions:

Question:
What is my role, as a parent or
guardian, in all of the decisions?
Parents play the key role in all decision making.
Parental consent is needed before assessment
for services, before an IEP can be used, and has
the power to terminate services immediately.
Consider the team of professionals people who
offer ideas and opinions to best direct how the
child can be lead to success and you are the
director who says lets go for it or no, it isnt the
best yet.
You know your child better than anyone else, so
we value you as the key decision maker in this
process.

Question:
Who are paraprofessionals & aides
and how do they fit into providing
my child with the best education?
A paraprofessional, or commonly known as
classroom aide, are additional support staff
that are commonly used in the special
education setting to assist special education
teachers working with more than one student
with a disability. They are not teacher licensed
but are commonly written in on an IEP to show
how the paraprofessional will benefit and help
enhance the students ability in the
educational institution.

Useful Resources:

Here are some great resources to look through:

The Center For Parent

Information and Resources
This source serves as the new
portal for resources from the
National Dissemination Center for
Children with Disabilities site. It has
has everything from All about
the IEP to Parental Rights Under
IDEA
http://
www.parentcenterhub.org/
nichcy-resources/

U.S Department of
Education- IDEA 2004
This is an excellent resource that
is maintained by the
government in providing easy
to understand explanation of
IDEA and what the law protects
for the students /family. Also
has a great Q & A section on
IDEA.
http://idea.ed.gov

Minnesota Department
of Education
Knowing state specific laws
is important in truly
understanding exactly what
laws are used in the state in
regards to Special
Education.
http://
education.state.mn.us/
MDE/SchSup/ComplAssist/
SpecEducLaw/

Apps for Children with

Special Needs

Special Education Guide

Have an smart device? This

site is wonderful for giving
parents and teachers ideas
of awesome educational
apps to keep the kids
entertained and constantly
learning!

This source is great because it is a

collection of other accredited sources.
Opens so many doors to explore!

http://a4cwsn.com

http://
www.specialeducationguide.com/prek-12/tools-and-research/support-andresources-for-parents-and-teachers/

FCSN: Federation for

Children with
Special Needs
A great source to
empower parents with
relevant information to
help them reach their
student, and work with the
school on best education
program.

http://fcsn.org

Questions?
If not, we are always here
when they come up! Here is
our contact information.
Elizabeth Lempola, SPED
Teacher, (123) 456- 7890
lempolael@mnstate.edu

Resource used:

Yell, M. L. (2012). The law and

special education. Upper
Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson.