Robin Ayers; SPE 3300; Focused Listing Study Guide

Special Education Procedures and Services

IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

○ F.A.P.E.: Free and Appropriate Public Education for every child with a disability
○ Least-Restrictive Environment (LRE):
■ Setting where the student with disabilities can succeed, which is most like
the setting for students without disabilities
■ Can be changed with parental permission
○ IEP: Individualized Education Plan
○ Appropriate evaluation
○ Who is eligible for special education?
■ Children with disabilities (according to IDEA) and state and local policies
■ Disability
● Autism spectrum disorder, Deafness, Deaf-blindness, Hearing
impairment, Intellectual disabilities, Multiple disabilities,
Orthopedic impairment
■ Disabilities:
● Other health impairments, serious emotional disturbance, specific
learning disability, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain
injury, visual impairment (including blindness)
■ The evaluation process:
● Review existing information; is new formation needed; collecting
more information (written permission); make IEP; review progress
made based on IEP; update and change the IEP.
○ How are the parents involved?
■ Active decision making about their children
■ Written permission for individual assessments, IEPs, RtI, and MTSS
○ How are the students individually assessed?
■ IQ tests, individual academic achievement, and social and behavioral
skills
■ Social and developmental history
■ Observations in the classroom
■ The general educators conduct the individual assessments.
● Prereferral Team:
○ General educators, special services personnel, and an administrator
○ MUST-HAVES: completed information form and problem-solving between all
team members
● Response to Intervention:
○ The identification of learning disabilities based on whether student learning
improves or fails to improve after the student receives interventions
Robin Ayers; SPE 3300; Focused Listing Study Guide

○ HAS: frequency, duration, location, and types of interventions; group size and the
individual implementing the intervention
● Multi-tiered Systems of Support:
○ It is tiered interventions that support academic growth, behavior, social and
emotional needs, and limit absenteeism early in the school year.
○ General educators conduct the prereferral activities (group or individual).
○ The parents should be notified to help gather data.
○ A multi-disciplinary team is formed, which included the parents, educators,
counselors, psychologists, and other specialists. (Student-Support Team)
■ They use evidence-based strategies during every tier.
○ It increases teacher effectiveness, according to ESSA (Every Student Succeeds
Act).
○ Tiers: the whole class, small group interventions, and intensive individualized
support
● How are the RtI and MTSS combined?
○ MTSS might include the three tiers of RtI.
● How is it decided if a student needs special education services?
○ Is the student legally able to be categorized as having a disability?
○ Does it affect their education?
○ Are they eligible to receive special education services?
○ Where will the student receive the services?
○ The parents MUST CONSENT to the services recorded in the IEP.
● Why is the student’s progress monitored?
○ To keep the education appropriate
○ Resolve disputes between the school district personnel and the parents
■ Due Process begins when the prereferral team is formed
○ How: annual reviews (IEP is changed/updated as needed), 3-year reviews (have
needs changed), whenever progress is not made, and in-progress reports (every
6-9 weeks)
● Individual Education Program: established in 1975 by Public Law 94-142
○ It outlines all areas of needs, accommodations, services, and supports.
○ It documents all of the student’s progress.
○ Base-line components:
■ Level of academic achievement, social skills, behavior skills, and
communication skills
■ Information collected from the individual assessments and MTSS and RtI
■ Test scores, teacher ratings, and summaries and of assessments
■ How do the student’s disabilities affect their involvement in the general
education curriculum?
■ Types of goals:
● Annual:
○ can be used in all academic and elective courses
○ Must be measurable and have specialized needs.
Robin Ayers; SPE 3300; Focused Listing Study Guide

○ can help improve classroom behavior, social skills, and

adaptive skills
● Short-term objectives:
○ Description of steps needed to achieve an annual goal
○ Not required of all students (determined by state policies)
○ Only for students with significant intellectual disabilities
○ Other components:
■ Must be aligned with the grade-level curriculum
■ Measurable and needs to specify the conditions under which the student
will perform the activities
■ What is the level of mastery?
■ A justification for why a student is placed anywhere except for general
education (required).
■ Why can a student not participate in certain activities?
■ What services are needed? (including accommodations and
modifications)
■ Does the student need test accommodations? (ESSA)
■ Indication of who’s responsible for providing the services and
accommodations
■ Start dates
■ Frequency and duration
■ Clarification of how to measure the student’s progress
■ How will the parents be regularly informed?
■ Functional assessment of the student’s behavior
■ Binding signature of all individuals participating in the development,
including the parent/guardian
○ Transition to Work and College: 16+ years old
■ Annual participation of professionals outside of school
■ Inclusions:
● College: improving study skills, exploration of universities and
services, completion of high school requirements
● Work: reading employment ads, filling out job applications,
punctuality, respect towards authority and customers
○ Value: It clarifies expectations. It helps to understand student needs and types of
services needed and expects a review to be made for updates and changes.
○ Types of Services:
■ Special education: special education teacher and simplified curriculum
aligned with standard curriculum
■ Related services: speech therapy, transportation, physical and
occupational therapy, adapted physical education, counseling,
psychological services, and social work
■ Supplementary aids and services: material written at a different level,
reformatting of material, peer or paraprofessional support, assistive
technology
Robin Ayers; SPE 3300; Focused Listing Study Guide

● Special professional development for teachers: funded by ESSA

to help teachers use MTSS.
● 504 plan: An IEP, but serves K-12 and college-level students