Presented at the Fulbright Classroom Teacher Exchange, October 2009. - Brief historical overview of societal attitudes towards disability and special education. - 10 Basic Steps in the special education process - Effective practices - Resources (OSEP TA&D Network; NDC/NICHCY)

1. Special Education in the U.S. “Understanding the special needs student and how to reach him/her” Stephen D. Luke, Ed.D.Director, National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NDC/NICHCY) FULBRIGHT CLASSROOM TEACHER EXCHANGE PROGRAM IN-SERVICE WORKSHOP – Portland, OR October 3, 2009

2. Special Education in the U.S. OUTLINE Brief Historical Overview 10 Basic Steps Effective Practices Resources Introduction to OSEP TA&D Overview of NDC/NICHCY

3. 1. Brief Historical Overview Brief Historical Overview

4. Brief Historical Overview EARLY DISABILITY-RELATED LEGISLATION 1798, first federal law past concerning the care of persons with disabilities.

5. Brief Historical Overview EARLY ATTENTION TO SPECIAL EDUCATION Rhode Island opened the first public special education class in the U.S. in 1896.

6. Brief Historical Overview INSTITUTIONAL CONTROL As was typical of this and previous eras, most people with disabilities were sent to live in institutions of the state.

7. Brief Historical Overview PROTECTING SOCIETY A popular textbook from the 1930’s stated that control and confinement of people with disabilities was necessary to protect society.

8. Brief Historical Overview SOCIETAL SHIFTS ABROAD The concept of “normalization,” or mainstreaming, takes root in Denmark in the 1950’s.

9. Brief Historical Overview COORDINATED ADVOCACY MOVEMENT GAINS STEAM Eunice Kennedy Shriver’s article discussing her sister Rose’s mental retardation and corresponding lobotomy.

10. Brief Historical Overview A CHANCE FOR GLOBAL RECOGNITION 1968: Special Olympics first take place in Chicago.

11. Brief Historical Overview FEDERAL INITIATIVES SPUR FURTHER REFORM Here John F. Kennedy approves the formation of the President’s Panel on Mental Retardation.

12. Brief Historical Overview THEY HAD A DREAM Inspired by the broader Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s, people with disabilities and their families ushered in an era of self-advocacy and protest.

13. Brief Historical Overview AN ERA OF SELF-ADVOCACY HereJudy Huemannspeaks with reporters about the newly authorized Rehabilitation Act in 1973.

14. Brief Historical Overview HOLLYWOOD SHINES ITS LIGHT The Academy Award win One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest helped to shine a bright light on the horrors of institutionalization.

15. Brief Historical Overview LANDMARK EDUCATION LEGISLATION In 1975, Education of the Handicapped Act (EHA), Public Law (P.L.) 94-142 was passed. It has since been reauthorized in 1997 & 2004, and together with the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), renamed the "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) Act of 2001 have dramatically raised expectations and accountability surrounding the education of children with disabilities.

16. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education 2. TEN Basic Steps in Special Education

17. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education STEP 1. IDENTIFICATION Step 1. Child is identified as possibly needing special education and related services. Child Find - Each state is required by IDEA to identify, locate, and evaluate all children with disabilities in the state who need special education and related services. Referral or request for evaluation - A school professional may ask that a child be evaluated to see if he or she has a disability. Parents may also contact the child’s teacher or other school professional to ask that their child be evaluated. This request may be verbal, but it's best to put it in writing. Parental consent is needed before a child may be evaluated. Under the federal IDEA regulations, evaluation needs to be completed within 60 days after the parent gives consent. However, if a State's IDEA regulations give a different timeline for completion of the evaluation, the State's timeline is applied.

18. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education STEP 2. EVALUATION Step 2. Child is evaluated. Evaluation is an essential early step in the special education process for a child. It's intended to answer these questions: Does the child have a disability that requires the provision of special education and related services? What are the child’s specific educational needs? What special education services and related services, then, are appropriate for addressing those needs?

19. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education STEP 3. ELIGIBILITY IS DECIDED Step 3. Eligibility is decided. A group of qualified professionals and the parents look at the child’s evaluation results. Together, they decide if the child is a "child with a disability," as defined by IDEA. If the parents do not agree with the eligibility decision, they may ask for a hearing to challenge the decision.

20. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education STEP 4. CHILD IS FOUND ELIGIBLE FOR SERVICES Step 4. Child is found eligible for services. If the child is found to be a child with a disability, as defined by IDEA, he or she is eligible for special education and related services. Within 30 calendar days after a child is determined eligible, the IEP team must meet to write an IEP for the child.

22. notify parents early enough to make sure they have an opportunity to attend;

23. schedule the meeting at a time and place agreeable to parents and the school;

24. tell the parents the purpose, time, and location of the meeting;

25. tell the parents who will be attending; and

27. Before the school system may provide special education and related services to the child for the first time, the parents must give consent. The child begins to receive services as soon as possible after the IEP is written and this consent is given.

31. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education STEP 10. CHILD IS REEVALUATED Step 10. Child is reevaluated. At least every three years the child must be reevaluated. This evaluation is often called a "triennial." Its purpose is to find out if the child continues to be a child with a disability, as defined by IDEA, and what the child’s educational needs are. However, the child must be reevaluated more often if conditions warrant or if the child’s parent or teacher asks for a new evaluation.

32. 10 Basic Steps in Special Education 2 IMPORTANT TERMS FAPE: “Free and Appropriate Public Education.” States must make available to all children with eligible disabilities. LRE: “Least Restrictive Environment.” Children with disabilities must be educated with children without disabilities to the maximum extent possible. “Mainstreaming” and “Inclusion” are two terms associated with this concept.

33. 3. Effective Practices Effective Practices

35. Administered at a steady-pace

36. Active teacher modeling

37. Group & individual response

39. Most effective for high school students and adults.

41. http://www.specialconnections.ku.edu/cgi-bin/cgiwrap/specconn/main.php?cat=instruction§ion=main&subsection=di/main

42. The National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI) is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to providing school districts with a solid training program and approach for the implementation of DI in districts, schools and classrooms.

43. http://www.nifdi.org/

44. Visit New Horizons for Learning for "An Overview of Direct Instruction".

46. Effective Practices EMBEDDING STRATEGY INSTRUCTION What it looks like for students: Students are introduced to a range of learning strategies designed to develop literacy skills across an entire curriculum. What it looks like for teachers: Teachers first teach a variety of learning strategies directly to students and then embed further strategy instruction when presenting core content. Teachers continue to prompt and model appropriate strategy use and provide opportunities for individual and group practice throughout the year.

47. Effective Practices STRATEGY INSTRUCTION - EXAMPLE At the start of the school year the teacher explains that being able to paraphrase information about the American Revolution is useful for writing reports, answering questions, and discussing main themes. The teacher then outlines the steps of the Paraphrasing Strategy and models its use for the class. Classroom activities and homework assignments are designed which require students to use paraphrasing strategies, both verbally and in written form. Targeted feedback is given to tailor and encourage strategy use.

49. The The University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning:http://www.ku-crl.org/sim/strategies.shtml

51. Resources ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: U.S. Department of Education

52. Resources ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE: OSERS }

53. Resources The “Placemat” http://spp-apr-calendar.rrfcnetwork.org/getfile/view/id/658

55. IDEA, which is the law authorizing special education,

56. No Child Left Behind (as it relates to children with disabilities), and

58. Your Child's Evaluation

59. Categories of Disability under IDEA

60. Developing Your Child's IEPAs for what's new, new, new: We're pleased to launch a Q&A series on IDEA, with two opening offerings: Purposes and Key Definitions and Parent Participation. Do come help yourself!

61. Resources MONTHLY NEWSLETTER: NEWS YOU CAN USE 8,800+ subscribers can’t be wrong! Sign up to receive NDC/NICHCY’s monthly News You Can Use at: www.nichcy.org

62. Resources NDC WEBSITE

63. Resources ‘member this? http://spp-apr-calendar.rrfcnetwork.org/getfile/view/id/658

64. Resources NDC/NICHCY Search

65. Resources TA&D’s

66. Resources NDC Search- Filtered Results By Project

67. Resources NDC Search- Filtered Results By Type

68. Resources NICHCY on FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/nichcy

69. Resources NICHCY on TWITTER http://twitter.com/drnichcy

70. THANK YOU! Stephen D. Luke, Ed.D. sluke@aed.org www.nichcy.org www.facebook.com/nichcy www.twitter.com/DrNICHCY www.linkedin.com/stephenluke