SPECIAL EDUCATION SUPPORT SERVICES

Special Education

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What is Special Education?

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is a law that makes available a free and appropriate public education to eligible children with disabilities throughout the nation and ensures special education and related services to those children.

If your child is struggling in general education, refer to the corresponding page- Struggling Student. This page is dedicated to helping parents understand what happens once a child is suspected of having a disability, as well as when the child is identified as eligible for special education and an Individualized Education Plan is developed.

Evaluations

A child should be evaluated in the domains/areas of concern. The team will meet at the Domain Meeting/Identification Meeting to discuss the different areas. Below are possible areas of discussion and testing that may be recommended. There are other evaluations that may be included as well.

When invited to this initial meeting, be prepared to share your concerns in these areas and be prepared to hear about areas where your child may struggle. Listening to the concerns may be difficult but try to remember that identifying the concerns is the first step in problem-solving. The team members are there to collaborate and help identify ways to support the child.

As a parent, your consent is legally needed to proceed with evaluations. Even if you are hesitant about special education, having the information collected from the evaluations will help to guide the decision-making process of how to help your child.

****Provide copies of any outside testing or medical reports to the school prior to this meeting to allow the team members time to review and consider the information.

****At times, physicians or outside providers will write scripts or recommendations for eligibility and/or programming. Example: Child X needs an IEP or Child Y should be provided a specific reading curriculum. While the team may take this information into consideration, all decisions are driven by the law and decided by the team.

Possible types of evaluations-

  • Academic- Achievement Testing may be required to assess reading, math, written expression, and/or oral language
  • Functional- Adaptive scales
  • Executive Functioning- Executive Functioning Scales
  • Cognitive- Cognitive testing to assess abilities in different areas
  • Health- Developmental history and medical history from the parent and/or Physician
  • Hearing/Vision- Hearing or Vision Screening from the nurse
  • Communication- Articulation tests, Language tests
  • Fine Motor Skills- Tests of fine motor skills, visual motor integration, sensory integration
  • Gross Motor Skills- Tests of gross motor skills, core strength, etc.
  • Social Skills- Rating Scales, Observations
  • Behavior- Rating Scales, Observations, Data Collection
  • Emotional- Rating Scales
  • Auditory Processing- Standardized batteries

Special Education is NOT Extra Help

Just because a child is struggling in school does not mean that they are disabled. Every child has strengths and weaknesses and every child learns information at different rates.

There are multiple ways in which children are identified for special education. The eligibility classifications/categories differ from state to state. The criteria for the categories differ as well. Below is a general overview of common categories among states. For specific information on the eligibility categories within your state and the state guidelines for criteria, you would need to research further. *It is important to note that since states have different criteria, it is possible that a child may no longer qualify for services if the IEP transitions from state to state. Prior research would be helpful.

Common Eligibility Categories:

  • Preschool Child with a Disability
  • Developmental Delay
  • Specific Learning Disability
    • Oral Expression
    • Listening Comprehension
    • Basic Reading Skills
    • Reading Fluency
    • Reading Comprehension
    • Math Calculation/ Computation
    • Math Problem-Solving/ Reasoning
    • Written Expression
  • Communication Impairment
  • Speech or Language Impairment
  • Emotional Disability/ Emotional Disturbance
  • Social Maladjustment
  • Other Health Impairment
  • Visual Impairment
  • Orthopedic Impairment
  • Deaf/ Hard of Hearing
  • Autistic
  • Intellectual Disability
  • Multiply Disabled
  • Traumatic Brain Injury

**Children may be identified in more than one area

Considerations when discussing eligibility

  • Does the child meet state eligibility as having a disability?
  • Is the child’s performance discrepant from peers?
    • i.e. if your child’s cognitive abilities are within the Superior Range but they are performing within the Average Range (90-110) academically, they are performing on level with their peers
  • Does the child require specialized instruction beyond what can be provided in general education with tiered interventions?
    • i.e. the goal is to keep children in general education so that they are exposed to higher level discussions on the materials with their peers. If interventions can be implemented within that setting, that should be the proposed action.
  • Other considerations:
    • Is the lack of progress due to lack of instruction or exposure?
      • i.e. students who have a lot of absences, missed school in the past
    • Is the lack of progress due to limited English proficiency?
    • Is the child performing commensurate with their cognitive abilities?
      • i.e. if your child’s cognitive abilities are within the Very Low Range (70s) and their academic skills are within the Very Low Range (70s), they would not be identified as having a Specific Learning Disability.

What is an IEP?

An IEP is an Individualized Education Plan. It is a legal document between the school district and the legal guardians of the child outlining ways to help the child progress.

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) is the requirement in federal law that students with disabilities receive their education, to the maximum extent appropriate, with nondisabled peers and that special education students are not removed from regular classes unless, even with supplemental aids and services, education in regular classes cannot be achieved satisfactorily. [20 United States Code (U.S.C.) Sec. 1412(a)(5)(A); 34 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) Sec. 300.114.]

Special Education Continuum of Services

  • Programming within an IEP is driven by the student’s needs
  • Programming in nonpublic schools may be limited and the school does not have to legally follow the proposed plan
  • Special Education is a continuum of different levels of support
    • General Education with modifications and accommodations
    • General Education with paraprofessional/ aide support
    • Inclusion/ Co-teaching- General Education setting with Special Education Teacher
    • Pull-out Replacement/ Resource Room- Removal from general education for specific areas that require targeted instruction
    • Self-Contained Setting- Removal from general education for a more supportive program to meet a child’s comprehensive needs for a larger portion of the day
    • Specialized Program at an Out of District School- Removal from the home school environment for an increased level of support
    • Residential Program- A highly specialized program for the student to receive around the clock support

Additionally, a child may qualify for related services including but not limited to:

  • Speech Therapy- targeting articulation of sounds
  • Language Therapy- targeting receptive language (processing incoming information) and expressive language (assistance with organizing thoughts in a cohesive manner to clearly explain one’s thoughts, wants, and needs)
  • Occupational Therapy- targeting fine motor skills such as handwriting, cutting, zippering
  • Physical Therapy- targeting gross motor skills such as running, jumping, balance
  • Counseling- targeting ways to regulate emotions and behaviors
  • Social Skills- targeting reading and responding to social interactions
  • Applied Behavior Analysis- targeting shaping behaviors
  • Paraprofessional/ Aide Support- adult assistance for part or all of the school day
  • Specialized Transportation- transportation needs that extend beyond travelling to and from the home school
  • Extended School Year- summer programming provided for a small percentage of special education students where there is data to indicate that the child cannot recoup summer regression within the first fifty days of the next school year

If your child has been identified as having a disability, there will be different ways progress monitoring is delivered.

  • Goals and Objectives- Specific goals are developed for the calendar year with specified objectives to master toward each goal. Parents receive copies of the progress monitoring throughout the year.
  • Annual Review- The team meets to review the IEP, update programming and supports for the following year, and develop new goals and objectives
  • Reevaluation- The team considers the need for updated information to reestablish eligibility and/or make data-driven decisions for the IEP. This occurs every three years. 
  • The team may reconvene at any time to discuss concerns and propose changes to the IEP.
    • The supports may need to be increased to more restrictive
    • The supports may need to be decreased to less restrictive

Can I reject special education?

The simple answer is ‘yes’. A parent can write a letter at any time in the process to stop services. However, it is STRONGLY RECOMMENDED to consider the team’s input regarding the child’s strengths and needs to make an informed decision. If a child is receiving special education supports and then all is removed, the child is set up for failure. The child is the one who suffers. If you are upset with the process or a specific team member, you should seek assistance from the case manager or the district special education supervisor to help mediate the issue and problem-solve.

For more information on your parental rights, request a copy of the procedural safeguards for your state, if one has not yet been provided to you.

****Most importantly, try to remember that your child has strengths and weaknesses, just like everyone else. They are not broken. While your child may be struggling in a certain area, your child will learn compensatory strategies and will progress. Slow progress is still progress. Over time, you will look back and see just how far they have come and be thankful for all of their supports through the years.

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