Special Education, Strategies, and You Supporting your client in the school environment

Goals of this session: 1. Participants will develop an understanding of Indiana Article 7 Special Education Law and how to apply it to their students/clients. 2. Participants will develop strategies to support students with an IEP, 504, and/or in general education in regards to behavior. 3. Participants will develop strategies to support students' mental health needs in a school setting.

Jennifer R. McNeany, Ed.S., NCSP Mother of five children Nationally Certified School Psychologist Currently assigned to assist children transitioning from First Steps to preschool, and students enrolled in preschool through grade five Former classroom teacher Former adult literacy coordinator Currently employed by Four County Counseling to work at Kokomo School Corporation as a school psychologist I AM NOT A LAWYER

How Does a 504 Differ From an IEP? IEP (Individualized Education Plan) How a student accesses learning A specialized learning plan for a specific child Changes are made the general education setting to meet the needs of the student Special education resources provided to meet the unique needs of the student Student has any medical diagnosis or need that requires him/her to need assistance to access the learning environment successfully Student must qualify for one or more of the 13 specific disabilities identified in Article 7 Disability must have an educational impact Typically identifies the accommodations, supports, or services for the student, who will provide the service, and who will ensure the plan is being implemented IEP must include Here are some of the most important things the IEP must include: present levels of the student, an annual goal, time of the service (when, how often, how long), the accommodations, any modifications, how the student will participate in standardized testing, and how the student will participate in the general education setting

What is Article 7?

Article 7 Indiana’s rules and regulations about implementing the requirements from the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA ‘04). 16 rules that address the following: Definitions - IEP’s Programs and personnel - Related Service Disability categories and eligibility - Services to students in nonpublic schools Evaluations - Discipline Timelines - Child count Case Conference Committee Meetings - Funding

Categories Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) Blind or low vision Cognitive disability (CD) Deaf or hard of hearing Deaf-blind Developmental delay (DD) Emotional disability (ED) Language or speech impairment (LI or SI) Multiple disabilities Other health impairment (OHI) Orthopedic impairment (OI) Specific learning disability (SLD) Traumatic brain injury (TBI)

Special Education Categories, and What is Required

Other Health Impairment Other Health Impairment (OHI) – medical documentation of a chronic or acute health problem that ADVERSELY AFFECTS a student’s academic performance.

Specific Learning Disability Specific Learning Disability (SLD) – Reading, Math, Written Expression, Oral Expression (Expressive Language), and/or Listening Comprehension (Receptive Language) Dyslexia also falls under this category

Cognitive Disability Cognitive Disability (CD)- Mild cognitive disability falls 2 standard deviations below the mean Moderate cognitive disability falls 3 standard deviations below the mean Severe cognitive disability falls four or more standard deviations below the mean. Must manifest during development, adversely affects student’s academic performance, limitations in adaptive behavior.

Emotional Disability Emotional Disability (ED)- One or more of the following over a long period of time and to a degree that affects educational performance: Physical symptoms or fears about personal or school problems Pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression Inability to build or maintain healthy relationships Inappropriate behaviors or feelings Episodes of psychosis

Autism Spectrum Disorder Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)- Disability is generally evident before three (3) years of age and significantly affects verbal, nonverbal, or pragmatic communication and social interaction skills and results in an adverse effect on the student's educational performance. Other characteristics often associated include the following: Engagement in: repetitive activities and/or stereotyped movements Resistance to: environmental change and/or change in daily routines Unusual responses to sensory experiences

Information Gathered for Evaluations Attendance Social and Developmental History Medical Information Current Academic Performance Rating Scales Academic Assessment Progress Monitoring (Behavior and/or Academic) Observations Cognitive Assessment (not always) Functional Behavior Analysis (If behavior is noted as impacting a child’s ability to function in the classroom envirmonment)

Evaluation Process Normally needs to be completed within 50 school days Information gathered from parents, classroom teachers, students, doctors, therapists, student file Case Conference Committee gathers to review data collected, and as A WHOLE committee determines if the information supports a student qualifying for special education services according to Indiana Article 7.

Response to Intervention (RTI) or Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS)

What is the difference between Differentiated Instruction and RTI/MTSS?

Differentiated Instruction Teaching the same skill in multiple ways for students. Complements RTI/MTSS

RTI/MTSS- Data driven, evidenced based Retrieved from: https://www.pbis.org/school/mtss

What should RTI/MTSS data include? Who? -The person responsible for implementing the intervention When? - Days, times How often? Number of times in a day/week. How long? Number minutes. Number of weeks. What is the skill being addressed? SPECIFIC skill should be named. What is the evidence-based intervention being used? When is it being progressed monitored? What is the data?

What is an FBA and a BIP? FBA Functional Behavior Analysis What specific behavior needs to be replaced? What is the function of the behavior? Where and when does the behavior occur? Are there triggers? BIP Behavior Intervention Plan A plan to teach the student positive behaviors to replace negative behaviors. Identifies who will teach the skill and how. States how the behavior plan will be monitored.

Practice-How can these statements be improved to get results? Client is not cooperative in the classroom. Client is having behavior issues. Client is not able to interact with peers appropriately. Client does not want to participate in classroom activities. Parents have expressed they want their child to do better in school. Teacher states child has behaviors that get in the way of learning. Client needs support to do better in school. Client will have skill practice to interact better with peers. Client needs time out of the class to do better. Client is not able to do any of the classroom work.

What is my role? Advocate for your client/student Present data from the support you have been providing Be the link between school and home Meet with school staff to understand the options available to your client/student and his/her family Attend meetings so your client has a voice at the table Document behaviors you observe when you are with your client in the school environment Assist teacher and client to form a positive relationship

Tools/Strategies-See handouts Is this impacting my client’s ability to function the same as his/her same age peers? What impact is this having (specific and observable behaviors)? What strategies/resources are currently being utilized? Are these strategies/resources working? What can I do to support the teacher and client? Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) Depression Anxiety

Questions/Comments

References American Psychiatric Association: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Association, 2013. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Design. (2015). Differentiation_is-isnot_infographic.pdf. Available at: http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/siteASCD/publications/Differentiation_Is-IsNot_infographic.pdf [Accessed 31 May 2018]. Dawson, P., & Guare, R. (2018). Executive skills in children and adolescents: A practical guide to assessment and intervention. New York: Guilford Press. Doe.in.gov. (2018). Article 7 | IDOE. [online] Available at: https://www.doe.in.gov/tags/article-7 [Accessed 19 Mar. 2018]. Sprick, R. (2012). Teacher’s encyclopedia of behavior management. Oregon: Pacific Northwest Publishing.