Megan Faust, Ed.S.

Warm-up activity Work in groups to try to decipher the reading passage on your tables!

IDEA v. §504 Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004) Reauthorization of U.S. Department of Education regulations governing the education of preK-12 learners with disabilities through age 22 §504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Guarantees reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities Administered by the HHS Office of Civil Rights

Exceptional Student Education Students identified through Early Intervention Services or the PS-RtI process as being suspected of having an educational disability Referred for a psycho-educational evaluation (not a psychological evaluation) Eligibility requirements (not diagnosis) differ depending upon suspected educational disability Eligible learners must be educated in the Least Restrictive Environment (i.e. maximizing access to the general education curriculum with same-age peers)

ESE Alphabet Soup C = Orthopedically Impaired These students may have obvious physical disabilities, such as being confined to a wheelchair, or less obvious disabilities, such as celiac disease.

ESE Alphabet Soup D = Occupational Therapy Occupational Therapy (“OT”) is a related ESE service that addresses fine and gross motor deficits as well as activities of daily living.

ESE Alphabet Soup E = Physical Therapy Physical Therapy (“PT”) is a related ESE service that addresses a learner’s ability to physically access the school and curriculum as independently as possible.

ESE Alphabet Soup F = Speech Impaired Speech impaired learners participate in some sort of speech therapy to address concerns regarding fluency and intelligibility.

ESE Alphabet Soup G = Language Impaired Language impaired learners participate in some sort of language therapy to address concerns regarding oral communication that adversely affect the learner’s academic, social, emotional, or vocational development.

ESE Alphabet Soup H = Hearing Impaired Hearing impaired learners may participate in assistive technology trials to enhance their access to instruction. They also may benefit from consultation with specialists.

ESE Alphabet Soup I = Visually Impaired Visually impaired students typically participate in assistive technology trials to enhance their access to curriculum and instruction, orientation and mobility training to enhance independent movement at school, and instruction in learning and using Braille (if necessary).

ESE Alphabet Soup J = Emotional/Behavioral Disabilities Emotionally or behaviorally disabled learners exhibit severe, chronic, and frequent abhorrent or atypical emotional or behavioral functioning that is seriously detrimental to the learning environment.

ESE Alphabet Soup J = Emotional/Behavioral Disabilities Emotionally or behaviorally disabled learners frequently have highly inappropriate responses to normal stimuli. They might or might not have mental health diagnoses as well.

ESE Alphabet Soup K = Specific Learning Disabilites Learning disabled students have learning profiles that suggest difficulties with perception, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia that significantly impair reading, writing, and mathematics.

ESE Alphabet Soup K = Specific Learning Disabilites Learning disabled students have average ( ) IQ’s. The impact of a learning disability also falls within a range Mild effect – can usually master grade level content with accommodations Moderate effect – can likely master grade level content with accommodations Severe effect – might never master grade level content even with accommodations

ESE Alphabet Soup L = Gifted Gifted learners enjoy intellectually challenging and creative activities and acquire concepts quickly.

ESE Alphabet Soup M = Hospital/Homebound Students temporarily confined to the hospital or the home due to medical or psychological concerns may qualify for instruction in the hospital or home for the duration of their absence.

ESE Alphabet Soup P = Autism Spectrum Disorder ASD falls anywhere on the spectrum between Asperger Syndrome and severe autism.

ESE Alphabet Soup T = Developmentally Delayed Cognitive, social/emotional, and speech/language developmental delays are seen in children under the age of 5 years.

ESE Alphabet Soup W = Intellectual Disability A learner with an intellectual disability generally performs far below grade level in all or most academic areas due to a significantly low IQ.

What is the purpose of an IEP? Most common exceptionalities in K-12 K-Specific Learning Disabled F-Speech Impaired G-Language Impaired J-Emotional/Behavior Disability

What is the purpose of an IEP? To identify the learner as a student with a disability (SWD) who requires specialized instruction To identify stakeholders in the learner’s education, including regular and exceptional education teachers, related service providers, and parents To describe the type and frequency of ESE services (the “specialized instruction”) To describe the type and frequency of Related and Supplementary services (e.g. “Counseling,” “Occupational Therapy,” or “Continuous Supervision”)

What is the purpose of an IEP? To describe meaningful, measurable annual goals directly related to the identified disability or related service area Not necessarily equivalent to classroom or curricular goals To describe the extent to which the SWD will be removed from activities with non-disabled peers (the “Least Restrictive Environment”) To describe the type, frequency, and location of classroom, curricular, and assessment accommodations

Accommodations v. Modifications AccommodationsModifications Changes to the learning environment, instructional materials, and/or instructional delivery Changes to the actual curriculum (what the student should know and be able to do) Level out the playing fieldReduced expectations for content mastery Assistive TechnologyAlways below grade level Can occur during standardized testing Assessed using alternate assessment methods For ESE as well as ELL and §504 plan-eligibilities For ESE only Applicable to all eligibilitiesIn FL, generally applicable to InD and ASD only

What is the Least Restrictive Environment? “Placement” = time with non-disabled peers >80% of the schoolday >40%<79% <39% Other... “Inclusion” = maximum LRE placement Lawsuits are won and lost over procedural errors frequently involving IEP team placement decisions! This includes decisions regarding discipline of SWD!

The take-away... SWD are not going anywhere. We are ethically and legally obligated to educate SWD. Discipline of SWD is tricky (that’s a whole other discussion). IEPs are not magic bullets. Some SWD can learn to overcome their disabilities such that they qualify for dismissal from ESE. Some SWD cannot but can be taught learning strategies to accommodate themselves.

Additional resources