Introduction to Special Education Taylor-White Elementary School Parenting Day 2014

What is Special Education? A broad term used by the law to describe specially designed instruction that meets the unique needs of a child who has a disability

What is the Goal of Special Education? Special education makes it possible for a child to achieve academic success in the least restrictive environment despite his/her disability.

IDEA The federal law governing the system is called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act or IDEA. IDEA entitles all children with disabilities to a free appropriate education.

Categories There are 13 categories of special education. In order to qualify for special education, the IEP team must determine that a child has one of the following:

1. Autism A developmental disability that significantly affects verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction evident before age three.

2. Developmental Delay A child becomes eligible for this area of disability on his/her third birthday if there is a significant delay in one or more of the following areas: Adaptive development Cognitive development Communication development Social or emotional development Physical development

3. Deaf-Blindness Concomitant hearing and visual impairment

4. Emotional Disability A disability characterized by behavioral or emotional responses exhibited over a long period of time and to a marked degree.

5. Hearing Impairment An impairment in hearing includes both deaf and hard-of-hearing children

6. Intellectual Disability Significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior.

7. Multiple Disabilities Concomitant impairments

8. Orthopedic Impairment Characterized by impairment caused by congenital abnormality (e.g., spina bifida), disease (e.g., bone tuberculosis), and impairments from other causes (e.g., fractures or burns that cause contractures, amputation, cerebral palsy).

9. Other Health Impairment Characterized by limited strength, vitality, or alertness due to chronic or acute health problems such as a heart condition, tuberculosis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, epilepsy, leukemia, attention deficit disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or diabetes.

10. Specific Learning Disability Children with specific learning disabilities will demonstrate a severe discrepancy between intellectual ability and achievement in one or more of the following areas: basic reading skills, reading comprehension, mathematical calculation, mathematical reasoning, oral expression, listening comprehension, or written expression.

11. Speech and Language Impairment Characterized by communication disorder in the area of: articulation, voice, fluency, or language

12. Traumatic Brain Injury Traumatic Brain Injury means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force, resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment or both

13. Visual Impairment An impairment in vision includes partial sight and blindness

ADVERSE AFFECT In order for the IEP team to QUALIFY a child for services, he or she must be found to have one of the 13 categories of special education and it MUST adversely affect educational performance. A medical diagnosis alone is not enough to justify being identified!

How Do I Get Started?

The IEP Referral An IEP referral can be initiated by Taylor-White’s Problem Solving Team, a parent, teacher or other school personnel. If you suspect that your child has a learning disability and after attempting interventions, he or she continues to struggle both at school and at home, you should refer your child for an evaluation.

How Do I Make an IEP Referral? The IEP referral should be done in writing and it should be dated, signed, and copied. Submit it directly to the principal, Special Education LEA or to your child’s teacher.

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