Transportation Costs of Special Education

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed., MLIS

Kids on School Bus — Image by © Royalty-Free/Corbis

When the federal government passed legislation for IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act – Public Law 94-142) they knew they were laying the groundwork for an enormous sea change in the way schools would manage their special education services. They could not have accurately estimated the enormous bureaucracy and costs to school districts that would follow.

The law consists of four parts:

• Part A lays out the basic foundation for the rest of the act
• Part B lays out the educational guidelines for school children 3-21 years of age
• Part C recognizes the need for identifying and reaching very young children with disabilities
• Part D describes national activities to be undertaken to improve the education of children with disabilities

The devil is in the details, and IDEA Part B Regulations: 34 CFR 300.16(b)(14) is where the details live. For example, transportation includes “travel to and from school and between schools, travel in and around school buildings,” and “specialized equipment (such as special or adapted buses, lifts and ramps) if required… for a student with a disability.” The IEP must include the type of vehicle, specific equipment, circumstances under which transportation will be provided, pick-up and drop-off points, personnel who will be involved and goals and objectives for the transportation.”1

The costs of preparing for and providing transportation to special education children grow every year. In Buffalo, NY when I was a young SPED teacher, students called the little yellow buses for SPED kids “The Cheese.” It’s a reference, of course, to the color of the buses—identical to Velveeta. It was a pejorative term and many older children avoided using the buses at all costs to avoid stigma.

Each bus is specially equipped with lifts and other seat alterations to accommodate wheelchairs and other equipment required for student safety. Then there are the specialized vans. As medical science improves the outcomes of early term pregnancies, enrollment of children with complex medical conditions who attend regular public schools increases. In schools, we see children with breathing tubes and other elaborate medical support devices in special classrooms all in the interest of providing education in the “least restrictive environment,” as required by law.

The part that gets expensive is one that has been challenged in court on many occasions. Let’s say a student living in Smallville has an extremely complicated medical condition that requires medical care 24/7 that the school district cannot provide on its own. The town must pay the costs of transporting the child to a town that does. I can recall cases where students were transported 30-40 miles each way to facilities with specialized support for complex situations. Therefore, the student is on the bus much of the day, which may require a specially trained aide to attend at all times. It’s hugely expensive and sets up a situation where districts must decide whether to provide the transportation or create a facility that supports those special needs.

In recent years, Massachusetts districts spent on average six percent of their total operating expenditures and 33 percent of their total special education expenditures on out-of-district special education placements. The average outplacement cost for private day programs is just under $51,000 per year, and for public programs in collaboratives the cost is just under $32,000 per year.2

Private residential programs cost an average of $105,000 per year. Districts spend more for transportation to private day schools, at roughly $9,600 per pupil per year on average. These costs are rising. States are stepping up to help districts support the costs by creating Circuit Breaker funds, but I have to wonder if the system is sustainable. 

Tough decisions need to be made at IEP meetings, and districts are placed in an awkward situation, looking like a bad guy if they don’t provide elaborate services for these children. The children are ours and we can’t turn our backs, but we all face challenges coming up with solutions.

Resources for your consideration:

• Massachusetts Organization of Educational Collaboratives
• New Jersey School Boards Association
• WrightsLaw – Related Services
• Developing an IEP with Related Services in Mind
• U.S. Department of Education

Let me know how your school or district manages transportation costs.

1 Statewide Parent Advocacy Network, http://www.spannj.org/publications/transportation_pub.htm

2 Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, March 2009. Office of Strategic Planning, Research, and Evaluation

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Grant Name: Foundation Grants

Funded By: Safeway Foundation

Description: The Safeway Foundation supports nonprofit organizations whose mission is aligned with our four priority areas: Hunger Relief, Education, Health and Human Services and Assisting People with Disabilities.

Program Areas: After-School, Arts, Community Involvement/Volunteerism, Disabilities, Early Childhood, General Education, Health/PE, Homeless, Math, Reading, Safe/Drug-Free Schools, Science/Environmental, Social Studies, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), Technology

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Higher Education, Other

Proposal Deadline: Ongoing

Average Amount: $2,500.00 – $10,000.00

Address: 5918 Stoneridge Mall Road Pleasanton, CA 94588

Email: Christy.Duncan-Anderson@safeway.com

Website: Safeway Foundation

Availability: All States​

Non-Violent Crisis Intervention

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed., MLIS

I was reviewing some articles about special education service delivery and came across a list of current issues that are on the minds of SPED teachers and leaders. One of them was:

How should children with disabilities be disciplined when they pose a threat to school staff and to other students?

Teaching is an isolating activity; at least it certainly seems so at times. Between the bells, you are in a room with 15 students who are diverse in many ways. They have different intellectual abilities, some have physical disabilities that need special attention and some, if not most, have behavioral issues that affect the way your classroom is managed on a day-to-day basis. This behavior piece has always been my greatest challenge. What is the balance between discipline for a single incident of misbehavior and a consistent plan or approach for managing difficult behaviors among all of your challenging students?

Obviously, the latter is what you aim for. Once you have a consistent plan in place and everyone knows the rules, shouldn’t things fall into place and discipline become easier? It certainly can become easier, but there are always incidents of behavior that defy your classroom routine. Some students bring pain and emotional stress into your classroom that you cannot even imagine. The stress is like an overfilled balloon; it eventually needs to be released, and you are the only thing keeping the explosion from hurting that student or others in your care.

SPED teachers receive some specialized training in defusing tensions, but this never seems enough when a child explodes. When the explosion becomes a fight between two students, the instinct is to jump in and pull them apart. We know from our training, though, that this is the wrong thing to do. You could be injured, thus leaving no one in charge, and further injuries can happen. The procedure is always to get assistance. I remember when classrooms had no phones and we had no idea what a cell phone was.

A few years ago, we brought in a crisis intervention team to provide training for our teachers in handling just such events. We used a company called CPI; they sent a team to our district and managed a four-day seminar in non-violent crisis intervention including restraint training: how to touch or otherwise handle a student in crisis who needs to be restrained so he doesn’t hurt himself or others. It was one of the best investments we’ve made for our staff. It was so effective that we’ve expanded the training to our entire staff on a voluntary basis. We may even make it mandatory. One of the great things they provided was to give extra training to some of our own teachers in a teach-the-teacher model so we could do our own training after they left. We used a combination of city and grant funds (IDEA federal funds) to transport, house and pay the team for their efforts.

During the training, the word respect kept popping up, and it’s an important element in the training. If all parties are respected during an episode that requires physical restraint, the procedure is easier and certainly much safer. The word respect seems to calm people down somehow. Emotions can run high, especially among children who have few resources to manage them. Once the initial incident is defused and the child is returned to the classroom, teachers can work together to try to find out why it happened in the first place. It may be necessary to bring the parents in to see if there’s something in the environment at home that is causing problems. When the whole family is involved, problem solving can proceed more effectively.

Obviously, this is a greatly simplified description of how a school district can approach behavior management programs.

Some resources for finding solutions:

• CPI – Crisis Prevention Institute
• Handle With Care (another solution provider)
• List of Providers
• Restraint Training in Action – YouTube
• Emotional De-Escalation
• Top Ten De-Escalation Tips

Let me know how your school or district manages behavior.

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Grant Name: Ross Foundation Educational Grants

Funded By: The Dorothea Haus Ross Foundation

Description:  Giving on a national basis to advance the moral, mental, and physical well-being of children of all races and creeds; to aid and assist in providing for the basic needs of food, shelter, and education of such children by whatever means and methods necessary or advisable; to prevent by medical research or otherwise the mental and physical handicaps of children. Funding also provided for the research of pediatric diseases.

Program Areas: Disabilities, Early Childhood, General Education, Health/PE, Special Education

Eligibility: Private School, Faith-based, Other

Proposal Deadline: Ongoing

Annual Total Amount: $400,000.00 – $560,000.00

Average Amount: $1,000.000 – $15,000.00

Address: 1036 Monroe Avenue, Rochester, NY 14620

Telephone: 585-473-6006

Email: info@dhrossfoundation.org

Website: The Dorothea Haus Ross Foundation

Availability: All States

Transition Planning

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed., MLIS

As special education students reach high school, it becomes time to think about the afterlife—that is, life after high school.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that within the IEP in place when the student turns 16, there must include transition service needs. However, it’s never too early to start the process. Factors to be considered are:

Will there be:

• Continued academic preparation?
• Development of a viable community experience?
• Development of vocational and independent living objectives?
• A functional vocational evaluation (if applicable)?

Guidance is necessary to move from high school to the next stages in life. Steps must be documented and taken to guide and prepare students for college and a career or for independent living. Without goals, students may fall off the radar and flounder. Consider these sobering statistics:

• Over 30% of children with disabilities leave high school early (Source: 28th Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of IDEA, 2006).
• Only 13% of students with learning disabilities (compared to 53% of students in the general population) have been enrolled in a post-secondary school program within two years of leaving high school (Source: National Longitudinal Transition Study, 1994).

One way to begin is to teach students to advocate for themselves as early as possible.

• Begin by talking with students about what they do well and the extent of their disability. Many students have never been required to articulate the nature of their disability. Likewise, they can’t always talk about skills they have learned and mastered to date.
• Students may need to practice the words they need to verbalize what they can and cannot do.
• Evaluate whether students can succeed in a post-secondary academic setting. Not all students are college material, but students need to be able to engage in discussions about college or community college.
• Plan a visit to your local community college. This resource is uniquely qualified to provide the kind of guidance your students will need to get the conversation started.

Starting at age 14 and continuing until the student is no longer eligible for special education services, the IEP team should:

• Help the student work through his or her own IEP
• Take into account the student’s preferences and interests
• Include developing the student’s post-school goals

See more at: Wrightslaw.com.

For students who are interested in embarking on a career right out of high school, administering an interest inventory might be a way to start. Finding the right job is not easy, even for highly skilled individuals. It’s even more difficult for those who lack adequate training or face special challenges.

For more great ideas on how to start preparing students for effective transition planning:

• NCSET – National Center on Secondary Education and Transition
• Disability Rights Ohio – Thorough transition planning resources
• Transitioning En Espanol
• Center for Parent Information and Resources
• Developing the Transition Plan

Grant Name: Technical Assistance and Dissemination to Improve Services and Results for Children With Disabilities

Funded By: Department of Education

Description: The purpose of this priority is to fund three cooperative agreements to establish and operate model demonstration projects that are designed to improve the literacy of adolescents with disabilities in middle and high school grades. For purposes of this priority, the target population includes: Students with disabilities in grades 6 through 12 who score below grade level in reading, or who have identified reading goals and objectives on their individualized education program.

Program Areas: Disabilities, Reading, Special Education

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Other

Proposal Deadline: 5/4/2015

Annual Total Amount: $1,200,000.00

Average Amount: $400,000.00

Address: Education Publications Center (ED Pubs), U.S. Department of Education, PO Box 22207, Alexandria, VA 22304

Telephone: 202-245– 6425

Email: Gregory.Knollman@ed.gov

Website: Department of Education

Availability: All States

504 Plans

I had a fight with myself over this article. Should I write about 504 plans? They are really outside the special education arena. As long as I begin this article with a very specific statement about this, I think we’ll be fine. And I like fighting with myself—I always win.

504 plans are for students who need support in the regular classroom without the need for an IEP. With a little applied assistance in one or two places, some students will flourish outside of the special education system.

Taken directly from Greatschools via a Google search for 504 Plans: 

“Section 504 is a part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that prohibits discrimination based upon disability. Section 504 is an anti-discrimination, civil rights statute that requires meeting the needs of students with disabilities as adequately as meeting the needs of the non-disabled.”

A 504 plan specifically outlines how to meet a child’s needs. There are accommodations, modifications and other services similar to assignments in an IEP. This removes barriers to learning. 

That is the official purpose of 504. The reality is more complex. If an appropriately written 504 plan is in place for students with mild difficulties, a SPED referral will not need to follow. We are all interested in reducing expensive SPED referrals, and a 504 gives us a way to do that while providing students some help in the classroom.

We can look at preparing a student’s 504 as a pre-referral strategy. RTI (Response to Intervention) is a formal approach to providing targeted help in the classroom for students who need it. Once a student is identified as needing extra help, intervention strategies are developed to target that need and to keep detailed records of the interventions.

How does a 504 emerge as a solution to a problem? The school provides an evaluation to decide if a child’s disability substantially limits his or her ability to learn and participate in the classroom. Either the parent or the school can initiate this evaluation. Parents must be notified if the school orders the evaluation, and their consent must be received. 

An evaluation is ordered and a plan is drafted. A 504 plan should include the following elements to meet a child’s individual needs:

• Specific accommodations, supports or services
• Names of the school professionals that provide each service
• Name of the person(s) responsible for implementing the 504

A 504 is less detailed than an IEP. It can include special instruction in the regular classroom. It can also provide related services such as speech, occupational therapy or counseling.

A team (committee) is assembled to draft the 504, members might include:

• The classroom teacher(s)
• A special education teacher
• The school principal
• Parent(s)

Sometimes the child is invited depending on their age and maturity.

A plan is developed and signed by the relevant parties. The committee should reevaluate the plan every year. In some districts, the 504 will be accompanied by a detailed RTI curriculum plan. This depends on district adoption of the RTI program. It’s becoming more accepted as a series of strategies to handle behavior problems, one of the main reasons for 504 referrals. It’s useful to know that some simple classroom and testing accommodations may be all that’s needed to meet a student’s needs.

To read more about 504 plans and how they fit into the special education management system in your school or district, check out these resources.

• The Law
• Bibliography
• Accommodations for Learning Disabilities
• Testing Accommodations
• Parent’s Guide to 504
• 504 Checklist

Let me know how you’re doing, and how you’re solving the everyday issues that arise in your classroom.

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Grant Opportunity

Grant Name: Foundation Grants

Funded By: Finish Line Youth Foundation

Description: Giving on a national basis in areas of company operations, supporting organizations involved with athletics and youth development. Special emphasis is directed toward programs designed to promote active lifestyles and team building skills; and camps designed to promote sports and active lifestyles, and serve disadvantaged and special needs kids.

Program Areas: After-School, Disabilities, Health/PE, Special Education

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Other

Proposal Deadline: Ongoing

Annual Total Amount: $200,000.00 – $500,000.00

Average Amount:  $1,000.00 – $50,000.00

Address: 3308 North Mitthoeffer Road, Indianapolis, IN 46235-2332

Telephone: 317-899-1022 x6741

Email: Youthfoundation@finishline.com

Website: Finish Line Youth Foundation

Availability: All States

Allergies and the Special Ed Classroom

In recent years we’ve learned a great deal more about allergies and the effects they can have on student learning. Absenteeism, hospitalizations for anaphylaxis and medication dispensing in the classroom are just some of the factors that are impacting student learning and the management of health issues for students in special education classrooms.

We don’t usually think of children suffering from allergies or asthma as children with special needs, but they certainly are. Children with these conditions are probably the most frequently encountered category of special needs, and statistics support the notion that allergies are on the rise. According to a 2013 study by the Centers for Disease Control, food allergies among children increased approximately 50% between 1997 and 2011. Food allergies result in more than 300,000 ambulatory-care visits a year among children under the age of 18.

The most common allergy symptoms are:

• Runny nose and sneezing
• Itchy, runny eyes
• Hives on skin
• Asthma-like reactions

The category of allergy receiving the most attention these days is food allergies. About 3 million children experience adverse reactions to something they eat every year in the United States. The most common food allergies are to:

• Peanuts and other nuts
• Seafood or shellfish
• Milk and prepared foods containing milk products
• Eggs
• Soy, wheat and other grains like buckwheat

The symptoms of the allergic response vary as listed above. Students with allergies must:

• Avoid the allergen
• Carry medication called an EpiPen® (looks like a pen) containing injectable epinephrine
• Wear an updated alert bracelet
• Visit the school nurse for medication or to assess any new reactions
• Be isolated from potential allergens during lunch to avoid reactions
• Have alternative snacks on hand for classroom celebrations

Other allergens in special education classrooms may be related to paints, chalk and other art supplies. There are, of course, school supplies that are designed to be allergen free. Some schools develop policies to help monitor different allergens for those children with food allergies and subsequently provide protection from anaphylaxis. Large school districts are studying the possibility of establishing schools where students with allergies can be monitored and treated.

An allergen is a substance that causes an allergic reaction. When a person is exposed to an allergen such as peanuts, the person’s immune system becomes sensitive to the substance. When the person eats peanuts again, a reaction may occur. Anaphylaxis develops quickly, it is severe and it involves the entire body. The body releases histamines that cause airways to close which leads to a shortness of breath and other symptoms.

Symptoms develop within seconds and may include:

• Gasping breathing sounds (wheezing) with chest discomfort, sometimes a cough
• Anxiety
• Difficulty breathing and swallowing, the feeling of chest tightening
• Light-headedness
• Hives
• Severe itching

Anaphylaxis is a life threatening emergency condition that requires immediate medical attention. Call 911 right away.

In the beginning of the year, if you are sending out informational materials, you might want to send a survey for health care that parents can answer to provide more detail about any allergies their child might have. Be sure you have a prescribed EpiPen® available for all of your allergic children. Make sure they are filled and current. There is an expiration date on the package, and you may want to make a spreadsheet that lists those students and expiration dates close at hand so you can have them refilled as necessary. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure (that’s what I hear).

If you have any stories about allergies and your students let me know. I’d be happy to share them with our readers.

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Grant Name: Let’s ALL Play Partnership

Funded By: National Inclusion Project

Description:  Let’s ALL Play brings an inclusive recreational experience to children with disabilities. As a national leader in the movement toward full inclusion, the National Inclusion Project is proud to partner with community organizations that are seeking to programmatically open doors for ALL children to learn, live, and play together. Through training, consulting, and funding, the Project will meet organizations where they are and help them to implement quality programs that impact children and families in their communities.

Program Areas: Disabilities

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Higher Education, Other

Proposal Deadline:  7/31/2015

Average Amount:  $10,000.00

Address: 104 T.W. Alexander Dr, Bldg 1, PO Box 110104 RTP, NC 27709

Email: aronhall@inclusionprojects.org

Website: National Inclusion Project

Availability:  All States

Testing for Special Education Students Part 2: Aligning to Common Core State Standards

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed., MLIS

Last time, I talked about testing accommodations for special needs students and new technologies that can assist at test time. Once IEP accommodations are devised, teachers are wondering how to align lessons and classroom tests to CCSS (Common Core State Standards)? Now that most states have adopted common standards, and we’ve gotten over the shock of needing to line up and adopt them at the micro level, how do we do that? Check out the CCSSI site itself for a look at alignment for students with disabilities.

Despite initial emotional resistance to moving to the new standards, I’ve been able to see that CCSS can actually be a useful tool as we create new lessons for special needs kids. Blended learning environments are available if we plan for them, and they offer additional technology assists for our lesson planning processes. One obstacle seems to be the availability of teacher training to bring technology to life.

This acceptance did not happen overnight, but I didn’t need a twelve-step program to come to acceptance level after all. We all want high standards for all children, they need something to aim for, and the stars are a good target. One could argue that the CCSSI is not the stars, but that’s a subject for another day.

I’ve found the best place to start in the alignment process is to consult my state department of education website for guidance. I use this resource all the time, but it’s fair to note that some state sites are better than others. Here is a link to the California site’s section on special education and CCSSI just to show an example.

They link to symposiums and other helpful events, but there is a tab for “assessment”. There is an organization, Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (SBAC) and a California site to show how it all works. SBAC is national but not all states have joined the consortium. Your state department of education will provide similar links to SBAC if they are members. On their site, we can learn about achievement level setting. It seems others have walked this path before, so let’s let our colleagues help us. There is an organized way to migrate to CCSS in special ed classrooms. There are also technology assists for moving to an online testing environment.

In SBAC’s own words,

Achievement level setting, also known as standard setting, is the process used for establishing one or more cut scores on an assessment, making it possible to create categories of performance. Smarter Balanced Governing States are using a three-phase design for achievement level setting, which involves an online panel, an in-person panel, and a vertical articulation committee.” Through these ongoing panels, schools are learning how to adjust their existing classrooms to CCSS and testing for special needs students.

This is where I jump in and decry the level of commercial enterprise at work throughout the CCSSI environment. Or, do I? I no longer have a big problem with companies popping up to make a living with software, products, consortia, symposia or other packages of services to help schools navigate these enormous new challenges. Have I gone to the dark side?

I’m not entirely ready to question whether the public sector (corporations) should be handed the reins for all education related issues, but it’s worth looking at the options. State and federal departments of education are struggling to keep up with new regulations and protocols. I know, they should have thought of this before, but let’s back off a little and let some commercial enterprises in to help them out.

More resources to help sort it all out:

• SPED blogs other than mine
• Hechinger Report
• Washington State Resources (for a comparison)
• Scilearn.com

I’m hoping this blog stirs a response from you, makes you mad, or indignant, thrilled, or something. Even if you completely agree with my line of thinking, can you let me know what you think? We’re all trying to answer the question, “How do I align my curriculum to CCSSI”? Moreover, is it worth it?

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Grant Name: USGA Alliance Grants

Funded By: National Alliance for Accessible Golf

Description: Grants support organizations which provide opportunities for individuals with disabilities to learn and enjoy the game of golf and its inherent values. The Alliance and the USGA share the belief that the game of golf is exceptionally well-suited to allow individuals with disabilities to participate in a recreational or competitive activity with participants who have various types of disabilities as well as those who do not have disabilities. We encourage inclusive programming – opportunities that allow participants with disabilities and participants without disabilities to learn and play the game side by side.

Program Areas:   Disabilities, Health/PE

Eligibility: Public School, Other

Proposal Deadline: Ongoing

Average Amount: $1,000.00 – $20,000.00

Address: 1733 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

Telephone: 812-320-1126

E-mail: accessolutions@gmail.com

Website: National Alliance for Accessible Golf

Availability: All States

Blended Learning in Special Education

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed., MLIS

Blended Learning Environments – Using technology and traditional SPED classroom instruction to facilitate learning.

There’s a buzzword that’s been gaining momentum in all education spheres these days: blended learning. Basically, (don’t wince—this is very basic) it is adding technology to existing classroom lessons to increase motivation and engagement in learning. It can include video, podcasts, streaming content from providers, interactive exercises, asynchronous and, increasingly, synchronous lessons. Grab one of those iPad labs the district is handing out; don’t be left out in the techie cold.

With blended learning, the student is the star with the teacher on hand for support. Some part of the lesson delivery is online using a learning management system (LMS) that includes a database to keep track of student assessment, attendance and achievement gains (the LMS does the heavy lifting). Assessment is just one way technology will facilitate student learning.

The shift to blended learning from a traditional special ed. classroom or resource room model should not be difficult. Traditional lesson planning strategies will overlap blended learning with a new way of looking at things. The best way to describe blended learning for a teacher who would like to understand the model might be to look at a blended learning lesson plan template. Can you select the lesson plan steps that will stay the same as your current plans?

Lesson Plan Template for Blended Learning Environments

1. Alignment with Common Core State Standards (CCSS):
   Standards-based instruction for special ed. students remains number one; objectives must be aligned to the standards you have selected in your timeline and skills rollout.
2. Objectives:
   In a special ed. model, you will be prepared to plan formultiple  Each student works toward his own goals. Students move continually forward, the pace is driven by assessment results that are part of the learning management system.
3. Data Analysis:
   The guiding light in instruction is the careful analysis of the data provided by the LMS and your own formative assessments.
4. Scheduling (blocking):

This is one of the challenges teachers face; the schedule and rollout of instruction for any standard will look very different at the elementary level from instruction in high school. In a SPED environment there are no heterogeneous groups, but lessons remain flexible so individuals can step out and move quickly through skills they grasp, while others will stay and repeat certain skills until mastery is achieved. You can arrange the class into somewhat flexible groups.

5. Setting:
   Blended learning provides multiple environments to reassure students and accommodate for different learning styles. One environment for learning will be online and technology based. You may have a small group with several learning environments: computer labs, tablet labs, teacher led lessons, special tutoring and study carrel assignments. All of these can be modified for a resource room.
6. Activities:
   You can use existing successful lesson plans, they can still access their thumb drives with the best lessons from past years. You will become expert in finding the lessons and activities that reach into the depths of your special students’ learning. Hands-on project-based learning can continue.
7. Timing:
   Within blocks and scheduling schemas, you may have different groups working through different skill sets at the same time. You can make learning one-on-one by adjusting students’ time in the various microenvironments according to different needs.
8. Assessment and Testing:
   Assessments are determined in the planning stage as markers to guide further learning. The goal for the teacher is to measure when students have met their objectives within a given standard.
9. Organization:
   There are many lesson plan templates that show how existing teaching styles can be honed and fine-tuned for the new special ed. blended learning model. Some resources include:

• Implementation Guide
• Budget Handbook
• Disable World Blog
• Conover Company grant – independent living
• Classroom Models
• Micro Learning Environments
• Awesome Resources to Help You Get Started

Your classroom may need to be rearranged to suit the needs of the learners. The school network specialist will need to keep the internet connection open. Your district may install its own learning management system through which students can access your classroom assignments; it will be useful for SPED classrooms too. This developing trend shows promise for security conscious administrators.

A new model for learning always suffers growing pains. There will be new ideas coming online all the time, but the promise of raising special ed. student achievement through blended learning is exciting. It pulls together all the effective strategies that educators have developed to manage standards-based instruction on a large scale, right down to the individual and his learning needs.

Other resources:

• 4 Opportunities in Special Ed Blended Learning
• iPads for Special Education
• Flipped Classroom
• Station Rotation, scheduling in blended learning
• Blended learning educational system and method – Invention

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Grant Name: Foundation Grants

Funded By: Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation

Description: Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation supports innovative projects that help youth with disabilities develop the leadership and employment skills they need to succeed, particularly for careers in science, technology and the environment. MEAF will also consider projects to create tools that help break down barriers to employment and increase job opportunities for young people with disabilities entering the workforce, including returning veterans with disabilities.

Program Areas: Disabilities, General Education, Professional Development, Science/Environmental, Special Education, Technology, Vocational

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Higher Education, Other

Proposal Deadline: 6/1/2015

Annual Total Amount: $400,000.00

Average Amount: $1,000.00 – $10,000.00

Address: 1560 Wilson Blvd., Ste. 1150, Arlington, VA 22209-2463

Telephone: 703-276-8240

Website: Mitsubishi Electric America Foundation

Availability: All States

 

 

Myths and Stereotypes in Special Education

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed., MLIS

I’m about to stick my toe into murky waters, but it seems fitting just after Halloween.

Any discussion of special education must begin with a true understanding of the enormity of the subject. I could write blog posts about it every day for the rest of my life and never run out of subjects to explore, so bear with me while I explore a non-scientific corner.

I’m a big fan of Stephen King, especially his early books like The Stand, Carrie, Christine, etc. He is a master storyteller and reading one of his books is most often a rewarding experience.

In 2002, he wrote a television miniseries called Rose Red. It’s about a psychology professor who takes a group of psychically talented people to a haunted house in Seattle. If you picture House on Haunted Hill, that’s a good place to start, but Rose Red is in a category all its own.

In the story, Annie, a 15-year-old autistic and psychic girl, is brought along to ignite the house’s dormant ghosts into action. She is reported to have telekinetic and telepathic abilities that will be sure to help the professor establish her assertions that haunting does happen and the unseen world is rich with research possibilities. Early in the story, it’s clear that Annie does have amazing abilities to make connections with the unseen world. Strange things begin to happen, too numerous to mention here.

There has long been a school of thought in the study of autism that people on the spectrum have a connection with the paranormal that others lack. The Internet is loaded with sites that try to establish this connection. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, you can see the dangers that lie in the path of this kind of thinking. Has anyone ever really proven that ghosts exist? Why haven’t searchers been able to document their existence (on film, etc.) other than seeing shadows and hearing doors close on their own? Those are just a couple of the dangers.

The other greater problem is the need to put people in groups so we can describe them. Like all autistic children, Annie is an individual; her social interaction and communication challenges lie on a spectrum. In deference to Mr. King, he is merely trying to move a fiction forward in an entertaining and hopefully believable way. He respects Annie’s theoretical abilities and does little damage to the field of education or psychology, but it’s with a wink and a nod.

For teachers, it’s in our best interest to be sure that people don’t grab on to theories like these and try to use them to bolster personal beliefs. We can all agree that these beliefs are a private matter and deserve respect. However, discussions about autism must stay on a track that is proven and scientifically determined. How else can we provide kids with a great education?

Likewise, are children with developmental disabilities really more affectionate and loving than other children? (This is a stereotype I’ve encountered.)

Annie ends up saving the day, of course, releasing the trapped paranormal investigators from a house that has taken on a malevolent life of its own. We are entertained, and reminded of the literary skills of Stephen King; he has done it again, brought us through a complex story to a satisfying conclusion. We can turn off the TV and return to our scientific reality.

I’ve made a list of some websites that explore the idea that autistic children may have psychic talents. I tried to stay with credible source material, but that’s becoming more difficult too.

Autism and the God Connection

Time Magazine Interview

“Are Autistic and Psychic People Similar?” – Psychology Today

Research? (Question mark mine)

Indigo Children – ABC News Report

Once again, I could write much more on this topic. I hope you will forgive my flight into fuzzy territory, as it relates to special education. Tell me your stories of stereotype busting.

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Grant Name: Educational Grants

Funded By: The Ambrose Monell Foundation

Description: Giving on a national basis to improve the physical, mental, and moral condition of humanity throughout the world. Giving largely for hospitals and health services, scientific research, museums, performing arts, and other cultural activities, and higher and secondary education; support also for social services, research in political science, mental health, and aid to the handicapped. No grants to individuals.

Program Areas: Adult Literacy, Disabilities, General Education, Health/PE, Math, Reading, Science/Environmental, Social Studies, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math)

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Higher Education, Other

Proposal Deadline: 4/30/2015

Annual Total Amount: $9,000,000.00

Average Amount: $5,000.00 – $100,000.00

Address: c/o Fulton, Rowe, & Hart, 1 Rockefeller Plz., Ste. 301, New York, NY 10020-2002

Telephone: 212-245-1863

E-mail: info@monellvetlesen.org

Website: The Ambrose Monell Foundation

Availability: All States

Budgets and IEP Team Activities

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed. MLIS

This time of year, we are creating Individualized Education Program (IEP) teams and preparing for annual meetings for our kids. The subject of IEP team creation has come up in our district. An administrator noticed that budgets for last year had to be increased for SPED because of a very liberal IEP team that wrote expensive equipment into their program. A challenge for all districts: how do you find a balance between providing services and maintaining budgets? There are some promising new software solutions for some of the more common learning disabilities, but they are expensive and untried. Is it worth the investment? Can we find more cost effective solutions for similar problems?

The quick answer is, “Of course it’s worth the investment; we shouldn’t skimp on our kids.” The real answer is more complicated and deserves study and review.

IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) describes the IEP team as including:

• The parents of the child
• Not less than one regular education teacher of the child (if the child is, or may be, participating in the regular education environment)
• Not less than one special education teacher of the child, or where appropriate, not less than one special education provider of the child
• A representative of the public agency who is qualified to provide or supervise the provision of specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of children with disabilities, knowledgeable about the general education curriculum and knowledgeable about the available resources of the public agency
• An individual who can interpret the instructional implications of evaluation results
• Other individuals who have knowledge or special expertise regarding the child, including related services personnel as appropriate (invited at the discretion of the parent or the agency)
• The child with a disability (when appropriate)

I’d like to focus on the individual who can “interpret the instructional implications of evaluation results.” Our superintendent has asked if this person is properly trained to deliver this service. He is supportive of district teams in general, but his responsibility is to stay within budget. The evaluation of services is an ongoing job, and it can’t be delegated to just one person, especially in large districts. You may have an “evaluation specialist” that attends your meetings, and you would hope that person has thoroughly evaluated new programs and equipment, but there aren’t always enough hours in the day.

Since 94-142 laws and their amendments have been written, the costs for special education services have soared. Providing programs and equipment to support the least restrictive environment language in the federal law has created a huge business for publishers and software companies. Are we too eager to jump on bandwagons without study?

If you’ve ever attended a sales meeting for large publishing company sales reps to come and show their wares, you know how tempting this is. The presentations are slick, and the statistics they throw around make it sound like their products are the only solutions for some of the more challenging disabilities and behaviors we see that cause referrals for SPED services at the classroom teacher’s level.

This subject deserves careful attention, and a single blog will not cover it adequately. I’ve collected some resources for you to review if this blog opens the dialogue for your teams.

• Review of Budget Issues
• Building an Effective IEP Team; Wrights law (a great source of legal interpretations)
• Seven Habits of Effective Teams
• Keeping Costs in Check
• 10 Best Opportunities for SPED Budget Review

Tell us if your district has a plan in place for reviewing SPED budgets and maintaining great educational services.

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Grant Name: Foundation Grants

Funded By: Safeway Foundation

Description: The Safeway Foundation supports nonprofit organizations whose mission is aligned with our four priority areas: Hunger Relief, Education, Health and Human Services, and Assisting People with Disabilities.

Program Areas: After-School, Arts, Community Involvement/Volunteerism, Early Childhood, General Education, Health/PE, Homeless, Math, Reading, Safe/Drug Free Schools, Science/Environmental, Social Studies, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), Technology

Eligibility: Public School, Private School, Higher Education, Other

Proposal Deadline: Ongoing

Average Amount: $2,500.00 – $10,000.00

Address: 5918 Stoneridge Mall Road Pleasanton, CA 94588

E-mail: Christy.Duncan-Anderson@safeway.com

Website: Safeway Foundation

Availability: All States

 

Aging Out

by Neva Fenno, M.S.Ed. MLIS

It’s the beginning of a new school year, but I’m going to touch on a subject that pertains to the long-range future of our disabled students. End-of-school career planning is something that needs to be addressed well in advance.

In every student’s life, the expectation is a graduation ceremony of some kind. In my house, it was a given that we would go to college; thus, we’ve had several graduations in our lifetime. It was a lesson for me when I learned that some families are gratified when their child graduates from the eighth grade. There are parties and celebrations and joy from parents who never expected to see this milestone. They may have lived in poverty or just been part of a family that has never experienced the eighth grade, for whatever reason. They may have come to us from another country where education is not as readily available as it is here.

For children with disabilities, the calendar is different. The law says the school must provide services for children with disabilities through their 21st year. In most states there are transition plan requirements that help parents and students work through a more complex set of decisions as graduation comes near. Many disabled students cannot hope to pass state academic achievement tests. In the beginning of education reform, this was a serious issue as states clung to the graduation requirements for these high stakes tests. As the years have passed, states have developed safety nets and procedures for providing a path to college for many disabled students.

I have been impressed by the way community colleges have stepped up. They are ideally positioned in local areas to provide tutoring and transition classes for students who will not be able to walk across their high school graduation stage. This is working well not only for disabled students, but also for students whose first language is not English.

If you are a parent reading this, and you are wondering how you are going to support your disabled child through the graduation process, be aware there are many services available for you. Locally, your child’s guidance counselor can help with a transition plan. She will know what the law says and be aware of the tests and timetables for graduation for disabled students. If you are early in the process (your child is in the eighth grade or so), you should be working with your school’s special education committee to create IEPs that have an eye for the future.

I’ve collected some resources for transition planning services.

Transition planning checklist

Wright’s Law – a great resource for understanding the law regarding special education

New York State’s transition planning infrastructure – good resource

PACER – champions for children with disabilities

Toolkit – for preparing a personal assistance plan after graduation

Vocational Rehab facilities (New York State – your state has one too)

Going to College – for students with disabilities

Heath Center – national clearinghouse for services to students with disabilities

Use Google or another search engine to find resources specific to your state, search strings might look like this;

“Services for students with disabilities in xyz (fill in your state) state”

Keep your expectations high for all your students, there are services and programs out there to help all students thrive in our society, you just have to know where to look. The Internet has been an enormous positive factor in helping families cope with the challenges of transitioning out of school. Use the services available.

Let me know how your school or state handles the transition planning process for your disabled students.

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Grant Name: Educational Grants

Funded By: The Dorothea Haus Ross Foundation

Description: Giving on a national basis to advance the moral, mental, and physical well-being of children of all races and creeds; to aid and assist in providing for the basic needs of food, shelter, and education of such children by whatever means and methods necessary or advisable; to prevent by medical research or otherwise the mental and physical handicaps of children.

Program Areas:   Disabilities, Early Childhood, General Education, Health/PE, Special Education

Eligibility: Private School, Faith Based, Other

Proposal Deadline: Ongoing 

Annual Total Amount: $400,000.00 – $560,000.00

Average Amount: $1,000.00 – $15,000.00

Address: 1036 Monroe Avenue, Rochester, NY 14620

Telephone: 585-473-6006

E-mail: info@dhrossfoundation.org

Website: The Dorothea Haus Ross Foundation

Availability: All States