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Ithaca City School District Special Education Report . Findings. Curriculum and Instruction for Students with Disabilities lacks rigor and alignment with standards Lack of systemic transition planning for students with disabilities. Findings Continued.
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Ithaca City School District Special Education Report
Findings • Curriculum and Instruction for Students with Disabilities lacks rigor and alignment with standards • Lack of systemic transition planning for students with disabilities
Findings Continued • Lack of evidence supporting systemic implementation of Response to Intervention • Committee for Special Education Chairs lack time and resources to build strong relationships with teaching staff and families
Findings • Secondary schedules does not support effective co-teaching models and relationship building with students • Lack of mandates and job embedded professional development for co-teaching teams • Students with disabilities become less engaged and/or more disenfranchised as school experience matures
Strategy I: Audit Curriculum and Instructional Programs for Student with Disabilities • Advantages • Ability to immediately collaborate with critical stakeholders to ensure full implementation of Teaching and Learning Framework and alignment with the Common Core Learning Standards. This will solidify our shared expectations regarding establishment of culture of excellence for all students.
Next Step Priorities • Identification and Assignment of Resources for audit of curriculum and instructional practices for Students with Disabilities • Development of Action Plan for review of audit and implementation of relative recommendations
Next Step Priorities Alignment of Policy and Practices with recommendations from audit (e.g., Response to Intervention, Retention and Promotion, Co-Curricular Participation, etc.)
Strategy II: Target Lowest Performing Schools • Advantages • Establishment of meaningful and concrete benchmarks • Promotes continuous improvement process (e.g., Quality Improvement Process(QUIP) • Provides avenues for community feedback and engagement
Next Step Priorities • Meet with principals and critical stakeholders to review academic and behavioral targets for students with disabilities • Collaborate for development of action plans to achieve goals outlined by targets
Strategy III: Promote More Inclusive Practices District-Wide Advantages • Sets High Standards for All Students • Promotes Opportunities for Staff Development • Promotes Access to General Education Curriculum for All Students • Promotes Awareness to Increase Articulation Efforts for Transition Grades • Builds Community In Our Schools
Next Step Priorities • Develop district policies to guide inclusionary practices(e.g., Response to Intervention) • Establish model(s) for providing high quality instruction in general education classrooms • Review audit of district use of FTE supporting current pull-out models of instruction • Develop scheduling practices that promote relationship building and student access to high quality instruction in the general education classroom(s)
Strategy IV: Create More Opportunities for Credit Recovery Advantages: • Students have immediate access to recover credit • Develop focused approach to meeting the needs of students off track with cohort group • Create opportunities to collaborate with the larger school community
Next Step Priorities • Review current credit recovery options for students • Assess resources needed to enhance opportunities to recover credit (e.g., first time course, mid-course and post failure credit recovery) • Meet with stakeholders to establish course of action for improving system of credit recovery
Strategy V: Extend Walkthrough Model Advantages • Builds increased capacity for instructional leadership • Establishes shared protocols for observing implementation of recommendations from audit (e.g., levels of student engagement) • Informs Professional Development
Next Step Priorities • Collaborate with Executive Team to identify and assign resources for extension of Walkthrough Model • Collaborate with Technology Department to identify tools to support Walkthrough Model • Collaborate with Administrative Team to establish Look Fors ensuring congruency with Teaching and Learning Framework • Provide professional development
Visible Indicators of Success • Achievement Gaps in ELA, Math, and Graduation Rates will be significantly diminished/eliminated • Greater opportunities for all students to access the general education curriculum • Increased number of students with disabilities reading at or above grade level by the end of third grade • Increased number of students with disabilities passing Regents Exams on first attempt
Visible Indicators of Success • Change in Co-Teaching Practices • Decrease in Classification Rate(s) • Increase in level of Student Engagement