SES 4.2

1. SES 4.2 Special Education Placement Process

2. Starts with a Referral • Can be from a parent • Or school • Teacher • Counselor • Universal screening

3. MDT • The team is responsible for determining if a student has a disability • Does the students meet the criteria • The process flows as listed below depending on who initiates the evaluation

8. Members of MDT Team • Parent(s) • Someone to interpret the testing results • Lea • Regular education teacher • Special education teacher

9. MDT Process • Procedural Safeguards • Must have valid assessments • Team process

10. Procedural Safeguards • Educational independent evaluation • Prior written notice in native language • Parent consent • Access to educational records • Opportunity to complain or initiate due process • Pendency during due process * • Payment for private school if team decides • Mediation • State level appeals • Civil action • Attorney’s fees • State complaint process

11. Valid assessment • Appropriate to determine if there is a disability- later used to determine progress • Racially neutral • In appropriate language • Technically sound • Tailored to assess appropriate and specific needs

12. Team process • The decision is not made by a single person • It follows four processes • Reviews existing data to determine if additional data is needed • The team gathers additional data to make sure they have everything the need to make the decision • The team makes a decision if the child has a disability • The team prepares report ( sometimes not done quite in that Manner, much of it done before meeting)

13. Data teams • There are many types of data teams • Schoolwide – used to make decisions about instruction, curriculum and planning- now used for Getting results and School Improvement Plans • Problem solving Teams- these teams work on a problem with a small group of students, ESL, IEP • Child Study • IST Teams • MDT – Multi disciplinary • IEP teams

14. Communicating with Parents • Have a shared goal and purpose • Easier said than done • Make sure everyone understands the process • This goes for staff and parents • Staff sometimes view it as what they need to do to get rid of a child • Parents feel they need to get all they can- like free food

15. Communicating with Parents • Articulate the role of everyone. • Regular ed person • Special ed person • Meeting facilitator decide who before the start of the meeting • Large teams are difficult, sometimes everyone feels they need to say something

16. Communicating with Parents • Try and balance structure and flexibility • Written agendas help, but be willing to stray, but try and stay on the agenda • Try to keep it on track • Can we discuss this later, lets try and finish this part then that • We will get to that • Listen to and respect everyone’s contribution • Make sure minority opinions are heard

17. Communicating with Parents • Use objective data to guide decisions • Avoid opinions based on nothing, try to use data as much as possible • Work to ensure confidentiality • Difficult to regain trust once broken • Regularly evaluate team outcomes

18. Communicating with Parents • Communicate with parents frequently- • Communicate early, do not let the first communication be when a child is having problems or being referred for testing • Provide frequent and accurate information • Communicate the child’s strengths as well as needs • Do not have meetings in which you admire the problem, sometimes venting, very difficult to sit through

19. Communicating with Parents • Translate Assessment information • Primary language • Explain what it means- use a graph • Be aware of cultural differences and its impact on testing • Be sure you are aware of the differences

20. Communicating with Parents • Schedule meetings to facilitate parent attendance • Explain purpose of activity and the tests • Use non technical language • Maintain a solution based approach

21. Records • FERPA- Federal Educational Record Privacy Act • Parents can view and challenge all records regarding their child • In some places even private ones- Debatable

22. Records • Some of these records include • Permission not needed if you do it for everybody like • Screenings • Vision • Hearing • Universal academic screenings

23. Records Permission is needed if you do not do it for everybody -any that is devised to get specific diagnostic information) -attempt to verify information

24. Records Who gets the records? Teaches that need to know the information can have access to a student records This usually means all of the teachers Many times managed from a central place Can’t be released to outside agencies with out permission or a subpoena