Accommodations and Modifications : What is out there?

1. Accommodations and Modifications: What is out there? Presented by: Gabriella Mackin, Educere Tutoring

2. Where do these accommodations and modifications come from? • Section 504 (education) law • IDEA (Special education) law • Americans with Disabilities Act • No child Left Behind • Other state and federal laws

3. Special Education (IDEA) • A free and appropriate public education. The spirit of the law intends that the education of a special needs child be appropriate to the child's needs. Parental input is important in determining what is appropriate. The education is provided at public expense and under the supervision of the state educational agency, but not necessarily an education within the public schools. • An education within a "least restrictive" environment. IDEA says that children are educated with children who are not disabled, and that special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of children with disabilities from the regular educational environment occurs only when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily. • A nondiscriminatory evaluation of needs by a multidisciplinary team. This is to assure that the evaluation of your child's needs treat all areas of growth and development. It also assures that the evaluation will be fair and free of bias

4. Related Services – What are they? • Related services help children with disabilities benefit from their special education by providing extra help and support in needed areas, such as speaking or moving. Related services can include, but are not limited to, any of the following: • speech-language pathology and audiology services • interpreting services • psychological services • physical and occupational therapy • recreation, including therapeutic recreation • early identification and assessment of disabilities in children • counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling • orientation and mobility services • medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes • school health services and school nurse services • social work services in schools • parent counseling and training

5. Related Services, continued • Do parents have to pay for the related services their child receives? • No. School districts may not charge parents of eligible students with disabilities for the costs of related services that have been included on the child's IEP. Just as special and regular education must be provided to an eligible student with a disability at no cost to the parent or guardian, so, too, must related services when the IEP team has determined that such services are required in order for the child to benefit from his or her education.

6. Related Services, continued • (a) General. Related services means transportation and such developmental, corrective, and other supportive services as are required to assist a child with a disability to benefit from special education, and includes…and includes speech-language pathology and audiology services, interpreting services, psychological services, physical and occupational therapy, recreation, including therapeutic recreation, early identification and assessment of disabilities in children, counseling services, including rehabilitation counseling, orientation and mobility services, and medical services for diagnostic or evaluation purposes. Related services also include school health services and school nurse services, social work services in schools, and parent counseling and training.

7. ADA protects access and includes the incredibly useful term, “reasonable accomodations” • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) • The ADA is a federal law passed in 1990 which gives people with disabilities, including • students, protections like those provided to people on the basis of race, sex and national origin. • All public schools must comply with the ADA. The ADA bans discrimination based on disability • in the areas of public accommodations, state and local government services, employment, • transportation and telecommunications. • For more information, go to http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm

8. Paraprofessional – No Child Left Behind Act • NEW PARAPROFESSIONALS- • (1) IN GENERAL- Each local educational agency receiving assistance under this part shall ensure that all paraprofessionals hired after the date of enactment of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and working in a program supported with funds under this part shall have — • (A) completed at least 2 years of study at an institution of higher education; • (B) obtained an associate's (or higher) degree; or • (C) met a rigorous standard of quality and can demonstrate, through a formal State or local academic assessment — • (i) knowledge of, and the ability to assist in instructing, reading, writing, and mathematics; or • (ii) knowledge of, and the ability to assist in instructing, reading readiness, writing readiness, and mathematics readiness, as appropriate. • (2) CLARIFICATION- The receipt of a secondary school diploma (or its recognized equivalent) shall be necessary but not sufficient to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (1)(C).

9. The Road to Success – where do we start??

10. Success: How to get there • Step 1: Know your child • What can he or she do already? • What do you want him or her to be able to learn to do? • How does he or she learn? • You know your child more than anyone else so you should be the primary drafter of goals

11. Regular Education resources first!! • Step 2: Consider what grade level(s) your child can achieve, and what is a challenge for your child. Remember your IEP or 504 plan is a year long goal so think ahead. And remember your IEP or 504 plan goals can be changed during the year as needed. Talk to a regular education teacher, either at your school or others. Ask him or her what other kids your child’s age are learning, and compare your child to what the others are learning A great resource for Texas students is the TEKS

12. Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills by Chapter http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=6148Main website: www.tea.state.tx.us Introduction. • (1)  In Kindergarten, students engage in many activities that help them develop their oral language skills and help them begin to read and write. Kindergarten students take part in language activities that extend their vocabulary and conceptual knowledge. Students learn to follow directions and develop the language of schooling. Students discuss the meanings of words from familiar and conceptually challenging selections read aloud. Students express themselves in complete thoughts. In Kindergarten, students listen to a wide variety of children's literature, including selections from classic and contemporary works. Students also listen to nonfiction and informational material. Students learn to listen attentively and ask and respond to questions and retell stories. Students know simple story structure and distinguish fiction from nonfiction. Kindergarten students identify and write the letters of the alphabet. Students learn that individual letters are different from printed words, that words have spaces between them, and that print is read from left-to-right and from top-to-bottom. Through meaningful and organized activities, Kindergarten students learn that spoken language is composed of sequences of sounds. Students learn to segment and identify the sounds in spoken words. Students name each letter of the alphabet, begin to associate spoken sounds with the letter or letters that represent them, and begin to use this knowledge to read words and simple stories. In Kindergarten, students write the letters of the alphabet, their names, and other words. Initially, students dictate messages and stories for others to write. Students begin to use their knowledge of sounds and letters to write by themselves.

13. Additional Kindergarten TEKS - goals (4)  Listening/speaking/communication. The student communicates clearly by putting thoughts and feelings into spoken words. The student is expected to: (A)  learn the vocabulary of school such as numbers, shapes, colors, directions, and categories (K-1); (B)  use vocabulary to describe clearly ideas, feelings, and experiences (K-3); (C)  clarify and support spoken messages using appropriate props such as objects, pictures, or charts (K-3); and (D)  retell a spoken message by summarizing or clarifying (K-3).

14. Step 3: Once you have formulated what you think your child can learn, and what regular education can contribute, then you start applying how your child’s condition or disability will affect the learning

15. Step 4: What regular ed resources are already in place at the school or within the school district? For children with ADHD, the ESL or ELL resources are great because they stress learning vocabulary, repetition, simplified instructions Intervention – small pull out classes for kids who have trouble in a particular area (RTI) Ask the principal or counselor about what your school has in place – not just for special ed but for everyone

16. Step 5: Placement • After all of the above have been decided, then the placement discussion begins. • First consider your neighborhood school – does it have the resources your child needs? Can you add resources to make it work?

17. ARD committee members Who are the required members of an ARD committee? The ARD committee shall include: 1) the child whenever it is appropriate; 2) the parent(s) of the child; 3) at least one regular education teacher, if the child is or may be participating in the regular education environment; 4) at least one special education teacher or service provider; 5) an administrator or appropriate designee who is familiar with providing specially designed instruction to students with disabilities, is knowledgeable about the general education curriculum and resources available in the school district, and is authorized to commit resources on behalf of the district; 6) an individual who can interpret the implications of evaluation information; and 7) other individuals with special education expertise regarding the child who are invited at the discretion of the parents or the school district. Whenever practicable the regular education teacher(s) and special education teacher(s) should be familiar with the child and be responsible for part of the child's IEP.

18. Composition of the ARD committee • Remember that this can work both ways- as a parent, you can invite anyone you want to attend an ARD committee meeting with you. Unless you bring a lawyer, you don’t have to notify the school district ahead of time in doing so. If you have a lawyer you have to tell the school district you are bringing the lawyer. • Always try to bring a friend, or the other parent, or someone who can help listen to what is said, and take notes of what everyone says

20. STUDENTS PROTECTED UNDER SECTION 504 Section 504 covers qualified students with disabilities who attend schools receiving Federal financial assistance. To be protected under Section 504, a student must be determined to: (1) have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; or (2) have a record of such an impairment; or (3) be regarded as having such an impairment. Section 504 requires that school districts provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to qualified students in their jurisdictions who have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

21. 504 evaluation can be initiated by either the parent or the school. If the school initiates the evaluation, it must notify the parents and get the parents’ consent to evaluate a child for a 504 plan. If the school wants to move ahead without the parents’ consent, it must request a due process hearing to get permission to work around the parents’ refusal. • When doing an evaluation for a 504 plan, the school considers information from several sources, including: • Documentation of the child’s disability (such as a doctor’s diagnosis) • Evaluation results (if the school recently evaluated the child for an IEP) • Observations by the student’s parents and teachers • Academic record • Independent evaluations (if available)

22. Aides in the classroom • Aides can be considered as a choice for various reasons. Some aides can be used to make sure the children successfully transition from special ed to regular ed. • Other aides can be considered to ride on the bus with medically fragile children. For the hearing impaired or non verbal, children can successfully use communication laws to get an aide on the school bus

23. Placement, a final word • Placing disabled children in ordinary classes with or without support services. IDEA requires that disabled children must be educated in this least restrictive environment. If your child can get along in the regular classroom, he should not be removed on the basis of hearing loss. If, for any reason, the situation does not provide for his needs, the child may be placed in a program that does meet his needs. Children are to be placed in classrooms not on the basis of their disability, but according to their educational needs.

24. Speech Therapists • Do You Know Who is Providing Your Child’s Speech Language Therapy? • 01/29/09by Wrightslaw • If your child receives speech language therapy, you need to pay attention to how the service provider is described in the IEP. If the IEP includes acronyms, you need to ask questions so you know what they mean. Why? • If your child’s IEP says speech therapy services will be provided by a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP), this is legally correct and legitimate. • If your child’s IEP says speech language services will be provided by “SLP/Staff,” your child may receive speech therapy from an untrained, unlicensed individual. • Some administrators encourage IEP teams to write “Special Education Staff,” “SPED staff, or “SLP/Staff” as the speech therapy provider on the child’s IEP. The term “Staff” may refer to anyone on the staff who is willing to do speech therapy — including untrained substitutes, aides and paraprofessionals. • Substitutes, aides and paraprofessionals usually have high school diplomas. They are not licensed by your state Department of Education, nor are they certified by The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) . ASHA is the professional, scientific, and credentialing association for audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and speech, language, and hearing scientists. • Substitutes may sign off on the IEP paperwork as “Speech Therapy Substitutes.” This suggests that they are legitimate, certified Speech Therapists when they are not. • Some schools have “Speech Language Assistants.” Speech language assistants may file paperwork and make copies. Speech language assistants arenot qualified to provide speech language therapy. Schools attempt to justify the use of “speech therapy assistants” by claiming that students are “just rehearsing” material learned from the Speech Language Pathologist. In reality, many speech language assistants are providing speech therapy, not practice reinforcement. • Schools are using this back door approach to get around hiring trained, certified Speech Language Pathologists. • Yes, there is a shortage of certified Speech Language Pathologists who are willing to work in schools. There are also shortages of other service providers including Occupational Therapists and Physical Therapists. There are many reasons for these shortages including lower pay, high caseloads, and poor working conditions. • If your child receives speech language therapy, make sure the IEP states that these services will be provided by a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP).

25. Testing Accommodations No accommodation may be put in place for an state standardized test that is not already used regularly in the classroom. Standard Accommodations – IEP/504 Content Areas Place marker use More breaks and/or several shorter sessions Test at a different time of day. Simplify language for the scripted directions or the directions that students read on their own. Read aloud or sign the directions that students read on their own. Extended time Extended breaks Small groups or alone

26. Read aloud or sign the writing prompt, writing test items, mathematics test items, or science test items. (This accommodation is to be administered in a one-on-one or very small group setting, not in a whole classroom setting.) Large print edition of test. Have multiple choice responses transferred from a test book into an answer document. Record or dictate multiple choice responses to a scribe Use assistive technology for the writing prompt response with spell check, grammar check, and predict ahead functions turned off. For mathematics test, use of a personal whiteboard which can be seen by only the student and is erased after every problem.

27. Books: Accommodations • Provide summaries of chapters • Use peer readers • Use a marker to highlight important textbook sections • Provide two sets of classroom curriculum materials, one for home and one for school • Provide the student with a list of discussion questions before reading the material • Provide books and other written materials in alternate formats such as Braille, large print, audio formats, and digital text • Explore use of assistive technology Books: Modifications • Provide alternative books with similar concepts but at an easier reading level • Give page numbers to help the student find answers

28. Curriculum: Accommodations • • Provide a vocabulary list • • Substitute alternatives for long writing assignments • (clay models, posters, panoramas, collections, electronic • presentation, or oral presentation) • • Provide alternatives to reading aloud in front of the class • • Provide alternatives to crossword puzzles or word finds • Curriculum: Modifications • Shorten assignments to focus on mastery of key concepts • Shorten spelling tests to focus on mastering the most • functional words

29. Introduce an overview of long-term assignments Provide structured assignments with lists Break long-term assignments into small, sequential steps Allow use of sensory tools Establish a form of communication between home and school Reward student for recording assignments and due dates in a notebook Explore use of memory organization aides (tablets, cell phone calendars, task lists, and visual schedules) Use color coded materials for each class

30. Useful links • http://www.nichcy.org/EducateChildren/IEP/Pages/default.aspx • http://www.nichcy.org/EducateChildren • www.wrightslaw.com • www.advocacyinc.org • www.thearcoftexas.org • www.texasprojectfirst.org (TEA resource)