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A
Teacher’s/Parent's Guide to Special Education On
·
focus on achievement of improved
student outcomes; .focus on instruction in the core curriculum content areas;
·
participation in the state
assessment system; .increased parental participation;
·
development of a more
individualized assessment system; .improved criteria for determining eligibility
for special education and related services;
·
non disability based labeling
system; ·
flexibility in programming; and .
·
instructional based groupings.
The
following is a summary of the major elements of the New Jersey Administrative
Code 6A: 14. Copies of the complete
code are available in the: Child
Study Team Office 856-848-6110 THE REFERRAL PROCESS
Referrals
to the Child Study Team can be made by members of the instructional staff,
administrative staff, and other professional staff members of the local school
district and by parents and agencies concerned with the welfare of children.
Parents of preschoolers, who have concerns regarding their child's
development, can refer their child to the Child Study Team. Referrals
are made under the following conditions: 1.
When it is determined that interventions in the general education program have
not adequately addressed the educational difficulties of a student and it is
believed that the student may be disabled. The
staff of the general education program must maintain written documentation of
the implementation and effectiveness of the interventions that have been
instituted to alleviate the educational problems of the student; 2.
When it can be documented that the nature of the student's educational problem
is such that evaluation to determine eligibility for services is warranted
without delay; 3.
The parent or adult student makes a written request for an evaluation to
determine eligibility for special education and related services. Once
a referral is made to the Child Study Team Office, the team must meet with the
parent and teacher and determine if evaluations are warranted.
If evaluations are warranted, the team, parent and teacher decide what
assessments need to be conducted and by whom.
A parent's written consent is required before any assessment activities
can begin. Once the consent is
given, there are 90 days available to conduct the evaluations and to determine
eligibility and to appropriately place a student who is found to be eligible for
special education and related services. THE EVALUATION PROCESS
The
evaluation process really begins the first time the team meets with the parent
and teacher to review the referral. The
process is the following: 1.
Review existing evaluation data on the student including evaluations and
information provided by the parent, current classroom based assessments and
observations, and the observations of teachers and related services providers; 2.
Consider the need for any health appraisal or specialized medical evaluation; 3.
Identify what additional data are needed to determine if the student has a
disability that meets the specific criteria for a disability under the New
Jersey Administrative Code 6A: 14. An
initial evaluation' consists of a multi-disciplinary assessment in all areas of
a suspected disability. It includes
assessment by at least two members of the Child Study Team and other specialists
in the area of disability as required or determined necessary.
Each evaluation of the student must include the following: 1.
Where appropriate, the use of a standardized test which must be individually
administered, valid and reliable, normed on a representative population, and
scored as either standard score with standard deviation or norm-referenced
scores with a cutoff score; 2.
Include functional assessment of academic performance and where appropriate
behavior; 3.
Other' components include: a. one structures observation by one
evaluator.. in other than a testing
session; b. An interview with the student's parent; c. An interview with the teacher(s)
referring the potentially disabled student; d. A review of the student’s
developmental and educational history including records and interviews; e. A review of interventions documented by
the classroom teacher(s) and others who work with the student; , f. One or more informal measures which may
include but not be limited to surveys and inventories, analysis of work, trial
teaching, self report, criterion referenced tests..
curriculum based assessment, and informal rating scales. THE REEVALUATION PROCESS
Within
three years of the previous classification, a multi-disciplinary reevaluation
must be completed to determine whether the student continues to be a student
with a disability. Reevaluation can
be conducted sooner if conditions warrant or if the student’s parent or
teacher requests the reevaluation. The
IEP team is responsible for determining the nature and scope of the
reevaluation. The IEP team reviews
existing evaluation data and determines what tests and procedures are needed to
determine the following: 1.
Whether the student continues to have a disability; 2.
The present levels of performance and educational needs of the student; 3.
Whether the student continues to need special education and related services; 4.
Whether any additions or modifications to the special education related service
programs are needed to enable the student with a disability to meet annual goals
set out in the IEP and to participate as appropriate, in the general education
curriculum. Prior
to conducting any reevaluation of a student with a disability, the district
board of education must obtain consent from the parent or adult student or
demonstrate that reasonable efforts have been made to gain that consent. THE IEP TEAM
The
IEP team is comprised of the following individuals: 1.
The parent; 2.
At least one regular education teacher if the student is or may be participating
in the regular education classroom. The
regular education teacher shall be knowledgeable about the student's educational
performance or the district's programs; 3.
At least one special education teacher, or where appropriate, at least one
special education provider. The
special education teacher or special education provider shall be knowledgeable
about the student's educational performance or the district's programs; 4.
At least one child study team member who can interpret the instructional
implications of evaluation results; 5.
The case manager; 6.
A representative of the district board of education who: a. is qualified to provide or supervise
the provision of specially designed instruction to meet the unique needs of
students with disabilities; b. is knowledgeable about the general
education curriculum c. is knowledgeable about the availability
of resources of the district board of education; and d. May be the child study team member or
other appropriate personnel including the special education administrator or
principal; 7.
At the discretion of the parent or school district, other individuals who have
knowledge or special expertise regarding the student, including related
services personnel as appropriate; 8.
The student where appropriate. THE
CRITERIA OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SPECIAL
EDUCATION AND
RELATED SERVICES
When
an initial evaluation is completed for a student, age 3 through 21, a meeting
must be convened to determine whether the student is eligible for special
education and related services. A
copy of the evaluation reports and documentation of eligibility is given to the
parent or the adult student. In
making a determination of eligibility for special education and related
services, a student should not be determined eligible if the determinant factor
is due to a lack of instruction in reading or math or due to limited English
proficiency. Classification is based
on all assessments conducted including assessments by Child Study Team members
and assessments by other specialists as specified by the following: 1.
“Auditorily impaired” corresponds to auditorily handicapped” and further
corresponds to the Federal eligibility categories of deafness or hearing
impairment. “ Auditorily
impaired” means an inability to hear within normal limits due to physical
impairment or dysfunction of auditory mechanisms characterized by a or b below.
An audiological evaluation by a specialist qualified in the field of
audiology and a speech and language evaluation by a certified speech-language
specialist are required. a. “Deafness-” -The auditory
impairment is so severe that the student is impaired in processing linguistic
information through hearing, with or without amplification and the student's
educational performance is adversely affected. b. “Hearing impairment”-An impairment
in hearing, whether permanent or fluctuating which adversely affects the
student's educational performance 2.
“Autistic” means a pervasive developmental disability which significantly
impacts verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction that adversely
affects a student's educational performance.
Onset is generally evident before age three.
Other characteristics often associated with autism are engagement in
repetitive activities and stereotyped movements, resistance to environmental
change or change in daily routine, unusual responses to sensory experiences and
lack of responsiveness to others. The
term does not apply if the student's adverse educational performance is due to
emotional disturbance. An assessment
by a certified speech language specialist and an assessment by a physician
trained in neurodevelopmental assessment are required. 3.
“Cognitively Impaired” corresponds to “mentally retarded” and means a
disability that is characterized by significantly below average general
cognitive functioning existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive
behavior, manifested during the developmental period that adversely affects a
student's educational performance and is characterized by one of the following. a. “Mild-cognitive impairment”
corresponds to educable'.' and means a level of cognitive development and
adaptive behavior in home, school. and
community settings that are mildly below age expectations with respect to all of
the following: 1) The quality and rate of learning; 2) The use of symbols for the
interpretation of information and the solution of problems; and 3) Performance on an individually
administered test of intelligence that fall, 4) within a range of two to three standard
deviations below the mean. b. “Moderate cognitive impairment”
corresponds to “trainable” and means a level of cognitive development and
adaptive behavior that is moderately below age expectations with respect to the
following: 1) The ability to use symbols in the
solution of problems of low complexity; 2)
The ability to function socially without direct and close supervision in home,
school, and community settings; and 3)
Performance on an individually administered test of intelligence that falls
three standard deviations or more below the mean. c. “Severe cognitive impairment”
corresponds to “eligible for day training” and means a level of functioning
severely below age expectations whereby in a consistent basis the student is
incapable of giving evidence of understanding and responding in a positive
manner to simple directions expressed in the child’s primary mode of
communication and cannot in some manner express basic wants and needs. 4.
“Communication impaired” corresponds to “communication handicapped” and
means a language disorder in the areas of morphology, syntax, semantics and/
or pragmatics/ discourse which adversely affects a student's educational
performance and is not due primarily to an auditory impairment.
The problem shall be demonstrated through functional assessment of
language in other than a testing situation and performance below 1.5 standard
deviations, or the tenth percentile on at least two standardized oral language
tests, where such tests are appropriate. When
the area of suspected disability is language, an evaluation by a certified
speech-language specialist is required. The
speech-language specialist shall be considered a child study team member: a. When it is determined that the student
meets the eligibility criteria according to the definition above, but requires
instruction by a speech-language specialist only, the student shall be
classified as eligible for speech-language services. b. When the area of suspected disability
is a disorder of articulation, voice. or
fluency, the student shall be evaluated and if eligible, classified as eligible
for speech-language services. 5.
“Emotionally disturbed” means a condition exhibiting one or more of the
following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that
adversely affects a student's educational performance due to: a. An inability to learn that cannot be.
explained by intellectual, sensory or health factors; b. An inability to build or maintain
satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; c. Inappropriate types of behaviors or
feelings under normal circumstances; d. A general pervasive mood of unhappiness
or depression; e. A tendency to develop physical symptoms
or fears associated with personal or school problems. 6.
“Multiply disabled” corresponds to “Multiply handicapped” and means the
presence of two or more disabling conditions, Eligibility for speech-language
services alone shall not be one of the disabling conditions for classification
based on the definition of “multiply disabled”, “Multiply disabled” is
characterized as follows: a. “Multiple disabilities.” means.
Concomitant impairments the combination of which causes such severe educational
problems that programs designed for the separate disabling conditions. will not
meet the student's educational needs. b. “Deaf/blindness” means. concomitant
hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which causes such severe
communication and other developmental and educational problems. that they cannot
be accommodated in special education programs solely for students with
deafness or students. with blindness. 7.
“Orthopedically impaired” corresponds to “orthopedically handicapped”
and means a disability characterized by a severe orthopedic impairment that
adversely affects a student's educational performance. The term includes
malformation, malfunction, or loss of bones, muscle, or tissue. A medical
assessment documenting the orthopedic condition is required. 8.
“Other health impaired” corresponds to “chronically ill” and means a
disability characterized by having limited strength, vitality or alertness,
including a heightened alertness with respect to the educational environment,
due to chronic or acute health problems, such as attention deficit disorder or
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, a heart condition, tuberculosis,
rheumatic fever, nephritis, asthma, sickle cell anemia, hemophilia, epilepsy,
lead poisoning, leukemia, diabetes or any other medical condition, such as
Tourette Syndrome, that adversely affects a student's educational performance. A
medical assessment documenting the health problem is required. 9.
“Preschool disabled” corresponds to preschool handicapped and means an
identified disabling condition and/or a measurable developmental impairment
which occurs in children between the ages of three and five years and
requires special education and related services. 10.
“Social maladjustment” means a consistent inability to conform to the
standards for behavior established by the school. Such behavior is seriously
disruptive to the education of the student or other students and is not due to
emotional disturbance as defined above. 11.
.”Specific learning disability” corresponds to “perceptually impaired”
and means a disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes
involved in understanding or using language, spoken or written, that may
manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write,
spell, or to do mathematical calculations. a. It is characterized by a severe
discrepancy between the student's current achievement and intellectual ability
in one or more of the following areas: 1) Basic reading skills; 2) Reading comprehension; 3) Oral expression; 4) Listening comprehension; 5) Mathematical computation; 6) Mathematical reasoning; and 7) Written expression. b. The term does not apply to students who
have learning problems that are primarily the result of visual, hearing, or
motor disabilities, general cognitive deficits, emotional disturbance or
environmental, cultural or economic disadvantage. c. The district shall adopt procedures
that utilize a statistical formula and criteria for determining severe
discrepancy. Evaluation shall include assessment of current academic achievement
and intellectual ability. 12.
“Traumatic brain injury” corresponds to “neurologically impaired” and
means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force or
insult to the brain, resulting in total or partial functional disability or
psychosocial impairment, or both. The term applies to open or closed head
injuries resulting in impairments in one or more areas, such as cognition;
language; memory; attention; reasoning; abstract thinking; judgment;
problem-solving; sensory , perceptual and motor abilities; psychosocial
behavior; physical functions; information processing, and speech. 13.
“Visually impaired” corresponds to “visually handicapped” and means an
impairment in vision that, even with correction, adversely affects a student's
educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness.
An assessment by a specialist qualified to determine visual disability is
required. Students with visual impairments shall be reported to the Commission
for the Blind and Visually Impaired. THE
INDIVIDUALIZED EDUCATION PROGRAM
A
meeting to develop the IEP shall be held within 30 calendar days of a
determination that a student is. eligible for special education and related
services or eligible for speech-language services. An IEP shall be in effect
before special education and related services are provided to a student with a
disability and such IEP shall be implemented as soon as possible following the
IEP meeting. At the beginning of each school year, the district board of
education shall have in effect an IEP for every student who is receiving special
education and related services from the district When
developing the IEP, the IEP team shall: 1.
Consider the strengths of the student and the concerns of the parents for
enhancing the education of their child; 2.
Consider the results of the initial evaluation or most recent evaluation of the
student; 3.
In the case of a student whose behavior impedes his or her learning or that of
others, consider, when appropriate, strategies, including positive behavioral
interventions and supports to address that behavior; 4.
In the case of a student with limited English proficiency, consider the language
needs of the student as related to the IEP; 5.
In the case of a student who is blind or visually impaired, provide for
instruction in Braille and the use of Braille unless the IEP team determines,
after an evaluation of the student's reading and writing skills, and current and
projected needs for instruction in Braille that such instruction is not
appropriate. 6.
Consider the communication needs of the student; 7.
In the case of a student who is deaf or hard of hearing consider the student's
language and communication needs, opportunities for direct communication with
peers and professional personnel in the student's language and communication
mode, academic level, and full range of opportunities for direct instruction in
the student's language and communication mode; 8.
Consider whether the student requires assistive technology devices and services;
and 9.
Beginning at age 14, consider the need for technical consultation from the
Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services, Department of Labor. The
IEP shall include, but not be limited to: 1.
A statement of the student's present levels of educational performance,
including, but not limited to: How
the student's disability affects the student's involvement and progress in the
general curriculum or For
preschool students, as appropriate, how the disability affects the student's
participation in appropriate activities; 2.
A statement of measurable annual goals that shall be related to the core
curriculum content standards through the general education curriculum unless
other\vise required according to the student's educational needs. Such
measurable annual goals shall include benchmarks or short-term objectives
related to: a. Meeting the student's needs that result
from the student’s disability to enable the student to be involved in and
progress in the general education curriculum and b. Meeting each of the student's other
educational needs that result from the student’s disability; 3.
A statement of the special education and related services and supplementary aids
and services that shall be provided for the student, or a statement of the
program modifications or supports that shall be provided for school personnel on
behalf of the student: a. To advance appropriately toward
attaining the annual goals; b. To be involved and progress in the
general education Curriculum according to 1. Above and to participate in
extracurricular and other non-academic activities and c. To be educated and participate with
other students with disabilities and non-disabled students; 4.
An explanation of the extent, if any, to which the student shall not participate
with non-disabled students in the general education class and in extracurricular
and nonacademic activities; 5.
A statement of any individual modifications in the administration of Statewide
or district-wide assessments of student achievement needed for the student to
participate in such assessment. If the IEP team determines that the student
shall not participate in a particular Statewide or district-wide assessment of
student achievement (or part of such an assessment) , a statement of why that
assessment is not appropriate for the student and a statement of how that
student shall be assessed. 6.
A statement which specifies the projected date for the beginning of the services
and modifications described and the anticipated frequency location, and duration
of those services and modifications. For in-class resource programs, the IEP
shall specify the frequency and amount of instructional time the in-class
support resource teacher is present in the class; 7.
A statement of the State and local graduation requirements, that the student
shall be expected to meet. If a student with a disability is exempted from the
local and State high school graduation requirements, the statement shall
include: the statement shall include: a. A rationale for the exemption based on
the student's educational needs; and b. A description of the alternate
proficiencies. to be achieved by the student to qualify for a State endorsed
diploma. 8.
A statement of student's transition from all elementary program to the secondary
program which shall be determined by factors including number of years in
school; social, academic, and vocational development; and chronological age; 9.
Beginning at age 14, and updated annually, a statement of the transition service
needs of the student under the applicable parts of the student's IEP that
focuses on the student's courses of study including, when appropriate, technical
consultation from the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services, Department
of Labor; 10.
For students with disabilities age 16 and over, or younger if deemed
appropriate, a statement of needed transition services including when
appropriate, a statement of the interagency responsibilities, or any needed
linkages. The transition services shall be based on the individual student's
needs, taking into account the student's preferences and interests and shall
include: a. Instruction; b. Related services; c. Community experiences; d. The development of employment and other
post-school adult living objectives and e. If appropriate, acquisition of daily
living skills and functional vocational evaluation; 11.
If the participants in the IEP meeting determine that transition services shall
not be needed in one or more of the specified areas, a statement to that
effect and the basis upon which the determination was made; 12.
The person(s) responsible to serve as a liaison to post-secondary resources and
make referrals to the resources as appropriate. If the student with educational
disabilities does not attend the IEP meeting where transition services are
discussed, the district board of education or public agency shall take other
steps to ensure that the student's preferences and interests are considered. PROGRAM
OPTIONS A
full continuum of alternative placements shall be available to meet the needs of
students with disabilities ages three through 21 for special education and
related services. Educational program options include placement in the
following: 1.
Regular class with supplementary aids and services including, but not limited
to; the following: a. Curricular or instructional
modifications or specialized instructional strategies; b. Supplementary instruction; c. Assistive technology devices and
services d. Teacher aides; and e. Related services. 2.
Resource programs offer individual and small group instruction to students with
disabilities. Resource programs may be provided in a regular class or in a
pullout resource program. These programs provide support or replacement
instruction as defined below: a. In a support resource program, the
student shall meet the regular education curriculum requirements for the grade
or subject being taught. Modifications to the instructional strategies: or
testing procedures may be provided and, if provided shall be provided in
accordance with the student’s: IEP: The primary instructional responsibility
for the student in a support resource program shall be the regular classroom
teacher with input from the resource program teacher as specified in the
student's IEP. A support resource program provided in the student's regular
class shall be at the same time and in the same activities as: the rest of the
class. Support instruction can be provided in the regular class or in the
Resource Center as a pullout program. These models can occur in combination. b. In a replacement resource program, the
regular education curriculum and the instructional strategies may be modified
based on the student's IEP. The resource program teacher shall have primary
instructional responsibility for the student in the replacement resource
program. Replacement instruction can occur in the regular education classroom or
the Resource Center. A student participating in an in-class replacement program
shall be included in activities such as group discussion, special projects,
field trips and other regular class activities as deemed appropriate in the
students IEP. An
in-class resource program may be provided up to the student’s entire
instructional day. At the elementary level, a pullout resource center program
may be provided for up to one half of the instructional day. At the secondary
level, a pullout resource program may be provided for up to the entire
instructional day. In-class support and in-class replacement instruction may be
provided to students with disabilities by the same teacher during the same
instructional period. 3.
Special class programs shall serve students who have similar educational needs
in accordance with their individualized education programs. Special programs
offer instruction in the core curriculum content standards unless the IEP
specifies an alternative curriculum due to the nature and severity of the
student’s disability. The regular education and curriculum and the
instructional strategies may be modified based on the student’s IEP. The
following are the types of special class programs. a. Auditory impairments b. Autism c. Behavioral disabilities d. Cognitive disabilities e. Learning and/or language disabilities f. Multiple disabilities g. Preschool disabilities h. Visual impairments 4.
Other placement options include, but are not limited to a special services
school district, A New Jersey approved school for the disabled, community
rehabilitation program, and individual instruction at home or in other
facilities with the prior written approval of the Department of Education
through its county office. LEAST
RESTRICTIVE ENVIRONMENT
Students
with disabilities shall be educated in the least restrictive environment. Each
district board of education shall insure that: 1.
To the maximum extent appropriate, a. student with a disability is educated with
children who are not disabled; 2.
Special classes, separate schooling, or other removal of a student with a
disability from the student’s regular class occurs only when the nature or
severity of the educational disability is such that education in the student's
regular class with the use of appropriate supplementary aides and services
cannot be achieved satisfactorily; 3.
A full continuum of alternative placements is to be available to meet the needs
of students with disabilities for special education and related services; 4.
Placement of a student with a disability is determined at least annually; 5.
Placement is based on his or her individualized education program~ 6.
Placement is provided in appropriate educational settings as close. to home as
possible; 7.
When the IEP does not describe specific restrictions, the student, is educated
in the school he or she would attend if not disabled; and 8.
Consideration is given to: a. Whether the student can be educated
satisfactorily in a regular classroom with supplementary aids and services b. A comparison of the benefits provided
in a regular class. and the benefits provided in a special education class and c. The potentially beneficial or harmful
effects which a placement may behave on the student with disabilities or the
other students in the class. Examples
of supplementary aids and services include, but are not limited to,
modifications to the regular curriculum, assistance of a one-to-one aide,
special education training for the regular teacher, use of computer-assisted
devices, and provision of note takers. DISCIPLINE
Four
basic theme run throughout Administrative Code 6A: 14 concerning discipline and
they are: 1.
All children, including children with disabilities, deserve safe,
well-disciplined schools and orderly learning environments; 2.
Teachers and school administrators should have tools they need to assist them in
preventing misconduct and discipline problems and to address these problems if
they arise; 3.
There must be a balanced approach to the issue of discipline of children with
disabilities that reflects the need for orderly and safe schools and the need to
protect the right of children with disabilities to a free and appropriate
education (F APE); 4.
Appropriate developed IEPs with well-developed behavior intervention strategies
decrease school discipline problems. SUSPENSIONS
Suspensions
Up to Ten Days: With
suspensions less than ten days ( consecutive or cumulative ), the district is
not required to provide services. At the time of the suspension, the school
principal must provide the parents with written notification and a description
of the action and why it was taken. A copy of the notice must be forwarded to
the case manager . Suspensions
that Exceed Ten Days: There
is a process that must be followed anytime a student is considered for a
suspension that exceeds ten days. The process is as follows: 1.
The parent must be notified of the decision not later than the date on which the
decision to take action is made and must be provided all procedural safeguards; 2.
The district must do the following: a. Conduct a functional behavioral
assessment; b. Develop a behavioral intervention plan; c. Conduct a manifestation determination. If
there is no relationship between the behavior and the disability, the student
may be suspended for the remaining days, but with FAPE, including access
to the general education curriculum. If
there is a relationship, the student may not be suspended but the student's
individualized education program may be modified. Either way, the student must
receive a free, appropriate, and public education on the eleventh day. In
case of a dangerous weapon or drugs, the principal can place a student in an
interim alternative educational setting for a maximum of 45 calendar days. The
IEP team determines the setting and the student returns to the regular placement
on the 46th day. If
the district is concerned that a student poses a substantial threat to
himself/herself or to others, the district must request placement in an
alternative interim educational setting by an Administrative Law judge.
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