In this issue you will Find Topics On:
Bullying
State Bullying Laws and Policies
Report
https://tinyurl.com/87zp8dy
The U.S. Department of Education’s “Analysis of State Bullying Laws and Policies” summarizes approaches in the 46 states with anti-bullying laws and the 41 states that have created anti-bullying policies as models for schools. From 1999 to 2010, more than 120 bills were enacted by state legislatures from across the country to introduce or amend statutes that address bullying and related behaviors in schools. The report addresses the extent to which states’ bullying laws and model policies contain key components needed. A follow-up study will aim to identify how state laws translate into practice at the school level.
Common Core Standards
Common Core State Standards Collection
Guides
https://www.ideapartnership.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1522
The Common Core State Standards are a national initiative to provide a clear understanding of what students are expected to learn, so that teachers and parents know what they need to do to help them. The final standards were released on June 10, 2010. Many states have adopted the standards and are beginning to implement them. New standards will require new large-scale assessments. This comprehensive collection of materials and resources helps parents, educators, and other stakeholders to better understand the common core standards.
Preparing for Change: A National Perspective on Common Core State Standards Implementation Planning
Report
https://publiceducation.org/pdf/NewsBlast_20120120.pdf
“Preparing for Change,” from Education First and the EPE Research Center, looks at the readiness of the 50 states and the District of Columbia to implement the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), and gives the status of state plans in teacher professional development, curriculum, and teacher-evaluation systems. (A summary of the report appeared in “Education Week,” at tinyurl.com/7r27uay.) The full report is available in pdf (1.01 MB, 16 pp).
Early Intervention
Always watching, especially when you talk.
The little ones are watching our mouths to determine how to shape their own to make particular sounds. If you believe nothing gets past the little ones, you may be right. A new study suggests that even how we speak is highly observed.
Tips and tools for responding to challenging behaviors.
Toddlers and challenging behavior: Why do they do it, and how to respond? Zero to Three offers multiple tipsheets on how to respond to challenging or aggressive behavior in little children.
Tipsheets for early childhood practice.
The Center for Early Literacy Learning (CELL) has released two new CELLpops for practitioners of preschoolers. CELLpops are interactive web versions of CELL mini-posters that include ideas for practitioners to promote children’s early literacy learning. In the Blocks Center and In the Kitchen Center can be used by practitioners working with preschoolers to incorporate early literacy learning activities into their individual classroom centers. Both are available at:
https://www.earlyliteracylearning.org/ta_cell_pop1.php
Video | Early childhood program effectiveness belongs to us all.
This video outlines basic concepts from four decades of program evaluation research that help explain how society can ensure that children have a solid foundation for a productive future by creating and implementing effective early childhood programs and policies.
https://developingchild.harvard.edu/topics/understanding_intervention/
More videos! | Treatment interventions and autism spectrum disorders.
Autism Speaks has launched the Treatment section of its ASD Video Glossary. The treatments presented include some of the more commonly used interventions for children on the autism spectrum: behavioral interventions, developmental interventions, structured teaching and supports, clinical therapies, and toddler treatment models. There’s a login, but the info is free and plentiful.
https://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/video-glossary
Families and Community Resources
Help! I have NO time, but I need support.
The Friendship Circle’s Among Friends blog gives some time-saving tips on where parents of special needs children can find support that will fit into an already hectic life.
https://tinyurl.com/6q2gpyw
Streamline your morning routine.
Here are 8 ways to get out the door on time and unstressed.
https://specialchildren.about.com/od/familyissues/tp/morningroutine.htm?nl=1
Doyouhave a disability? Your insight is needed!
If you have a disability, please take a few moments to participate in the Project Empowerment Consumer Research Use survey. Project Empowerment is funded by the federal government to find out where and how people with disabilities find and use disability research. They are also interested in understanding your experiences when you seek services from rehabilitation and disability professionals. Your name will not be connected to your survey responses. Find out more (and connect with the survey) at:
https://www.research.net/s/pe-c
Homework, helping and not hurting.
Assisting children with their homework should be a positive and uplifting experience for both parent and child. You may find these resources helpful at homework time.
Being an efficient homework helper: Turning a chore into a challenge
This is the theme of LDonline’s January 2012 newsletter.
https://www.ldonline.org/article/5606
Helping children with executive functioning problems turn in their homework
https://www.ldonline.org/article/29043/
Homework and study skills
The National Center for Learning Disabilities has ample homework help resources.
https://www.ncld.org/in-the-home/supporting-learning-at-home/homework-and-study-skills
Homework help for kids with special needs: Maximize learning, minimize frustration
https://specialchildren.about.com/od/learningissues/a/homework.htm
11 math & reading websites to help your child keep up in school
Assistive technology solutions fact sheet.
The Family Center on Technology and Disability has a new AT fact sheet that provides visual examples of a range of AT products to help parents begin their search for assistive technology. The fact sheet includes basic questions to consider when trying to identify AT devices that will best suit your child and illustrates examples of some of the AT options available. Each AT example has an icon indicating whether it is high-tech, mid-tech, or low-tech.
https://www.fctd.info/assets/assets/19/AT_solutions-2011-FCTD.pdf?1322842743
Health Data and Disabilities
Disability and Health Data System
Surveillance Tool
https://dhds.cdc.gov/about
The Disability and Health Data System (DHDS) is a state-level disability surveillance tool designed to assist partners, researchers, advocates, and the general public in the assessment of the health and wellness of people with disabilities. The DHDS was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the Division of Human Development and Disability (DHDD) at the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD). It features three types of data: disability, psychological distress, and disability-associated health care expenditures. The data are presented in formats that include standard- or high-contrast interactive maps and data tables that can be customized or downloaded.
High School Dropouts
Dropping Out: Why Students Drop Out of High School and What Can Be Done About It
Forum Brief
https://www.aypf.org/forumbriefs/2011/fb111811.htm
The vast majority of youth in developed nations finish high school, many more than in the United States, where the national high school graduation rate is about 70%. In this Forum Brief, reporting the November 18, 2011 forum presented by The Forum for Youth Investment, Jobs for the Future, and YouthBuild USA, Russell Rumberger offered a comprehensive overview (based on his book “Dropping Out: Why Students Drop Out of High School and What Can Be Done About It”) of the dropout crisis in America, including the fundamental questions of who drops out, why they do, and what happens when they do. Rumberger identifies challenges in current reform efforts, including insufficient targeting of dropout “factories,” inadequate funding, and lack of attention paid to the cost, sustainability, and scalability of interventions. Following his presentation, a panel of education leaders provided insights for policy reform at the federal, state, and local levels to reduce the incidence of high school dropouts.
The High School Dropout Dilemma and Special Education Students
Report
https://www.cdrp.ucsb.edu/pubs_reports.htm
The severity of the dropout crisis in California and the nation varies widely among student groups. This report examines four dropout dilemma topics in relation to special education students: (a) definition and incidence of dropouts, (b) economic and social consequences of dropping out, (c) causes of dropping out, and (d) possible solutions to the dropout dilemma. The report highlights both the national dropout picture and California’s, and concludes that current trends toward modest improvements in graduation rates among special education students are insufficient. Increased attention and societal investments in interventions, strategies, and programs that emphasize student engagement and retention, especially for special education students, are critically needed.
IDEA/504
A National Update of Case Law under the IDEA and Section 504/ADA
Report
https://www.nasdse.org
The National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) has a new resource on its Web site, “A National Update of Case Law 1998 to the Present under the IDEA and Section 504/ADA,” a compilation of special education decisions under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and Section 504 or the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for students from pre-K through grade 12 from 1998 to mid-2011. It focuses on issues of concern to both educators and parents: eligibility, free appropriate public education (FAPE), least restrictive environment (LRE), and the remedies of tuition reimbursement and compensatory education.
Jobless
America’s Promise Report: Jobless Want Opportunities
Report
https://tinyurl.com/7v9w2qy
“Opportunity Road: the Promise and Challenge of America’s Forgotten Youth,” a survey and research report released by America’s Promise Alliance, Civic Enterprises and Peter D. Hart Research Associates, shows that 73% percent of 16- to 24-year-olds who are not enrolled in school, are not employed and do not have a college degree are confident that they will be able to achieve their goals in life. The survey sought to better understand how these youth became detached from school and work, and the challenges they face in trying to reconnect to society. The report discusses the benefits to the nation of re-engaging these young people and how to get them back on track.
Participation Requests
2012 Southwest Conference on Disability Seeks Proposals
https://cdd.unm.edu/swconf
The 2012 Southwest Conference on Disability seeks proposals on the theme “Access For All: To Boldly Go Where Everybody Else Has Gone Before,” with emphasis on: Access To Health, Physical Access, Access To Employment, Access To Technology, and Access To Behavioral Health Through High-Quality Service Partnerships. The conference will be held October 9-12, 2012. Deadline for proposals: May 11, 2012.
PEPNet 2.0 Training Institute (PTI) Update
https://www.pepnet.org/pti/
The PEPNet 2.0 Training Institute (PTI) has extended its deadline (originally January 5) for proposals for presentations for the PEPNet 2.0 National Conference, to be held in conjunction with the Association of Higher Education and Disabilities (AHEAD) 2012 Conference in New Orleans, LA, July 9-14, 2012. Papers should address issues related to enrolling, retaining, and instructing students who are deaf or hard of hearing or to the varying communication needs of, and methods used by, individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, such as oral transliteration services, cued language transliteration services, sign language transliteration and interpreting services, and transcription. New deadline for proposals: February 3, 2012.
Participants Sought for Survey on Mentoring Services for High-Risk Youth
www.surveymonkey.com/s/YouthMentoringSurvey
The National Mentoring Partnership, Global Youth Justice, and the National Partnership for Juvenile Services are conducting a survey to improve the design and delivery of mentoring services for youth at risk for delinquency, alcohol and drug abuse, truancy, and other problem behaviors. Results will be included in a research report and in training and technical assistance materials, which will be free and available online. The survey is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Mentoring and juvenile justice professionals working in detention, corrections, probation, dependency courts, delinquency courts, and teen court/youth court diversion programs are encouraged to participate.
America’s Promise Launches Grad Nation Communities
https://www.americaspromise.org/gradnationcommunities
America’s Promise Alliance is drafting more communities into its campaign to boost high school graduation. The Alliance recently launched Grad Nation Communities, part of the Grad Nation Campaign, a 10-year initiative to mobilize all Americans to take action to end the high school dropout crisis and better prepare young people for college and the 21st century workforce. The Alliance invites communities to join this network of cities and towns that will work to improve high school graduation rates by focusing on the local schools that are most in need of improvement.
Reading Instruction
All children can read, given the right tools.
Take a look at this website of the National Consortium on Deaf-Blindness, which provides strategies, examples, and resources designed to expand literacy learning opportunities for children with combined vision and hearing loss, multiple disabilities, and other complex learning challenges. https://literacy.nationaldb.org/
Response to Intervention
How States Are Implementing Response to Intervention
Report
https://www.nasdse.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=XzGg7YsB9KA%3d&tabid=36
The National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) and the Council of Administrators of Special Education (CASE) have released “Response to Intervention Blueprints: State Edition,” one of three publications on RtI; the other two are the school-building level and district-level editions. Available in pdf (717 KB, 88 pp).
Self Determination
Fast facts: Teaching self-determination.
Students with higher levels of self-determination achieve better post-school outcomes in the areas of education and employment. Want to know what actions teachers, schools, and families can take to promote student self-determination? ThisFast Facts brief will tell you and connect you with multiple resources designed to help you teach self-determination skills.
Technology
Technology. Technology. Now Apple does textbooks, too.
In conjunction with three of the major textbook manufactures, Apple has developed interactive K-12 textbooks. With the drastic increase in technology use in education, interactive textbooks enhance usability of tools already being used in schools.https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/01/20/18apple.html?tkn=ZWZFUrSIWnYQS15GgJAHfz9J93ZMaGfDSk3P&cmp=ENL-EU-NEWS2
Testing Accommodations
Improved Federal Enforcement Needed to Better Protect Students’ Rights to Testing Accommodations (November 2011)
Report
https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-12-40
Standardized tests are often required to gain admission into postsecondary schools or to obtain professional certifications. Federal disability laws, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) require entities that administer these tests to provide accommodations, such as extended time or changes in test format, to students with disabilities. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) examined: the types of accommodations individuals apply for and receive and how schools assist them, factors testing companies consider when making decisions about requests for accommodations, challenges individuals and testing companies experience in receiving and granting accommodations, and how federal agencies enforce compliance with relevant disability laws and regulations. GAO recommended that the Department of Justice develop a strategic approach to enforcement by analyzing its data and updating its technical assistance manual, and Justice agreed with GAO’s recommendation.
Transition Services
Centers for Youth with Disabilities, Parents, and Professionals Working in Transition and Employment Planning
Report
https://rsatac.ed.gov/docs/VRBrief_Centersforyouth.pdf
This VR Research in Brief, prepared by PACER, summarizes current research findings on Rehabilitation Services Administration Parent Training resources. Parent involvement is an essential part of the critical period when youth with disabilities transition from the public education system to adult services and the adult world. Available in pdf (290 KB, 3 pp).
Future of Children: Transition to Adulthood
Archived Event
https://www.brookings.edu/events/2010/0427_adolescence.aspx
Too many adolescents drop out of high school and then struggle with high rates of unemployment, incarceration, drug use and non-marital births, with high costs both to teens and to society. The start of a new journal, “Transition to Adulthood,” from the Future of Children project, was celebrated with an event focused on describing and analyzing second-chance programs that aim to help high school drop-outs, and featuring presentations by and discussions among researchers, community program operators and Obama administration officials.
Helping Students with Disabilities Transition to Postsecondary Education
Guide
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/transitionguide.html
“Transition of Students with Disabilities to Postsecondary Education: A Guide for High School Educators,” from the Office for Civil Rights, highlights differences between the rights and responsibilities of students with disabilities in high school and in postsecondary education. Besides a set of answers to FAQs, suggestions are provided that high school educators can share with students to help them transition to postsecondary education.
Skills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success
Curriculum
https://www.dol.gov/odep/topics/youth/softskills/
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy’s Youth team has developed a curriculum for youth service professionals working with young people ages 14-24, “Skills to Pay the Bills: Mastering Soft Skills for Workplace Success.” It provides flexible hands-on activities that focus on six key skill areas: communication, enthusiasm and attitude, teamwork, networking, problem solving and critical thinking, and professionalism, and was field-tested in seven career development youth programs across the country serving all youth, including youth with disabilities. Available in both English and Spanish on the ODEP Web site.
The Time Is Now: Embracing Employment First
Report
https://www.nacdd.org/documents/EmploymentFirstFINALNov132011_PRINT.pdf
The National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities has issued “The Time Is Now: Embracing Employment First” a report examining Employment First, a service delivery strategy that presumes that all citizens with significant disabilities can and should have opportunities to work in the community. Employment First supports competitive, integrated employment as the preferred outcome and requires that systems align their reimbursement practices, policies and guidance to encourage and fund services and supports that lead to this outcome. Available in pdf (676 KB, 28 pp).
Helping students with disabilities transition to postsecondary education.
Transition of Students with Disabilities to Postsecondary Education: A Guide for High School Educators comes from the Office for Civil Rights. The guide highlights the significant differences between the rights and responsibilities of students with disabilities in high school and in a postsecondary education setting. Following a set of FAQs, practical suggestions are provided that high school educators can share with students to help them successfully transition to postsecondary education.
https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/transitionguide.html
