IPUL Education
- Idaho's PTI
- IDEA
- Early Intervention
- IEP
- 504
- Dispute Resolution
- Idaho Disability Categories
- RTI/PBIS
- Family Engagement
- Literacy/Reading
- General Education Resources
- Resources / Templates / Forms
Idaho's PTI
Idaho Parents Unlimited is the Parent Training and Information Center for the state of Idaho.
What are Parent Training and Information Centers?
Parent Training and Information Centers (PTIs) are authorized in Part D of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and are funded by the U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. There is at least one PTI in each state. Because they are population based, Idaho has only one, and that is IPUL. Each PTI is mandated to assist parents to better understand the nature of their children's disabilities and their educational and developmental needs;
- communicate effectively with personnel responsible for providing special education, early intervention, and related services;
- participate in decision-making processes and the development of individualized education programs (IEPs) under Part B and individualized family service plans under Part C;
- obtain appropriate information about the range of options, programs, services, and resources available to assist children with disabilities and their families;
- understand the provision of IDEA for the education of, and the provision of early intervention services to, children with disabilities; and
- participate in school reform activities.
IDEA
What is IDEA?
What is IDEA?
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the guiding law that provides the rights and responsibilities for students who are eligible for Special Education services in public school settings or in certain settings for infants and toddlers.
IDEA was first passed in 1975. (At that time, it was called the Education for All Handicapped Children Act.) The primary purposes of IDEA are:
- To provide a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to children with disabilities. IDEA requires schools to find and evaluate students suspected of having disabilities, at no cost to families. This is called Child Find. Once kids are found to have a qualifying disability, schools must provide them with special education and related services (like speech therapy and counseling) to meet their unique needs. The goal is to help students make progress in school.
- To give parents or legal guardians a voice in their child’s education. Under IDEA, you have a say in the decisions the school makes about your child. At every point in the process, the law gives you specific rights and protections. These are called procedural safeguards. For example, one safeguard is that the school must get your consent before providing services to your child.
IDEA covers kids from birth through high school graduation or age 21 (whichever comes first). It provides early intervention services up to age 3, and special education for older kids in public school, which includes charter schools.
IDEA Resources
IDEA Statute and Regulations
This is an external link to a federal website that is focused on the IDEA act.
IDEA Basics overview video
This is a short, but informative video that gives a good overview of what IDEA is, produced by Your Special Education Rights.
Early Intervention
Birth to Three
Idaho Infant Toddler Program
Idaho's Infant Toddler Program (ITP) coordinates a system of early intervention services to assist Idaho children birth to three years of age who have a developmental delay or who have conditions (such as prematurity, Down Syndrome, hearing loss) that may result in a developmental delay.
The ITP links children with services that promote their physical, mental and emotional development and supports the needs of their families. These can include therapeutic, educational, and supportive services, such as:
- Family education
- Speech therapy
- Occupational therapy
- Service coordination
- Family training
- Counseling
- Home visits
- Health services
Children referred to the Infant Toddler Program are assessed to see if they meet program eligibility. If eligible, an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) is written that outlines services for the child and their family. This plan is reviewed every six months. At three years of age, ITP assists with the child's transition to a developmental preschool program or other community services.
Idaho Early Learning eGuidelines
(external site hosted PDF file)
Early Childhood Outcomes
Early Childhood Outcomes Include:
Positive Social and Emotional Skills, including Social Relationships.
Acquiring and Using Knowledge and Skills, Early Childhood Outcomes including Communication and Early Literacy.
Taking Appropriate Action to Meet Needs.
Goal of Preschool Special Education:
The overarching goal of preschool special education is to enable young children to be active
and successful participants in home, school and community settings resulting in positive outcomes for children and their families.
Key Principles:
Principle 1:
Preschoolers learn best through meaningful everyday experiences and interactions within developmentally, linguistically and culturally appropriate routines, play and activities in inclusive settings.
Principle 2:
All families, with appropriate supports and resources, promote their children’s learning and development.
Principle 3:
The primary role of preschool special educators and related service providers is to provide and support high quality services in collaboration with families, teachers and caregivers to promote positive outcomes for children and families.
Principle 4:
Throughout the preschool special education process, the child’s individual strengths and needs, along with the family’s culture, priorities, and preferences, are respected and reflected.
Principle 5:
IEP goals based on multiple sources of information, including family concerns and authentic assessment, support and promote access to and participation in the preschool curriculum.
Principle 6: Professionals build partnerships with families and support them as the primary decision makers for their children.
Principle 7: Preschool learning experiences are developmentally appropriate, and based on recommended practices.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (eagle) logo, Administration for Children and Families logo and Early Childhood Development logo.
HHS, ED, and Too Small to Fail Release the Talk, Read, Sing Together Every day! Toolkit
“We know that right now during the first three years of life, a child born into a low-income family hears 30 million fewer words than a child born into a well-off family. By giving more of our kids access to high-quality pre-school and other early learning programs, and by helping parents get the tools they need to help their kids succeed, we can give those kids a better shot at the career they are capable of, and a life that will make us all better off.” - President Obama
During the first few years of life, children’s brains develop at a rapid pace, influenced by the experiences they have at home, in their early care and education settings, and in their communities. Their experiences include the quantity and quality of words they are exposed to through talking, reading, and singing. Research has found that providing infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with rich early language experiences can have important benefits on their brain development and school readiness.
Today, the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Education (ED), in partnership with Too Small to Fail, are releasing “Talk, Read, Sing Together, Every Day!,” a suite of resources that can help enrich children’s early language experiences beginning from birth. This toolkit is the result of a commitment made at the 2014 White House convening focused on bridging the “word gap.”
The suite of resources includes tip sheets for families, preschool teachers, and infant/toddler teachers and caregivers, as well as a fact sheet that highlights the evidence behind the benefits of being bilingual and embracing children’s home languages. All tip sheets are available in English and Spanish, and can be downloaded for free at toosmall.org.
We hope you find these resources helpful and share them with your networks!
For Families:
Talking is Teaching Family Guide (PDF available in English and Spanish)
Talking is Teaching Storybook (PDF available in English and Spanish )
Tips for Infants & Toddlers (PDF)
For Providers:
Talking is Teaching Community Provider Guide (PDF)
Books Build Connections Toolkit. Learn what every pediatrician can do to promote early literacy and learning. (AAP.org)
Tips for Health Care Professionals (PDF)
A Family Guide to Participating in the Child Outcomes Measurement Process
As a parent of a young child who is in an early intervention (EI) or early childhood special education (ECSE) program, you want to be sure these services are helping your child develop and learn. These services are designed to make the most of each child’s potential, as well as to strengthen the family’s ability to help their child. But how can you know if your child’s early intervention or special education program is meeting his or her needs?Click the title above for the guide.
Infant / Toddler Resources
Idaho Sound Beginnings, the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Program
Hearing Loss is the most common birth disorder in newborns. It affects how your baby perceives sound and is able to communicate with you and the world. 90% of infants with hearing loss are born to hearing parents. Please don't wait. Much can be done if hearing loss is identified early.
Zero to Three - National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
ZERO TO THREE is a national nonprofit organization that provides parents, professional and policy makers the knowledge and the know-how to nurure early development.
Neuroscientists have documented that our earliest days, weeks and months of life are a period of unparalleled growth when trillions of brain cell connections are made. Research and clinical experience also demonstrate that health and development are directly influenced by the quality of care and experiences a child has with his parents and other adults.
That is why at ZERO TO THREE our mission is to ensure that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life.
We know that as babies, the way we are held, talked to and cared for teache us about who we are and how er are valued. This profuondly shapes who we will become.
Early experiences set a course for a lifelong process of discovery about ourselves and the world around us. Simply put, early experiences matter. We encourage you to learn more about very young children, early development and the work of ZERO TO THREE by exploring our site.
Bright Beginnings And ABA Early Intervention Program
Bright Beginnings is an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) based program for children with developmental disabilities. ABA is a scientifically proven intervention approach which uses principles that increase skills and decrease challenging behavior by using positive reinforcement strategies. This program is being provided by Community Partnerships of Idaho.
Birth to Five, Watch Me Thrive!
Act Early Idaho
Act Early Idaho
Act Early Idaho helps families and professionals monitor children’s development and identify concerns early. Monitoring children’s development is the first and most important step in identifying children who may need additional supports.
Act Early Idaho Resiliency Toolkit
IEP
What is an Individualized Education Program? (IEP)
The Individualized Education Program, often called the IEP, is a legal document under United States law that is developed for each public school child in the U.S. who needs special education. The IEP is created through a specific team of the child’s parent and district personnel who are knowledgeable about the child.
If you have questions about the process, this guide covers the basic steps!
IEP Components
Each of the components of an IEP are found in the Idaho Special Education Manual: https://www.sde.idaho.gov/sped/sped-manual/
Responsibilities under IDEA are covered in the Idaho special education manual and include the following:
Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) - Chapter 2
Child Find - Chapter 3
Evaluation and Eligibility - Chapter 4
IEP development (Goals and Present Levels of Performance) - Chapter 5
Accommodations / Adaptations - Chapter 5
Supplementary Aids and Services - Chapter 5
Placement / Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) - Chapter 6
Graduation and Discontinuation of Services - Chapter 7
Charter Schools - Chapter 8
Private School Students - Chapter 9
Improving Results - Chapter 10
Parent / Student Rights (Procedural Safeguards) - Chapter 11
Discipline and Behavior - Chapter 12
Dispute Resolution - Chapter 13
You can contact our office for additional information on any of these chapters as well as information related to behavior plans, strength-based IEP's, transition to Adulthood IEP's, Extra-curricular activities, Assistive Technology, Transportation, and more.
IEP Resources
A guide to the Ten Basic Steps in Special Education that goes over the process of creating an IEP
IPUL's Webinar on Understanding the IEP from July, 2021
Tips for Writing an IEP
This contains resources on writing an IEP, drawn from two different clearingouses of information.
Special Education Letters - Samples and Templates
This link has several templates you can use to send effective letters to your child's school, to make formal requests.
Virtual IEP Meeting Tip Sheets
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this resource was developed to help make virtual IEP meetings easier to use, and will have some broader application once the pandemic has subsided. This is a link to a 6 page PDF file.
504
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a federal civil rights law which prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities. It applies to any school which receives federal funds. The intent of this law is to provide students with disabilities equal access to educational programs, services, and activities. Students with disabilities may not be denied participation in school programs and activities solely on the basis of disability.
What is a disability?
Students who meet the definition of a person with a disability under Section 504 are those who:
- have a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities;
- have a record of such an impairment; or
- are regarded as having such an impairment.
What is a physical or mental impairment?
Section 504 defines a physical or mental impairment as any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems: neurological; musculoskeletal; special sense organs; respiratory, including speech organs; cardiovascular; reproductive; digestive; genito-urinary; hemic and lymphatic; skin; and endocrine; or any mental or psychological disorder, such as intellectual disability, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities.
The regulation does not set forth a complete list of specific diseases and conditions that may constitute physical or mental impairments because of the difficulty of ensuring the comprehensiveness of such a list.
What is a major life activity?
The Section 504 definition includes - caring for one's self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working. This list is not exhaustive. Other functions can be major life activities for purposes of Section 504.
Who determines eligibility?
Determining whether a student is a “qualified disabled student” under Section 504 begins with the evaluation process. Each district will have standards and procedures for initial evaluations. Staff often included in the process may include: teachers, school psychologist, counselor, nurse and/or principal - as well as the parent or guardian.
If a student is eligible, how are services provided?
Often a written plan is developed, commonly called a 504 Plan which details accommodations that will be made to ensure that the student has access to programs and activities.
What are accommodations?
Accommodations are program adjustments made to remove disability-related barriers so a student is able to fully participate in school- both academic and nonacademic activities. (i.e. preferential seating, adjust length of test, provide a behavior plan, modified P.E.).
What if my child’s teacher is not providing the accommodations listed on the 504 Plan?
The first step is to contact the teacher and ensure he/she is aware your child has a 504 Plan. If the teacher is not responsive, contact the 504 Coordinator assigned to your child’s school. If your concerns are not resolved, you may wish to contact your School District’s 504 Coordinator.
What is a 504 Coordinator?
Each school district is required to designate an employee who will be responsible for ensuring compliance with Section 504 regulations. The district will also have complaint policies and procedures to receive and respond to complaints and inquiries.
Can a student be dismissed from Section 504?
Yes - once a student no longer meets the eligibility requirements.
Who can I contact, other than my school district and OSPI to answer my questions about Section 504?
The U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) enforces Section 504. OCR can also provide information and assistance. For more information contact:
U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights
Seattle Office
OCR, U.S. Department of Education
915 Second Avenue Room 3310
Seattle, WA 98174-1099
(206) 607-1600 TDD: 877-521-2172
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Web site
More information for children with special health care needs can be found here:
http://cshcn.org/childcare-schools-community/early-intervention-and-education-resources/504-plan
Parent and Educator Resource Guide to Section 504 in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools (pdf)
Dispute Resolution
Dispute Resolution
Dispute Resolution
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires states to have a formal process for parents and districts to resolve special education related disputes. Information about Idaho's Dispute Resolution System can be found on the State Department of Education's webpage:
Idaho's State Department of Education Dispute Resolution Page.
For a basic understanding of all of the options toward resolving disputes in Idaho, be sure to download this Comparison Chart
For more information about the Dispute Resolution processes, please reference the Idaho State Department of Education Special Education Manual
Idaho's Educator Code of Ethics
US Department of Education Restraint and Seclusion Resource Document
U.S. Department of Education Announces Initiative to Address the Inappropriate Use of Restraint and Seclusion to Protect Children with Disabilities, Ensure Compliance with Federal Laws
CADRE
The Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education
The Center for Approriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE)
CADRE's major emphasis is on encouraging the use of mediation, facilitation, and other collaborative processes as strategies for resolving disagreements between parents and schools about children's educational programs and support services. CADRE supports parents, educators, administrators, attorneys and advocates to benefit from the full continuum of dispute resolution options that can prevent and resolve conflict and ultimately lead to informed partnerships that focus on results for children and youth.
The Cadre Continum - This is a searchable data base of dispute resolution practices in special education. Users are able to move from broad process descriptions to specific practice details and can learn information related to program design and oversight, professional standards, public awareness and outreach, and evaluation.
IDEA Dispute Resolution Parent Guides - CADRE was asked to create a set of companion resources for parents and families, and developed four parent guides: Mediation, Written State Complaints, Due Process Complaints/ Hearing Requests, and Resolution Meetings. These are in multiple languages.
In the Best Interests of the Child: Individualized Education Program (IEP) Meetings When Parents Are In Conflict - This publication was developed to better understand issues related to when parents or caregivers are having difficulty working together, especially during IEP team meetings. The document includes both preventative and responsive strategies and approaches from a variety of sources, including research on the effects of parenting a child with a disability on parent and family relationships, literature on conflict resolution practices, and data collected through surveys and interviews.
CADRE Advocacy Information
From CADRE (the national center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education) we have 2 PDF handouts about advocacy.
The first handout covers collaberative advocacy's guiding principles:
"Collaborative Advocacy is an approach to advocating for children with disabilities that utilizes collaborative problem-solving skills and relationship-strengthening strategies to resolve disagreements. This approach can be used by anyone serving as a third-party advocate to focus on improving educational and developmental outcomes for students with disabilities."
Download the PDF on Collaberative Advocacy's Principles here.
The second handout is a guide for parents in selecting an Educational Advocate:
"An educational advocate, also known as a parent advocate, child advocate, student advocate, or independent advocate, assists parents of students with disabilities in navigating the complex world of special education. For a fee, professional advocates provide information, guidance and support throughout the IEP process to encourage decisions that meet the needs of the student."
Download the PDF flyer on selecting an Educational Advocate here.
Idaho Disability Categories
Idaho Disability Categories
Idaho has 14 different disability categories they use to assess eligibility for special education services.
They are:
1. Autism Spectrum Disorder
2. Intellectual Disability
3. Deaf-Blindness
4. Deaf or Hard of Hearing
5. Developmental Delay
6. Emotional Behavioral Disorder
7. Other Health Impairment
8. Specific Learning Disability
9. Multiple Disabilities
10. Orthopedic Impairment
11. Speech or Language Impairment: Language
12. Speech or Language Impairment: Speech
13. Traumatic Brain Injury
14. Visual Impairment Including Blindness
There is a three prong question assessed to determine if the student is eligible for special education:
1. Meets Eligibility Requirements
The student meets state eligibility requirements for a specific disability
2. Adverse Impact on Educational Performance
The student's education performance measure is significantly and consistently below the level of same-age peers preventing the student from benefiting from general education
3. Need for Specially Designed Instruction
The student requires modification to instruction (content, methodology, or delivery of instruction) to meet his or her needs and ensure access to the general education curriculum.
For more in-depth information see Section 7 of the Idaho State Special Education Manual
RTI/PBIS
Understanding RTI
Response to Intervention (RTI)
The RTI Action Network Founding Partners wrote Congress to recommend including the term ‘Multi-Tier System of Supports’ (MTSS)—frequently referred to as “Response to Intervention (RTI)”—throughout the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).
Response to Intervention (RTI): A Primer for Parents
By Mary Beth Klotz, PhD, NCSP, and Andrea Canter, PhD, NCSP
National Association of School Psychologists
A major concern for parents as well as teachers is how to help children who experience difficulty learning in school. Everyone wants to see their child excel, and it can be very frustrating when a child falls behind in learning to read, do math, or achieve in other subjects. Children who have the most difficulty are often referred for an evaluation to determine if they need and qualify for special education services. The term “learning disability” has been used for many years to explain why some children of normal intelligence nevertheless have much difficulty learning basic skills such as reading.
Some new federal laws have directed schools to focus more on helping all children learn by addressing problems earlier, before the child is so far behind that a referral to special education services is warranted. These laws include the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004. Both laws underscore the importance of providing high quality, scientifically-based instruction and interventions, and hold schools accountable for the progress of all students in terms of meeting grade level standards.
What Are the Essential Components of RTI?
Simply, “Response to Intervention” refers to a process that emphasizes how well students respond to changes in instruction. The essential elements of an RTI approach are: the provision of scientific, research-based instruction and interventions in general education; monitoring and measurement of student progress in response to the instruction and interventions; and use of these measures of student progress to shape instruction and make educational decisions. A number of leading national organizations and coalition groups, including the National Research Center on Learning Disabilities and the 14 organizations forming the 2004 Learning Disabilities (LD) Roundtable coalition, have outlined the core features of an RTI process as follows:
- High quality, research-based instruction and behavioral support in general education.
- Universal (school-wide or district-wide) screening of academics and behavior in order to determine which students need closer monitoring or additional interventions.
- Multiple tiers of increasingly intense scientific, research-based interventions that are matched to student need.
- Use of a collaborative approach by school staff for development, implementation, and monitoring of the intervention process.
- Continuous monitoring of student progress during the interventions, using objective information to determine if students are meeting goals.
- Follow-up measures providing information that the intervention was implemented as intended and with appropriate consistency.
- Documentation of parent involvement throughout the process.
- Documentation that the special education evaluation timelines specified in IDEA 2004 and in the state regulations are followed unless both the parents and the school team agree to an extension.
What Are the Key Terms?
Response to Intervention (RTI) is an array of procedures that can be used to determine if and how students respond to specific changes in instruction. RTI provides an improved process and structure for school teams in designing, implementing, and evaluating educational interventions.
Universal Screening is a step taken by school personnel early in the school year to determine which students are “at risk” for not meeting grade level standards. Universal screening can be accomplished by reviewing recent results of state tests, or by administering an academic screening test to all children in a given grade level. Those students whose test scores fall below a certain cut-off are identified as needing more specialized academic interventions.
Student Progress Monitoring is a scientifically based practice that is used to frequently assess students' academic performance and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. Progress monitoring procedures can be used with individual students or an entire class.
Scientific, Research-Based Instruction refers to specific curriculum and educational interventions that have been proven to be effective –that is, the research has been reported in scientific, peer-reviewed journals.
What Role Does RTI Play in Special Education Eligibility?
IDEA 2004 offers greater flexibility to school teams by eliminating the requirement that students must exhibit a severe discrepancy between intellectual ability and achievement in order to be found eligible for special education and related services as a student with a learning disability. This increased flexibility has led to a growing interest in using RTI as part of an alternative method to traditional ability/achievement discrepancy comparisons. IDEA 2004 addresses RTI procedures within several contexts.
Effective instruction and progress monitoring. For students to be considered for special education services based on a learning disability they first must have been provided with effective instruction and their progress measured through “data-based documentation of repeated assessments of achievement.” Furthermore, results of the student progress monitoring must be provided to the child's parents.
Evaluation procedures. The law gives districts the option of using RTI procedures as part of the evaluation procedures for special education eligibility. Comprehensive assessment is still required under the reauthorized law, however. That means that schools still need to carefully examine all relevant aspects of a student's performance and history before concluding that a disability does or does not exist. As before, schools must rule out learning problems that are primarily the result of factors such as poor vision, hearing, mental retardation, emotional disturbance, lack of appropriate instruction, or limited English proficiency.
Early Intervening Services. IDEA 2004 addresses the use of RTI procedures is by creating the option of using up to 15% of federal special education funds for “early intervening services” for students who have not been identified as needing special education, but who need additional academic and behavioral support to succeed in the general education setting. The types of services that can be included are central to the RTI process, and include professional development for teachers and school staff to enable them to deliver scientifically based academic and behavioral interventions, as well as educational evaluations, services, supports, and scientifically based literacy instruction.
How Can Parents Be Involved in the RTI Process?
The hallmarks of effective home-school collaboration include open communication and involvement of parents in all stages of the learning process. Being informed about your school's RTI process is the first step to becoming an active partner. Both the National Center for Learning Disabilities and the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities advise parents to ask the following questions:
- Does our school use an RTI process? (Be aware that your child's school may call their procedures a “problem solving process,” or may have a unique title for their procedures, e.g., Instructional Support Team, and not use the specific RTI terminology.)
- Are there written materials for parents explaining the RTI process? How can parents be involved in the various phases of the RTI process?
- What interventions are being used, and are these scientifically based as supported by research?
- What length of time is recommended for an intervention before determining if the student is making adequate progress?
- How do school personnel check to be sure that the interventions were carried out as planned?
- What techniques are being used to monitor student progress and the effectiveness of the interventions? Does the school provide parents with regular progress monitoring reports?
- At what point in the RTI process are parents informed of their due process rights under IDEA 2004, including the right to request an evaluation for special education eligibility?
- When is informed parental consent obtained and when do the special education evaluation timelines officially commence under the district's RTI plan?
What Are the Potential Benefits of RTI?
Perhaps the most commonly cited benefit of an RTI approach is that it eliminates a “wait to fail” situation because students get help promptly within the general education setting. Secondly, an RTI approach has the potential to reduce the number of students referred for special education services. Since an RTI approach helps distinguish between those students whose achievement problems are due to a learning disability versus those students whose achievement problems are due to other issues such as lack of prior instruction, referrals for special education evaluations are often reduced. Finally, parents and school teams alike find that the student progress monitoring techniques utilized in an RTI approach provide more instructionally relevant information than traditional assessments.
What Are Next Steps in Implementing RTI Approaches?
There are many specific issues that must be addressed in order to effectively implement RTI approaches. Schools must be prepared to offer a variety of proven instructional strategies; staff must be trained to measure student performance using methods that are sensitive to small increments of growth; parents must be kept informed of these new procedures and made partners in the process. Teams must also determine how they will define an “adequate” response to an intervention—how much progress over what period of time will be the benchmark to determine if an intervention is successful? While forthcoming federal regulations will offer guidance, each school district will need to develop its own procedures based on their state regulations, resources and the needs of its student population.
PBIS
Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS)
Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports is a researched-based approach to eliminate problem behavior based on the assumption that children and youth can develop new behavioral skills when adults
In it's simplest form it is:
- Teach the expected behavior.
- Recognize and reward those behaviors when they occur.
- Consistently enforce meaningful consequences when they don't occur.
Resources
OSEP Memo: RTI Process Cannot Be Used to Delay-Deny an Evaluation for Eligibility under IDEA
RTI: Implications for Spanish-Speaking English Language Learners - Response to Intervention (RtI) for the identification of students with specific learning disability (SLD) who are culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) and who may additionally be English language learners (ELLs).1 The process for determining whether students’ difficulties are due to the normal process of English language acquisition or limited opportunity for acculturative knowledge acquisition rather than a disability is neither well understood nor applied by school personnel, and students acquiring English often display similar characteristics to students with an SLD (Collier, 2011).
Family Engagement
Six Types of Parent Involvment
Epstein's Six Types of Parent Involvement
Dr. Joyce Epstein of Johns Hopkins University has developed a framework for defining six different types of parent involvement. This framework assists educators in developing school and family partnership programs.
Epstein's Framework of Six Types of Involvement
1. Parenting: Help all families establish home environments to support children as students.
- Parent education and other courses or training for parents (e.g., GED, college credit, family literacy).
- Family support programs to assist families with health, nutrition, and other services.
- Home visits at transition points to elementary, middle, and high school.
2. Communicating: Design effective forms of school-to-home and home-to-school communications about school programs and children's progress.
- Conferences with every parent at least once a year.
- Language translators to assist families as needed.
- Regular schedule of useful notices, memos, phone calls, newsletters, and other communications.
3. Volunteering: Recruit and organize parent help and support.
- School/classroom volunteer program to help teachers, administrators, students, and other parents.
- Parent room or family center for volunteer work, meetings, and resources for families.
- Annual postcard survey to identify all available talents, times, and locations of volunteers.
4. Learning at home: Provide information and ideas to families about how to help students at home with homework and other curriculum-related activities, decisions, and planning.
- Information for families on skills required for students in all subjects at each grade.
- Information on homework policies and how to monitor and discuss schoolwork at home.
5. Decision-making: Include families as participants in school decisions and develop parent leaders and representatives.
- Active PTA/PTO or other parent organizations, advisory councils, or committees (e.g., curriculum, safety) for parent leadership and participation.
- District-level advisory councils and committees.
6. Collaborating with Community: Coordinate resources and services from the community for families, students, and the school, and provide services to the community.
- Provide information for students and families on community health, cultural, recreational, social support, and other programs or services.
- Provide information on community activities that link to learning skills and talents, including summer programs for students
You can see a more detailed version of this information at this link. (PDF)
Parents And The RTI Process
RTI - Response to Intervention
A process used by educators to help studnets who are struggling with a skill or lesson: every teacher will use interventions (a set of teaching procedures) with any student to help them succeed in the classroom—it’s not just for children with special needs or a learning disability. If a student is struggling, his or her teacher will use test scores and other measures of progress to choose a researched and proven intervention suited to help the child learn. If a child does not respond to the initial interventions, more focused interventions are used to help the child master the skill.
How Can Parents be Involved in the RTI Process?
The hallmarks of effective home-school collaboration include open communication and involvement of parents in all stages of the learning process. Being informed about your school's RTI process is the first step to becoming an active partner. Both the National Center for Learning Disabilities and the National Joint Committee on Learning Disabilities advise parents to ask the following questions:
- Does our school use an RTI process? If not, are there plans to adopt one? Be aware that your child's school may call their procedures a "problem solving process," or may have a unique title for their procedures, e.g., Instructional Support Team, and not use the specific RTI terminology
- Are their written materials for parents explaining the RTI process? How can parents be involved in the various phases of the RTI process?
- What interventions are being used, and are these scientifically based as supported by research?
- What length of time is recommended for an intervention before determining if the student is making adequate progress?
- How do school personnel check to be sure that the interventions were carried out as planned?
- What techniques are being used to monitor student progress and the effectiveness of the interventions? Does the school provide parents with regular progress monitoring reports?
- At what point in the RTI process are parents informed of their due process rights under IDEA 2004, including the right to request an evaluation for special education eligibility
Questions to Ask Your School or District About RTI
In addition to understanding RTI, when this process is being used to educate your child it is also important for parents to be included as partners with schools in the adoption and implementation of RTI programs. How do you do that? Here are some questions that we can ask as our school and/or district is adopting an RTI process:
- In considering whether and how to implement RTI, what is the school and/or district strategy for reviewing curriculum options? How will parents be included in this process?
- Does this process ensure that the curriculum adopted will address the needs of the student population?
- Does the curriculum include materials that parents can use at home?
- Are there sufficient resources (time, materials, and staff) to be able to offer the variety of proven instructional strategies needed to address diverse student needs?
- How will our teachers be trained in using tools and methods for measuring student performance that recognize small increments of growth?
- What interventions will be used? Are these scientifically based as supported by research? Will they address the cultural and language needs of our students?
- Does the district have clear, objective guidelines for determining an "adequate" response to an intervention—how much progress over what period of time will determine if an intervention is successful? How will school personnel check to be sure that the interventions were carried out as planned?
- At what point in the RTI process are parents informed of their due process rights under IDEA , including the right to request an evaluation for special education eligibility?
- Does the school and district have a plan for keeping parents informed as the new procedures are put into place? Are there written materials for parents that explain the RTI process?
- Does our school and district have specific ways to include parents as partners in the process, including regular school-wide or districtwide meetings to let parents know what is working and what additional efforts or resources may be needed?
Literacy/Reading
Cultivating Readers
Cultivating Readers is a program that provides funds to local education agencies under a federal State Personnel Development Grant (SPDG) for a multi-year professional development to district and school staff to improve reading for students with disabilities in kindergarten through third grade.
Cultivating Readers professional development is for principals, special education directors, general and special education instructional staff, district coaches and families who serve students with disabilities in kindergarten through third grade.
Read more about it and apply for the program at the Idaho Training Clearinghouse
Supporting Students with Reading Needs Series
The Idaho State Department of Education, in conjunction with the National Center for Improving Literacy, Idaho Public Televison, the Idaho Commission for Libraries, The Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children, and Idaho Parents Unlimted produced several pamphlets as well as acommpaniying videos. You can browse the pamplets and watch the videos listed below
Let's Talk: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Checking The List: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Every Picture Tells A Story: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
The Stories We Tell: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Reading The World: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Cooking Up Understanding: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Playing With Sounds: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Technology for Learning: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Reading For Fun: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
General Education Resources
General Education Resources
Please note that these resources are not affiliated with IPUL, and IPUL does not specifically recommend or endorse these programs or services. This list is not exhaustive and is provided for informational purposes only. - This list has been adapted from a list from Washington PAVE.
This does not include the specialized information found in our IPUL Education resources.
Resources for Parents
Remote Learning vs Homebound vs Homeschool
A guide to the key differences
Through Your Child’s Eyes - It’s one thing to read about learning and attention issues. It’s another thing to see them through your child’s eyes. Experience firsthand how frustrating it is when your hand won’t write what your brain is telling it to. Or how hard it is to complete a simple task when you have trouble focusing. Use these unique simulations and videos to better understand your child’s world.
TIES Center - National Technical Assistance Center on inclusive practices and policies.
Ooey Gooey, Inc. is dedicated to the creation of child-centered, hands-on, play-based environments for young children and provides workshops, training, technical support and curriculum resources to those who wish the same.
Lemon Lime Adventures Offers workshops for parents to better connect with their children.
Conscious Discipline Offers Trauma-Informed, Evidence-Based Social Emotional Learning from Dr. Becky Bailey
FamilyConnect.org provides resources for parents of children with visual impairments.
The Idaho Hands and Voices page has resources for children who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Occupational Therapy:
https://www.theottoolbox.com/
https://www.toolstogrowot.com/
https://therapyfunzone.net/
https://therapyfunzone.net/
https://do2learn.com/
Physical Therapy / Occupational Therapy:
https://handsonaswegrow.com/
Speech:
https://freelanguagestuff.com/
https://www.
http://mommyspeechtherapy.com/
https://www.speakingofspeech.
Education Resources for Parents:
State of Idaho Digital Learning Portal - Parent Educational Resource Center
Virtual IEP Meeting Tip Sheets
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this resource was developed to help make virtual IEP meetings easier to use, and will have some broader application once the pandemic has subsided. This is a link to a 6 page PDF file.
PBS Kids provides a free newsletter and resources for at-home learning.
Curriculum Associates provides English and Spanish versions of printable learning packets for Grades K-8.
GreatSchools.org offers grade-based toolkits.
TEDEd provides informational videos for at-home learning; options are organized for students, educators or parents.
The Parent’s Guide to Google Classroom is a slide show to teach parents how to set up and navigate Google Classroom
The Williams Syndrome Association provides curriculum for preschool through high school. Included are social stories to help children understand their current circumstances related to the pandemic and school closures.
An agency called Special Education Degrees offers a page that lists curricula from the Top 12 Websites for Students with Learning Disabilities.
AdaptiveWorksheets.com provides printable worksheets. Some samples are free, and there is a charge for membership.
For Children / Students:
Education
Code.org offers online computer science curricula for K-12 students.
An agency called common sense education offers a list of reviews of various virtual reality field trips.
For high school students, the National Constitution Center offers online conversations related to US Constitutional law.
For older students and graduates, free code camp provides a list of online Ivy League Courses available for free.
Fun
Can Do Kids provides an Ability Survey and online activity options.
Children's story book: My Hero is You - how kids can fight COVID-19! A free story book for 6-11 year-olds. Click here to find this book in multiple languages
For something fun for your kids to do while home, you can join children's book author Mo Williams every day for his Free Online "Lunch Doodles" videos If you are accessing this post-COVID-19 you can visit the archived content here.
For Professionals / Advanced Parents
Idaho SESTA has resources for professionals, as well as trainings on the Idaho Training Clearinghouse.
The Idaho Training Clearinghouse is a resource library that is full of useful information.
Autism Focused Intervention Resources and Modules (AFIRM) provides toolkits for caregivers supporting individuals with autism during this pandemic.
TEDEd provides informational videos for at-home learning; options are organized for students, educators or parents.
PsychCentral.com suggests 7 Telehealth Activities ABA Providers Can Use with Children with ASD [Autism Spectrum Disorder]
The Special Student Services blog provides guidance for supporting students with significant cognitive disabilities. Curricula for various academic topics are reviewed, and links to online materials are provided. Some are free/some aren’t.
EVERFI provides game-based digital lessons free to schools: parents may need to contact district staff to arrange access.
Resources / Templates / Forms
Resources
Idaho State Department of Education Special Education Manual
This is a link to the Idaho State Department of Education's Special Education Manual. The Manual has been created to meet the needs of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) as well as be consistent with state and federal laws, rules, regulations and legal requirements.
http://www.sde.idaho.gov/sped/sped-manual/
Professional Standards Commission - Educator Code of Ethics
This version of the Code of Ethics for Idaho Professional Educators was revised by the Professional StandardsCommission and approved by both the State Board of Education and the Idaho legislature. (IDAPA 08.02.02.076)
Click here to view or download the Code of Ethics for Professional Educators in PDF form.
Restraint and Seclusion: 15 Principles
As education leaders, our first responsibility must be to ensure that schools foster learning in a safe and healthy environment for all our children, teachers, and staff. To support schools in fulfilling that responsibility, the U.S. Department of Education has developed this document that describes 15 principles for States, school districts, schools, parents, and other stakeholders to consider when developing or revising policies and procedures on the use of restraint and seclusion. These principles stress that every effort should be made to prevent the need for the use of restraint and seclusion and that any behavioral intervention must be consistent with the child’s rights to be treated with dignity and to be free from abuse. The principles make clear that restraint or seclusion should never be used except in situations where a child’s behavior poses imminent danger of serious physical harm to self or others, and restraint and seclusion should be avoided to the greatest extent possible without endangering the safety of students and staff. The goal in presenting these principles is to help ensure that all schools and learning environments are safe for all children and adults.
As many reports have documented, the use of restraint and seclusion can have very serious consequences, including, most tragically, death. Furthermore, there continues to be no evidence that using restraint or seclusion is effective in reducing the occurrence of the problem behaviors that frequently precipitate the use of such techniques. Schools must do everything possible to ensure all children can learn, develop, and participate in instructional programs that promote high levels of academic achievement. To accomplish this, schools must make every effort to structure safe environments and provide a behavioral framework, such as the use of positive behavior interventions and supports, that applies to all children, all staff, and all places in the school so that restraint and seclusion techniques are unnecessary.
I hope you find this document helpful in your efforts to provide a world-class education to America’s children. Thank you for all you do to support our schools, families, and communities and for your work on behalf of our nation’s children.
Arne Duncan
Download the Restraint and Seclusion Resouce Document: https://www2.ed.gov/policy/seclusion/restraints-and-seclusion-resources.pdf
CADRE Advocacy Information
From CADRE (the national center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education) we have 2 PDF handouts about advocacy.
The first handout covers collaberative advocacy's guiding principles:
"Collaborative Advocacy is an approach to advocating for children with disabilities that utilizes collaborative problem-solving skills and relationship-strengthening strategies to resolve disagreements. This approach can be used by anyone serving as a third-party advocate to focus on improving educational and developmental outcomes for students with disabilities."
Download the PDF on Collaberative Advocacy's Principles here.
The second handout is a guide for parents in selecting an Educational Advocate:
"An educational advocate, also known as a parent advocate, child advocate, student advocate, or independent advocate, assists parents of students with disabilities in navigating the complex world of special education. For a fee, professional advocates provide information, guidance and support throughout the IEP process to encourage decisions that meet the needs of the student."
Download the PDF flyer on selecting an Educational Advocate here.
Supporting Students with Reading Needs Series
The Idaho State Department of Education, in conjunction with the National Center for Improving Literacy, Idaho Public Televison, the Idaho Commission for Libraries, The Idaho Association for the Education of Young Children, and Idaho Parents Unlimted produced several pamphlets as well as acommpaniying videos. You can browse the pamplets and watch the videos listed below
Let's Talk: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Checking The List: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Every Picture Tells A Story: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
The Stories We Tell: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Reading The World: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Cooking Up Understanding: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Playing With Sounds: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Technology for Learning: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Reading For Fun: Pamphlet - Mindful Minute Video
Idaho Content Standards
All students graduating from Idaho public high schools must meet state adopted content standards. These standards are to be used as a minimum threshold by every school district in the state in order to establish some consistency in academic content statewide.
Special Education and Alternate Assessments
One element of having high expectations for students with disabilities is having them participate in statewide assessments. The expectation is that every student with a disability participate in all statewide assessments. This expectation focuses an IEP team’s assessment participation decision not on IF the student will participate, but HOW the student will participate. A student with a disability can participate in statewide assessments in one of three ways:
- Regular assessment without accommodations.
- Regular assessment with accommodations.
- Alternate assessment, intended only for those students with the most significant cognitive disabilities, representing about 1.0% of the total student population.
- The ISAT alternate assessment is known as the Idaho Alternate Assessment (IDAA)
- The ACCESS for ELs alternate assessment is known as the Alt-ACCESS.
Foster Care and Education
Questions to ensure that the educational needs of children and youth in foster care are being addressed can be found in the following checklist:
Wrightslaw Yellow Pages for Kids
This is a listing comprised by a third party, of resources available in the State of Idaho for children. IPUL Provides this as a resource only, we do not endorse these products or services.
Wrightslaw Yellow Pages for Kids
OSEP English to Spanish Translation Glossary
OSEP English to Spanish Translation Glossary
Culturally Diverse Families - Working with children and families from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds poses special challenges to early childhood educators. This article adresses the challenges and the keys to developing effective and collaborative relationships with culturally diverse communities.
Idaho Content Standards and Students with Disabilities - this guide is designed to help parents better understand Idaho's content standards.
School Based Medicaid Services
Idaho Medicaid Guidance Handbook for Educators - External PDF Link
School Districts have an obligation to determine if a student is eligible for Special Education, then develop an Individual Education Plan (IEP) whether the student is Medicaid eligible or not. IEP teams should not be developing IEP’s based on Medicaid Eligibility. IDEA requires that services identified on the Individual Education Plan be delivered based on need not funding source.
History of IDEA and Medicaid
In 1988 with the passage of the Medicare Catastrophic Coverage Act and the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989, Medicaid was made accessible to student’s who met eligibility for Medicaid and had an Individual Education Plan in an educational or school setting.
The Role of Health and Welfare
The Role of the Department of Health and Welfare is to provide oversight of all Medicaid programs in and out of schools. The Division of Medicaid has different units that help administer School Based Medicaid services. The two primary units are:
The Policy Unit whose function is to write state rules and interpretation of those rules.
And the Integrity Unit which monitors compliance with IDAPA rule and can perform audits of all Medicaid billings.
The Role of Local Education Agencies (School Districts)
If a school district desires to bill Medicaid for health related services, the district must apply to become a Medicaid provider. School district are under no obligation to come a Medicaid provider. Services that are identified on the student’s IEP must be delivered, per IDEA, regardless of the funding source.
Each school district is responsible for ensuring that all individuals who will be administering Medicaid billable services follow all applicable rules of the School-based Medicaid program.
Education and Medicaid
The Medicaid program provides support for children who are eligible for special education services and have specific healthcare needs that affect their educational performance and identified in their Individual Education Plan.
Medicaid benefits are allowed in the schools, but can’t be used to provide education. Educational activities are to be delivered using educational dollars. Medicaid dollars are used to assist the student in accessing their educational environment or educational curriculum.
Must be Medically Necessary
In addition to being Medicaid eligible and having an IEP the student’s needs must also be considered Medically necessary.
What is Medically Necessary? To summarize - A service is medically necessary when it is needed to prevent, diagnose, or treat the student’s condition, there is no other equally effective treatment that is less costly, and the service meets professional standards of healthcare.
Remember that prior to identifying a Medicaid Reimbursable service the IEP team needs to be sure that the service is medically necessary to assist the student in accessing the educational environment or educational curriculum. Since Medicaid is a medical model of service delivery, Idaho has determined that a physician or practitioner of the healing arts is responsible to determine medical necessity in order for the services provided by a Medicaid provider to be reimbursed by Idaho Medicaid.
A school district or charter school may not seek reimbursement for services provided prior to receiving a signed and dated recommendation or referral for those services.
Created in Partnership with the Idaho State Department of Education
A guide to the Ten Basic Steps in Special Education that goes over the process of creating an IEP
Templates
Sample Special Education Request Letters
These are provided for you to use as examples or templates for writing a letter. All of these link to downloadable PDF files.
Request for Evaluation at Public Expense
Request to View Child's Records
Requesting a Due Process Hearing
Informing of Child Attending Private School at Public Expense
Forms
Special Education Forms
These forms on the Idaho State Departement of Education website are templates to be used for various compliance documents required under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
