The "IDRA Newsletter" serves as a vehicle for communication with educators, school board members, decision-makers, parents, and the general public concerning the educational needs of all children across the United States. The focus of this issue is "Student Engagement." Contents include: (1) Mental Health Implications of…

The "IDRA Newsletter" serves as a vehicle for communication with educators, school board members, decision-makers, parents, and the general public concerning the educational needs of all children across the United States. The focus of this issue is "Bridging the Digital Divide." Contents include: (1) Texas Needs an Equitable…

Questions often arise about how accessible educational materials (AEM) might be included in Individualized Education Programs (IEPs). The two purposes of this article are to (1) help families and educators understand the importance of including AEM in the IEPs of students who require them, and (2) to discuss locations in the IEP where it may be…

This guide is for any individual seeking to develop knowledge and practical skills related to the "Quality Indicators with Critical Components for K-12." The target audience includes administrators, educators, and service providers at the state and local levels, as well as families of students with disabilities. As a result of completing…

The "IDRA Newsletter" serves as a vehicle for communication with educators, school board members, decision-makers, parents, and the general public concerning the educational needs of all children across the United States. The focus of this issue is "Education Policy." Contents include: (1) Exciting Advances for Emergent…

Technology, when used appropriately, can empower learning, engage and motivate students, and help make learning interactive. Students can benefit from educational technology because it can personalize instruction and adapt to their strengths and weaknesses. Today's digital tools and resources support and enhance learning at home and in the…

This guide is the Spanish version of the "Parent and Family Digital Learning Guide". Technology, when used appropriately, can empower learning, engage and motivate students, and help make learning interactive. Students can benefit from educational technology because it can personalize instruction and adapt to their strengths and…

One of the foundational principles of the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium (Smarter Balanced) system is accessibility for students -- multi-tiered resources and strategies that ensure equitable and valid access for students to instructional and assessment content. This Guide includes 54 accessibility strategies that can be used by teachers,…

Students with developmental disabilities and communication delays, particularly autism spectrum disorder (ASD), participate in academic instruction through a continuum of services and environments. This includes the use of web-conferencing and screen-sharing platforms to deliver instruction across a variety of settings. The use of systematic…

Long-standing systemic health and social inequities have put Latino families, and other racial and ethnic minority groups, at increased risk of contracting COVID-19. The disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on the Latino community threatens to undermine the educational progress of more than 13 million Latino students and five million English…

This guide addresses the challenge of inaccessible digital learning resources by providing K-12 education stakeholders with actionable information about EPUB, a digital file format. EPUB is a widely adopted format for many digital books and is specifically designed to display text, audio, images and, in some cases, video in a manner usable by all…

This article presents a case study of a five-year English-literacy project carried out in primary and middle schools in the Pacific island nation of Tonga from 2012 to 2017. It summarizes why and how the project was begun; the activities carried out by Peace Corps Volunteers and Tongan partners; its objectives; and the products, procedures, and…

The "IDRA Newsletter" serves as a vehicle for communication with educators, school board members, decision-makers, parents, and the general public concerning the educational needs of all children across the United States. The focus of this issue is "Family Engagement." Contents include: (1) Solving the Digital Divide Requires…

The purpose of the National AEM Center's Quality Indicators with Critical Components for Higher Education is to assist institutes of higher education, both at the system and campus level, with planning, implementing, and evaluating dynamic, coordinated systems for providing accessible materials and technologies for all students who need them. The…

The National Center on Accessible Educational Materials for Learning (National AEM Center) at CAST is a technical assistance (TA) center funded by the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). The purpose of the Center is to improve educational and employment opportunities for individuals with disabilities through…