In April 2021, New America's Open Technology Institute (OTI) and the Philanthropication thru Privatization Project (PtP) released a joint proposal that the federal government should invest a substantial portion of the windfall proceeds from future auctions of public airwaves (spectrum) to seed a new Digital Equity Foundation dedicated to…

School leaders and special educators are expected to be experts on all levels and types of special education law and services, types of disability, and aspects of academic and functional programming. With the increasing demands of the job and the ever-changing legal and educational climate, many administrators and teachers are overwhelmed, and few…

Every child is unique and learns in different ways. Some children are identified as needing special education services to support his or her learning at school. Parents can play a major role in shaping the services a child receives. This guidebook has been written for parents, guardians, and surrogate parents of a child (ages 3 to 21 or…

As of January 1, 2013, 34 states and the District of Columbia have been granted waivers from certain provisions of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Part of each successful flexibility application was a state accountability system that could identify priority schools (the lowest performing 5% of Title 1 schools) and focus schools…

One of the primary challenges in developing effective accountability systems is determining how best to include students with disabilities. The purpose of this paper is to report on the initial implementation of one option for including students with disabilities into the accountability system in the United States. In 2007, federal guidance…

This report by the Council of the Great City Schools to the Rochester City School District presents the organization's findings and recommendations for improving the special education program in the school system, placing special emphasis on the organizational structure of the program, accountability, and how the instructional program generally…

To ensure the best possible outcomes for young children with and without disabilities, early childhood educators must enter the classroom ready to conduct all types of early childhood assessment--including determining if children need additional services, planning and monitoring instruction, and determining program effectiveness. They'll get the…

Individualized service planning for handicapped individuals requires a formalized tracking mechanism to determine the effectiveness of services, tools for encouraging interagency cooperation, systematized intervention, communication, coordination, and accountability procedures. A three-tiered system is presented that illustrates separate processes…

Sets forth the future program development responsibilities of the administrator of vocational special needs programs. Discusses terminology, funding, and program content. Also examines major issues, incentives, realistic expectations, and accountability. (CT)

After approximately 20 years of developing collaborative delivery systems for children with disabilities, educational researchers have developed an extensive knowledge base. In an effort to identify potential strategies for developing and institutionalizing school-linked coordinated service delivery systems for at-risk youth, this paper examines…

This article describes the development of Kentucky's alternative assessment for students with disabilities, including the content and scoring standards for the Alternate Portfolio. Specific examples of entries at each grade are given. Initial implementation data are presented, and critical issues in the development of alternate statewide…

This brief report highlights the issues, evidence, and first steps toward including students with disabilities in educational data systems. The report notes that if students with disabilities are excluded from educational data collection systems, policy makers do not have an adequate set of information from which to make policy decisions. The…

The monograph provides an overview of inservice education issues related to P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act; and considers approaches to designing and implementing statewide inservice training programs. Considered in the first section are the following topics: inservice provisions of P.L. 94-142; the proliferation of…

State assessment systems must address both technical and policy issues as assessments and accountability practices are developed and implemented. These technical and policy issues have been expanded from traditional large-scale assessment to new alternative assessment approaches required by law and developed in every state. The primary purpose of…

The problems of Individual Education Plan (IEP) utilization with handicapped students are analyzed and compared to the developing use of Individual Transition Plans (ITP). Considered are issues of accountability, relevance, quality, feasibility, and preparedness. (DB)