As a result of the demanding 21st-century workforce, local education agencies are beginning to refocus and retool to ensure students with disabilities have the knowledge and skills to be productive adults and attain positive postschool outcomes. The skills 21st-century transition assessments address are relevant to teachers and students given the…

This article begins with a vignette about Carla, a 4-year-old girl with a diagnosis of developmental delays. It then describes a model to facilitate inclusion of young children in early childhood settings. The authors developed this model as they worked with practicing early childhood professionals. The model places emphasis on the following…

The paper highlights the importance of communication among all parties involved in individualized education programs for handicapped students. The rationale for an interdisciplinary team model emphasizes the teacher's role as educational synthesizer. A case study of a child with learning and behavioral problems is presented to illustrate specific…

The study was intended to replicate the Albright-Preskill study (1981) in Pierce County, Washington in order to assess the status of collaborative individualized education program (IEP) development between vocational education and special education at the secondary level. Questionnaires were completed by 192 secondary level vocational education…

The article posits that the interdisciplinary cooperation needed to make individualized education programs (IEPs) an effective part of an ongoing, responsive process is more likely to be achieved when educators and parents adhere to certain principles of group dynamics and interpersonal perception. (SB)

Intended for local school district personnel, the document suggests a model for assisting decision makers in placing handicapped students in the least restrictive environment (LRE). Basic considerations of a multidisciplinary team in determining the appropriate placement for the handicapped students are listed (including the nature and degree of…

This brief paper presents guidelines for creating useful Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) as required under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. It lists 10 items of information that the law requires be included in an IEP such as current levels of educational performance and measurable goals and objectives. The importance of…

A classroom communication system is described whereby the teacher of a handicapped student can manage the classroom activities conducted by other disciplines as stipulated for the child's individualized educational program. Samples of the weekly planning sheet, individual sequence sheets, and data/progress sheets for learners are provided. (CL)

Successful transition planning for students with disabilities from school into adulthood seems to be a complex and difficult process. The 1997 amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) promote the development of successful transition planning; however, research has shown that special educators are not likely to engage in…

Presents the TREAT model for constructing counseling goals and objectives during Individualized Education Program meetings. The model provides the multidisciplinary team with a procedure for organizing all relevant information when addressing students with special needs. Use of the model results in measurable, manageable, and defensible goals and…

The Department of Defense Dependents Schools (DoDDS) special education programs function with a multidisciplinary team called the Child Management Committee. The Child Study Committee, which usually meets once a week, develops, implements, and monitors comprehensive, multidisciplinary assessment procedures; summarizes assessment results in written…

Five studies on child study teams are reviewed and their implications for training included in a modular approach, the Child Student Team Training Program. The CSTTP features six modules: (1) rationale for teams, (2) referral preparation and review, (3) IEP planning, (4) procedural considerations, (5) parent involvement, and (6) administrative…

Results suggested that although inservice training appears to enable special service teams to increase the number of complete individualized education programs, both inservice training and performance feedback may be necessary to maintain increased team productivity during the school year. (Author)

The state of Illinois is developing a statewide Individualized Education Program (IEP) training program for school staff to improve the effectiveness of IEP development and implementation. The training will cover three dimensions: (1) knowledge and awareness of required components, required participants, required timelines, rationale and purposes,…

The training manual is intended to meet the training needs of Head Start personnel and others working with preschool handicapped children who have not had formal training in special education. The book attempts to provide the basic concepts and practices of providing individualized instruction to preschool handicapped children as mandated by P.L.…