We examined parents' satisfaction with multiple aspects of their children's individualized education programs (IEPs). Parents (n = 142) raising children ages 4 to 8 years old with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) reported their satisfaction with four aspects of their children's IEPs: (a) content of the IEP document, (b) services provided, (c)…

Students with disabilities experience higher unemployment, attend postsecondary environments less often, and engage less in their communities after graduating from high school compared to their peers without disabilities (Newman, Wagner, Knokey, Marder, Nagle, Shaver, & Schwarting, 2011). In middle school, young adolescents with disabilities…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 states that individualized education program (IEP) teams are composed of members with distinct identities, roles, expertise, and histories. Although team members must work together to implement educational and related services for learners with special needs, little is known about…

Positive parent-professional collaboration is critical for the educational success of students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). However, little is known about teacher perceptions of parent-professional collaboration. Thirty-four teachers participated in a qualitative study to gain a better understanding of teachers' perceptions of helpful…

This paper explores how an Alaskan school district shifted from a traditional K-12 education system to a personalized, performance-based system, embedded in the culture of the community, which led to increased student achievement. Chugach School District (CSD) first implemented competency education over twenty years ago, paving the way in…

Using the principles of transformational leadership, IEP teams become effective tools to ensure student success and achievements. There is a difference of teams that are simply chaired and those that are lead. Teams with transformational leaders promote the best efforts of all participants including parents and students to effectively deliver…

Highly politicized educational reforms in New York City have seen special education become marginalized as a casualty of the accountability movement. There is a liminal space between "old" and "new" ways where special education administrators find themselves as they consider their roles and responsibilities in continuing to…

Special education research and practice has had an inextricable link to case law. Indeed, Smith, Katsiyannis, and Ryan (2014) suggest that case law can be a useful tool in providing legal information, identifying emerging areas of need, and in informing practice. As such, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) rulings, hearings, and Dear Colleague…

School personnel have many opportunities to assist students and families in preparing for a successful transition to college and careers. Initial high school efforts may include prescreening incoming freshman student files to identify those at-risk and assuring that support services and interventions are implemented quickly. Early supports for…

Of the three formal dispute resolution procedures provided by the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act of 2004(IDEA), due process hearings are the most costly in terms of time, fiscal resources, and impact on relationships between school personnel and parents. This study examined 258 due process hearings held over the past 8 years in…

With the growing use of technology in today's schools, electronic IEP programs are being adopted by many school districts around the nation as part of special education service delivery. These programs provide a useful technology that can facilitate compliance with IDEA requirements in IEP development while concurrently lessening teacher paperwork…

A leadership program was created for students to gain skills and/or change their behavior using Appreciative Inquiry and Video Self Modeling, VSM. In 2011a youth that experiences a disability had been unable to achieve a skill utilizing traditional methods of skill acquisition. He employed the Appreciative Inquiry and VSM leadership program and…

In this paper, inclusive classrooms in Turkey are described in terms of the characteristics of both classroom teachers and students with special needs. Participants of this study consisted of 54 teachers working in inclusive classrooms and 54 students with mild intellectual disabilities in those classrooms in Turkey. Data for this study were…

Due to the contemporary educational reform, the movement of teachers' preparation based on the competencies became the most prominent field of study. The current study aimed at exploring Professional Competencies among special education pre-service teachers (N = 112) and the level of their competencies' practice from their perspectives.…

Since the revision of Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004, experts and service providers have been operating on the untested assumption that State Performance Plan Indicator 13 (transition Individualized Education Program [IEP] compliance) is a precursor to Indicator 14 (student outcomes of engagement in postsecondary…