The purpose of this study was to examine a positive behavior support plan implemented in a correctional facility for male juveniles to determine its effectiveness in changing behavior. The study was precipitated by teachers' concern with the punishment orientation of the facility and the need to do Functional Behavior Assessment for students'…

Under the 1997 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, schools have a legal obligation to conduct functional behavior assessments (FBAs) when developing intervention plans for students with disabilities whose behaviors lead their individualized education program teams to consider a change in educational placement, including suspension and…

Although, in many districts, physical educators are integral members of the Individualized Education Program (designed for students with disabilities such as Down syndrome and autism), in other districts, physical educators are only partially involved in the process or are not given the opportunity to be involved at all. However, the physical…

Both law and pedagogy require that educators address behavior interfering with educational progress for students with disabilities. The reauthorized Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA, 2004) and its predecessor, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 1997a), require individualized education program (IEP)…

Successful and meaningful transition services are the result of careful planning. This planning is driven by a young person's dreams, desires, and abilities. It builds a youth's participation in school, home and community living. Transition planning helps to prepare young people for their futures. It helps them to develop skills they need to go on…

Before a child receives special education or related services, he or she must have an evaluation. The evaluation will help determine if a child needs special education. A parent or a member of the school staff may make the request for an evaluation. The child's parent must give consent in writing for the first evaluation. The evaluation will…

This article reports on starkly contrasting portraits of special education that the justices are sure to hear on the first day of the new U.S. Supreme Court term. In a case from New York City, the 1.1 million-student district argues that school officials made every attempt to provide an appropriate education plan under the federal Individuals with…

When the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was reauthorized in 2004, one of the significant amendments concerned Individual Education Program (IEP) team attendance. A member of an IEP team may be excused if "the member's area of the curriculum or related services is not being modified or discussed in the meeting." The…

Public schools must make available special education and related services to all IDEA-eligible (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) students with disabilities beginning at age three and through age 18. Services to students, ages 19, 20, and 21, are permissive. That means the decision to serve 19, 20 and 21-year-old students is determined…

This manual on independent learning centers (ILC) includes eleven chapters intended to provide assistance and resource materials to any institution or individual developing an ILC. The chapters each cover one of the following topics: learning center model; Hawkeye Institute of Technology's (HIT) Independent Learning Center; the ILC student from…

This paper presents the Final Report on the Audio-Digital MCAS Pilot Program. The Department and Recording For the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D) have collaborated to provide audio-digital read-aloud editions of the Grade 10 English Language Arts and Mathematics MCAS tests for a small number of students with disabilities such as dyslexia and/or…

It may seem that deaf-blindness refers to a total inability to see or hear. However, in reality deaf-blindness is a condition in which the combination of hearing and visual losses in children cause "such severe communication and other develop mental and educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for…

Supporting children and young people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is an endeavour associated with both reward and challenge. There are teams of people across New Zealand who provide this support daily, without fanfare or display--it is simply what they do. In 2003 and 2004 nine such teams stepped up and out by taking part in the national…

The amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) in 2004 reiterate the significance of producing real postsecondary education, employment, and independent living outcomes. However, current employment data continue to show widespread unemployment and very limited access to inclusive community environments and…

National estimates of characteristics of maltreated infants and report of an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) and an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) 54 months later are presented. The study was based on 1,196 infants from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being. Measures of neurodevelopment, language, and cognition were…