Fay School, Xavier, and Parish School visit

My five year goal involved discovering best practices so that my practice and

furthering my education can be the best it can be. I decided to tour a variety of school to

help better understand their academic programs, what works and what doesn’t, and gather

any additional ideas we could implement at our school and/or my future practice. Visiting

a specialized elementary and middle/high school along with visiting a general elementary

school would help me gain a better understanding of where my current school (BYDS) is

and where to recommend students that are not a good fit.

I first visited the Parish school on January 28, 2016. This school has so much to

offer their students. The Parish School specializes in early language intervention and

individualized instruction with a focus on the education of the whole child. I walked

around with Sarah Martin (director of admissions) and Ann Powers (director of preschool

and level II/III). I learned about their iCAT program, Creative Curriculum, Adventure

Play, and their Social Emotional Language Learning program. I observed their

classrooms and met with educators. While many schools use the word

“individualization,” this school really individualizes every aspect of the child’s day- even

down to the chair the child sits in when in circle time and how they unpack. One of the

biggest take aways from this experience was which children would be a good fit for this

school. Being knowledgeable about these specialized schools is essential to my success

as the director of student services and opening up my own practice as some students

currently enrolled in my school are not a good fit. Also, it is important to keep in mind

the development of language as most language and learning delays can be diagnosed

before age 6 and as early as 18 months — I believe the earlier the intervention, the more

effective it is.

Red Flags for children ages 3 to 5:

Does your child…

• have difficulty following through on simple directions without assistance?

• use gestures or phrases instead of complete sentences?

• have trouble recalling names and overuses the words “it”, “they”, “she”, “he”, and

“things”?

• exhibit inconsistent understanding of basic language concepts such as “in/out”,

“under/over”, “before/after”, “front/back”, etc?

• exhibit undue anxiety when presented with new situations (such as going to a

birthday party or change in routine)

• resolve conflicts through hitting rather than working through conflicts verbally?

• have a difficult time in social or academic settings even though he/she appears to

be bright?

• get out of control in unstructured settings?

• have a hard time cooperating with peers or following along in group activities

even though he/she may seem very verbal?

• seem verbally “off topic” or inappropriate even though he/she is verbally

precocious?

Red flags for school-aged children (first grade or above):

Does your child…

• have a difficult time in social or academic settings even though he/she appears to

be bright?

• have greater academic potential than he/she is exhibiting in the classroom setting?

• seem verbally precocious but is frequently “off topic” and make inappropriate

statements in certain situations?

• have difficulty expressing himself to others in an organized way?

• have trouble recalling names and overuses the words “it”, “they”, “she”, “he”, and

“things”?

• have poor comprehension skills?

• have difficulty following a series of instructions?

• have trouble turning letters into sounds and groups of letters into words?

• have difficulty sequencing 4-8 events of a story or a movie?

• have poor organizational skills; for example, desk is a mess, forgets assignments,

coat, lunch?

• exhibit inconsistencies in retaining learned material? (one day he/she understands

it and the next day he/she doesn’t seem to remember it.)

I then visited Xavier Educational Academy (XEA). One of the tenets of

education, and a driver of much of what they do at XEA, centers around the premise that

learning is a social phenomenon.  They encourage social interaction among students and

incorporate a lot of small group work (5-1). I loved the small class size and some of their

enrichment options. When the Xavier School program first started, they were simply a

transitionary school.  Students would go to them for one or two semesters and then they

would transition back to general education.  While they continue to offer this option,

many stay until 12th grade. I am not 100% sure how expensive the school is but you

definitely get a lot of extremely small group work and when it comes to the high school,

kids start getting the collage experience just by how the campus is laid out. There are

many buildings that can be accessed on university street. It is up to the students to be on

time and at the correct building- and for some this is very challenging. Xavier does not

take “troubled” kids but rather kids that need that small group instruction. This I felt was

a blurred lined because everyone is on their own plan at this school so I am curious what

constitutes troubled. The principal, Richard, is very flexible and attendance is not your

typical attendance. They allow for credits and summer school. They have

actors/actresses that travel multiple times a month and students with various disabilities.

While there were many things I liked, there were some things I didn’t like. One thing I

really did not like and that went against my personal teaching philosophy is to call

students ‘clients.’ I see how the principal sees these kids as clients but it just seemed very

odd to me. I think the term works with how they carry out payment. Parents pay on a

monthly basis to ensure that both sides (school and home) are satisfied with progress and

growth. I think I will stick with using clients in a clinical way, not in school.

Lastly, I visited The Fay School. This school mirrored many of the current things

in place at my school. I was interested in their guided reading room since I am re doing

our guided reading room at BYDS. I found Skills Finder to be a great program that we

should implement at our school to help with transparency and trust between teachers.

Although there were no revelations I felt that I took away important parts to keep

in mind not only at my current job but also when I start my own practice.

WJ and KABC administration and visit with Illeya

This cluster of professional development/field work focuses on testing. I

administered the KABC II and the Woodcock Johnson IV to four clients. I then met with

Illeya Gross (an educational diagnostician) many times to discuss not only the results of

my reports but also to go over results from reports she administered. Illeya has been

working for many years as an educational diagnostician in private practice. She currently

works at the Center for Academic Therapy. It is very helpful to have her feedback on the

assessments I administered. Illeya is easy to understand and has a natural flow for how

she administers and looks at reports. While I learned a lot about testing from Illeya, there

are some core principals that have stuck. She emphasizes definitions rather than

templates. I was very busy making templates of whole tests but I am starting to change to

focus more on working definitions for each G and subtest and connections for cross

batteries. These working definitions will better serve me when I write reports in the

future. In terms of the flow of administering assessments, Illeya usually starts with the

WISC and the WJ. She likes the WISC because she said it helps you get to know the

child better and that it is more educational friendly. I am not sure I agree with that but I

also haven’t been in the field for that long. My questions however were validated when

she told me that this field is ever evolving. Everyone continues to work on their reports –

always trying to find the best way to represent data.

In terms of administering cognitive assessments, the KABC would not be my first

choice. I felt the pictures were outdated and that a CD for the subtest involving reciting

patterns is necessary for the scores to be valid and reliable. I learned that the subtest,

Word Order, does not work with students who are colorblind. My students scored very

high overall which was very helpful for seeing the whole spectrum. Finding

recommendations were hard but it was necessary. As I moved to my second and third

client I found it easier to complete the KABC report. I am starting to understand how to

analyze scaled indexes and linking CHC to intervention and accommodations. It was

interesting to see how two separate Glr subtests (Atlantis and Rebus) provide information

on my client as a learner. This write up got me excited for further in depth analysis of

subtests within a G factor. Overall, I feel that I am gaining a better understanding of

these children as learners. I do feel that the more I practice these write ups the more

confident I will become.

I found the WJ to be very easy to administer. I like that it includes all

components in one easy to work aisle with no real additional materials are required. I

think inputting the scores was also very easy to do. It is a very long test so I have to keep

in mind good stopping points when working with younger students. I notice I am

becoming more proficient with these write ups as well. I enjoyed looking at the

difference between Glr and Gc (acquired knowledge). I feel there is so much more for

me to learn but it seems especially with these write ups, “the more you know the more

you realize you don’t know!” I am curious why they chose to include phonological

assessments in the cognitive section (versus in the achievement) and why there is no way

to score these reports manually. It is putting a lot of faith in computers.

Overall, meeting with Illeya has been very helpful for me as a future

educational diagnostician. I have seen her templates and they have changed the way I

want mine to look- aesthetically. It is important for me to remember to keep the wording

simple on my reports. Parents and teachers read these reports so I have to conform to my

audience. Practice with these assessments and discussing results will help me become a

better diagnostician.

HISD ANNUAL/FALL Meeting and Harassment, Discipline, Confidentiality

In order to complete my five-year plan, I need to understand the laws that govern

private school funding, harassment, confidentiality, and discipline. In addition, because I

am currently serving in an administrative role, it is important that I know the laws

governing sexual harassment. I attended two HISD Private/Non-public School meetings.

One was the annual meeting that reviewed the nuts and bolts governing the due dates of

documents. The other was the Fall Consultation Meeting for private nonprofit (PNP)

schools that have elected to participate with Houston ISD to receive equitable services

through four federal programs (Title I, Part A – Title I, Part C – Title II, Part A – Title III,

Part A). Both of these meetings not only reminded me of the importance of

documentation and getting students who qualify the appropriate resources, but also it

connected me with so many educators from a variety of schools. I felt that these

meetings really helped affirm that I am able to stay on-top of my current case load.

However, I did change the way I manage materials being submitted to HISD. I decided

to only send certified return receipt mail. I have sent so many papers that have been

misplaced. I also have discovered that we can have Catapult – a math intervention

program at our school. This is great for our students struggling and it is not hard to

qualify them for the extra support.

After filing documents and submitting paper work I felt that a refresher in

confidentiality would be helpful. I have many siblings in the school where teachers come

and inquire about learning differences. It is important to remember who is qualified to

read reports and have access to them. I did not learn anything specifically new with the

Confidentiality in Special Education webinar, but it served more as a refresher- especially

when it came to discussing cases with siblings and their respective teachers.

Now that I know I am gathering all the correct data, I wanted to make sure I was

interacting with people correctly as well and visa versa. I watched the training on

Preventing Workplace Harassment. Although many things were obvious, what was not

obvious was how involved the supervisors should be- that is that they should maintain a

proactive stance on all cases. When I open up my own practice it is essential that I stay

onto of complaints.

Lastly, I watched the Discipline Flowchart for Students with Disabilities Online

Training. This training outlined specific days for removal from the classroom, what

constitutes a removal, and who is involved in the decision making process. While we do

not have a special education program at our school, I agree that a change of placement

must occur if a single suspension exceeds 10 consecutive school days or a series of

suspensions that form a pattern of exclusion are formed. It is imperative that children

receiving special services are being helped in all area (social emotional and academic).

When patterns of suspension are formed, I feel that the true problem is not being

addressed. I did learn that in special circumstances that involve weapons, illegal drugs,

or serious bodily injury, a student many be administratively assigned to an interim

alternative educational setting (IAES) via an IEP for up to 45 days without parental

agreement. Overall these videos were very helpful when we think about the fact and

concrete laws that govern special education.

Super Charging Vocabulary, Guided Reading, Literacy skills

This group of professional development focused on English language arts.

I watched Supercharging Vocabulary, Developing Literacy Skills Across Content Areas,

Making Sight Words Stick, Guided Reading & Writing: Developing a Growth Mindset

(K-2), and Guided Reading & Writing and Developing a Growth Mindset (Grades 3-5).

These not only help me now when working with students and teachers but will also be

helpful in the future with university cohorts. These videos focus on differentiating

instruction and good teaching practices. Some of the specific things that stood out to me

and that I also agree with are the dos and don’ts of learning vocabulary. While some

teachers encourage looking up words in the dictionary, that is not best practice for truly

learning new words. Looking up words in the dictionary does not show that they know

what the words means but rather that they can alphabetize and copy directly from a book.

Better practice would be for the kids to give us a visual (draw a picture) and provide

synonyms and antonyms. The brain wants to connect the unknown to the known.

Looking at subtle differences (funny, silly, hilarious) is can help foster these connections.

Using the word in a sentence about one’s home, school or themselves is a true

representation of understanding. When students are asked to give a general sentence they

might get the correct sentence structure and not truly understand the word, so it is

important to own the word by specifying a context. Also, using the word when thinking

of pros and cons with vocabulary is not only fun but a great informal assessment (when

would it be a pro to be hilarious vs. a con to be hilarious). I also liked how the videos

discussed the importance of connecting new words, reading it, and writing it. Asking

who, what, why, questions also helps build flexible thinking and generalizing of the word

(who would endure, what would endure, why would you endure?). Finally, Top 5 is

another great informal assessment. Task the students with listing the top 5 things

associated with that word (e.g., give me 1 thing you are resilient to and 3 things you do to

help with resilience).

Developing Literacy Skills across All Content Areas was also very

informative. This video further emphasized connections for students that are struggling

as readers. Successful readers not only make connections to themselves but they

visualize their inner reading voice. While there is debate between spending too much

time on personal connections, struggling readers need these connections before they can

move to deeper levels (inferencing and synthesizing). This video complemented my

current program improvement plan, which focuses on developing literacy. I learned

different techniques to incorporate in my literacy coaching (specific graphic organizers,

data collecting, and literacy in math).

At a word level, I really enjoyed Making Sight Words Stick (Grades PreK-

K). I currently use the FRY words to help with beginning readers and readers that are

struggling with fluency (all the way up to 5th grade). The first 10 FRY words make up

24% of words encountered in leveled reading. The first 100 FRY words make up 50% of

words read in leveled reading and the first 300 words make up 65 %. I learned many

great songs and activities to use with younger children.

The final video in this section involved Guided Reading & Writing and

Developing a Growth Mindset (K-2) and Guided Reading & Writing and Developing a

Growth Mindset (Grades 3-5). They both discussed the essentials of guided reading and

non-negotiables. Both age groups should have assessments that guide flexible groupings.

In addition, focused mini lessons should help foster independence. I like her guided

conferencing strategy of a star (specific celebration) and a wish (growth area). I also

like the way she charts her check-ins but I would need a more permanent way of

collecting data, which I can do with my stickies. Guided reading for older students

discussed different genres with small group instruction –aside from narrative writing-

where one can delve into opinions/reviews of literature. Engaging in cross content

literature in guided reading is also important. When thinking about what we can we do

during guided reading groups, think about strategies and fostering conversation. One of

my favorite strategies is DRTA for predictions. I also really enjoy engaging in read

alouds with older children. I remember when getting my M Ed my professor would read

aloud to us every day. I would love to embed this in my future university classes.

HBIDA 2016 Spring Conference- Dyslexia Conference

This conference took place on March 5th from 7:30-4:30. While it was an extremely long

day, I benefited a lot from the various discussion groups. The day was split into four

main sessions and then museum walks. The first session involved executive function, the

second was about struggling readers with weaknesses in executive functioning, the third

one was about the Woodcock Johnson IV, and the final session was about navigating

public schools (identifying students and getting services). Each session had their own

strengths and weakness along with things I agreed with and things I didn’t.

The first and second session involved executive functioning. I discovered

Berkley’s executive functioning model. This model involves 5 parts: (1) inhibition, (2)

sensing to the self, (3) self speech, (4) emotions motivation to the self, (5) play

(reconstitution) to the self. I found it extremely interesting that kids with executive

functioning weaknesses can exhibit a wide variety of characteristics aside from not being

a “self-starter”and that kids might not be noticed until 3-4th grade. I also found the

strategies to be very helpful. The strategies corresponded with a book I am eager to

purchase (Kelly Cartwright’s book Executive Skills and Reading Comprehension). The

strategies included the following: explicitly explain organization (p. 87), use graphic

organizers, teach language structure (syntax) because organization creates meaning, and

introduce and teach the ways in which causal organization is embedded in a narrative

(actions happen in a particular order because certain things cause others to happen) In

therapy this is called chaining- being able to create a story line through different parts.

She then went on to discuss working memory and how it is actually storage and

processing information and not memory – it’s active manipulation of material in that

specific moment. This definition will help me with report writing.

The third session was not as helpful. I was under the impression we would

go over interpreting scores from the WJ IV but all that she did was discuss changes in the

WJ IV as compared to the WJ III. I did feel comforted when I heard her discuss that

when new tests come out they administer these tests to one another just like we do in

graduate school. This will be especially helpful when I enter my own private practice and

decide to adopt new assessments. The points that I marked to look at more closely are:

(1) oral reading vs silent reading (2) qualitative numbers

- How to arrange scores to diagnose dyslexia

- Has a mobile scoring app

The final session involved identifying students and how to get them

services. We went through preK-3, 4-12, and post secondary milestones. It was

interesting to look at risk factors and signs for dyslexia. What really stuck with me was

the need for students diagnosed with dyslexia to have access to a multi-sensory approach

and repetitiveness in all content areas not just reading. I learned about NILD (for math

multisensory) and that a laundry list of accommodations is not always the best. Finally, it

was extremely interesting that often times our dyslexic students are better prepared for

college because they have learned how to study all along whereas other students have

learned o study just for the test. This section will help me better understand how to

navigate the public and private school system when it comes to testing. Specifically, I

learned how many days are given before testing should take place (after a formal request

has been made) and how private schools use Child Find.

Formative Assessment in EC Math

For this set of activities I focused on math instruction and assessment. I started

with looking at how we can conduct formative assessments grade k-12 and what qualities

we would want to make sure to have. I then looked at how we can spice up Singapore

math (the program we currently use at our school) and then how we can make language

visible in the math classroom.

I learned a lot from the assessment videos. Distinguishing between

diagnostic (before), formative (during), and summative (end) is crucial. I definitely agree

with the k-1 video that when you do formative assessment it is to the child’s benefit.

Assessment especially in k-1 is not only assessing their learning but their development. I

liked the idea that practice makes permanent so that it is important to ensure that kiddos

are learning the correct way of solving problems and not continually practicing it

incorrectly. I liked how they talked about improving metacognition by have the kiddos

explain and show their thinking. The famous answers to how they got the answer in k-1

made me laugh (“I just knowd it” or “I did it in my head!”). There were some wonderful

strategies I took away from these videos. Numbering a sheet of paper (i.e., 1-24) instead

of writing students names in each section will help with not only keeping privacy if you

decide to leave your clipboard down on a students desk but also with holding the

educator accountable for observing each of your 24 students. It forces you to go back and

make sure every student is there (over 2 days). Also, checking for understanding can be

done in many ways: whiteboard, journals, diagnostic interviews (listen for answers not

one right answer), and for your younger students (making a picture of ...) while your

older students descriptive feedback is essential.

Lastly, I found language in the math classroom to be fascinating! Math

Talks is a great way to incorporate language in the class. Generalizing graphic organizers

from math the ELA was also great! I loved how the kids used number bonds for math

(part, part, whole) and also for contractions. Math talk also helps with oral language and

helps kids develop through their stages of math knowledge (i.e., from concrete to

pictorial to abstract).

Overall, making students aware of the learning goal and success criteria is

important. I think this bleeds over to all subjects and age groups. By making the learning

goal and steps apparent you are gradually releasing the responsibility to students. While

they used many mental models in math, I am curious how this would work in science.

Another aspect that stood out to me across these videos was how early intervention and

prevention is better than later remediation. The more varied instruction is in tier 1 then

less needed in tier 2. This is very important for me to keep in mind as I enter my EdD

program and work with future teachers in the university setting. My new philosophy is

the more ways we teach the more kids we reach.

Dylsexia Conference, Intervention, and HBIDA conference

For this group of activities I decided to look at intervention as a whole. I wanted

to gain a stronger understanding of students with autism and students with ADHD. These

seem to be the majority of students my friends and I run into. Because of this I watched

the autism spectrum handbook webinar, the ADHD and sensory intervention webinar,

and attended Gateway Academy’s AD/HD conference. I learned a lot about recognizing

red flags and various intervention techniques. To synthesize these professional

developments, I came up with three themes: (1) be proficient with key developmental

milestone (academic and social emotion) (2) early intervention is better than later

remediation, (2) intervention is strategies you provide the student with that should be

research based.

To break down these developments I will first point out some of the key points

that stood out to me. There are red flags for every disability- aside from students with

ADHD and Autism. Dysgraphia was one that was discussed. They mentioned that it not

dealing solely with weak fine motor skills but rather processing. Keep an eye out for

students with wispy writing. While it is hard to receive services for dysgraphia,

accommodations can be put in place to help alleviate the frustration. When talking about

interventions, there is a golden rule- interventions needs to be strategic and systematic.

When thinking about AD/HD, there are many factors to think about. Is it impulsivity,

motor seeking, organization, and/or lack of focus? In order to best address the area, one

needs to be very systematic. I really enjoyed learning about the specific accommodations

that can be made to accommodate students. Setting up proactive intervention is a great

idea! Here are my favorite interventions:

1. Break Pass- has to have activity or something to go with it-

2. Motor grid- create exchange program.

3. Proprioceptive input- sensations from joints, muscles and connective tissues that

underlie body awareness- can be obtained by lifting, pushing, and pulling heavy objects,

including one's own weight.

In addition to specific interventions for students with ADHD and Autism, there

were a variety of ideas that could be implemented right away for everyday struggling

students that are not diagnosed with a specific learning disability. Pic-A-Pic was one of

my favorites. This helps with sequencing of a story. Providing students with a picture (it

could be funny) and having them draw what happened before and after the picture helps

with sequencing. Color-coding a document is another great idea. It served as a visual

cue of what words to chunk together. Alphabet chunk (abc? Lmnop!) helps with

expression and punctuation. ThinkCerca is a program to help with reading

comprehension.

Lastly, I observed various OT sessions for 3’s through Prek students. I observed

the kids using coffee filters with pinchers to help build tripod grip. They also did the

Hokey Pokey, danced to hop like a rabbit, and reviewed letters (f and e) by rolling play

dough. In many sessions they were engaging in creating the Happy Man from

Handwriting Without Tears and working on body concept. Ms. Donna discussed

activities that encourage crossing the mid-line. This helps with flexible thinking. She also

told me that by age 4 a dominant hand should exists but should be fully developed by age

6. I found the developmental continuum for cutting to be very interesting. Before starting

to cut, students should be exposed to tearing paper. By the age of three the kids should be

snipping and cutting paper- with some being able to cut in a straight line. Ms. Donna uses

special stamps with pinches at the top to help with building these muscles. While I will

not be working with kids on their fine motor skills, it is important that I understand the

development of skills at this young age.

PEIMS - Special Education Coding, A Self-Guided Tour; Special Education Master

Scheduling

I learned about two programs that help with accountability, PIEMS and Special

Education Master Scheduling. Both of these programs look at the big picture of data

collection. The submission of Public Education Information Management System

(PEIMS) data is required of all public school districts and open-enrollment charter

schools. It encompasses all data requested and received by TEA about public education,

including student demographic and academic performance, personnel, financial, and

organizational information. This professional development video was a self-guided tour

that provided useful information regarding the instructional arrangements available for

students with disabilities and valuable resource. It explained how PIEMS data is used

and the Texas Education Data Standards (TEDS). I found PIEMS very interesting but

also confusing. I really never thought about how data was submitted to TEA and who is

responsible for gathering and overseeing this at the campus level. I am curious how often

this system runs down or is not working and if people keep a hard copy as well. I do not

think I will ever have to use this towards my five year goal but it was very useful

information. Special Education Master Scheduling was also very informative. It

discussed collecting data for scheduling coteaching purposes in order to make the most

appropriate ARD decisions. Tony Goedicke, ESC’s Education Specialist, focused on

coteaching and asked very thought provoking questions. It really encouraged me to

reflect on what high quality tier one instruction looks like. While we have coteaching at

our school I think a big growth area is being able to answer that question regarding high

quality tier one instruction- which is easier said then done. I think high quality tier one

instruction is assessment driven instruction that is differentiated and research based. This

instruction should use multiple modalities to reach every child and progress monitoring

should take place. In regards to coteaching it is important to maximize the benefits. I

agree with Ms. Goedicke that just putting two teachers in a classroom does not make it

the most effective, it is important to create and foster dialogue between teachers

regarding tier 1 instruction and how they make the most out of the experience.

Discussing ones strengths and weaknesses and how to common plan (not always face to

face) is an important part of any teaching relationship. This will help me in my 5 year

goal as I will be working with a variety of teams. Keeping in mind effective time

management is crucial- when you think about it, 30 minute or less is not a real great form

of support because when is the best time for them to come in? Should they come at the

beginning while you are whole-class teaching or at the end when they are wrapping up? I

was encouraged to reflect on the data collection I do- I am happy to say that I do focus on

frequency, location, duration and that I put daily service and minutes on each kids folder.

A big take away though when forming classes for next year is to group students by low,

medium and high level of support (LOS). While this was a workshop for public schools,

I am going to modify the spreadsheet to fit our school for scheduling purposes next year.

I really enjoyed this professional development and meeting superintendents from various

districts.

1179497-Focusing on Section 504; Developing an Effective Comprehensive Needs

Assessment (CNA)

Both of these professional developments were very informative. They both addressed

laws, documentation, and data collection. I learned a lot about the differences between

IDEA, 504, and ADA.

IDEA 504 ADA

Federal Funding Yes No No

Administrating OSEP (office of Office for Civil OCR

Agency Special Education

Programs)

Rights (OCR)

District Wide

Requirements

Special education

policy

Collective notice,

coordinator, self

evaluation

Collective notice,

coordinator, self

evaluation (same as

of 1992)

Procedural Safe

Guards

Detailed noticed, IEP

team with specified

members

Less detailed notice

and streamlines

team

Not specified

Eligibility and

definition of

“disability”

Two parts:

- 13 specified

impairments

- Need for special ed

Three parts:

- Any recognized

impairments

-That substantially

limits

-A major life

activity (not limited

to learning)

Same as 504

FAPE IEP Unspecified but

typically a variously

names document

Not specified

FAPE content Special Education &

related services

Special or regular

education & related

services

None specified

Dispute Resolution Partial None None

Misc Covers some but not

all

Covers smaller

subset of people

under ADA

Covers more

individuals than any

other law

Covers 3-21 Womb to tomb Womb to tomb

Aside from this brief overview I found many specific details pertinent to my five year

goal. Realizing that ADAA amendment added reading, concentrating, and major bodily

functions broadens the scope of coverage. I found it interesting how the LEA is not

required to make every part of the facility accessible but they need to develop a plan with

a specified schedule to make the facility accessible. I am curious how they plan which

facilities need to be accessible and if they can make changes if they realize one needs to

be made. I also found it interesting that if a parent refuses special education, that means

they also refuse section 504 (i.e., you cant refuse IDEA and get 504). Overall, 504 might

change the how, where, and when of what is taught but not what is taught. Specifically

for my future goals, I need to keep in mind that less is more when it comes to

accommodations. Accommodations are not intended to maximize potential; they are

intended to level the playing field. In terms of specifics on the report I agree with the

following points: (1) don’t say at the discretion of teacher- if the accommodation is not a

necessity, it does not need to be in the plan. (2) Do not just say extended time, say when

and how much, and (3) when considering whether to evaluate a student with a health

plan, do not consider “success of the plan.” The success of the plan (positive or negative)

does not impact the decision to evaluate for section 504. I have run in to many instances

where the points aforementioned take place. While these different laws can be

confusing, it is essential that I understand the differences and how to provide my future

clients with necessary accommodations that fit their individual needs.