Some of you may have noticed a few new options listed in the “Area” drop down menu of the Goals and Objectives screen in the database (see below).
These two new Areas (“AKAA ELA” and “AKAA Math”) are only intended for use with students who are on the Alternate Assessment. All of the case managers who have students on the Alternate Assessment have received training on using these standards in IEPs. Please do not use these standards for any students who are not on the Alternate Assessment.
We have added a note to the “Special Factors…” section of the IEP database to clarify the documentation that is required when a student needs special transportation. One of the questions in the special factors asks, “Is the need for daily special transportation documented in the Evaluation Summary?” If a student requires special transportation, the answer to this question should be yes. However, this does not mean that “Special Transportation” should be listed as a need in the ESER Needs and Recommendations. We’ve seen quite a few ESERs come in that way this year.
Rather than listing transportation as a need, the ESER should document the reason that the student requires special transportation (communication skills, behavior, mobility, etc.). Those reasons can either be documented in the Needs and Recommendations section of the ESER, or within the content of the ESER’s individual reports. Keep in mind that special transportation is a service provided by the district to meet student needs, it is not a need in itself.
The new accommodations/modifications page in the sped database was introduced at IEP Saturday last weekend. This is a form that already existed in the sped database, it has just been updated to add some additional information and (hopefully) streamline the process of sharing information with gen ed teachers. It may also be useful to keep as an “at a glance” overview for each of the students on your caseload or at your school. (A sample pdf of the new form can be viewed here).
Many schools have created their own forms for sharing information about student accommodations and needs. In many cases, schools were filling out an additional checklist that included information that was already listed in the student’s IEP. I took a look at a sampling of those forms and tried to include many of the common elements. You are still welcome to use any forms that your school sped team has developed, but the idea with this updated form is to avoid duplicating information that already exists in the database—no one likes extra (paper)work!
Here’s a quick overview of where to find the form, how to print it, and what has been added:
1. The accommodations form can be printed from the Main screen of the database. After selecting your school, click on the “Show Students” button in the Utilities section. You can select individual student using the checkboxes next to each student’s name, or click on the “All” button to select all students at your school. Once you’ve selected the desired students, click on the “Print Program Mods/Accoms” button to print out the form.
2. The previous version of this form included only the Program Modifications and Accommodations fields from a student’s IEP. It has now been updated to include the Summary of Services at a glance, the student’s IEP Goals, and standardized test scores. Many of the school-based forms had a checklist to list the common day-to-day classroom accommodations and modifications, for example: use of a calculator, repeat/clarify directions, extended time for tests or assignments, daily behavior card, etc, etc. Please keep in mind that all of that information should already be included in the Program Modifications/Accommodations section of the student’s IEP (below), and there should be no need to duplicate that information on an additional form. Save yourself the extra work!
3. You might notice that I intentionally left off the assessment accommodations section. There are a few reasons for this: 1) there is already a separate form available to print from the sped database that includes only testing accommodations, and 2) gen ed teachers and building admins already have the ability to see testing accommodations for sped students in PowerSchool (if you need a reminder as to where these can be found, let me know).
I’m always open to suggestions, and if you have ideas for additional information that you’d like to see included on this form please let me know!
The most common question on this transition checklist is #3. This question is only asking if the team discussed DVR services and whether the student should apply for the service. This question is not asking whether the student applied. This question should be answered “Yes” in nearly all cases as information can and should be provided about DVR to all students with transition plans. Brochures are available through Denise Kelly if you are not ready to invite DVR to a meeting, but want to provide information to the student and family for consideration or discussion later.
If there are transition agencies (agencies that will be providing transition services to the student) involved with the student, then the contact information would be included in the table at the bottom of the checklist. If you have questions, contact Pupil Services.
The most common question / error on this LRE checklist is question #2. This question will generally be “No” as a student who is receiving any type of pull out instruction is not “satisfactorily educated in the general ed environment for the entire school day.” #5 is also one that is difficult in some circumstances. #5 is only a “No” if the student’s IEP placement is implemented at a school other than his / her homeschool. So, for students who are at Marathon, for instance, #5 would be “Yes” still because the IEP team did not place the student at Marathon. #5 would be “No” if the student’s IEP placement or LRE is a self-contained setting and the district had to change the location due to a school not having that LRE. The placement is the IEP team’s decision. The location, if different than the home area school, is the district’s decision.
Any “No” responses require a justification specific to the question that had a “No” response.
If you have questions, please contact Pupil Services.
The program that runs the Special Education database is called FileMaker Pro. The print setting for FileMaker are separate from the print settings for most other programs on your computer, and changing the default printer in your Control Panel will not affect your printer settings for FileMaker.
To change your printer in FileMaker, open the Special Ed database and then select File –> Print Setup:
On the next window use the drop down list to select the printer that you would like to use and click OK.
