Week in Review - March 1, 2013
Week in Review - March 1, 2013
WEEK IN REVIEWNewNASETPublications and Articles of Interest in Special Education and Disabilities That Were Reported This WeekMarch 1, 2013 - Vol 9, Issue 9 |
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New This Week on NASET "HOW TO" Help Parents with Transition Services in High School The Individualized Transitional Education Plan-ITEP If you are a special education teacher in the secondary schools you will be directly involved in the development of a student's ITEP. In order to survive this process you will need to become very familiar with the information in this section. The ITEP (Individualized Transition Education Plan) is a part of the overall IEP but represents a very important piece in determining a child's future. The ITEP should include long-term adult outcomes from which annual goals and objectives are defined.
What the Special Educator needs to know about Reporting Formal Assessment Test Results to Parents Prior to Eligibility Committee Meeting Prior to the official Eligibility Committee meeting it is strongly suggested that you meet with the parents to go over the results of testing. This meeting will have several objectives:
To read or download this issue -Click here (login required) ______________________________________________________ NASET's Special Educator e-Journal March 2013 Table of Contents
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NASET Sponsor - Cal Poly Pomona |
Draft of Next Generation of Educator Preparation Accreditation Standards Released for Public CommentAs the new national accreditor for educator preparation, theCouncil for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation(CAEP) is seeking public comment on the draft of the next generation of accreditation standards and performance measures. All stakeholders in education and educator preparation are encouraged to review and comment on the draft standards, which are available for public comment through March 29. Please visithttp://caepnet.orgor follow @CAEPupdates on Twitter for the most up-to-date information. |
My Classmate, The Robot: New York Student Attends RemotelyIn an elementary school hallway, a teacher takes her second-graders to the library, leading a single-file line of giggling boys and girls that's perfectly ordinary until you get to a sleek white robot with a video screen showing the face of a smiling, chubby-cheeked boy. Devon Carrow's life-threatening allergies don't allow him to go to school. But the 4-foot-tall robot with a wireless video hookup gives him the school experience remotely, allowing him to participate in class, stroll through the hallways, hang out at recess and even take to the auditorium stage when there's a show. What's most remarkable is how unremarkable this gee-whiz technology is viewed by his classmates. In a class of 7-year-olds raised on video games, avatars and remote-controlled toys, they don't see a robot. They just see Devon. To read more,click here |
Pitt Researchers Work to Restore Function in Paralysis PatientsFive years ago, a cooperative multidisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) and its medical center set out to tackle an important translational research goal: Restoring function for those who can't move. Now, for the first time, breakthrough brain-computer-interfaceresearch publishedin the Lancet in December 2012 provides hope to nearly 6 million paralyzed individuals and another 1.7 million amputees nationwide. To read more,click here |
GEEO Travel Programs for EducatorsGlobal Exploration for Educators Organization (GEEO) is a 501c3 non-profit organization that runs summer professional development travel programs designed for teachers. |
Did You Know That....Aural rehabilitation refers to teaching hard of hearing people how to adjust to, and compensate for, their hearing losses by making productive use of their residual hearing in learning spoken communication skills through speech reading and auditory training. |
Act of Sportsmanship Gives Texas high Schooler Shot at GloryCoach Peter Morales of the Coronado High School Thunderbirds in El Paso, Texas, makes no qualms about it: he has a favorite on this team. Team manager Mitchell Marcus has a developmental disability, but he far surpasses everyone here when it comes to love of the game. "He's just an amazing person that our basketball team loves being around," Morales says. Mitchell's mom, Amy, says he's always been that way. "Mitchell always had a basketball, that was always what he wanted for his birthday," she says. And because basketball is that important to him, on the last game of the regular season, the coach told Mitchell to suit up. "I was very happy," Mitchell says of what it was like to put on the team's uniform. To read more,click here |
For Students with Multiple Disabilities, a New, Specially Designed School OpensThe Clark County School District welcomed more than 100 students with severe disabilities to a brand new campus this week. The Miller School - which serves about 125 special-needs students - moved into an $18 million, state-of-the-art facility on Wednesday. The new campus - located on the Pecos-McLeod Interconnect near Twain Avenue - replaced its predecessor about 3 miles miles to the north. The old Miller site was showing its age, Principal Jean Trudell said. Built as a traditional school in 1960, the building was converted about 25 years ago into a special school for students with multiple physical, intellectual, sensory and emotional disabilities. To read more,click here |
Effects of Bullying Last Into Adulthood, Study FindsVictims of bullying at school, and bullies themselves, are more likely to experience psychiatric problems in childhood, studies have shown. Now researchers have found that elevated risk of psychiatric trouble extends into adulthood, sometimes even a decade after the intimidation has ended. The new study,published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry on Wednesday, is the most comprehensive effort to date to establish the long-term consequences of childhood bullying, experts said. "It documents the elevated risk across a wide range of mental health outcomes and over a long period of time," saidCatherine Bradshaw, an expert on bullying and a deputy director of theCenter for the Prevention of Youth Violenceat Johns Hopkins University, which was not involved in the study. To read more,click here |
Teachers Ditch Student Desk Chairs for Yoga BallsIn 11 years of teaching, ditching students' desk chairs in favor ofyogaballs is one of the best decisionsRobbi Giulianothinks she ever made. Replacing stationary seats with inflatable bouncers has raised productivity in her fifth-graders atWesttown-Thornbury Elementary School, making students better able to focus on lessons while improving their balance and core strength, she said. "I have more attentive children,"Giulianosaid. "I'm able to get a lot done with them because they're sitting on yoga balls." The giant rubber spheres, also calledstability balls, come in different sizes, colors and degrees of firmness. By making the sitter work to stay balanced, the balls force muscle engagement and increased blood flow, leading to more alertness. To read more,click here |
Modifying Kids' TV Habits May Improve BehaviorWant to improve your preschoolers' behavior? Be choosy when it comes to the television shows they watch - even if you don't reduce the amount of time they spend watching them, a study finds. In one of the largest studies yet to examine how modifying television content affects the development of young children ages 3 to 5, researchers report that six months after families reduced their kids' exposure to aggressive and violence-filled programming and increased exposure to enriching and educational programming - even without changing the number of viewing hours - kids demonstrated statistically significant improved behavior compared to children whose media diet went unchanged. To read more,click here |
Inclusion The Default At Innovative SchoolA unique New York City school is successfully serving kids with developmental disabilities alongside those who are typically developing by assuming that each child needs their own curriculum in order to thrive. At The IDEAL School, children of varying abilities all learn the same topics, but each student does so at their own level with an individual lesson plan tailored to their needs. Specialized services like speech and physical therapy are provided during elective periods so that no student misses out on academics or feels different. To read more,click here |
Did You Know That....The term "avolition" refers to an inability to initiate and persist in goal-directed activities. |
Feds Omit ABA Therapy From New Insurance RequirementsDespite a heavy lobbying effort, the Obama administration declined to include autism therapy in final rules this week defining what must be covered by insurers under health care reform. Many states have established mandates in recent years requiring at least some health insurance plans to include coverage of behavior therapy to treat autism. But with the passage of the 2010 health care reform law, advocates were hopeful that a nationwide standard would be established. Under the federal law, most health insurance plans will be required to cover 10 so-called "essential health benefits" starting next year, one of which is "mental health and substance use disorder services, including behavioral health treatment." To read more,click here |
TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE WEEKGuess the answer to this week's trivia question and we'll recognize you in next week's Week in Review. Congratulations to: Pamela Downing-Hosten, Ope-Oluwa Olubela, Merril Bruce, Rinyka Allison, Craig Pate, and Louise Janus who all knew the answer to last week's trivia question: According to the latest research by the U.S. Department of Education, approximately95% of children with disabilities attend school and receive their appropriate education in the general education building (e.g., in the neighborhood school). THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION: Harry Jennings and Herbert Everest, both mechanical engineers, are known for inventing what device in 1932? If you know the answer, send an email tocontactus@naset.org All answers must be submitted no later than Monday, March 4, 2013 at 12:00 p.m. |
Plastics Chemical BPA Common in 'Preemie' ICU: StudyPremature babies who spend their first few days of life in the neonatal intensive care unit may be exposed to a possibly harmful chemical widely used in the manufacture of hard plastics, new research says. The chemical, bisphenol A (BPA), is used to make many of the ventilators, intravenous lines, catheters and other devices tiny babies need to stay alive in those first critical days. BPA is believed to be an endocrine disruptor, which means it may interfere with the hormone system in humans. Some research has linked BPA with reproductive and developmental problems, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Last July, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration banned BPA from baby bottles and sippy cups. To read more,click here |
Children Born With Heart Defects Show Growth Lags 3 Years LaterPoor growth among children born with heart defects may be due to abnormalities in growth regulation rather than nutrition problems, a new study suggests. Discrepancies in weight between these children and those without heart defects peaked at 4 months of age, the researchers found. Weight and other size differences were still evident when the children reached the age of 3 years. "When compared with their healthy peers, children with congenital heart disease have impaired growth, as measured in weight, length and head circumference," senior study author Dr. Meryl Cohen, a pediatric cardiologist at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia cardiac center, said in a hospital news release. "We investigated patterns of poor growth in these children, as a starting point in guiding us toward more effective treatments." To read more,click here |
NASET MEMBER'S BENEFIT -Board Certification in Special Education Available to NASET MembersThrough an agreement with The American Academy of Special Education Professionals(AASEP), NASET members now have the opportunity to achieve AASEP Board Certification in Special Education - (B.C.S.E.) at a reduced fee. AASEP Board Certification in Special Education - (B.C.S.E.) is a voluntary choice on the part of the candidate. The candidate for Board Certification wishes to demonstrate a commitment to excellence to employers, peers, administrators, other professionals, and parents. From the standpoint of the Academy, board certification will demonstrate the highest professional competency in the area of special education. Board Certification in Special Educationestablishes a much needed standard for professionals, across disciplines, who work with exceptional children.
For more information on Board Certification in Special Education,click here |
New Guidelines Issued for Genetic Screening in Newborns, ChildrenNew guidelines on testing newborns and children for genetic diseases recommend screening for childhood diseases but note that testing for diseases that strike in adulthood may not be worthwhile. About 4 million infants in the United States undergo newborn screening each year, but further genetic testing -- while increasingly available -- is less common. Newborn screening panels vary from state to state. All newborns should be tested for the genetic diseases that are included in their state's newborn screening panel, but anything beyond that is up to parents and the decision must be made in the child's best interest, according to the revised policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. The new guidelines are published online Feb. 21 in the journal Pediatrics. To read more,click here |
NASET Sponsor - Perkins eLearningTo learn more -Click here |
Did You Know That....Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act is legislation that requires federal agencies to develop, procure, and use accessible electronic and information technology |
NASET MEMBER'S BENEFIT -Group Savings Plus from Liberty MutualAs a member ofNASETyou qualify for a special group discount* on your auto, home, and renter's insurance through Group Savings Plus® from Liberty Mutual. This unique program allows you to purchase high-quality auto, home and renters insurance at low group rates.
See for yourself how much money you could save with Liberty Mutual compared to your current insurance provider. For a free, no-obligation quote, call 800-524-9400 or visit www.libertymutual.com/naset,or visit your local sales office.*Group discounts, other discounts, and credits are available where state laws and regulations allow, and may vary by state. Certain discounts apply to specific coverage only. To the extent permitted by law, applicants are individually underwritten; not all applicants may qualify. Coverage provided and underwritten by Liberty Mutual Insurance Company and its affiliates, 175 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA. |
Too Much Coffee in Pregnancy Tied to Smaller, Later Newborns, Study SaysThe coffee or other caffeinated beverages a woman drinks during her pregnancy might up the odds for a low birth weight newborn or an extended pregnancy, a new study says. The researchers included data on nearly 60,000 Norwegian women. "As the risk for having a low birth weight baby was associated with caffeine consumption, pregnant women might be counseled to reduce their caffeine intake during pregnancy as much as possible," said lead researcher Dr. Verena Sengpiel, an obstetrician/gynecologist at the Sahlgrenska Academy of Sahlgrenska University in Goteborg, Sweden. To read more,click here |
Researchers Detect an Anti-Autism Advantage in FemalesA protective effect in females may help explain one of the biggest mysteries of autism: Why boys are five times more likely to develop the developmental brain disorder than girls. A new, preliminary study suggests that developing females are much better able than males to fight off genetic pressure to develop symptoms of autism. The findings aren't definitive and don't point to a treatment or cure. Still, "first steps like this are important" and could lead to greater understanding of autism, said study lead author Elise Robinson, an instructor in the department of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston. To read more,click here |
Food For Thought..........Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. |