Week in Review - March 26, 2020


NASET

WEEK IN REVIEW

National Association of Special Education Teachers

March 27, 2020                    Vol 16 Issue #12


Continuing_Ed


Dear NASET Members and Guests,


Welcome to NASET's WEEK in REVIEW.  Here, we provide you with the latest publications fromNASET to read and or download, as well as some of the most interesting articles that have happened this week in the field of special education. We hope you enjoy this publication.  Feel free to send us articles for this publication or let us know your thoughts about the WEEK in REVIEW at news@naset.org. Have a great weekend.

Sincerely,


NASET RESOURCES FOR YOU

COVID-19. What to do. where to turn.


The amount of information that's constantly emerging is so staggering, it seems nearly impossible to keep up. Here are many updated resources that you might find helpful. The link below has a brief list of resources to address key issues such as multilanguage materials to share, places parents can turn to as so many schools are closed for now, and telecommuting tips to help with maintaining social distancing practices. The list is nowhere near exhaustive, nor is it intended to be. May these resources inform you without overwhelming and may you find them useful and timely to share with the families and the professionals you serve. Read More


How Will Schools Provide Special Education During the Coronavirus Crisis?

With a pandemic pressing tens of thousands of the nation's school districts into extended closures, special education administrators across the nation are wrestling with a weighty dilemma: how to provide services to students with disabilities. Federal law mandates that individuals with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate in everything schools provide-including online learning. But a mix of factors-lack of clarity in state laws, unclear guidance from the U.S. Department of Education, and a reluctance to run afoul of federal law-has left some school districts struggling to get their online learning programs off the ground. Uncertainty has handcuffed some districts, forcing them to shut down their online learning operations, at least temporarily. Read More



California Students Enrolled in Special Education Face Unique Burdens During School Closure

Anna Van Brusselen's 11-year-old daughter, Iolani, loves school and has been making great progress in her occupational and physical therapy. While living with cerebral palsy, hemiplegia, visual impairment and hydroencephalitis, she can walk. She can use her right hand, and she's a whiz at reading and learning languages. But now that her school, Leonard Flynn Elementary in San Francisco Unified, is closed for at least three weeks, Van Brusselen is worried her daughter will regress, losing the mobility and academic skills she had worked so hard to master. "All the therapies she got at school, obviously, she's not getting any of those now," said Van Brusselen, who also has an 18-month-old daughter and works from home. "I'm doing the best I can, but it's frustrating, because I know I can't help her as much as her teachers and therapists can." Read More



TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE WEEK

Congratulations to: Kimberly Rehbaum, Nicole, Stroman, Jenny Wells, Wanda Routier, Shelley Wear, Diane Campbell-Mitchell, Patsy Ray, Olumide Akerele, Daniel Rayder, Elizabeth Ciccarelli-Rosa, Susan Kalter, Karen Frantz-Fry, Rebecca Jurado, Cheryl Mitchell, Stephenie Blakemore, Cindi Maurice, Danelle Fugatewho, and Kathi Handy all knew the answer to last week's trivia question:

This federal law protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education. The law gives parents certain rights with respect to their children's education records and these rights transfer to the student when he or she reaches the age of 18 or attends a school beyond the high school level. What is the name of this federal law?  

Answer: FERPA (FAMILY EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS AND PRIVACY ACT) 

THE TRVIA QUESTION OF THE WEEK WILL RETURN ON APRIL 3, 2020


NASET BOARD CERTIFICATION PROGRAM IN SPECIAL EDUCATION ADVOCACY

The National Association of Special Education Teachers (NASET) and the American Academy of Special Education Professionals (AASEP) recognize the increasing need for qualified special education advocates. In order to enhance this area of concern, they have created a comprehensive special education advocacy program whereby upon completion, you become a Board Certified Advocate in Special Education (BCASE). The BCASE program offers you all the materials to be an effective, articulate, and qualified special education advocate. completion of the BCASE program will provide you with the knowledge, skills and abilities to be confident as an advocate for children with special needs and their parents.­ To learn more about becoming a Board Certified Advocate in Special Education (BCASE), click here


Schools had to Close, but Learning Goes on. How is this Working for Students with Special Needs?

Tracey Mendenhall questions how her son's education will proceed. Tracey, a cafeteria worker for a neighboring school district, is the mother of Bryce, a fifth-grade students at LaSalle Elementary School. Bryce has a cognitive learning disability and apraxia, a motor speech disorder that makes it hard to speak. He requires lots of therapy, Tracey said, but he's come a long way. "He didn't talk. Wasn't supposed to ride a bike," Tracey said. "He does it all." Now, Bryce is one of Mishawaka's 987 special education students engaging in remote learning as schools have closed as a precaution against the potential spread of the coronavirus. School districts, like School City of Mishawaka, are using e-learning tools, lesson packets and virtual instruction to keep educating students over the next few weeks. Read More


Autism Rates Declining Among Wealthy Whites, Escalating Among Poor

Wealthy, white California counties-once considered the nation's hotbeds for autism spectrum disorder (ASD)-have seen prevalence flatten or fall in the last two decades, while rates among poor whites and minorities keep ticking up, new CU Boulder research has found. The study, published Thursday in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, raises the possibility that parents in wealthier counties are successfully reducing environmental exposures that may contribute to autism risk, or taking other steps to curb its severity early on. While that's a hopeful possibility, the authors say, the findings also illuminate a disturbing economic and racial divide. "While autism was once considered a condition that occurs mainly among whites of high socioeconomic status, these data suggest that the brunt of severe autism is now increasingly being borne by low-income families and ethnic minorities," said lead author Cynthia Nevison, PhD. Read More


States Suspending Standardized Tests as Schools Close

Closing schools to combat the spread of the coronavirus is having a sweeping impact on an annual rite of spring: the standardized tests that are dreaded by millions of students and teachers alike. Several states have canceled standardized testing for this academic year as they face school closures that could last weeks or months. The tests were scheduled to begin in early April in many states. While that's easing the burden on students and teachers, it's also creating problems. The federal government requires states to perform annual standardized assessments under the Every Student Succeeds Act. And education groups warn that moving classes online won't deliver equitable learning across states, school districts and even within classrooms. Read More



Lehigh University Special Education Law Symposium

The Lehigh University Special Education Law Symposium will be held on our beautiful campus in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania June 21-26, 2020.  Featuring a keynote by OSEP director Laurie VanderPloeg, eight "hot topic" sessions by paired attorneys for a dual perspective, and a culminating comprehensive update from Professor Perry Zirkel, this year's symposium promises to be the best ever in this nationally prominent program.  The week also includes a separate two-day program, the Lehigh Section 504 Institute on June 25-26. For complete information, see go.lehigh.edu/spedlaw


'Completely Uncharted Territory': Special education Challenges in the Shadow of COVID-19

Veronica Coit struggles seeing how her daughter's education will proceed. Coit, a hairdresser in West Asheville, is the mother of Bella, 13, a student at Valley Springs Middle School. Bella has Rett Syndrome, a rare neurological disorder. The syndrome leaves Bella with body functions equivalent, in her mother's estimate, to those of a 1-year old. Bella needs total care. At school, Bella attends Buncombe County School's Progressive Education Program, designed to serve students with significant physical and cognitive disabilities. There, she works hand-in-hand with a trained instructor who uses pictures and eye-tracking technologies to guide Bella through academic tasks. The school also provides physical and speech therapy. Read More


Teacher, Interrupted: Leaning into Social-Emotional Learning Amid the COVID-19 Crisis

Dear educators: There was life before COVID-19, and there will be life after. We didn't choose to have our schools and colleges closed; our carefully constructed routines halted in their tracks; our field trips, concerts, sporting events, fundraisers and finals all canceled. We didn't expect this and had little warning. We weren't ready for this either. Or were we? At this very moment, there are so many questions swirling through our own heads and the education ecosystem across the globe. What impact will this have on student learning, on families, on the economy-now and in the long-term? How will we support students who rely on school for meals or the stability that their classroom provides? How will our students without access to computers or technology continue to learn? What will this do to our school and campus. Read More


'Absolutely, I'm Worried': For Children with Special Needs, Unprecedented Coronavirus School Closures Bring Confusion, Uncertainty

Since a school district in suburban Seattle closed late last week as the coronavirus pandemic intensified, Jen Cole has worried that her 9-year-old son Gabriel, who has a developmental disability, could regress. During previous summer breaks, the Mukilteo School District provided an extended school year to Gabriel, a second-grader with atypical William's Syndrome who receives special education services that include tailored instruction, occupational therapy and speech language therapy. When campuses shuttered last week, the Mukilteo superintendent told parents that schools could go dark for "weeks to months." Gabriel's education came to an immediate halt. With millions of students out of the classroom and education officials across the country scrambling to develop plans on how to proceed, federal law is silent about what should happen to America's roughly 7 million students in special education when schools are forced to close for an extended time. Read More



How to Handle Clinical Care During Social Distancing and School/Program Closures

In addition to the many recreational activities being cancelled throughout the U.S., many school districts and businesses are also being scaled back to reduce the number of people congregating in one area. This allows for "social distancing," or staying at least 6 feet away from others in public spaces. The health care system is also adapting to social distancing. Many health services- including behavioral health - are moving to telemedicine for everything but emergency or crisis situations. This means that in-home behavioral health visits are also being limited to minimize contact among all of us in the population and save lives by preventing an overwhelming number of cases causing a shortage of resources. This does mean that in-home services will be reduced significantly for virtually all children and adolescents with autism and other disabilities, for an indefinite period of time, perhaps even for several months. Read More


With Schools Closing from Coronavirus, Special Education Concerns Give Districts Pause

Patrick Riccards received an email Tuesday from his New Jersey school district about its plan for special-education services during the coronavirus shutdown. But what should have brought him comfort instead caused dismay. The district wrote that its special-education teachers would modify online lessons and host virtual check-ins with students in the new world of distance learning. But to Riccards, an education advocate, that wasn't enough. He'd already watched his wife struggle for two days to help their 13-year-old son, who has severe dyslexia and is several grade levels behind in reading, access the district's online materials.  The West Windsor-Plainsboro Regional School also announced it was canceling all government-mandated meetings for special-needs students until schools reopen - which might not be until fall. Read More


Families and Teachers Getting Creative to Provide Students with Special Needs Enriching Remote Education

A lot of families are having to figure out how to keep their children's educations going as schools close for the next several weeks, and families who have kids with special needs have additional challenges. The Stevens Point Area Public School District is on spring break this week, but learning is still happening in the Clermont home. They have two children with special needs, Preston, who is 13-years-old and Emma, age 6. Their father says, with support from their teachers and other resources, they are getting creative to keep learning fun. Mike Clermont owns and operates a technical support company in Stevens Point, but he said his number one job title is dad. "Both of my children are very, very curious and interested in computers and technology," he said. Read More


Honor Society for Special Education Teachers

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Closed Schools Raise Tough Questions for Accessibility, Special Education Support

Communities are figuring out how to educate more than 1 million kids suddenly at home, making accessibility questions even more pressing. The governor announced Wednesday all schools across Indiana are closed to help combat the spread of COVID-19. Many schools are using e-learning tools, lesson packets and virtual instruction to keep educating students, but that doesn't always mean kids can use them to learn. Daniel McNulty heads the PATINS Project - a state-funded school resource center focused on special education. He says sudden at home learning is tough for everyone, but especially those who don't have accommodations they usually have at school: like text-to-speech, materials in braille, or - for nonverbal kids - devices to help them communicate. "We're getting questions like 'my child just received a paper packet with no communication with it, it's not in an accessible format,'" he says. Read More


Honor Society for Special Education Teachers

Omega-gamma-chi-logo

 

Learn More


Closed Schools Raise Tough Questions for Accessibility, Special Education Support

Communities are figuring out how to educate more than 1 million kids suddenly at home, making accessibility questions even more pressing. The governor announced Wednesday all schools across Indiana are closed to help combat the spread of COVID-19. Many schools are using e-learning tools, lesson packets and virtual instruction to keep educating students, but that doesn't always mean kids can use them to learn. Daniel McNulty heads the PATINS Project - a state-funded school resource center focused on special education. He says sudden at home learning is tough for everyone, but especially those who don't have accommodations they usually have at school: like text-to-speech, materials in braille, or - for nonverbal kids - devices to help them communicate. "We're getting questions like 'my child just received a paper packet with no communication with it, it's not in an accessible format,'" he says. Read More


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LATEST JOB LISTINGS POSTED ON NASET

* Director of Academic Support - As program director, assist with school admissions and develop plans based on IEP/Psychological evaluation for students with mild learning disabilities, and or students with ADD/ADHD. Limited academic evaluations. Must consult regularly with teachers, students, parents, and administrators regarding the development of interventions for students demonstrating learning and/or behavioral challenges. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - The Moffat County School District is looking for a motivated, caring, and enthusiastic persons to fill Special Education Teacher positions on the Elementary and Secondary level for the 2020-2021 School Year. Along with parents and classroom teachers the Special Education teacher will assess students' skills to determine their needs to develop and implement Individualized Education Programs for each student based on their specific needs and abilities.To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - Ascend is a network of K-12 public charter schools serving 5,500 students in 15 schools across Brooklyn-New York's most populous borough. Our undertaking is to lead all students on a great intellectual adventure, provide them with an exceptional college preparatory education, and place them firmly on the path to success in college and beyond. To learn more - Click here

* 2020-2021 Classroom Teachers (PreK-12th) - Founded in 2013, InspireNOLA Charter Schools is currently the highest performing charter school management organization in New Orleans. InspireNOLA operates seven public charter schools and serves more than 5,000 students in Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade. To leern more - Click here

* Teacher (10-month) SY 2020-21 - As part of a comprehensive reform e?ort to become the preeminent urban school system in America, DCPS intends to have the highest-performing, best paid, most satis?ed, and most honored educator force in the nation and a distinctive central o?ce sta? whose work supports and drives instructional excellence and signi?cant achievement gains for DCPS students. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - Stars is seeking Special Education Teachers in Arizona (Phoenix and surrounding cities).  With a proven track record, STARS is able to offer you an unbeatable support system and resources. We are hiring for the 2020-2021 school year. STARS places Special Education Teachers throughout the Phoenix, Tucson and the surrounding area public schools. to learn more - Click here

* 2020 Arizona Education Job Fairs -  The Arizona Department of Education will be hosting the 2020 Arizona Education Job Fairs. Arizona public schools will be looking for administrators, teachers, related service providers, and support staff. To learn more - Click here

If you are an Employer looking for excellent special education staff - Click here for more information


Food For Thought..........

Treat people as if they were what they ought to be, and you help them become what they are capable of being.

                                          Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


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