Week in Review - July 27, 2018

 

NASET

WEEK IN REVIEW

National Association of Special Education Teachers

July 27, 2018                     Vol 14 Issue #29

Continuing_Ed
Dear NASET News,

Welcome to NASET'sWEEK 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 News Team
NEW THIS WEEK ON NASET
NASET's Q & A Corner
Auxiliary Aids and Services for Postsecondary Students with Disabilities
A postsecondary student with a disability who is in need of auxiliary aids is obligated to provide notice of the nature of the disabling condition to the college and to assist it in identifying appropriate and effective auxiliary aids. In elementary and secondary schools, teachers and school specialists may have arranged support services for students with disabilities. However, in postsecondary schools, the students themselves must identify the need for an auxiliary aid and give adequate notice of the need. The student's notification should be provided to the appropriate representative of the college who, depending upon the nature and scope of the request, could be the school's Section 504 or ADA coordinator, an appropriate dean, a faculty advisor, or a professor. Unlike elementary or secondary schools, colleges may ask the student, in response to a request for auxiliary aids, to provide supporting diagnostic test results and professional prescriptions for auxiliary aids. A college also may obtain its own professional determination of whether specific requested auxiliary aids are necessary. This issue of 
NASET's Q & A Corner
comes from the United States Office of Civil Rights and addresses questions and answers regarding auxiliary aids and services for postsecondary students with disabilities. Read More
Professional Development Courses - Free for Members!
Dispute Resolutions: Resolution Meetings, Mediation and Due Process Hearings - Video Lecture Course
What happens if parents disagree with a school district over their child's identification, evaluation and/or placement? What happens if the two parties cannot agree on what is "appropriate" for the child? When this occurs, parents can initiate a due process hearing. There, an impartial, trained hearing officer hears the evidence and issues a hearing decision. During a due process hearing, each party has the opportunity to present their views in a formal legal setting, using witnesses, testimony, documents, and legal arguments that each believes is important for the hearing officer to consider in order to decide the issues in the hearing. But there are many steps involved before a matter ever goes to due process. This NASET Professional Development course will focus on dispute resolutions in special education. After taking this course, you should understand the following:
  • Overview of Dispute Resolutions
  • Resolution Process
  • Resolution Meetings
  • Mediation
  • Steps Involved in Mediation
  • Confidentiality and Mediation
  • Due Process Hearings
  • "Impartial" and its Meaning
  • Parent Rights in Due Process Hearings
  • Decisions Made by Hearing Officers
  • Appeals
This is a course that contains two video lectures, an accompanying PowerPoint Presentation file and PDF of the PowerPoint slides for your notes.

To access this course click this link:
Dispute Resolutions: Resolution Meetings, Mediation and Due Process Hearings

Apple Invents Clothing Technology to Assist Individuals with Visual Impairments
According to the latest statistics gathered by the World Health Organization (WHO) and published in 2017, an estimated 253 million individuals live with some degree of visual impairment - an estimated 36 million of whom are blind, and 217 million who're living with moderate to severe visual impairment. Apple has maintained a firm position of support for these individuals and others who endure some extent of visual or sensory impairment. The company's macOS and iOS software, for example, is loaded with advanced Accessibility features meant to enhance and optimize its software for use by the sensory deficient. In a patent application filed early in July with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Apple describes a revolutionary new invention designed to even further improve the lives of those struggling with visual impairment - some of whom either currently use, or would otherwise be assisted by the use of, physical aids to facilitate their autonomous navigation. Titled "Guidance Device for the Sensory Impaired," Apple's invention describes multiple embodiments of a wearable 'Smart Clothing' (i.e., a shirt or jacket) that's technologically equipped with advanced components and sensors acting as a visual aid. Read More

Parents Who Had Severe Trauma, Stresses in Childhood More Likely to Have Kids with Behavioral Health Problems
A new study finds that severe childhood trauma and stresses early in parents' lives are linked to higher rates of behavioral health problems in their own children. The types of childhood hardships included divorce or separation of parents, death of or estrangement from a parent, emotional, physical or sexual abuse, witnessing violence in the home, exposure to substance abuse in the household or parental mental illness. "Previous research has looked at childhood trauma as a risk factor for later physical and mental health problems in adulthood, but this is the first research to show that the long-term behavioral health harms of childhood adversity extend across generations from parent to child," said the study's lead author, Dr. Adam Schickedanz. He is a pediatrician and health services researcher and assistant professor in the department of pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Read More
How this Chicago Special Education Teacher is Combating "Compassion Fatigue" and Restoring the Fun
Lisa Caputo Love began her Chicago Public Schools career as a classroom teacher in 2005. But two years in, she realized that her most challenging assignment was reaching the learners who struggled the most. So she went back to school, earning a master's degree in special education from Loyola University Chicago. And this past February, she was named the Chicago Foundation for Education's 2018 Teacher of the Year. Today she's a learning behavior specialist at Hawthorne Scholastic Academy, a magnet school on the city's North Side. In the Q and A that follows, she describes the moment she decided to become a teacher; the tightrope act that is supporting, yet challenging, students with special needs; and how she's combatting "compassion fatigue" with more self-care and fun. Read More
From Translating Hearing Aids to Sign-Language Gloves, Amazing Assistive Technology
Think that assistive technology for the deaf and hard of hearing community is all about your run-of-the-mill hearing aids here in 2018? Think again! From signing robot arms to mind-reading hearing aids, the next few years are going to be pretty darn amazing for accessibility technology if this list is anything to go by. Here are some of the most impressive tech projects we've come across in this area. Signing is all well and great, but like any language it's not much good if one side of the conversation doesn't speak it. That's where a multi-year robotics project from researchers at Belgium's University of Antwerp comes into play. That have developed a 3D-printed robotic hand capable of translating spoken and written words into sign language gestures. The device recognizes these words using a webcam, and then communicates them to the user through "fingerspelling," a mode of sign language which spells out words letter-by-letter with single hand gestures. Read More
Board Certification in Special Education Available to NASET Members
AASEP Logo
Through 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.Read More

TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE WEEK
QUESTION:
According to a study published in the July 3, 2018, online issue of Neurology® (the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology), people who have been exposed to paint, varnish and other solvents and who also carry genes that make them more susceptible to developing a certain disease may be at much greater risk of developing the disease than people who have only the exposure to solvents or the disease's genes. The research suggested that people with exposure to solvents who also carry the genes that make them more susceptible to this disease are nearly seven times as likely to develop the disease as people with no solvent exposure who do not carry the genes. What is the disease?
If you know the answer, email us at contactus@naset.org by July 30, 2018.  We will acknowledge your correct answer in the next edition of the Week in Review
Longer Hours on Social Media May Increase Teens' Risk of Cyberbullying
Cyberbullying may be linked to higher use of social network sites by school children aged 14-17 years, rather than to simply having a social network profile, according to a study published in the open access journal BMC Public Health, which examined data from several European countries. Researchers at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece found that school children in Romania, Germany and Poland were more likely to experience cyberbullying, such as aggressive and threatening messages, social exclusion, spreading rumors and sharing private, inappropriate or humiliating information, if they used social network sites for more than 2 hours a week day. Co-author Professor Artemis Tsitsika said: "This is an important finding which challenges past research suggesting that simply having, rather than excessive use of, a social network site profile increases the risk of becoming a victim of cyberbullying." Read More
New Pediatric Asthma Yardstick Has Treatment Guidance for Children of Every Age
Although about 10 percent of school-aged children in the United States have asthma, there are few comprehensive U.S. guidelines for treating pediatric asthma. The Pediatric Asthma Yardstick, a new guideline from the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI), offers a user-friendly "operational document." It helps health care professionals understand which controller treatments are right for which age groups and identifies when a step up is needed. "There is nothing like the Pediatric Asthma Yardstick in the current literature," says allergist Bradley Chipps, MD, ACAAI president and lead author of the paper. "We created the yardstick because there are many options for treating pediatric asthma. It's a roadmap for how to move forward with kids whose asthma is not under control. The yardstick describes controller treatments at different levels of severity for all ages, the choices available for parents for their child and how to step up therapy." Read More
Can Fasting Improve MS Symptoms?
People with multiple sclerosis (MS) can find an abundance of conflicting advice suggesting that special diets -- everything from avoiding processed foods to going low-carb -- will ease their symptoms. But the evidence is scanty that dietary changes can improve fatigue or other MS symptoms. "People hear these miraculous stories about patients recovering the ability to walk after they started on this diet or that, and everyone wants to believe it," said Laura Piccio, MD, an associate professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. "All we have right now are anecdotes. The fact is that diet may indeed help with MS symptoms, but the studies haven't been done." Read More
Students with Disabilities Need More Social Learning, Ohio State Study Finds
Federal law requires students with disabilities to spend as much time as possible in general education classrooms, but a study from Ohio State University has found that's not happening in Ohio, or the rest of the country. The 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires students with disabilities be placed in general education classrooms with their nondisabled peers "to the maximum extent appropriate" to encourage social learning. But Matt Brock with Ohio State University says across the country, that's not the case. In a recent study, Brock found that the number of students with disabilities who were placed in gen ed classrooms increased in the 1990s and early 2000s, but have since stagnated. "The other things I was surprised to see is that in any year for the past 40 years, the overwhelming majority of kiddos with intellectual disabilities have spent most or all of their time in segregated settings," said Brock. Read More
A Glimpse Inside Autism Day at Six Flags
Most public spaces aren't designed with people with autism in mind. Unfortunately, there are few places that this is more evident than amusement parks, cinemas, and theaters - places intended for entertainment and quality time with family. Picture the entrance to Disney World, or Universal Studios: Bright, colorful, blinking lights surround the entrance sign. Dramatic orchestral music radiates from speakers in every possible direction: building walls, the sky, the ground. Thousands of people swat at one another with sweaty arms for a place in line. It's overwhelming for most people. Now imagine also dealing with sensory sensitivity - one of the most common symptoms of autism. Noise is louder. Lights are brighter. Touch is more potent. Sensory sensitivity can make a somewhat hectic environment into something physically painful and emotionally overpowering. Children with autism often have trouble putting this feeling into words, meaning that they may shout or cry. Read More
States Slow to Revamp Accountability Systems under ESSA
Even though the 2015 Every Student Succeeds Act was supposed to address inadequacies of educational accountability related to federally-mandated standardized testing, a recent research project has found that, overall, states are still using the same large-scale student assessments that were in place before ESSA. For example, 44 states and the District of Columbia still give schools an overall score as a summative, accountability-based evaluation. States are also still using teacher evaluation systems that are "the same or slightly different versions" of the systems they had in place before ESSA. However, researchers found, the greater emphasis on local control brought by ESSA has "led to some signs of change" they find encouraging. Read More
Inclusion in Daily Life Can Be the Legacy of the Special Olympics
Seattle is filled with trailblazers, noisemakers and policy changers. We are seen as leaders in diversity and inclusion, innovators and advocates for the less fortunate. Yes, we are applauded for our work on behalf of the environment, celebrated for our protection of human rights, and commended for our vision of uninhibited access to education. Yet despite these collective altruistic pursuits, there is an entire community where we are stuck somewhere between speech and action, forcing thousands to live on the sidelines. With the legacy of the Special Olympics USA Games fresh in mind, we are reminded of the importance of celebrating inclusion, acceptance and participation. We have an opportunity to use the momentum of last week's Summer Games as a springboard for renewed commitment to the tens of thousands of individuals with intellectual, developmental and behavioral disabilities in our community. Read More
Doctor and Researchers use Japanese Strategy Game Go to Help Children with Developmental Disabilities
In a new approach to helping children with developmental disabilities, one doctor and go enthusiast has been using the strategy game in rehabilitation activities for the children. Doctor Toru Masaoka, 85, is head of Kansai Kiin, an association of professional go players in Osaka, and has been piloting "go therapy" with the children. Recently he began collecting medical data on the approach. "I hope we can cooperate internationally to better understand the effects of go," Masaoka said. The leukemia specialist, who served as the chief of the Japan Marrow Donor Program and adviser to the Osaka International Cancer Institute, assumed the top post with Kansai Kiin in June last year. Read More
Continuing_Ed
Fertility Problems, Reproductive Technology Tied to Slightly More Birth Defects
Women who struggle to get pregnant or use reproductive technologies like in vitro fertilization (IVF) may be more likely to have preemies and kids with birth defects than their peers who conceive without difficulty, a U.S. study suggests. Infertility has long been linked to an increased risk of premature deliveries, and the current study offered fresh evidence of this. Compared to women without any fertility issues, women who struggled to conceive were 39 percent more likely to have premature babies, while the increased risk associated with using reproductive technologies was 79 percent. The study also found women who were "subfertile," or struggled to conceive, were 21 percent more likely to have babies with birth defects than women who got pregnant without difficulty. In addition, when researchers accounted for how early in pregnancy babies arrived, they found infants born to mothers with fertility issues or women who used ART were more likely to have congenital abnormalities, cardiovascular conditions, infectious diseases and respiratory problems. Read More
Gene Editing Via Nanoparticles May Treat Autism Syndromes
Scientists have for the first time successfully delivered the gene-editing tool CRISPR into mouse brains and altered their behavior. In the method, a nanoparticle ferries the enzyme used in CRISPR into the brains of a mouse model of fragile X syndrome. The enzyme dampens a signaling pathway related to the syndrome, and lessens the mice's exaggerated repetitive behaviors. The results offer hope that the approach might treat fragile X syndrome as well as other conditions related to autism. Gene delivery to cells generally involves viruses. But viruses continuously express their payload, and CRISPR can cut the genome indiscriminately. So delivering CRISPR with a virus is likely to be toxic to animals and people, says lead researcher Hye Young Lee, assistant professor of cellular and integrative physiology at the University of Texas in San Antonio. Read More
How Google Glass can Improve Children's Social Skills by Reading Facial Expressions
Google Glass - the once globally hyped smart glasses - seemed to have slipped off the radar after sales were suspended in 2015, just three years after they were launched. Now it is being hailed as a life-changing device for people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). People with autism have trouble with social skills, and verbal and non-verbal communication. Researchers at Stanford University have harnessed Google Glass to develop a form of self-guided therapy that families can use to coach an autistic child to read emotions in faces, ultimately improving their ability to interact with others. Catalin Voss is the founder of the Autism Glass Project. The Stanford School of Medicine graduate student spoke at the EmTech Hong Kong 2018 conference in Hong Kong this month about his team's augmented reality therapy that taps the Google Glass technology. "The goal is to give a learning aid to kids and families," explains the entrepreneur, who had previously sold his start-up Sension, a face- and eye-tracking-based innovation that discerns facial expressions, to a Toyota-owned company. Read More
Honor Society for Special Education Teachers
Omega-gamma-chi-logo

Emotional Intelligence: Why Should We Teach It
Strong feelings - especially those related to stress - can interfere with clear thinking. Most adults know this from personal experience. Our students who are able to manage difficult emotions - who have sufficient emotional intelligence - will be better able to attend to the learning task at hand even in challenging personal circumstances. Emotional intelligence (EQ) can be concisely defined as: The ability to manage one's feelings and interact positively with other people. This is the core of EQ. Yet emotional intelligence goes far beyond this snapshot. EQ involves both the emotional skills and the social skills necessary for happiness and success in school and life, and students who are not prepared with these skills will be at a serious disadvantage in their educational and career trajectories. Read More
free IEP
Texas Education Agency Starts Contracting Process for Special Education Overhaul
The Texas Education Agency is starting the search for organizations to help school districts overhaul special education following a federal finding that the state had effectively denied students with disabilities access to needed services. Agency officials put out a call for applications for more than $20 million in grants, with applicants limited to Texas universities and the 20 state education centers set up to assist school districts. The TEA had included many of the action items in a strategic plan it submitted to the federal government in April detailing how it would ensure students with special needs were being educated. After a long investigation, the federal government concluded earlier this year that the state was effectively incentivizing school districts to keep their special education numbers low, causing Texas to provide special education services to a small percentage of students compared to other states. Each of the year-long grants, across 12 major categories, will be funded through discretionary federal funds provided to states for special education, implemented either in the 2018-19 or 2019-20 academic years. Read More
jobs
LATEST JOB LISTINGS POSTED ON NASET

* Director of Diverse Learners/Special Education - Responsibilities include; Supervise, direct, coach SPED teachers, Supervise, direct, coach paraprofessionals, Create/oversee all SpEd team structures Support teachers in progress monitoring for IEPs and Attend all Chicago Public Schools SpEd policy meetings and communicate outcomes/updates to team. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - will provide support to the instructional process by serving as a teacher with specific responsibility for developing diverse learners success in academics, interpersonal skills and other activities. The special education teacher will collaborate closely with all other teachers at Moving Everest Charter School to ensure the success of diverse learners. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - EdTheory is currently looking for Special Educational Teachers (SPED) for multiple full-time positions in the Hollister,Santa Rosa and San Jose area in California. Candidates with certification and experience working with children preferably in school based settings are welcome to apply!. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School seeks a motivated, passionate, and experienced Special Education Teacher to provide case management and direct services to children identified for special education and related services. The Special Education Teacher ensures that all children and families with special needs receive optimal developmentally appropriate educational experiences. The Special Education Teacher will implement students' Individual Education Plans (IEPs) in inclusion, push in and/or pullout settings.To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Coordinator - AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School seeks a motivated, passionate, and experienced Special Education Coordinator to provide case management for students identified for special education and related services. The Special Education Coordinator ensures that all children and families with special needs receive optimal developmentally appropriate educational experiences. To learn more - Click here

* Certified Special Education Teachers: K-12 (TEXAS) - Uplift Education has Special Education Teacher positions open at primary, middle, and high school levels at our schools in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area. Uplift Education is the largest public charter school network in North Texas. Our schools have received national recognition and 100% of our graduates have been accepted to college.To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - Rivermont Schools are now hiring special education teachers at multiple locations throughout Virginia. Sign on bonus of $2,000 and relocation assistance of $5,000 are available for those who qualify. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Manager - The Special Education Manager supports teachers, administrators, and staff in ensuring that AppleTree Early Learning Public Charter School and AppleTree@ programs (collectively "AppleTree") provides optimal support to all children. The Special Education Manager develops knowledge of all stakeholders of the inclusion setting in order to best support students with disabilities. The Special Education Manager ensures high quality specialized instruction and optimal compliance within special education law. This is a supervisory position. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - Primary Level - The duties of this job include providing specialized instruction to meet the unique needs of students with disabilities. The teacher will evaluate and assess student progress. The teacher will be responsible for classroom instructional activities and implementation of IEP's, including behavior plans. To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teacher - DCD Center Based at Roosevelt Elementary School - Provides research-based specialized instruction to address the instructional goals and objectives contained within each student's IEP. Assesses student progress and determines the need for additional reinforcement or adjustments to instructional techniques. Employs various teaching techniques, methods and principles of learning to enable students to meet their IEP goals. To learn more - Click here

* Head of School - The Parish School www.parishschool.org is a private, non-profit, coeducational school, for children ages 2-12, with a maximum enrollment of 150. The person chosen to assume the Head of School will be offered an extraordinary opportunity.  This national search will identify a candidate who will inherit a qualified and tenured faculty, devoted families, and excellent institutional reputation.  To learn more - Click here

* Special Education Teachers-All Areas - Stafford County Public Schools is actively seeking certified Special Education-All Areas Teachers for the upcoming 2018-2019 school year. We also offer Travel Reimbursement for out of state applicants available ONLY with a signed contract. To learn more - Click here

If you are an Employer looking for excellent special education staff - Click here for more information
Food For Thought..........
We must believe that we are gifted for something, and that this thing, at whatever cost, must be attained.
Marie Curie



Return to Week in Review Main Page - Click here

forgot username or password?

Publications

Publications

forgot username or password?