An important concept for teaching student with learning disabilities is the environmental setting in which they are placed. The Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA-2004) requires that students with disabilities should be taught in the “least restrictive environment” as possible and preferable in the general education setting with the general education curriculum. This requires support and collaboration of all parties. Most schools in the Dallas Diocese have admissions standards that often limit and deny admissions of students with learning disabilities. If a student is admitted the disability is usually mild. The Catholic schools that do not have long waiting lists for admissions receive more of the struggling student population but do not always have the resources to handle them. The school that I teach at has a long history in the belief that all students are entitled to a Catholic Education. Bishop Dunne (BD) has had a Special Education teacher on staff for over thirteen years, a rare find in most Catholic schools in this diocese. While the diocese holds the belief of teaching the whole body of Christ, there are no diocesan standards in place for teaching students with learning disabilities but decisions are made at the school level.
Placing students with learning disabilities in the general education setting is referred to “inclusion”. The goal of inclusion is that student with disabilities are integrated in regular classes without labels and is as normal as situation as possible. Inclusion must include a strong support system with resources and professional development, consideration of the students and family needs, and a commitment to the success of inclusion. Students at BD with disabilities are taught in inclusion with the same high standards of a college-prep program.
Support and resources for teachers in the general educational setting for inclusion include participation in the IEP to understand a student’s strengths and weaknesses, smaller class sizes, and time for planning with a special education teacher. Additional help may be provided by paraprofessional or classroom volunteers. Resources should include related professional such as speech therapists, psychologist, and occupational therapist. General education teacher should also be given time to attend training on special education issues. In the state of Texas IEPs are not written for students in the private schools. Parents are entitled to evaluations and some resources through the local school district such as assistive technology then plans are written. Catholic schools with student with disabilities write their own service plans. BD’s plans are call “Instructional Accommodations” and they are based on parent input, teacher input and diagnostic testing. Students must be diagnosed with a learning disability. General education teachers are in-serviced on special education strategies and interventions yearly.
Collaboration is an important component in inclusion: Collaboration with the special education teachers and the resource teacher that a student may attend part of the day; Collaboration between teachers who share in the teaching time of a student by teaching different subjects or in coteaching; and collaboration with parents. Collaboration should consider mutual goals, voluntary and equal participation, shared responsibility and decision making, and responsibility for outcomes. Collaboration is the key to inclusion in a college-prep curriculum. Besides collaborating between the teachers, parents, support staff and student we often refer to outside resources.
At times full inclusion may not be the best setting for a student and a different setting may be needed. This concept is referred to as “continuum of alternative placements”. Placement besides the general educational classroom may include resource rooms, separate classes, separate schools, residential facilities, and homebound or hospital settings. It is important when choosing the best setting to remember that the setting in not the treatment but what occurs within the setting with emphasis on the kinds of instruction and opportunities that are available. While most diocesan schools do not have separate classes, students may benefit from resource room and labs.
The U.S. Department of Education (2008) show that 87% of students with learning disabilities are serviced in general education classes. Alternative settings for students with disabilities should be selected on the least restrictive setting as possible. Resource rooms provide educational services on a regular scheduled portion of a day based on need, but not more than 60% of the day. Resource rooms provide flexibility in curriculum, number of students in the room or program and time of involvement. Separate classes are classrooms outside of the general education class room where a student spend 60% or more of their day. They are small, individualized and closely supervised. Students maybe place in separate classroom by their various disability, or clustered. These are student with more serious or severe disabilities.
Special schools are educational facilities for student with disabilities. Most are private schools that are expensive, require traveling and lack opportunities with the general education population. Advantages are resources and program for students with disabilities that may not be found elsewhere. Residential facilities provide fulltime placement and programs for severe disabilities. The disadvantage is that students are not only removed from the general educational setting but also the family and community setting. Homebound and hospital setting are used for student with medical conditions that need services schools can not provide. One-on-one instruction is not an identified setting but a type of instructional setting that can be very successful. One-on-one instruction shows academic improvement by meeting individual needs, and intense instruction over time.
The diocese does have a separate school for students with mental limitations. BD has designed special classes for cluster of students with specific needs, but those changes yearly as the needs change. These classes are very small in size and are not known to the general population. All teachers must tutor but based on need we may have one-on-one tutoring when needed. This year we have a writing lab several days a week that students meet with the writing teacher one-on one to reinforce skills and work on assignments. BD has a fulltime resource lab that is run by a special education teacher. At BD when we have students on homebound or hospitalization they continue classes through our online curriculum and all students have access to our online academic assistance.
Options for students with disabilities may include high school diploma options. Laura Kaloi, Director of the National Center for Learning Disabilities Policy and Dr. Martha Thurlow, Director of the National Center on Educational Outcomes (December 7, 2010) spoke on options for student with learning disabilities. The graduation rate for students in the U.S.
Beyond the educational setting the family system is important. Teacher must understand the family structure and cultural and linguistic diversity they bring to the situation. IDEA-2004 strengthened parental rights in the educational process. Parents have the right to request placement in the least restrictive environment, request an evaluation and reevaluation and in the language the child knows best, notification in change in child placement, participation in the IEP process and informed consent, and to be informed of their child’s progress as often as other children. Parents and students are involved in the planning process at BD. The meeting may be conducted in Spanish if needed. BD does not have a diagnostician but must seek local or private testing and parents do not have a right to request placement.
A child’s educational setting should be in the least restrictive environment while still meeting their needs. Many families choose Catholic schools for the high standards and the inclusionary setting of all their students. While the child with learning disabilities is in the general educational setting they and the teacher will need lots of support and resources, including resource room and labs, and specialized classes or on-line curriculum if needed. Collaboration is a must between teachers, support staff and families of student with disabilities to be successful in the educational setting. BD and some Catholic schools provide many of the resources, services, and settings that are required in the public schools, but there are no requirements or standards set by the diocese, but are individual school decisions.
Resources
Learner, J.W. & Johns, B.H., (2009). Educational settings and the role of the family. In Learning disabilities and related mild disabilities. (12th ed., pp 109-133). Belmont
Kaloi, L. & Thurlow, M., (2010). High school diploma options and students with learning disabilities. On National center for learning disabilities [recorded]. Retrieved from http://www.leadcolorado.org.
Leslie, you include LOTS of very important information in this entry! You have demonstrated a good understanding of the processes and guidelines that work to serve students with disabilities. It sounds to me that you are working in a setting that is very committed to providing a Catholic education to all families that want that for their children. How cool is that?!? So often you hear stories of schools whose starting point is... sorry we can't take your student with disabilities because we don't have the resources. It seems to me that the starting point at your school is... Let's see if we can make this work with the resources we do have! Once that becomes the norm, it becomes possible to do lots for students, even with limited funding. You hit upon one of the big essentials for making inclusion work -- collaboration! LOTS can be done with few resources when folks are willing to work together and share the load. It's also true that lots can be done when the entire staff is on board and BELIEVE that all kids deserve a Catholic education. Then the energy focuses on solutions, rather than the problems of serving students with disabilities.
ReplyDeleteThe reality is that private schools don't have enough resources either. They get just a sliver of what they need to serve all students with special needs. Most public schools are doing just what your are... figuring out how to make it work with limited resources. Only you are right... public schools do it because it's the law. You are doing it because it's what God calls us to do!