A Parent’s Guide to Special Education.  Written by the Federation for Children with Special Needs in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Education, the Guide is meant to serve as a resource for parents, and the organizations that serve them. The Guide contains the most current and accurate information available regarding the special education system in Massachusetts.  It is the hope of the Federation that this publication will assist families in obtaining the supports and services that their children with disabilities need to succeed in school.

A Parent’s Guide to Special Education is available in several different formats and three languages: English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

English*
HTML: Read and refer to the manual online.

Text-Only: Printer Friendly Version.

PDF: Download the published version of the Guide in PDF file format.
(PDF files require Adobe Acrobat which can be downloaded at no cost by clicking here.)

MSWORD: Download the Guide in MSWORD document format.

*PLEASE NOTE:  The initial printing of the English Guide contained an error on Page 6. The correct information is, "Within 30 days of parental consent credentialed trained specialists evaluate the child." The PDF file posted as of 9AM, December 12, 2001 and editions printed after this date have corrected the error.

Spanish
PDF: Download the published version of the Guide in PDF file format.
(PDF files require Adobe Acrobat which can be downloaded at no cost by clicking here.)

Portuguese
PDF: Download the published version of the Guide in PDF file format.
(PDF files require Adobe Acrobat which can be downloaded at no cost by clicking here.)