Introduction

"All students" means every single student." 

The Restructuring and Inclusion Project conducted by the Institute on Disability at the University of New Hampshire

It may seem at first that general education reform has little to do with students with disabilities. After all, parents and their organizations have pushed for and won tremendous advances in education for children with disabilities over the past 25 years. Most parents of children with disabilities have come to rely on state and federal special education laws for guarantees that their children with disabilities will receive an appropriate education. For years, these laws have detailed the steps that must be taken to develop a child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP), including rules for parent participation. These laws require that, to the maximum extent appropriate, each child with a disability be educated in regular classes along with his or her nondisabled peers with supplementary aids and services as appropriate. 

Yet, with national attention focused on reforming education for all students, it is critical now that parents and teachers become familiar with these issues as they relate to students with disabilities.

Unfortunately, for too many children, school is characterized by low-expectations, watered-down curriculum, and unfulfilled potential. At one time, the mantra "all means all" was taken at face value. Today, when we hear all means all, we can’t help but wonder who is left out. Yet, the promise of education reform will only be fulfilled when schools really do work for all students. Our intention in developing Every Single Student was to help fulfill that promise: to help bridge the gap between what is possible for some and what is possible for all. Thinking in terms of "every, single student," means you won’t ever have to ask if "all means all." Therefore, the PEER Project at the Federation for Children with Special Needs is pleased and excited to share with you Every Single Student: A PEER Resource Manual on Standards-Based Education and Students with Disabilities. It covers a broad range of topics relevant to the education of students with disabilities in today’s schools.

Standards

"Raising Standards of Learning: Standards-Based Education and Students with Disabilities" introduces some of the key ideas behind standards-based education reform efforts. It describes the role of standards in improving education and how participation in state standards and the general education curriculum can increase educational opportunities for children with disabilities.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Raising Standards of Learning	.html		.pdf
Elevando las Normas del Aprendizaje	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Standards	.html		.pdf
Normas	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
Developing Education Standards, http://PutnamValleySchools.org/  This site has links to education standards and departments of education throughout the country

Educating One & All:  Students with Disabilities and Standards-Based Reform http://www.nap.edu/readingroom/books/edu/  Find the Executive Summary of the report by the Committee on Goals 2000 and the Inclusion of Students with Disabilities

Parents ask about standards http://www.rmcres.com/famed/askabout/english/standard.html  This site explains standards in the context of Title I.

Los padres preguntan acerca de estandareshttp://www.rmcres.com/famed/askabout/index_s.html  Este sitio contiene información sobre estandares (normas de aprendizaje) en el contexto de Título I.
 
 

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Curriculum & Instruction

"Curriculum and Instruction: Key Strategies to Promote Equity and Excellence" answers the "essential questions, "How must curriculum and instruction be designed so that all students belong and achieve to the same high standards?" and "What role can parents play in promoting curriculum and instruction that supports equity and excellence for not only their child, but for their school district?"
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Key Strategies to Promote Equity and Excellence	.html		.pdf
Currículo e Instrucción	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Curriculum & Instruction	.html		.pdf
Currículo e Instrucción	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
National Center on Access to the General Curriculum, CAST http://www.cast.org/initiatives/national_center.html

Family Village School  http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/school.htm

Family Village School Instructional Resources http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/education/inclusioninstruct.html

Secretary Riley's Testimony on IDEA -- June 20, 1995 http://www.ed.gov/Speeches/06-1995/idea-2.html
 

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Accommodations

In an effort to assist educators, parents, and policymakers as they move toward full participation of students with disabilities in state and districtwide assessment programs, the PEER Project compiled "Accommodations: Examples from State Assessment Policies." The list was drawn primarily from a review of state policy documents developed by the 47 states currently administering state assessment programs.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Examples from State Assessment Policies	.html		.pdf
Acomodaciones: Ejemplos de Políticas Estatales de Evaluación	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Accommodations	.html		.pdf
Acomodaciones	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
National Center on Educational Outcomes, Reports on Accommodations http://www.coled.umn.edu/nceo/Accommodations/accomdefault.html

Test Accommodations for Deaf Students  http://www.gallaudet.edu/~catraxle/accomgu.html

Teaching students who have disABILITIES:  Resource and Guidebook, http://www.cosc.brocku.ca/faculty/radue/disabilities/
 

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Assessment

In "Assessment: A Key Component of Education Reform," issues of results-based accountability, participation in assessments, and accommodations are discussed. The Information Brief includes an action plan for assessment to help parents proactively address the issues of accountability for the learning of all students.

"Statewide Assessment: Policy Issues, Questions, and Strategies" discusses the policy implications of participation of students with disabilities in assessment, the stakes of assessment, what types of accommodations are available, and how test results will be used. It also includes a checklist, "Making an Impact: Strategies for improving your state’s assessment policy." 
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Assessment: A Key Component of Education Reform	.html		.pdf
La Evaluación: Un Componente Clave de la Reforma Educacional	.html		.pdf
PEER Policy Paper: Statewide Assessment: Policy Issues, Questions, and Strategies	.html		.pdf
Evaluación a través de todo el Estado	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Assessment	.html		.pdf
Evaluación	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
National Center on Educational Outcomes  http://www.coled.umn.edu/NCEO

CRESST:  Center for Research on Evaluation, Standards, and Students Testing http://www.cse.ucla.edu

ERIC Clearinghouse on Assessment and Evaluation  http://ericae.net
 

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Legal Basis for Including Students with Disabilities in Education Reform

"Education Reform and Students with Disabilities: The Legal Basis" provides an overview of the federal laws which mandate the inclusion of students with disabilities in education reform initiatives. Key provisions in IDEA, Goals 2000, Section 504, the ADA, and Title I are highlighted.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Assessment: Participation of Students with Disabilities in Education Reform: The Legal Basics	.html		.pdf
La Participación de Alumnos con Discapacidad en la Reforma Educacional La Base Legal	.html		.pdf

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Opportunity to Learn

"Opportunity to Learn and Education Reform: Ensuring Access to Effective Education for All Students" discusses "opportunity-to-learn requirements," another key component of standards-based education reform. Standards and assessment can bring about meaningful educational change only if combined with requirements that ensure ALL students’ access to learning and to the kind of learning opportunities they need to reach the standards being measured.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Opportunity to Learn: Ensuring Access to Effective Education for All Students	.html		.pdf
La Oportunidad para Aprender y la Reforma Educacional	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Opportunity to Learn	.html		.pdf
Oportunidad para Aprender	.html		.pdf

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Section 504, the ADA, and Education Reform

"Section 504, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Education Reform" examines how Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) should work to ensure that students with disabilities enjoy the benefits of these reforms, and the quality education for which they aim.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Section 504, the ADA, and Education Reform: Key Concepts	.html		.pdf
Sección 504, el Acta para Americanos con Discapacidad, y la Reforma Educacional	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Section 504, the ADA, and Education Reform	.html		.pdf
Sección 504, el Acta para Americanos con Discapacidad, y la Reforma Educacional	.html		.pdf

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IDEA

"IDEA 1997: Improving the Education of Students with Disabilities in an Era of Education Reform" highlights the specific features of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997 (IDEA) that relate to education reform. The new amendments add clear and powerful new requirements that parents, educators, and advocates can use to make sure that students with disabilities benefit from school reform efforts.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Improving the Education of Students with Disabilities in an Era of Education Reform	.html		.pdf
Mejorando la Educación de los Alumnos Con Discapacidad en una Era de Reforma Educacional	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
IDEA 1997	.html		.pdf
IDEA 1997	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
IDEA’97, http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/IDEA, from the U.S. Department of Education

IDEA Practices, http://www.ideapractices.org, answers your questions about the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, keeps you informed about IDEAs That Work, and supports your efforts to help ALL children learn, progress, and realize their dreams.

IDEA resources on promising practices, http://www.fape.org, from Family and Advocates Partnership for Education

IDEA ’97, http://www.nichcy.org/ideanws.htm, from National Information Center on Children and Youth with Disabilities (NICHCY)

Family Village School, IDEA and other education related laws  http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/education/idea.html

IDEA, http://www.504idea.org/resources.html, from the Council of Educators for Students with Disabilities, Inc.
 
 

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Title I

"Title I: Tools for Ensuring Quality Educational Opportunities" presents an overview of programs under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as ameded, assessment, accountability and improvement, and parent involvement at the state, district, and school levels.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Title I: Tools for Ensuring Quality Educational Opportunities	.html		.pdf
Título I: Herramientas para Asegurar Oportunidades Educacionales de Calidad	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Title I	.html		.pdf
Título I	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
Parents Ask About Title I, http://www.rmcres.com/famed/askabout/english/title1.html

Los Padres Preguntan Acerca de Título I, http://www.rmcres.com/famed/askabout/spanish/titulo1.html

Title I -- How Can I Make Sure My Child is Learning? http://www.neighborhoodlaw.org/Title%201%20program.htm, prepared by the Center for Law and Education

National Sources of Help About Title I, http://www.rmcres.com/famed/askabout/english/title1.html#address

National Association of State Title I Directors, http://www.titlei.org

Title I as a Tool for Parent Involvement, http://www.cleweb.org/issues/title1/tool.htm, prepared by the Center for Law and Education
 

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Transition

"Transition in an Era of Education Reform" explores the need to rethink the process of "transition" of students with disabilities from high school to post-secondary and other post-school activities. Transition has become a separate, post-school planning process for some students with disabilities, one that can work at cross purposes with the goals of school reform. Suggestions for how transition can be structured to support students’ with disabilities participation in standards-based education reform are set forth.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Transition in an Era of Education Reform	.html		.pdf
La Transición En una Era de Reforma Educacional	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Transition	.html		.pdf
Transición	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
National Transition Alliance for Youth with Disabilities, http://www.dssc.org/nta/html/index_2.htm

NTA Transition Resource Sheets by state, http://www.dssc.org/nta/html/ind_sta.htm

Family Village Transition http://www.familyvillage.wisc.edu/education/transition.html
 

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Positive Behavior Support

"When the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) was amended in 1997, key provisions related to positive behavior support were enacted. "Positive Behavior Supports and Functional Assessment of Behavior" discusses these provisions which represent a significant shift in the approach to students with challenging behaviors. 
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Positive Behavior Supports and Functional Assessment of Behavior	.html		.pdf
Apoyos Positivos del Comportamiento y la Evaluación Funcional del Comportamiento	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa

Additional Links

Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice, Improving Services to Children and Youth with Emotional and Behavioral Problems, OSERS’ resources  http://www.air-dc.org/cecp/resources/resource.htm

CECP, ADDRESSING STUDENT PROBLEM BEHAVIOR: An IEP Team’s Introduction To Functional Behavioral Assessment And Behavior Intervention Plans - http://www.air-dc.org/cecp/resources/problembehavior/main.htm

CECP, Conducting a Functional Behavioral Assessment (2nd edition), http://www.air-dc.org/cecp/resources/problembehavior2/main2.htm
 

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Parent Participation

Many parents believe that attending to special education laws is all that is necessary to ensure that their children receive a good education. "Parent Participation: Crucial to Education Reform" offers reasons why parents should participate in general education reform today and how they can take advantage of new opportunities school reform presents for their children.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Parent Participation: Crucial to School Reform	.html		.pdf
La Participación de Padres: Crítica para la Reforma Escolar	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa
Parent Participation	.html		.pdf
Participación de Padres	.html		.pdf

Additional Links
The National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (NCPIE), http://ncpie.org

Partnership for Family Involvement in Education, http://www.pfie.ed.gov

Institute for Responsive Education, Connecting Family, School, and Community, http://www.resp-ed.org

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Site Visits

"Site Visits: Seeing Schools in Action" is based on materials the PEER Project developed to guide teams of parents and professionals in conducting site visits to schools. PEER developed a series of guiding questions, an overall protocol for conducting the visit and for post-visit debriefing, and information on site-visit etiquette.
 

Information Brief/Resumen Informativa
Site Visits: Seeing Schools in Action	.html		.pdf
Visitas en el Lugar: Observar las Escuelas En Acción	.html		.pdf
Fact Sheet/Página Informativa

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