Newsletter 06/09 One of the Best Kept Secrets in Special Ed: How Schools Can Use Teletherapy to Provide Therapy Services in IEPs In this issue of the Special Ed Advocate, you will learn how schools use teletherapy to provide virtual speech language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, tutoring, and behavioral counseling to children with disabilities. 1. One of the Best Kept Secrets in Special Ed: How Schools Can Use Teletherapy to Provide Services in IEPs https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/virus.virtual.tx.htm "My child has autism. His IEP provides speech language therapy, occupational therapy and one-on-one instructional time in a self-contained classroom." "When the school closed , his teachers and therapists said it was impossible to deliver speech therapy and OT virtually. I believed them. Three months have passed with no attempt to provide the instruction and related services my child needs." "There is a 'window of opportunity' for him to learn these skills. He cannot afford to wait. We need help now." In this issue of The Special Ed Advocate, we will . . . examine options for children to receive the instruction and related therapies they need, including teletherapy; provide Position Papers, Statements and Recommendations about teletherapy from professional organizations whose members work in schools; demonstrate how you can learn about special ed law and advocacy at home; and provide a "Sample Letter to Document a Problem and Request the Services in a Child's IEP." ********************* 1. One of the Best Kept Secrets in Special Ed: How Schools Can Use Teletherapy to Provide Services in IEPs https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/virus.virtual.tx.htm "My child has autism. His IEP provides speech language therapy, occupational therapy and one-on-one instructional time in a self-contained classroom." "When the school closed , his teachers and therapists said it was impossible to deliver speech therapy and OT virtually. I believed them. Three months have passed with no attempt to provide the instruction and related services my child needs." "There is a 'window of opportunity' for him to learn these skills. He cannot afford to wait. We need help now." ************************** 2. Learn at Home with Wrightslaw Special Education Law & Advocacy Training https://www.wrightslaw.com/webex/law.adv.index.htm Learn in the comfort of your home with Wrightslaw Special Education Law and Advocacy Training. https://www.wrightslaw.com/webex/law.adv.index.htm All you need is a computer or device and speakers! Now Available as an MP4 Video! Receive a FREE PDF of the book, Wrightslaw Special Education Law, 2nd Edition, with your order! https://www.wrightslaw.com/store/selaw2.store.html Earn CEUs (continuing education units). Read more! https://www.wrightslaw.com/webex/ceu.info.delta.htm Required Books - Wrightslaw: Special Education Law, 2nd Edition and Wrightslaw: From Emotions to Advocacy, 2nd Edition. https://www.wrightslaw.com/bks/selaw2/selaw2.htm https://www.wrightslaw.com/bks/feta2/feta2.htm Training and Book Combo - $89.95 https://www.wrightslaw.com/store/index.html#training If you already own the two required books, you can purchase the Download Training Program separately - $49.95. https://www.wrightslaw.com/store/index.html#training Check out all Wrightslaw products! https://www.wrightslaw.com/store/index.html ***************** 3. Sample Letter to Request That School Provide Therapy Services in Child's IEP https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/ltr.virus.teletherapy.htm You can request that your school district arrange for school staff to provide your child's instruction and therapy services virtually. If school staff are unavailable or are not trained to do virtual instruction and therapy, you can request that the school provide these services through teletherapy. Before you request that the school provide services in your child's IEP, you must educate yourself. You must assume that your child's school will be reluctant to do anything new. (Read Chapter 21 - "Rules of Adverse Assumptions" in Wrightslaw: From Emotions to Advocacy by Pam and Pete Wright.) https://www.wrightslaw.com/bks/feta2/feta2.htm You must also assume that you need to write a persuasive letter. Before you write a letter to request services, please read The Art of Writing Letters to the School https://www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/letters.draft.htm And 12 Rules for Writing GREAT Letters https://www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/articles/12rules_letters.htm You can use this sample letter as a template. Change the facts and details to fit your situation. You will find our comments and suggestions are in blue lettering. Learn more about letters, documenting problems and paper trails. https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/ltrs.index.htm 3. How One State Is Using Teletherapy to Solve a Special Ed Learning Challenge On May 6, 2020, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) announced that its partnership with AmplioSpeech", a provider of speech pathology technology, has reached 10,000 Texas students with special education needs." "Among the greatest challenge that schools have faced is finding the most effective way to serve students with special education needs when classroom learning is not an option. TEA's partnership with AmplioSpeech greatly aids such efforts. The platform allows licensed Speech-Language Pathologists to interact remotely with students to provide speech therapy required by the student's special education individual education program." "TEA made the tool available for free for school systems who signed up to enroll the first 10,000 students in the service. Within 24 hours, more than 100 school systems had signed up. Hundreds of trained SLPs are enlisted to provide students with a range of speech-language services." Read article. https://tea.texas.gov/about-tea/news-and-multimedia/news-releases/news-2020/tea-helps-solve-a-critical-covid-19-special-education-distance-learning-challenge Special Ed in the COVID-19 Era Contingency Learning Plans (CLPs): What Are CLPs? Why Make Them? How to Respond? https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/virus.clp.htm Advice About 10-Day Notice Letters to the School https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/dp.10day.ltr.htm Sample Letter to Document a Problem or Request an IEP Meeting https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/ltrs.virus.clp.htm Procedural Safeguards & Parent Notice https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/safgd.index.htm Writing the Due Process Request Letter or State Complaint https://www.wrightslaw.com/video/dueprocessrequestvideo.htm