Wrightslaw - Special Ed Advocate Newsletter, September 18, 2002 (Issue 179)

At Wrightslaw, our goals are to help you gain the information and skills you need to navigate the confusing world of special education. In this issue, we look at No Child Left Behind and transition services in IEPs.

Highlights: A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind; using tests to measure progress & reporting results to parents, teacher training and certification; No Child Left Behind fact sheets & newsletter; transition services and your child's IEP; advocacy training programs are sold out!

Some say it is unfair to hold disadvantaged children to rigorous standards. I say it is discrimination to require anything less. It is the soft bigotry of low expectations." -- President George W. Bush

Online version of newsletter: https://www.wrightslaw.com/advoc/nwltr/2002/nl.0918.htm

The Special Ed Advocate newsletter is free - please forward this issue or the subscription link to your friends and colleagues so they can learn about special education law and advocacy too. We appreciate your help!

https://www.wrightslaw.com/subscribe.htm

1. A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind by Suzanne Heath

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) took effect on January 8, 2002. The law covers all states, school districts, and schools that accept Title 1 federal grants. One way or another, this law covers all public schools in all states.

NCLB emphasizes accountability and teaching methods that work.

A large focus of this law is on reading achievement. Only 32% of fourth graders are proficient readers who read at a fourth grade level.

In A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind, you learn about new requirements for teachers and paraprofessionals, school and school district report cards, annual testing in math and reading. You will also learn about new options for parents including transfers from failing schools and free supplemental services - tutoring, after-school programs and summer school.

To learn about No Child Left Behind - how it applies to you, your child, and your school - download A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind at:

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/nclb.parent.guide.heath.htm

Print & Distribute

A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind is also available as a 4 page, printer-friendly pdf document.

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/nclb.parent.guide.heath.pdf

On September 16, we distributed A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind to 400+ people who attended our advocacy training program in Richmond, VA.

We encourage you to print and distribute this article so parents, teachers and child advocates learn about this important law. By working together, we are making a difference!

2. Learn More About No Child Left Behind

The No Child Left Behind Act will have a big impact on your child's education. You need to learn about this new law so we collected resources to help you get started.

"You have a right to know whether your child is learning at school . . .
If your child is not making adequate progress in school, you can and must ask why." -- Secretary Rod Paige

First, download and read A Parent's Guide to No Child Left Behind at:

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/nclb.parent.guide.heath.htm

Next, visit our No Child Left Behind Page:

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/nclb.index.htm

Read these articles:

NCLB: Schools Must Measure Progress & Report Results to Parents. Schools must measure each child's progress every year and must report the results to the child's parents and to the public. Yes, this requirement applies to children in special education.

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/nclb.measure.progress.htm

NCLB: Facts About Teacher Training & Certification: Are We Destroying the Future, One Child at a Time?" We take a closer look at teacher quality, training and certification. Learn about the findings of the Teacher Quality Report, check your state's pass rates for teachers, and learn more about the No Child Left Behind Act.

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/teach.quality.htm

NCLB: Kids from 8,652 Failing Schools Can Transfer This Fall - Is Your Child's School on "The List"? Secretary of Education Paige announced that students in more than 8,600 schools are eligible to attend higher-performing schools because the schools they attend failed to meet state academic standards for two years. Learn about failing schools and parent options.

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/nclb.8600.schools.htm

Get info from the No Child Left Behind site:

Get Fact Sheets about Reading Achievement, Reading First, 21st Century Technology, State Standards, Getting Students Help, Measuring Progress, Good Teachers, School Safety, and other topics from U. S. Department of Education:

http://www.nochildleftbehind.gov/start/facts/index.html

Subscribe to the No Child Left Behind Newsletter, an electronic newsletter with information, events, and announcements about the No Child Left Behind Act.

http://www.nochildleftbehind.gov/subscribe.html

We will keep you posted as we learn more about this exciting new law!

3. Transition Services and Your Child's IEP

Do you have a child with a disability who is 14 or older?

Did you know that beginning at age 14 (and updated annually), your child's IEP must include a statement of transition service needs?

Did you know that beginning at age 16 (or younger), your child's IEP must include a statement of needed transition services that may include responsibilities of other agencies? § 1414(d)(1)(vii) (page 62 of Wrightslaw: Special Education Law)

The IDEA defines transition services as "a coordinated set of activities" that promote the child's movement from school to post-secondary education, vocational training, employment, adult services, independent living and community participation. § 1401(30) (page 31 of Wrightslaw: Special Education Law)

You will find the IDEA regulations about transition services on page 170 of Wrightslaw: Special Education Law. You should also read Appendix A to the regulations (see Questions 11 and 12, pages 215-217, Wrightslaw: Special Education Law)

Learn more about Wrightslaw: Special Education Law:

https://www.wrightslaw.com/bks/lawbk/spedlaw.htm

4. Transition Components of the IEP by Barbara Bateman

If you are a member of an IEP team that will develop an IEP for a child who is 14 or older, you need to know about transition, self-advocacy, confidentiality, and more. Read "Legal Requirements for Transition Components of the IEP" by Dr. Barbara Bateman:

https://www.wrightslaw.com/info/trans.legal.bateman.htm

5. Free Pub: Designing IEP Transition Plans

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires schools to prepare students with disabilities for employment and independent living. Transition planning that involves students and their families leads to post-school success and independence. Learn how to design quality IEP transition plans:

Designing Individualized Education Program (IEP) Transition Plans:

http://ericec.org/digests/e598.html

To order bound copies, contact The Council for Exceptional Children, 1-800-328-0272

More Free Pubs

Download free publications about IEPs, special education, transition planning, reading, children's mental health, harassment, high-stakes testing, retention and social promotion, zero tolerance and discipline from our Free Pubs Page:

https://www.wrightslaw.com/links/free_pubs.htm

6. Advocacy Training Programs - SOLD OUT!

Knowledge is power. When you have information and skills, you will be a more effective advocate for your child. Our role is to help you gain this knowledge so you can negotiate on your child's behalf.

On Monday, September 16, we conducted an advocacy training program for 400+ parents, advocates and attorneys in Richmond, VA. This seminar focused on four areas: special education law, rights and responsibilities; how to use the bell curve to measure progress & regression; SMART IEPs; and how to use tactics & strategies to resolve conflict.

The Richmond program sold out.

Last Spring, several advocacy training programs sold out - Cleveland, OH (320), Rockville, MD (300), Sacramento (300). When our advocacy training programs sell out, we know that parents and advocates heard our message and are taking action.

We are scheduled to visit these cities in 2002: