Bill: I am a special education teacher in New York City where I co-teach an integrated class of students with and without disabilities. According to the New York City Department of Education website, an integrated co-teaching (ICT) class can have no more than 12 students. However, I work at a school where many of the classes have up to 18 students with IEPs mixed in with only a few students without disabilities. In such a situation, it is impossible to provide the individualized instruction that students with disabilities need to flourish. I have already spoken to my union, and they told me that they spoke with administration but nothing has changed. What can I do?
I am an integrated co-teacher in a kindergarten. There seems to be no guidelines, rubric or rational on how the IEP students are placed in my class. I have autistic/ ODD/ Speech and language impaired students that are delayed but can handle the curriculum…perfect placement. Then I have a student that doesn’t know the letters in his name and can’t count past 6 in January…I feel this is NOT an appropriate placement. Admins don’t want to hear anything about my concerns and how ICT isn’t the best placement for certain children.
Does anyone have a link or info on what level a student should be academically to be placed in a co-taught? I realized that many appropriate placements will have lower scores but should student with academic standard scores in the 50s be placed in an ICT?
Your state may have rules or guidelines on co-teaching situations, and placements. If you have not checked with the state education agency, you can try that. IDEA rules say that the IEP team is to address “the program modifications or supports for school personnel” to be able to provide FAPE to the child. Teachers have the right to request the support that they need.
Bill I am a psychologist with the NYC department of education. Nowhere in the NYC DOE SOPM does it say that an ICT cannot have more then 12 students. An ICT is composed of a 40/60 model. 40% of children have IEPs and 60% do not have IEPs.
In my school district in Michigan, parents aren’t even told that their child (with IEP) is being placed into a co-taught classroom with all the other (IEP) students in their grade level. This is tracking plain and simple. Every year these same students will be grouped together because they are special ed. students. The district offers no continuum of services. Sad to see what is happening to Special Ed. students.
No INDIVIDUAL educations plans in this district.
if administration does not work try calling 311 , the UFT or your school district leader
ICT, in my experience, removes kids from their LRE, delays students from being identified, and just looks a lot like tracking. In CA many students learning English or otherwise disadvantaged are placed in the ICT classrooms. Some school districts call it reverse mainstreaming or SAI. They use alternative course materials and curriculum, typically watered down, and at the high school level, those classes don’t meet college admission requirements. Parents are often kept in the dark about this. Wish we had more guidance or case law on ICT.