September Newsletter

Access Center Webinar – Tomorrow!   Please join us tomorrow, September 7, 2005 at 2 pm EDT for the "Making Abstract Core Curriculum Accessible to Students with Severe and Multiple Disabilities" webinar. Dr. June Downing from the California State University, Northridge, will identify learning opportunities within core curriculum and teach meaningful skills for instruction in the general education classroom. The Access Center will be hosting this event with the National Technical Assistance Consortium for Children and Young Adults Who Are Deaf-Blind, in collaboration with the LRE Part B Community of Practice. For those who are not able to participate during the live event, you may view the webinar recording online.

Science and Students with Autism
The Access Center is pleased to release a new resource with a focus on the specific needs of students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This information brief highlights strategies that can help these students access the middle school general education science curriculum.

Access Center and NERRC Hold District ISC
In August the Access Center, in collaboration with The Northeast Regional Resource Center (NERRC)and the Vermont Department of Education, held the kick-off summit for the Northeast District-to-District information sharing community (ISC). Information sharing community members include four school districts from New Hampshire and Vermont. The kick-off summit included presentations on three-tiered models of reading instruction and on implementing district-wide mathematics initiatives. Community members also engaged in discussions around their own best practices and goals for future work. The Access Center will support this community by providing resources and professional development opportunities throughout the 2005-2006 school year.

CEC Offers Special Education Web Seminars
Over the next few months, the Council for Exceptional Children will be offering web-based seminars on such topics as Inclusive Assessment and Accountability; Teacher-Paraeducator Teams; Collaboration in Today’s Schools; Building Effective Classroom Management Systems; NCLB, Access to the General Education Curriculum, and IEPs; and Accessing the General Education Curriculum: Universal Design and Technology.

Inclusion Education Website
This web site is designed for general education teachers, special education teachers, parents, and school staff to help provide some answers about how inclusive education can be accomplished. Resources for making accommodations are included, as well as links to other web sites and resource lists for learning more about inclusive education.

ED Updates Highly Qualified Guidelines Under NCLB
The Education Department’s updated nonregulatory guidance on highly qualified teachers provides new and expanded examples of promising practices. Many of the revisions target teachers in rural districts, as well as teachers of multiple subjects and science.

OSEP Provides Templates for State Performance Plans
The Education Department’s Office of Special Education Programs has posted two templates for states to use when creating their state performance plans under IDEA: one for Part B and one for Part C.