Students First~Special Education Services in Seattle Schools

Save the date: Transition Resource Fair

2010-12-15T17:35:00.000-08:00

S A V E T H E S E D A T E S !

Department of Community and Human Services
Developmental Disabilities Division

4th ANNUAL
TRANSITION RESOURCE FAIRS

Two dates and two locations--choose to attend one or both

Tukwila Community Center Bellevue College

WednesdayMarch 9, 2011 and Saturday March 19, 2011
9 a.m. - 4 p.m. on both days

Essential information will be available on site for educators, students, and their families to better prepare them for successful transitioning from school to employment and other community resources.

Available at the Fair:

Opportunities to meet with representatives from over 35 organizations including King County Supported Employment Agencies and the School to Work Project, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services, Divisions of Developmental Disabilities and Vocational Rehabilitation and learn about Parks and Recreation Programs, Housing, Transportation, and other community resources.

Workshops:

A choice of multiple workshops scheduled throughout the day featuring Student, Family and School to Work tracks.

Audience:

Educators and Transition Teachers, Students age 14 to 21, and Families

Look for more details in January on the King County Website

http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/DDD/training.aspx
For additional information please contact:

Lyn Andrews, O’Neill and Associates at
206-890-1384 or by email at Lyn@oneillandassociates.com

Sponsored by the King County Developmental Disabilities Division

Technical Assistance Team

2010-10-29T17:49:00.000-07:00

Many of you have asked about the Technical Assistance Team, just one of the ways in which we provide support for our educators throughout our system so that we are always progressing in our practice. Here is some information from the team:

General Information:
Technical Assistance Team (TAT)

· TAT provides ongoing technical assistance: evidence-based strategies for instruction, functional approaches to challenging behaviors, ongoing and long-term support and resources to school teams who provide services to students with disabilities.

· This technical assistance also includes student observation, teacher-to-teacher support, strategy sharing, modeling, and data collection. TAT support is non-evaluative, making it a highly effective coaching model.

· TAT members include special education classroom teachers, coaches, and consulting teachers. The TAT-member group meets frequently to share strategies, ideas, and information with each other, to better support the teachers and students they serve through TAT.

· Students are referred to TAT using a digital referral form. Students should be referred to TAT by the teacher(s) that work(s) with them. This could be special education teachers, general education teachers, and/or support staff (music, PE, art, etc). TAT support is available to all Elementary students who have an IEP (Kindergarten – Fifth Grade).

· Once a student has been referred to TAT, a TAT member is identified to work with the teacher.
o The TAT member contacts the teacher to schedule an observation.
o Following the initial observation, the teacher and TAT member meet and identify 3 Teacher-Identified Priorities to focus on to support the child.
o Using these priorities, the TAT member will provide strategies/resources to the teacher and schedule follow-up observations to collect data.
o This data will be monitored over time. The TAT member and teacher will use the data to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies/resources currently implemented, and to inform future instruction.

Many thanks to our wonderful staff members who support one another and our students!

Thank You For Your Partnership!

2010-09-24T16:01:00.000-07:00

I want to thank our Special Education PTSA leaders and members for coming together on Tuesday night for a great General meeting. We had a chance to meet the new regional Pre-K through 12th grade Executive Directors of Schools and see in living color the newly aligned structure with each Executive Director paired with a regional Special Education Supervisor. Dr. Susan Enfield, Chief Academic Officer, shared her vision for a system that is truly structured to provide the best possible supports for students and families, and families had a chance to meet in small groups with their regional teams.

Special thanks also to the Teachers, Therapists, and Consulting Teachers who also joined us. Our students are well cared for!

Dr. Elise Frattura, who joined us last year at the PTSA Conference from UW-Milwaukee, was the key presenter at our August School Leaders Institute, and was amazed by the progress she's seen in Seattle's capacity to provide powerful services for students with disabilities. Here is here reflection:

In October of 2007 I was part of a team of evaluators who completed an on-site review of Seattle Public Schools in regards to students with disabilities. At that time I was surprised by the seemingly high level of comfort in perpetuating a program model, (or reactionary model) as a way to meet the individual needs of learners with disabilities. A short three years later the ground work has been laid for sustainable change in support of a proactive service delivery model for all learners.
The momentum was tangible at the leadership institute this summer for school principals. That is, so many school districts make the mistake of leading such a transformation through special education. Seattle is different. The fact that site leadership and central office curriculum and instruction own the importance of proactive services for all learners says that Seattle is situated and making significant gains in support of high quality instructional and behavioral supports for each and every child! I truly wish you the best and am excited for what the future holds for Seattle Public School children.

Thank you families and teachers for your leadership and partnership, and thank you for sharing your students with us!

Cleveland High School and Maple Elementary

2010-09-21T18:25:00.000-07:00

Daily Math at Maple Elementary:

"Today's Survey" using tally marks helps first graders at Maple Elementary think about how we gather and represent data.
Math words in a fifth grade classroom: divisible, factor, product, and prime number (they're learning "Facts About Factors")

Writers' Workshop at Maple Elementary: Students learn to generate ideas for Personal Narratives with this guidance~think of the first or last time you did or tried something.

At both Cleveland High School and Maple Elementary, students were learning to write with structure, engaging instruction in the Writers Workshop model. ALL students were actively generating ideas, writing, and reading their work aloud in many different classrooms.

Writers' Workshop is especially effective for students who need additional supports, and provides opportunities for small group, large group, and one-on-one instruction.

Students at Cleveland High School were preparing for a cloning Project in Physical Science by taking the Myers-Briggs test, practising gathering and representing data.

Thanks Cleveland and Maple!

September Update: Rigor, Relevance, Relationships, Results

2010-09-20T20:49:00.000-07:00

My father was raised by a cattle rancher. Although they lived in the city during the winter months, in the summertime his family lived and worked on the Alberta prairie.

He told me that once when he was just six or seven years old his father asked him to take two large work horses to the trough for some water. These were huge work animals, Clydesdales, and my dad remembered looking at their hoofs, seeing that each one was as big around as his face. He was terrified by their size and power, and not at all sure that he could get them safely to water and back. But he also knew that his father knew his strengths and limitations, that he was a skillful rancher, and that he wouldn’t have given my dad the job if he didn’t think he could do it. He took those horses to the trough and back, still scared, but ultimately confident and proud.

I think of this often as I see our students and teachers at work. We ask our students to do incredibly challenging things each day—and if they are to be successful, they need to know that we know their strengths and needs, that they can trust us as teachers, and that when we ask difficult things of them we will create the conditions for their success.

As we continue to develop our services for students with special needs in Seattle, we adults need to each day remember that our core work is to build and reinforce a system that challenges and supports our learners. We need to daily recommit ourselves to the non-negotiable of inclusive practice; each and every student is a full member of our community. We the adults need to adjust our practice in order to make this a reality.

Last week I visited schools in the West/Southwest Region with Supervisor Amy Briggs. This year as a department we are targeting key areas where we know we need to focus:

1. Do ALL students have access to the general education curriculum (including materials, standards, instructional practices, and well-trained teachers), and

2. What are the clear supports in place to help students navigate social and behavior challenges?

At both Roxhill Elementary and Gatewood Elementary we saw tangible evidence of both indicators of best practices.

Students at Roxhill could tell me, at a moment’s notice, about “CARES," their school-wide community expectations:
C ome ready to learn.

A ct with compassion.

R espect adults, each other, and property.

E xcel at everything you do.

S tay safe
At Gatewood we saw students with behavioral challenges fully included in a class that was doing Reader’s Workshop, reading “just right books” and conferring with teachers and with one another.

At both schools students were able to experience success because expectations for behavior were explicit and academic structures were carefully designed to provide structure, individualized learning, and true rigor. Thank you Roxhill and Gatewood staff!

Welcome to the 2010-2011 School Year!

2010-09-07T09:47:00.000-07:00

When I was a middle school principal in Seattle I estimated that each year I had students coming into 6th grade from at least twenty-seven different elementary programs. We middle school folks are all about relationship, and although I tried to visit as many 5th graders as I could in the spring, there was no way I could meet them all at their schools, or get to know their unique strengths and needs. I remember wishing that I could have a consistent group of schools I could visit, a consistent set of fifth grade teachers I could talk to and collaborate with, and the chance to meet as many families as possible prior to the start of the year. In short, I wished I had more predictable feeder patterns so that I could make the middle school experience as powerful as possible by creating a solid transition.

With our new student assignment plan, we have a chance to do this! Our system-wide goal is to align all systems, leaders, coaches, and supports so that you know exactly where to go when you have questions, concerns, and important information that will help us serve your student. Our new Executive Directors of schools will be overseeing Pre-K through 12th grade regional clusters, providing smoother, stronger transitions from level to level, providing consistent instructional vision, and true accountability for all.

We have aligned our Special Education Supervisors and Consulting Teachers with the new Executive Directors so that again, we can create smooth, strong transitions for students with special needs, and be true collaborative partners with principals and school staff, providing effective, responsive services in every school. Please see here for our new leadership structure—you can see your Regional Executive Director, Supervisor, and Consulting Teacher listed. You can find contact information for the Supervisors and Consulting teachers here.

Thank you for sharing your students with us—we look forward to serving you this year.

Marni Campbell
Executive Director, Special Education Services

June Update

2010-06-16T06:09:00.000-07:00

Teachers from Chief Sealth High School and consulting teacher Mel M. confer about students making the transition to High School:

Thank you for your ongoing partnership with Seattle Schools, and for sharing your wonderful students with us. It has truly been a fantastic year of growth and learning. Just a few updates as we head into the final week of the school year:

On June first we hosted a riser file exchange event at the John Stanford Center for both elementary and secondary riser students (students moving from Preschool to Kindergarten, from Elementary to Middle School, and from Middle School to High School). Teachers came from nearly every school, and not only passed along student files but had conferences with receiving teachers to ensure a smooth transition for our students. Representatives from the Transportation Department were also present so that transportation will be in place at the start of the 10-11 school year. Thank you Seattle staff for your great work!

We are finishing year one of a five-year move toward supporting a more inclusive approach to providing services to students in alignment with Seattle's strategic plan Excellence For All. We are finalizing outcome data for our students who received services through the integrated comprehensive service model and will have a full report prepared by late June. The data we gathered include Parent/Family Surveys, feedback from Parent/Family meetings, Staff surveys (fall and end of year), Site Visits, MAP data, review of Third Quarter IEP Progress Reports, and 2010-2011 riser enrollment data. It is particularly crucial that we look at third quarter progress reports to see if our students are moving toward and/or meeting their IEP goals. Analysis of third quarter progress reports showed that ALL students were making some to significant progress on their IEP goals. Goal areas include adaptive, social, behavior, motor, speech and communication, and academic. See below for "mean" average scores for IEP goals of students being served with integrated comprehensive services. A "2" indicates some progress made. A "3" indicates significant progress made.

It is essential that we continue to develop our skills and knowledge if we are going to be able to effectively teach our students. We have focused this year on providing a broad array of professional development opportunities for our students so that we can meet the needs of our students. Here are a few examples:

Autism expert Cassie Martin has been training our staff this year in effective strategies for supporting students in inclusive settings.
We have hosted two Inclusion and Collaboration Institutes, and have two more in June and August. Trainers include specialists from the University of Washington and experts from within our system.
We have worked with experts from the UW to provide technical assistance in supporting students with Autism on-site through our Technical Assistance Team (TAT).
Consulting teachers and Supervisors continue to provide targeted, personalized professional development at our schools.
Special Education coaches Kristin A. and Lindsey D. and Supervisor Amy B. have been co-teaching for Literacy, Writers Workshop, and Math trainings this year, so that all teachers are learning how to differentiate instruction and provide supports for all students.
This summer Special Education consulting teacher Mel M. will be working with a team from Curriculum and Instruction to modify and align High School Biology curriculum. Consulting Teachers will also be building differentiated ; curriculum for the newly aligned 4th and 8th grade Social Studies curricula.

We will have staff available through the summer if you have any questions or needs.

Thank you for sharing your students with us!

View Ridge Visit!

2010-04-23T15:47:00.000-07:00

Thank you to Principal Skjei and the students and staff at View Ridge elementary for a great learning walk! Students at View Ridge are learning to write:

They are mapping out the day:

They are creating beautiful alphabet art:

Students were learning Math in flexible groups. One group was focusing on understanding three digit numbers using manipulatives representing hundreds, tens, and ones.

Students were also learning how to print--one said that his brother noticed how much better his handwriting is!

I also learned about a visit from Dr. Doo of the Woodland Park Zoo; he brought some very interesting fertilizer for the student garden.

I have also seen powerful learning at Adams Elementary, where students were journaling and then working in literacy stations, and at McClure Middle School, where students were deepening their practice as writers and readers. Thank you scholars and teachers!

Please note: We have posted updated information about Assistive Technology here.

March Update

2010-03-26T13:50:00.000-07:00

From Susan Enfield, Chief Academic Officer:

We are in an unprecedented time of opportunity in public education, both at the national and local level. Teachers, principals, district leaders, families and community stakeholders are engaged in conversations about how we ensure high quality teaching and learning and high quality leadership in all of our schools. Here at the central office, we are making changes for next year that we believe will better support the work our teachers and principals are doing to meet the needs of all learners.

We are developing a Teaching and Learning Leadership Team that is focused on improving instruction across all academic programs (i.e., early learning, special education, advanced learning, English Language Learners, and career and technical education). Also sitting on this team will be five Executive Directors of Schools. This position replaces our current Education Directors who provide leadership and supervision to clusters of schools by grade level. The new role will span a PK-12 cluster of schools so that we can provide more continuity to students and families within our new student assignment plan.

From Marni Campbell, Executive Director, Special Education Services:

Early in my first year as principal at Eckstein Middle School my team and I planned a complex and ambitious assembly for 1250 middle school students. It was, I thought, a great success. The program went smoothly, ended on time, and the students were respectful of one another as performers and participants. As I stood in the hallway shepherding kids back to class, one of my colleagues, a provider of sign language interpreting supports for students receiving deaf and hard of hearing services, taught me a powerful lesson. She kindly but firmly chided me for failing to provide her team with a script of the assembly in advance, for failing to reserve a row in the front and provide lighting for students who would need to access interpreter services to fully participate in the assembly experience. “I’m so sorry,” I said. “I just didn’t think of it.” Her answer was a call to awareness and action for me. “I know,” she said, “That’s the whole problem. You need to think of it.”

I am indebted to this wise, courageous, committed colleague for reminding me that our first job as an educational community, not just as special educators, is to “think of it,” to actively create conditions of success for all students, to prepare in advance for “universal design” in all physical and instructional elements of our schools.

As we work to transform special education services in Seattle, our focus is threefold: a) to successfully educate students with disabilities in schools close to home, b) to ensure that as a system we support “student first” language and practice, and c) to ensure that students are educated “to the maximum extent possible” with typically developing peers, per the letter and spirit of IDEA.

The integrated comprehensive service model is one shift in practice from providing special education in isolated programs in specific schools to providing services that meet student needs in neighborhood schools. Services are integrated into the fabric of the school day so that every student is an authentic citizen of the community. Supports and services should be comprehensive, available along a continuum based on student need and varying in intensity. As students enrolled in their neighborhood elementary schools last spring, additional staff members were added, including inclusion coaches, instructional assistants, and certificated teachers, based on student need to support the integrated service model. General education and special education staff were trained in summer and fall institutes, and training continues with the support of our partners at the University of Washington.

We are carefully monitoring and assessing the efficacy of the model, and have gathered staff surveys, family surveys, feedback through focused family meetings, analysis of achievement and discipline data, and formal school visits. Our integrated comprehensive service task force has met regularly since November to review data, including real-time feedback from general education and special education staff members. Many students are thriving, and families and teachers report that their students are meeting their social and academic goals. Student success is our first priority, and in situations where there have been challenges, where students and staff are not thriving, we have immediately acted to put additional appropriate supports and resources in place. We will continue to monitor and adjust, responding to student data and school feedback, as we build “student first” services in our schools.

In partnership with the professionals from our community, we continue to provide training to teachers in both special education and general education on inclusive practices, and skills and strategies for teaching students with autism and other disabilities. Skilled experts from our department are co-teaching in Math, Literacy, and Writer’s Workshop trainings so that all teachers have access to the core content training and are learning how to differentiate instruction to support all students. Our assistive technology team is actively working with schools to provide supports that make classrooms more accessible by design. Special education supervisors conduct weekly learning walks, looking for key components of effective instruction for students with disabilities: access to the core curriculum, differentiated instruction, high leverage teaching moves, and evidence of change leadership.

As Dr. Enfield has said, we are in the midst of exciting change in Seattle, and we cannot do it alone. Your feedback, input, and yes, firm criticism, are essential as we work in partnership to provide the best possible schools for our children. Thank you for sharing your students with us!
Marni Campbell

Thank You Stevens Elementary

2010-03-01T11:51:00.003-08:00

This week the scholars at Stevens Elementary who receive supports for emotional and behavioral needs hosted a celebration of the Tuskegee Airmen for the entire school and community. They hosted an inspiring assembly (see photos below) and a delicious, delightful reception. Thank you scholars and students at Stevens!

Thurgood Marshall

2010-02-19T15:42:00.001-08:00

Just before the mid-winter break I had a chance to visit the wonderful staff at Thurgood Marshall elementary. I was delighted and inspired by the joyful and informative messages posted in the school supporting students with Autism. Here are just a few images:

Thank you Thurgood Marshall!

Special Education PTSA Meeting

2010-02-06T10:27:00.000-08:00

Special PTSA Meeting - Tuesday, February 9, at 6 pm
- please note the new time

Please mark your calendars for a special PTSA meeting to discuss the district's Family Survey and District Report Card. Bernardo Ruiz, SPS Manager for Family and Community Engagement, will present an outline of the two initiatives and would like to get input from families of children receiving special education services.

The meeting is in the auditorium at the John Stanford Center, 2445 3rd Ave South, Seattle 98124. It will start at 6 pm to accommodate members who want to attend the SEAAC meeting at 7 pm. However, we will still be meeting at 7 pm and will take your input if you cannot make it any earlier. This is a great opportunity for our members to help shape how the district gathers information from families and measures school effectiveness.

Several documents are available for review ahead of time. If you would like to receive electronic copies of the Overview Survey Redesign, Survey Design Stakeholder Feedback Tool and the 2009 District Score Card, please email us at seattlespedptsa@gmail.com.

King County Transition Resource Fair

2010-02-06T09:33:00.000-08:00

This is a great opportunity for families, students, and educators! The full flyer with information about specific sessions will be posted on the Special Education page at http://www.seattleschools.org/area/speced/index.dxml. Here's a short version of the flyer:

Please join us for

The Third Annual King County

Transition Resource Fair

Sponsored by the King County Developmental Disabilities Division

Two Dates and Locations!

North Seattle Community College

9600 College Way N.
College Center Building, Cafeteria
Seattle, WA

Saturday, March 13, 2010

9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.

and

Highline Community College

2400 S. 240th St.

Student Union, Building # 8

Des Moines, WA

Thursday, March 25, 2010

10:30 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

Essential information and resources will be available onsite to better equip educators, transition
teachers, students aged 14 and older, and their families to prepare for a successful transition
from school to employment and other community resources.

March 13, 2010: North Seattle Community College

Doors open for the Transition Fair at 9:30 a.m. and close at 3:30 p.m.

March 25, 2010: Highline Community College

Doors open at 10:30 a.m. and close at 6:00 p.m.

Please plan to stop by no later than one hour before closing to leave enough time for
connecting with exhibitors.

February Update: Welcome to a New Semester!

2010-02-01T20:09:00.000-08:00

We have a powerful potential in our youth, and we must have the courage to change old ideas and practices so that we may direct their power toward good ends.
Mary McLeod Bethune

Welcome to February and a new semester, and thank you for your ongoing partnership with us as we work to build and sustain communities in which ALL learners can thrive. When I was nine years old I was given a biography of the great educator Mary McLeod Bethune for my birthday. Her story, her passion, and her commitment to social justice inspired me to become an educator, and her words still ring true today! As a district and as a department we are working to "change old ideas and practices" while building on the remarkable work that has taken place in the past so that all students may realize their "powerful potential."

Here are a few key updates:

Our Inclusion Task Force has been meeting to review practices, structures, strategies, and outcomes in our special education services. We are reviewing data from staff and family surveys, academic data, current structures and resource allocations, and data from school visits to help inform recommendations for next steps as we move toward more powerful, inclusive learning in Seattle. Many thanks to our talented and committed task force members for their time and commitment, and thanks to schools and teachers who hosted team visits in January! By the end of March we hope to have a three-year schedule of recommendations that will work in partnership with the District's Excellence For All goals and initiatives.
Our Emotional/Behavioral project team is up and running, prepared to visit schools and create a template for effective emotional/behavioral service delivery. Stacey McCrath-Smith is our team lead in this project, and again we are grateful for the talented and committed staff members who are working on this key initiative.
We continue to offer Professional Development to all staff, and are excited by the partnership we've formed with Curriculum and Instruction. Our skilled staff are co-teaching the mandatory modules in Math, Literacy, and Writer's Workshop so that a) general education teachers learn how to differentiate instruction and support ALL learners, and b) teachers of special education learn core curriculum along with their colleagues. Cassie Martin, specialist from the University of Washington, continues to provide Professional Development in inclusion with a focus on students on the Autism spectrum, and we are preparing for an full day of professional development on the March 19th waiver day.
I recently met with leaders from the teacher education programs at City University, Seattle University, Seattle Pacific University, and the University of Washington. Students in these pre-service programs are strongly advised to work toward two endorsements--one in a content area and another in special education, reading, or ELL, recognizing that most districts are working toward providing inclusive services. Teacher preparation programs are also training new teachers to work on collaborative teams, and as they place student teachers they want them to experience collaboration and co-teaching in inclusive classrooms. We look forward to deepening our partnerships and aligning our practice with our university colleagues.

See here for information about enrollment and school open houses.
Last week I was able to do a learning walk at Ballard High School, looking for evidence of differentiated instruction, high leverage teaching moves, and students with IEPs having access to general education curriculum. I was impressed by Ballard students and staff and the supportive community they have created.

Tuesday January 19th Events and Updates

2010-01-12T13:21:00.001-08:00

January is a busy month, and we value your time! We realize that we have double-booked two important events on Tuesday, January 19th, and we have some solutions that we hope will bring some peace to the upcoming busy days.

At 5:30 pm on 1/19, there is a family information meeting for students who are rising to new schools and/or services in the JSCEE Auditorium. At 7:00 pm on 1/19, there is a Special Education PTSA general meeting at Roosevelt High School.

Here are our solutions:

1. On Tuesday, January 19th, families who would like their specific questions answered may come prior to the formal presentation, from 5-5:30.

2. The formal informational presentation will conclude by 6:15 sharp, and families will be reminded of and/or excused to attend the PTSA meeting at Roosevelt. (Traffic can be tricky at this time of day, but 45 minutes should work!)

3. An additional informational meeting will be held on Thursday, January 21, at 5:30, for anyfamilies who wish to attend. This meeting will be in room 3606 of the JSCEE.

If you have a 5th grader, please plan to attend the 5th to 6th grade riser meeting on March 2nd from 6-8 pm in the JSCEE Auditorium.

And finally, here's an image from Aki Kurose Middle School, where students are learning to be powerful readers in an inclusive setting.

The teaching point states:

"Good readers monitor their inner voices by questioning what is happening in the text . . ."

Students were reading silently with reading journals open, prepared to "turn and talk" and then write their questions.

Thank you Aki teachers!

Welcome to January-2010-2011 Riser Process

2010-01-05T20:27:00.000-08:00

Welcome to 2010!

If your elementary student is "rising," that is, changing schools and/or programs (i.e., entering Kindergarten from Pre-K, or moving from a T-K to 1st grade), in September 2010, please note the following parent/guardian information:

Elementary Special Education RISERS – Parent Information Event

Please attend one of the two meetings being held to obtain information regarding your child rising into Kindergarten, 1st grade, 3rd grade, or 4th grade

January 12, 2010 (Tuesday) 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence Room 2700

- or -

January 19, 2010 (Tuesday) 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm John Stanford Center for Educational Excellence Room 1005 (Auditorium)

Follow this link for enrollment information.

Look here for a flyer about the upcoming family information events.

December Update

2009-12-14T17:13:00.000-08:00

Welcome to a cold and clear December!

As we continue to work to provide the best possible services for our students, we are becoming more focused on the need to employ principles of "universal design." Universal design is a principle that originated in architecture and industrial design, with the notion that great design takes into account both the purpose or use of the object and the many different users it will serve, including those with disabilities. It is "the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible."(citation here)

Universal design in schools takes into account not only the physical environment and tools for learning--think ramps in schools and signage with braille--but the curriculum and instruction itself. Sheryl Burgstahler writes the following about universal design for instruction:

Universal Design means that, rather than designing your instruction for the average student, you design for potential students with a broad range in ability, disability, age, reading level, learning style, native language, race, ethnicity, and other characteristics. Universal design of instruction (UDI) can be discussed as a process, as a set of strategies applied to specific aspects of instruction, or as a goal.

See the entire article here.

Universal design is, in fact, great differentiated instruction, instruction that takes into account the many different learning styles in any group of students. With a few tangible adjustments to the classroom environment, ALL students can experience more instructional intensity and less frustration, and all classrooms can become more inclusive. Universal instructional design should include one or more of the following:

Multiple means of representation
Multiple means of delivering instruction
Multiple means of expressing knowledge and/or understanding
Multiple means of engagement

At our recent SEAAC (special education advisory and advocacy council) meeting, we had a great presentation by the folks from DO-IT at the University of Washington. They shared the different ways they are using assistive technology to support students with disabilities as they pursue post high-school education. DO-IT works in partnership with Seattle Public Schools to prepare High School students for success in post high-school goals. See their website for information about a college preparation event on April 22nd at Seattle Central Community College.

Aside from great universal design, students may need the additional support of assistive technology. So what is assistive technology?

Assistive technology is any item, piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially off the shelf, modified, or customized, that is used to increase, maintain, or improve the functional capabilities of students with disabilities. In the spirit of universal design, some assistive technology is already available to support students in every classroom in Seattle. For example:

Every classroom has a "presentation station," with a document camera (today's updated version of an overhead projector, pictured above) and a presentation computer so that students can have visual reinforcement at all times
Most classrooms have voice enhancement systems available to provide additional auditory support
Most libraries and many classrooms have access to software that supports the reading and writing process

If your student needs further support from assistive technology, she/he should be assessed by a member of our Assistive Technology team. This referral can be made through your student's IEP teacher, or by contacting the Special Education department directly at 252-0058. An Assistive Technology referral form will soon be available on our website for you to access.

Effective assistive technology can be as simple as a pencil grip that can help a student increase fluency and stamina in writing:

It can also be a portable word-processing keyboard (an "alpha smart"), also helpful for students as they build their stamina as writers:
Students may need to use a number line as they work with addition and subtraction:

A Vanguard speech-generation device helps students with communication:

Please do not hesitate to contact your principal, special education teacher, consulting teacher, or our main Special Education department with any further questions about how we can support your student!

November Update

2009-11-11T10:12:00.000-08:00

(Coach Lindsey Daniels works with a teacher at our November Collaborative Institute)

Welcome to November!

Just a reminder about the title of this site: Students First. We are committed to using "student first" language and practice throughout our school system. We educate students who receive special education services. Our staff support students with disabilities. Our students are students first, and are not defined by categories or disabilities.

A core priority in practice in highly effective Districts and schools throughout the country, and in many excellent schools in Seattle, is to provide services that work in the best possible setting. For some students, direct instruction in a small group setting is the right model for making growth on a key IEP goal. For the same students, learning in the general education classroom with modified or adapted work, perhaps with the support of an additional adult, is the most effective way to make growth in another goal.

Focusing on service delivery helps us to truly provide more individualized instruction that is tailored to a student's IEP goals and objectives, and it means that we are providing access to the least restrictive environment. We provide integrated comprehensive services when our staff members--teachers, instructional assistants, and school leaders--work collaboratively to build schedules that support students in their individualized learning learning plans.

A key to providing services is continual progress monitoring and adjustment when necessary. If our students are not making progress toward their goals, we need to adjust the specially designed instruction--the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction--so that it is more effective.

Last week we held a second Collaborative Institute for school teams who are providing Integrated Comprehensive Services. We had teams from five schools, with instructional assistants, teachers, related service providers, and principals attending. Topics included: effective team building, collaboration and co-teaching, disability awareness and strategies that work, positive behavior supports, and developing powerful service plans for students. Professor Ilene Schwartz joined us for a day of training, with a focus on creating classrooms that support all learners.

As a District we are continuing our focus on training ALL staff in disability awareness and strategies to support all students. In particular we are expanding our professional development in autism spectrum awareness; we know that we are seeing dramatically increasing numbers of students who can thrive when we provide supports and services specific to social, emotional, and sensory needs.

Your teachers and principal are the first people to contact if your student is struggling to reach her/his goals. Each school also has a Consulting Teacher and a Supervisor, another level of support for students and families. See here for links to information about elementary and secondary consulting teachers and supervisors.

Finally, we lost a dear member of our department last week. Consulting teacher Neli Morillo has worked in Seattle Schools special education services for twenty years, and has been a consulting teacher with Middle Schools for more than a decade. Neli was a caring advocate for all students and a wise, supportive colleague. We will miss her deeply.

Thank you for sharing your students with us, and do not hesitate to contact our department directly with any questions or concerns at 252-0058.

Mid-October Update

2009-10-20T07:42:00.000-07:00

Students at Work: This month our schools, staff, and students are settling into powerful teaching and learning. Special Education directors, supervisors, and consulting teachers conduct weekly learning walks to see evidence of a) ALL students having access to high-level curriculum (both materials and instructional practices), b) High Leverage teaching moves, c) differentiated instruction--instruction that is personalized to provide optimal learning for each student, and d) evidence of change leadership throughout the school.

At Hamilton Middle School, students are learning to be powerful readers and writers with the Readers and Writers Workshop models fully in place. All students are learning to be active, engaged, fluent, graceful readers! Here are some reading logs kept by students (a high leverage teaching move!) in a Hamilton classroom:

Community Partnerships: We also know that strong family/school partnerships are key to student success. This Saturday October 17th the Seattle Special Education PTSA and Seattle Public Schools co-sponsored a full day workshop titled Best Practices For Inclusive Schools. Families, teachers, community partners, and school leaders all attended and participated in this event.

Keynote speaker Dr. Elise Frattura speaks below about the history and future of schools, with a focus on the delivery of special education services:

Principal Henterson Carlisle talks about his school's approach to inclusive learning:

Many thanks to all who presented, and to our PTSA who worked tirelessly to make this a wonderful event!

Emotional/Behavior Services Project Launch: We are pleased to announce the launch of our review and restructuring of our services that support students with emotional and behavioral disabilities. This project is at the heart of our work. Read the external review of our services here. We will keep you updated on our progress.

Thank you for sharing the vision of Seattle Public Schools!

September Update

2009-09-28T21:49:00.001-07:00

Thank you to all of the staff, families, and most of all students who have made this such an exciting new year.

A few highlights:

We had our opening meeting of the Special Education Advisory and Advocacy Council. Thank you to all who attended and brought ideas, insights, and issues. The next meeting will be on October 6th at 7 pm. See here for more information.
We also had our opening meeting of the Special Education PTSA. Thank you all for attending and for asking questions that will help to push us forward in our work. Check here for more information about upcoming events, including the October 17th all day family event, "Best Practices For Inclusive Schools" (with special guest Elise Frattura) to be held at the John Stanford Center!
Remember that Integrated Comprehensive Services is not a "program," but rather a best practice approach to providing special education services to our students. If your student is receiving supports through the "ICS" model, please let us know how she/he is doing. E-mail Marni Campbell at macampbell@seattleschools.org.
We are doing weekly learning walks to see how special education services are being provided for students in our schools. A Cleveland High School, all students were engaged in high level writing tasks using the Writer's Workshop model. Posted in the main office were purpose statements from the August professional development days that show how staff members are learning to model strategies that work for students!

Thanks to all of our teachers who are working to make classroom learning work for all students!

Integrated Comprehensive Services-Learning Together

2009-08-18T20:44:00.000-07:00

School teams share ideas and insights at the Summer Collaborative Institute:

In their article "Leading Beyond Compliance: Integrated Comprehensive Services For All Learners," Elise Frattura and Colleen Capper write that "integrated" in ICS

"refers to the environments that all students, regardless of need or legislative eligibility, access throughout their day in school and non-school settings; that is, in these environments, students with a variety of needs and gifts learn together in both small and large groupings that are flexible in nature. A school then becomes a community where all spaces are for all learners and shared in a manner to provide the most synthesized instruction for each student."

The "comprehensive" in ICS

"refers to the array of services and supports in addition to a curriculum and instruction that is differentiated to accommodate various learning needs of children to ensure their school success."

We are taking the first step toward integrated comprehensive services this fall, with a group of Kindergarten and First Grade students assigned to schools close to home, schools where they can potentially stay throughout their K-5 or K-8 experience, schools where they will be truly integrated, learning the same curriculum alongside their peers, and where they will have services provided in the least restrictive environment.

40 Elementary and K-8 schools are ICS schools this fall, with the vision at ALL schools will ultimately provide integrated comprehensive services. ICS schools have received additional staffing, including Instructional Assistants, additional certificated staff, and Instructional Coaches, to help support a more integrated approach to special education services.

This week, August 17-21, over 150 general education and special education teachers, instructional assistants, related service providers, and principals are meeting at Madison Middle school for our K-1 Summer Collaborative Institute, and at West Seattle High School, for the Elementary-Secondary Institute. These institutes are designed to help school staff deepen their understanding about inclusive and integrated services and plan for the coming school year.

We have been thrilled with the turnout and the response to the Institute, with nearly twice the school staff joining us that we anticipated.

On Monday, August 17th, school staff and principals learned about various ways of structuring collaboration and co-teaching in the classroom, and explored their assumptions about teaching and learning.

Becky Clifford, Special Education Director, teaches to a capacity crowd about norms of collaboration:

School Leaders at the Elementary/Secondary Institute enjoy their time together at West Seattle High School:

Special Education Supervisor Geri Diaz facilitates a dialogue about co-teaching and collaboration:

On Tuesday, UW Professor and Director of the Experimental Education Unit Ilene Schwartz taught us about positive behavior supports and reviewed the building blocks of an effective instructional program in a school, which begins with a strong instructional program for all.

Staff members study together:

School Coaches Lindsey Daniels and Kristin Alfonso plan supports for schools: