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Cases involving IDEA typically begin or end with the issuance of a prior written notice; either the school district has refused to initiate a service or proposed it, and parents disagree. Last week, the Ninth Circuit expanded this traditional framework.

The Maryland State Department of Education has unveiled a powerful video debunking the myths of gifted education; rebutting misconceptions that students who are gifted will excel without addressing their unique learning needs.  Spearheaded and performed by students, the Top Ten Myths in Gifted Education eight minute video provides insight into the challenges that many students with gifts and talents address in accessing services and supports. 

Hawaii, like all but four states, is experiencing an extreme fiscal crisis. As a partial response, Hawaii and its teacher’s union agreed to a contract for the 2009-2010 school year with 17 fewer days, dubbed “Furlough Fridays.” This cut stood to save the state thousands of dollars, but also meant that all students in Hawaii would lose approximately 10% of instructional time. Parents of students with disabilities sued to prevent the state from implementing this plan, arguing the lost time was a change of placement and violated IDEA’s stay put provision. The State went forward with the cost cutting measure, which began regardless of the suit in October of 2009. Late last week, the Ninth Circuit disagreed with parents and ruled that “system wide changes are not meant to be covered by IDEA’s stay put provision.”

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is calling on special educators to take personal responsibility for the success of their students after graduation. “Today a significant gap exists between our aspirations and reality,” Duncan said of students with disabilities. “The graduation rate, postsecondary education rate and employment rate are all increasing but they are all still, frankly, far too low.”

This morning, I read an article online at Education Week titled, "Where Are the Autism Teaching Competencies?" (1)  This commentary calls attention to the fact that only a few states have set forth autism competencies for teachers. What is most interesting is that a few states, both Virginia and California, have successfully this accomplished this task. Yet the majority of states haven't figured create or adapt currently existing autism teaching competencies.

In August, 2011 the Department of Education (DOE) released a report providing recommendations for improved equal opportunities for physical education for students with disabilities in response to a 2010 Government Accountability Office (GOA) report which states that local and state officials would find more federal guidance helpful in this arena. The recommendations from the DOE include the use of specialized equipment and tools such as Play Station, Wii and Xbox which simulate participation. It is the participation, however, which is seen as the key component for physical education whether the students participating have disabilities or not. The report notes that it is only through participation that all students learn about teamwork and sportsmanship.