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"Do I have a right to observe the class before agreeing (or not agreeing) to a placement for my child? The special ed director said I cannot observe the class because of confidentiality issues with the other children." Pete says: I have represented kids with disabilities since 1978. In all these years, I have never had an instance where a school denied a parent, or the parent's private sector expert, the opportunity to observe a potential placement. The school board attorneys with whom I have worked over the years have always permitted observations by parents and the parent's outside experts.   When a school administrator takes this position, it creates an appearance of two things (both bad): (1) that the program is clearly not appropriate and the parent will quickly discover this, and (2) that the school is attempting to keep important information from parents. I think many Hearing Officers and Administrative Law Judges would view a refusal to allow an observation as grounds to find that the proposed placement was not appropriate.

The Preventing Harmful Restraint and Seclusion in Schools Act (H.R. 4247) was introduced by Congressman George Miller (D-CA), Chair of the House Education and Labor Committee and Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference and Co-Chair of the Congressional Down Syndrome Caucus. At the same time, Senator Chris Dodd has introduced a companion bill, S.2860, declaring, “The tragedies associated with the inappropriate use of seclusion and restraint are not only unacceptable, they are unconscionable.” The two bills are almost the same, with only two differences, noted below. The bipartisan House bill will be considered by the full Committee early next year (called “marking up.”)  If the Committee votes in favor of the bill, it will go to the full House for a vote.

What is Response to Intervention? How will these new practices affect struggling children who have not yet been identified with specific learning disabilities? How will this affect the millions of children who have been identified with specific learning disabilities and who are receiving special education services? The devil is in the details. The success of Response to Intervention (RTI) will depend on whether it is appropriately implemented by highly-trained professionals - and this is likely to be a problem.

What is Response to Intervention (RTI) ? How will these new practices affect struggling children who have not yet been identified with specific learning disabilities? How will this affect the millions of children who have been identified with specific learning disabilities and who are receiving special education services? The devil is in the details. The success of Response to Intervention (RTI) will depend on whether it is appropriately implemented by highly-trained professionals - and this is likely to be a problem.

When IDEA was reauthorized in 2004 some new buzz words emerged. One term is Response to Intervention (RTI).  Although response to intervention is not actually new, it is very new to IDEA, parents, and to many school districts.

Children whose parents are active in any of the branches of the military often have a rather non-traditional educational experience. These children transfer schools often and sometimes attend school overseas. Although military children may not be educated in the U.S., they are still entitled to a Free, Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). The information on the Military and Department of Defense page describe various aspects of a military special education education and the unique issues these children face, including frequent transfers in and out of schools with different levels of instructional programming, and the emotional issues that accompany the deployment of family members.

If your child needs Extended School Year Services (ESY) but the school does not want to provide these services, you need to learn about the legal requirements for ESY and how to use advocacy strategies to negotiate with the school.

Many children with disabilities have difficulties with reading, writing, and math. Some children have problems with vision, hearing, listening and/or communicating. Others have physical, mobility, and motor problems. Assistive technology helps children use their strengths to compensate or "work around" weaknesses caused by the disability. Assistive technology includes "devices" and "services."

IDEA 2004 requires that students with disabilities be provided with physical education. If your child has a disability and an IEP, the school must provide physical education as part of your child's special education program. Many children benefit from adapted physical education. Because physical education is a required component of special education, your child's physical education teacher should be included as a member of the IEP team.

Quality special education services are intensive, individualized and expensive. Because parents want quality services for their children, parent-school conflict is normal, predictable . . . and inevitable.

Educators believe they are “the experts” in educating children. Some educators and service providers feel threatened by strong, articulate parents who are active advocates for their children. How do schools deal with perceived threats? Some schools try to limit parents’ ability to advocate for their children.

In this article, you will learn how to manage a crisis with the school. We describe typical parent-school crises that cause parents to seek outside help. You will learn that a crisis has two sides: danger and opportunity. We will describe how to avoid common pitfalls and provide strategies you can use to weather a crisis.

Many parents have questions about what to do when they are presented with an IEP that is not appropriate for their child. You should advise the IEP team that you don’t think the IEP is appropriate, that it does not provide your child with enough help or the right kind of help. You should use facts to support your position (i.e., facts from an evaluation of your child from a private sector evaluator, graphs of your child's test scores).

Good records are essential to effective advocacy!

Progress monitoring is a scientifically based practice used to assess your child's academic progress and evaluate the effectiveness of instruction. Progress monitoring tells the teacher what your child has learned and what still needs to be taught.

We receive many questions from parents, teachers, and health care providers about special education services for children with autism. If you are a parent, you need to educate yourself about your child's disability, effective educational methods and medical treatments, and how to present your child's problems and needs to school staff so they want to help. On the Autism, PDD & Asperger Syndrome page, you will find FAQs, articles, legal resources, recommended books, free publications, and a short list of information and support groups.

Autism touches all of us. . . through our children, grandchildren or the children of our friends. It is time to take action to combat this scourge that is stealing the minds of our children. If you or someone you know has a child with autism, here are some tips from a family that has been traveling the path for the last five years.

My twin boys, Alex and Blake, were about 7 weeks premature. Alex cried all the time. When Blake began to talk, he pronounced the letter "r" like the letter "w." Little did I know I would soon begin the journey of my life. I would cry oceans of tears for my children before I began a path of discovery that would forever change my life.

Susan contacted Wrightslaw in 2006. In an email she ranted (her words) about her children's school system. When she received our auto-response, she replied with "thanks for another door slammed in the face of my child." Then Susan received a personal reply from Pam Wright. Pam suggested that she stop playing the victim and do what was necessary to be an effective advocate for her children. And that's exactly what she did!

In this article, you will learn how to manage a crisis with the school. We describe typical parent-school crises that cause parents to seek outside help. You will learn that a crisis has two sides: danger and opportunity. We will describe how to avoid common pitfalls and provide strategies you can use to weather a crisis.

"My daughter has made little or no progress after years of special education. Her IEPs contain vague subjective goals and objectives. If our case goes to due process, is the school liable for not providing an appropriate education? Or, is this the responsibility of the parent who signed the IEP?"

Question: What should parents do when services in their child's IEP are not being provided? Answer: When services are not delivered under an Individualized Educational Plan (IEP), there are steps parents can take both to enforce the IEP and to obtain compensatory services to make up for the lost services.

Creating an IEP with a team of people who are all there to design a good educational program for one unique child can be a pleasure. It can also be very productive. When the whole team has the same level of understanding about IEPs, it is even better.  Sounds like crazy talk?  Just ask those who have seen it happen.  The big winner here is the child.

According to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 50% of children are bullied and l0% are victims of bullying on a regular basis. Kids who have learning disabilities are especially vulnerable to bullying problems. On this page you will find information about bullying and harassment, prevention, legal decisions about harassment, and effective ways to respond to bullying.