Children & Youth Action Network
(CAN) Reports

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Judy B. Engelhard, CAN Coordinator for the Division for Learning Disabilities, provides brief reports for TeachingLD.org so that visitors can keep informed about important developments in policies affecting students with learning disabilities and their teachers. TeachingLD.org is pleased to offer this page as a place for people concerned with learning disabilities to keep up to date.

8 June 2006

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION RELEASES TOOLKIT ON TEACHING AND ASSESSING STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

On Tuesday, April 25, 2006 the U.S. Department of Education released a comprehensive toolkit that provides information on designing and implementing assessments for students with disabilities. The toolkit, titled Toolkit on Teaching and Assessing Students with Disabilities, is divided into seven sections: models for large-scale assessment, technical assistance products, assessment, instructional practices, behavior, accommodations and resources. The assessment portion of the toolkit includes a discussion of progress monitoring and response to intervention as well as guidance on the 2 percent assessment option (read CEC's comments on 2 percent assessment option).

To access the toolkit website, visit: http://www.osepideasthatwork.org/toolkit/index.asp

UPDATE ON FINAL RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR IDEA 2004

The final rules and regulations for implementing the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004) have not been published. The Office of Special Education Programs reports they should be ready before the opening of school.

REAUTHORIZATION OF NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND (NCLB)

In 2007, Congress is expected to reauthorize, or rewrite, the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Many activities related to reauthorization are currently underway (see below).

Congress Holds Hearings on NCLB

Congress is holding a series of hearings to address the implementation and impact of the law on a variety of populations, including students with disabilities. The House Education and the Workforce Committee will continue to have hearings focusing on topics such as:

• The impact of NCLB on students with disabilities and English language learners;
• Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) and how schools and districts are working to improve outcomes for students;
• The impact of varying subgroup sizes;
• The use of growth models and how they may be incorporated into NCLB accountability systems;
• The measurement of graduation rates under NCLB;
• The role of academic assessments used to determine student proficiency in math and reading;
• Parental involvement;
• School choice and supplemental educational services;
• Teacher quality standards

NCLB Commission

The President appointed former Governor and Secretary of Health and Human Services, Tommy Thompson and former Governor Ray Barnes to lead the Commission on No Child Left Behind. The Commission has been conducting hearings to assist in the formulation of policy recommendations to Congress in preparation for reauthorization. To keep up with activities and reports of the Commission or to share your views on NCLB, visit: www.nclbcommission.org.

• The next hearing is June 9 in Madison, Wisconsin - Successful Interventions: Helping Schools Achieve Academic Success

On May 5, the Commission released a report titled Commission Staff Research Report: Children with Disabilities and LEP Students: Their Impact on the AYP Determinations of Schools. The Commission analyzed achievement data from the 2004-2005 academic school year in California, Florida, Michigan, Georgia and Pennsylvania for students with disabilities and limited English proficient (LEP). The findings of the Commission are consistent with CEC's view that students with disabilities are not solely to blame for schools failing to make adequate yearly progress (AYP). In fact, the report found that "even when these subgroups [students with disabilities and limited English proficient] do no meet their annual targets, they are very often not the sole reason a school is not identified as not making AYP."

Read the Commission on NCLB full report.