New State, New Rules

So. Here we are. Week Three. Only 922 hours left to go (give or take).

Not a whole lot has changed since my last post. Things are still relatively slow, but this could also be a result of the shortened weeks I’ve had. Thanks to Labor Day, going back to Boston, Rosh Hashanah, and Yom Kippur I have yet to/will not have a full week this month. I know, I live a difficult life :)

Something I have been really trying to sink my teeth into is the differences (and similarities) between my home training state (Massachusetts) and my current internship state (Connecticut). They are two different ways of approaching Response to Intervention (RtI) and special education, but are united by the foundational principles and Federal Laws and Regulations.

Here in CT, IEP meetings are actually called Planning and Placement Team meetings (PPT’s for short). I did some research as to the whole process to understand it from the student support team level to the referral process and special education eligibility.

As in many other states, Connecticut is working to develop a Scientific Research-Based Intervention framework (SRBI aka RtI). SRBI looks just like the mainstream notion of RtI, three tiers and all. As a refresher: Tier One includes universal interventions available to all students; Tier Two includes extra support for students in addition to the general education curriculum; and Tier Three includes more intensive and individualized instruction for children who need more support. The tiers are meant to be fluid, allowing children to move between them as needed. That means schools are NOT to label a child as a “Tier Two kid.” Instead, the child may receive Tier Two support in only math and access the rest of his education as would be expected. Also, Tier Two and Three interventions are meant to be short-term and catch students up in areas they may be falling behind. Constant data collection is essential in order to determine whether or not an intervention is working. Depending on student response to Tier Three interventions, the TEAM determines whether or not the special education evaluation process would be necessary.

(Image from Using Scientific Research-Based Interventions: Improving Education forAll Students)

So, this all sounds familiar, right? Good.

Now its time to trip you up… just a little.

Once a referral gets made, either by the teacher or parent, a PPT is scheduled and notice is given 5 school days prior. But wait! A new special education law in CT mandates that a Pre-PPT meeting be held for initial evaluations to go over the PPT process and parent concerns. This can be held immediately before the referral PPT and can include only the coordinator and/or other key people.

At the referral PPT meeting the TEAM determines whether or not an initial evaluation is necessary. This would be the time to pull out the data you had been collecting during the intervention periods according to SRBI. If the TEAM decides to go forward then the consent is signed at the meeting for the appropriate evaluations (e.g., psychological, educational, speech, etc). At this point in time the school has 30 school days to complete the evaluations. Once the evaluations have been completed within the given time, the PPT will meet again to go over the results. Parents have the right to evaluations two days prior to this meeting. At this PPT meeting the TEAM must decide whether or not the student is eligible for special education, and if so under what disability category. The TEAM will then discuss appropriate goals and service delivery in order to help the student make academic/social/emotional/behavioral progress. It is important that the implementation dates are accurate on the student’s IEP.

After the PPT meeting the IEP must be sent to the parents within 5 school days. The timeline between the completion of the evaluation and the receipt of the IEP is 45 school days. After the receipt of the IEP, parents/guardians have 30 days to respond to either accept or reject the plan in whole or part. Once the parent responds accepting the IEP, the school will implement the proposed services. Based on this timeline it has been recommended that the implementation date be listed as five school days after the meeting date. It is also important to note that the implementation date and end date of services are the same thing. The end date should not be the next meeting date. This allows services from a previous IEP to continue while the school awaits acceptance of the new IEP, thus remaining in compliance.

Now, this isn’t that confusing or different. (Although, the IEPs look incredibly different!). The same premise still exists, as well as all mandated timelines. The major differences between MA and CT process are the Pre-PPT and referral PPT meeting.

(Image from IEP Manuals and Forms)

For more information on the CT Planning and Placement Team process, check out the following resources:

A Parent’s Guide to Special Education

Using Scientific Research-Based Interventions: Improving Education for All Students 

IEP Manual and Forms 

Special Education Timeline 

Until next thyme,

Erika

Goal Writing

First off, look at me posting twice this week! (::happy dance that looks a little like Carlton on Fresh Prince::)


Tonight's post sadly comes out of frustration. Remember earlier this week when I mentioned I was enjoying having nothing to do? Well, that's changed a bit. I had an annual meeting regarding a student I work with. Long story short (and confidentiality issues), we have decided to add a formal counseling goal surrounding some frustration/emotion regulation/anger management challenges. Sweet. Exactly what was need. Oh wait, except I now entirely responsible for his meeting of this goal (aside from the teeny responsibility he has to listen to me and use the coping skills we discuss--re:sarcasm). 

So, here I am tonight trying to write a goal for him. Then I remember, we have never talked about goal writing in my program (either that, or I wasn't paying attention. If you know me, this is highly unlikely). Alas, what is a girl to do? Answer: consult the interweb! I learned that there are things called "IEP Goal Banks." Who knew?? Well, I do not encourage one to rely solely on this service, it is quite helpful. These banks served as a foundation for where to start and ideas for potential benchmarks. I also rummaged through my supervisor's office today and her many organized binders of resources to find some information on goal writing. 


I have just sent off my goal to my other supervisor for review. Even told him to critique away, which is definitely not me. (Disclosure: I am extremely sensitive and do not take constructive/critical feedback well. I take it as a failure. Funny, especially since I want someone to give me things I can work on and ask for it. Where was my school psychologist when I was younger to identify these internal issues I have?!?!). 


Below I have listed my goal and benchmarks. Feel free to critique, especially since it is my first attempt at writing any goals ever. period. (I have obviously cleansed the goal/benchmarks and have not included identifying information). 

Goal

X will identify and manage his frustration on a daily basis with minimal teacher support as measured by classroom observations and teacher report.

Benchmarks

•           X will be able to identify situations and personal triggers in which he gets frustrated.
•           X will be able to distinguish between appropriate and inappropriate behaviors for expressing his frustration.
•           X will be able to be able to identify appropriate situations and for exhibiting appropriate and expected behavior responses.
•           X will decrease his use of the ‘walk away’ strategy in the classroom inappropriately (i.e., without permission and disrespectfully).
•           X will ask for teacher permission to take a break (‘walk away’) when he is feeling frustrated, leaving in a respectful manner and for an expected amount of time (approximately five minutes).
•          X will be able to choose from a reference list of appropriate alternative strategies with a reminder from his teachers in the school environment.

Until next thyme,
Erika

Master Erika

So here I am. Three months into starting my second year placement. As of yesterday I can officially call myself a "Master," which means young grasshoppers I hold all knowledge. ..or I WISH I did!

$40,000 piece of paper

MSPP Class of 2013

Yours Truly

In my time this academic year my experiences are vastly different from last year.  I'm gaining a lot more experience in my classes with report writing, social emotional assessment, and counseling work. My practicum supervision is just that: supervision. What's going well? Not so well? Where do you need support and how can you get it? At my placement I am branching out and coming into my own. I feel great about a report I turned in and got positive feedback. Even though my skills are still young, its great to have praise to motivate me to the next level (hint, hint educators).  I am also expanding my cultural repertoire.  I am now in a school in a higher socioeconomic status compared to my first year placement in Boston. I am in a middle school compared to elementary school which is a whole other ball game. Except, I'm starting to really dig this ball game. I'm enjoying what adolescents have to offer me. The conversations. Real life learning opportunities. Discussions about student needs WITH the student, not about the student. Helping students gain more independence.

Speaking of independence, I have an anecdote. Last week I participated in a re-evaluation meeting for an eighth grader. He seems unmotivated to his teachers. Does the bare minimum. Says he has no homework (Yeah, right!). Only cares about football. Testing was pretty average, other than low processing speed. His writing isn't great, but that's most likely due to the reciprocal relationship between his dislike and lack of reading. He feels he doesn't need his learning center time (small group with a special education teacher in addition to regular education classes). So, based on testing and his motivation, the team has decided to cut back on learning center time. This gives him what he wants with the understanding he must prove himself. He is now responsible for his own learning. Sink or swim time. His progress will be monitored and if he isn't up to par, back to learning center he goes. After a conversation with the student and his agreement to this plan, he has now gotten (part of) what he wanted. I'll be interested to see how this one turns out. 

These discussions with students and the hope to help them gain independence is something I love about this year. Getting to understand students on a deeper level is so critical. Its one thing to evaluate a student and assume we know what they need, but its more meaningful to find a way to include them in the process. This is something I hope to work on as I continue to work with these students this year.

Sidenote: If anyone reading this blog is interested in learning more about school psychology as a profession or about MSPP feel free to contact me by leaving a comment and I will be in touch!

Until next thyme,

Erika