Newsletter
January 2006
Newsletter
January 2006
Officers:
President: Kathie Dowell
kadowell@comcast.net
President Elect: John Somers
jsomers@uindy.edu
Secretary: Marcia Piercy
mpiercy@hsmjs.org
Treasurer: Patti Buchanan
pbuchana@bsu.edu
Membership: Brooke Marsh
bmarsh@wayne.k12.in.us
CAN Coordinator: Gillian Johnson
gillianjohns@hotmail.com
Legislative Representative: June Robinson Evans
junesped@msn.com
INCEC Winter 2006 Conference
The INCEC committee would like to invite you to
attend our Winter 2006 Conference--Knowledge
for A-L-L (Assessment-Learning-Literacy) on March 4 at the University of
Indianapolis. Registration will begin at
Poster sessions will be presented during the
registration period. Five concurrent sessions will begin at 9:00 a.m. and a
luncheon will be provided which will feature a keynote speaker who will discuss
IDEA 2004.
The conference committee
wants to encourage all CEC members to invite a general educator, parent(s),
student teacher, etc. to the conference. There will be specific sessions for
parents, as well as a variety of literacy and assessment topics for educators.
Some of the topics will include family/educator collaboration; early
transitioning; high school to college transitioning; reading diagnostic
reports, ISTEP and NWEA; highly qualified teacher/HOUSSE; secondary education
reading strategies; designing IEPs through facilitation; and
response-to-intervention (RTI).
The conference committee
will accept any SCEC or
The executive board of
INCEC has made a conscientious decision to create a conference that is
reasonably priced for students and parents, as well as educators. The
registration fee is $20 which includes lunch. INCEC will be awarding a $100
scholarship to a university student in attendance at the conference. Check the
registration table for more information on future scholarships. Please contact
Candy Joles cjoles@uindy.edu or
Leadership
Training Institute July 2005
Steve Crites, Kathie
Dowell and June Evans attended the Leadership Training Institute at
While it was great to
network with other CEC leaders, the highlight of the trip was getting to shop
in the CEC bookstore!
Connecting with Families at the
In 2001, the faculty in Teacher Education at the
University of Indianapolis received a grant from their Center of Excellence in
the Leadership of Learning to fund the Family
as Scholars program. The goal of the program was to infuse special
education courses with a child-centered, family-focused curriculum. It was
believed that this infusion would better prepare teachers-in-training to become
aware of the needs of children with disabilities and their families; to develop
skills of strengths-based, collaborative practice; to respect and solicit
family voice and choice in educational decisions; and, to meet INTASC and
Exceptional Needs standards for beginning teachers on building productive and
respectful professional-family partnerships.
In order to lend reality to the program, family
members of children with disabilities were recruited to co-teach the Family and
Professional Collaboration courses and to establish opportunities for students
to have personal contact with participant adults and their children. Hearing
family members tell their stories about raising a child with a disability, and
the challenges and biases they often face when trying to negotiate school and
service environments would exert a powerful influence on students and sensitize
them to family issues. It was felt by faculty that both pre-service and
practicing teachers often harbor stereotypes about families, especially those
that have children with disabilities. Enabling students to interact with
families would assist in dispelling stereotypes and help them reconstruct a
more grounded perspective.
After three years, the program has proved a success.
Students have visited families in their homes, taken field trips to community
events, engaged in educational and recreational activities on campus, shared
meals, participated in a week-long day camp, and presented together at local
conferences. The participating families
were offered a modest stipend for their time and effort and to defray costs
associated with meals and travel. Unfortunately, the grant has expired but the
experiences associated with families have continued on a limited basis.
The need to include family-oriented curriculum and
involvement in teacher education programs is being recognized across the nation.
It is necessary that we prepare teachers who know how to communicate and
collaborate with families and recognize that children learn when teachers and
families work together.
John Somers
SCEC at Indiana University-Bloomington
is growing, and on the move!
The Indiana University-Bloomington Chapter of
Student Council for Exceptional Children (SCEC) is experiencing a growth in
student membership and level of participation in the community. President Lisa Gilbert and Secretary Becky
Gensler attribute this to the SCEC’s effort to reach out to all students on
campus who are interested in making a difference. Recently, this outreach included hosting a
panel discussion of education professionals on the topic of inclusion. Many IU students attended the session,
including students from non-education majors.
Plans are underway to include more panel discussions in the near future.
Additionally, students have been involved in a monthly group program at Stone
Belt and volunteering their time to work with persons with disabilities in the
community. Also, as part of the IU
fundraiser for the Special Olympics of Indiana-Spirit of the Sport-the students
sponsored a basketball team and supported the team by coaching and cheering
them on. In November, they plan to
volunteer at the local Special Olympic bowling tournament-which SCEC has been
involved with for the past few years. Being active, caring and moving forward-a formula
for success for the SCEC at IU!
INCCBD
Moving in the Right Direction
Indiana Council for
Children with Behavior Disorders (INCCBD) has been meeting at the ED Conference
in Nashville on Thursday evenings for the past several years. We want to extend
an invitation to everyone to come to the conference and then meet with INCCBD.
This past year an award for an ED teacher was given
to Dan Marsh. He received a financial scholarship to purchase materials from
the Behavioral Institute of Children and Adolescence (BICA), as well as one-year
membership to
In 2005 INCCBD was fortunate enough to be able to
give a monetary donation to the Tara Reilly Scholarship fund. Everyone at the
conference had a great time bidding on the Silent Auction items, the
fundraising mechanism for the awards. The Silent Auction will be conducted
again at the 2006 ED Conference in Nashville. If your school or co-op would
like to donate a basket please let Candy Joles know at cjoles@comcast.net. An anonymous donor
gave several shirts for INCCBD to sell as a fundraiser; we really appreciate
that person’s generosity. On behalf of all those involved with INCCBD we would
like to extend our gratitude for Dr. Sheldon Braaten allowing INCCBD to meet
and implement the fundraising projects in conjunction with the ED Conference in
Nashville.
INCCBD slated officers for the 2005-2006 school year
are: President – Candy Joles; Vice President – Steve Crites; Past President –
Marcia Piercy; Secretary – Shawn Balay; Treasurer – Kathie Dowell. Feel free to
contact the officers if you have any suggestions, questions, or nominations for
the ED teacher and paraprofessional.
Webpage Information
Visit the Indiana Council for Exceptional Children
website at www.incec.org.
Highly Qualified Teachers
Are special education teachers required to be “highly
qualified” under the No Child Left Behind Act?
Yes. IDEA aligns “highly qualified” requirements for
special education teachers with those requirements established under the No
Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). This means that all special education teachers
who teach core academic subjects must meet the “highly qualified” definition in
NCLB by the end of the 2005-2006 school year. The core academic subjects, as
defined in NCLB, are English, reading or language arts, mathematics, science,
foreign languages, civics and government, economics, arts, history, and
geography.
However, IDEA clarifies the definition of a highly
qualified teacher in NCLB to address the unique needs of special education
teachers. IDEA requires that special education teachers obtain certification as
a special education teacher or pass the state special education teacher
licensing exam, and hold a license to teach in the state as a special education
teacher. In addition, special education teachers may not have had their
certification or licensure requirements waived on an emergency, temporary, or
provisional basis, and they must hold at least a bachelor’s degree.
Special education teachers can fall into one of several
categories depending on whether they teach one or more core academic subject
areas, and whether they teach students who are assessed using alternate
achievement standards. Requirements for specific types of special education
teachers are discussed in greater detail below.
What requirements apply to special education teachers who
teach core academic subjects exclusively to children who are assessed against
alternate achievement standards?
All teachers have the ability to demonstrate that they are
highly qualified by meeting the requirements of NCLB. However, Congress
recognized that these requirements did not completely reflect the needs of some
special education teachers, and to assist special education teachers working to
become highly qualified, added greater flexibility and modified those
requirements in IDEA.
Special education teachers who teach exclusively to
children who are assessed against alternate achievement standards (those
children with the most significant cognitive disabilities) may demonstrate
subject knowledge and teaching skills in the areas of the basic elementary
school curriculum by passing a rigorous state test, or demonstrate competence
in those core academic subject areas he or she teaches based on a high
objective uniform state standard of evaluation (HOUSSE) as defined in NCLB. At
the state’s discretion, teachers who provide instruction above the elementary
school level may demonstrate subject matter knowledge appropriate to the level
of instruction provided, as defined by the state.
What requirements apply to special education teachers who
teach multiple core academic subjects?
Special education teachers who teach
multiple core academic subjects may simply meet the requirements of NCLB that
apply to any new or veteran elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher for
each academic subject they teach. Or, special education teachers may take
advantage of new flexibility that was added in the 2004 IDEA reauthorization.
Under IDEA, veteran teachers may demonstrate their competence in all of the
core academic subjects they teach through the state-developed high objective
uniform state standard of evaluation (HOUSSE) option. Also, new special
education teachers who are highly qualified in mathematics, language arts, or
science may demonstrate competence in the other core academic subjects they
teach by also completing the HOUSSE option for those subjects within two years
of their initial date of employment.
What requirements apply to special education teachers who
do not teach core academic subjects?
IDEA recognizes the important contributions of special
education teachers who do not teach core academic subjects, but who provide
special education services to students with disabilities. Such services may
include adjustments to the learning environment, modifications of instructional
methods, adaptation of curricula, the use of positive behavioral supports and
interventions, supporting a regular education teacher in the classroom, or
applying appropriate accommodations to meet the needs of individual children.
Such teachers can meet the “highly qualified” requirement by obtaining special
education certification as defined by the state and holding at least a
Bachelor’s degree.
Committee on Education and the Workforce
John Boehner (R-OH), Chairman Subcommittee on
Education Reform Mike Castle (R-DE),
Chairman
Newsletter Submissions
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INCEC Littlejohn Scholarship
INCEC is pleased to
announce that we will be accepting applications for the INCEC Littlejohn Scholarship. If you are a special education major
who will be student teaching in the 2005-2006 school year (fall or spring
semester), send in your application! The Littlejohn scholarship is geared to
those who plan on making a positive difference as a special education
professional.
Who: Special education
majors (IN-SCEC members will be given preference)
What: $500 scholarship paid
to the recipient at the Winter 2006 INCEC conference. (as well as conference
registration!) The winner is expected to attend the INCEC Spring 2006
conference in Indianapolis, IN on March 4th, 2006.
When: Applications are due
by
To Do:
Obtain and complete an application from the Indiana CEC website,
http://www.incec.org.
Get it signed by your SCEC advisor or sped professor.
Mail to Kathie Dowell at INCEC before
Or email to: kadowell@comcast.net
Or fax to 317-298-4655
INCEC Calendar
Esch Hall
Switzer Hall
April
5-9, 2006
Salt Palace
April
27-28, 2006 EH Conference
Brown County Inn
Student Work
INCEC would like to include student work in future
newsletters. If you have pieces of
writing or pictures you and the family would like submit, please forward to
Kathie Dowell.
Message from the President
For the last 25 years I have worked with many
amazing students. This year I have had
the privilege to work with a wonderful young man who has been able to teach me
and the other teachers on our seventh grade team a reminder lesson on the
importance of what we do on a daily basis.
The following essay was written as a 7th grade assignment,
“Speak Up, Speak Out.” Chris is the son
of Steve and
Dawn McGrath.
Chris McGrath
Autism:
A Gift of Challenge
I was born with autism,
but my parents did not know it, until I was almost three. Looking back, there
is evidence that I could read, before I was two. However, when I was three
years old, I spoke only twenty words. I had memorized many videocassettes, from
start to finish, with background music included, but I would not talk to
people. My mother taped pictures and words all over my house, so I knew what to
say. When I was six years old, if someone could tell me their age, I could name
who was President of the United States at the time of their birth.
Now, I am a twelve-year
old who successfully made it to seventh grade. I am good at drawing details,
especially maps. Sometimes, I want to make my work perfect. I can remember
things that most people forget. I need to keep my life in order, because I can
get through the day pretty well. Sometimes, I am compelled to rearrange things
or repeat what I am saying, until I say it just right. People are usually kind,
but I suppose they lose patience with me sometimes. I wonder if kids make fun
of me, but I am never sure why they would do that. I would never make fun of
someone else, because I couldn’t use put-downs. We are all doing the best we can,
in our lifetimes.
Autism can make things
difficult. Sometimes I hear, see, feel,
smell and taste
many things all at once and my brain does not tell me, which is the
most important thing to focus on. Temple Grandin, an expert with autism, says
that the brains of people with autism are like those of animals of prey. The
jumpy anxiety that keeps these animals alive is unnecessary and must be
medicated in humans. I take seven pills a day, to help me stay calm and
connected.
I have spent my life learning appropriate social
skills, in the same way that other people have to study their notes for a test.
I did not have to be taught to read, draw, or make music because that came to
me as naturally as social skills come to other people. You can learn social skills, especially at
the social skills camp at Brebeuf. Mrs.
Susan McDowell, who taught my dad about autism when I was two years old, has
helped me learn social skills this summer.
At camp, I drew pictures, learned social rules, went on field trips, and
played some games with other people my age.
I worked on saying, “Excuse me,” when it is appropriate; keeping
personal space of one arm length away; starting and ending a conversation;
speaking about things that are appropriate; and raising my hand and waiting for
the teacher to call on me. We all have
strengths that make us valuable. People with autism appreciate friendship, as
well as everyone else.
I am encouraged about my
future. I have special talents that help me succeed in school. I will find a job
that is rewarding, like being a teacher, a cartographer, a computer a
technician, a graphic artist, a mentor for other kids or an author. I believe I
can really be good at being a speaker, giving a speech about valuing the
differences in people. I believe that I will always have friends who understand
me. My future is a gift of challenge.
Knowledge for A-L-L!
Assessment • Learning • Literacy
University
of Indianapolis, Schwitzer Student Center
Access
literacy teaching strategies and various assessments
Access
educational resources and influence positive change in the education system
Make
the legislative process work for you at both state and national levels
Take advantage of this full day of knowledge and
empowerment for family members, educators, and administrators of individuals
with special needs! For more information contact Candace Joles at cjoles@uindy.edu
If you plan to
spend the night, we suggest the following hotel. Please let them know you are with INCEC –
University of Indianapolis to receive the discounted rate. The rooms need to be reserved by
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