The purpose of this article is to compel educators to think critically about how the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), a prominent school-based legislation in the United States, and caregiver/parental participation relate to each other and to equity in special education outcomes. I use two illustrative case studies to show how…

School leadership has progressed from a principal-led position to a dual-leader position with assistant principals. Assistant principals have stepped into instructional leadership roles and have been identified as overseeing special education (Best, 2016; Gaston, 2005; Walton, 2008). Despite studies determining that assistant principals are…

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, local education agencies or school districts are responsible to conduct child find activities within their agency or district boundaries. This responsibility entails collaborating with private school personnel on an annual basis. Through this qualitative study with a grounded theory approach,…

The movement toward collaborative models of preservice early childhood preparation, those that attempt to "blend" preparation for both early childhood education (ECE) and early intervention/early childhood special education (EI/ECSE), is entering its fourth decade. This position paper presents a historical analysis of the blended…

This article explores transdisciplinary collaboration and role-release strategies that would allow physical therapists and orientation and mobility (O&M) specialists to more effectively support students with visual impairments (that is, those who are blind or have low vision) and additional disabilities with their expanded core curriculum…

When public charter schools first opened in the early 1990s, each was unique and independent. But as successful public charter schools continued to grow and expand their impact beyond a single site, and as organizations developed school designs that could be implemented at multiple locations, networks of public charter schools emerged. The public…

Given dwindling budgets, collaborations that can enhance effective and efficient use of resources increase in importance. This is particularly important with respect to efforts at schools to provide student and learning supports. Schools that formally connect to work together can be more effective, realize economies of scale, and enhance the way…

Over the past two decades, community organizing has emerged as an effective force for school improvement. In the context of shrinking education funding, stubborn opportunity and achievement gaps between low-income and wealthy children and between children of color and White children, and polarizing debate on school reform, community organizing…

In large numbers of elementary and secondary schools across the United States teachers are being called upon to provide support to colleagues through a process called "instructional coaching." Despite widespread implementation of this role, resulting in part from federal initiatives, there is little consensus regarding its operational…

This paper highlights several current collaborative activities of the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (NECTAC). There are many specific examples of TA (Technical Assistance) collaborations that take place on a regular basis; the seven examples presented here were selected to represent different types of collaboration. The…

Response to Intervention (RTI), as a model for improving services to all students, has been a growing phenomenon since the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004. The National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE) defines RTI as "the practice of (1) providing high-quality…

Public schools often contract with private schools to meet the needs of special-education students. When disagreement exists about placement, parents can forego the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) placement process in exchange for private education which is only partially subsidized by the government. Vouchers would provide…

Highlights the unique needs of students with disabilities who are homeless, legislative mandates for serving these students, and promising practices for overcoming obstacles to service delivery. The practices focus on developing collaborative relationships at multiple levels, creating responsive systems, and providing students with the social and…

Reviews provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and recent court decisions related to inclusion of children with disabilities in typical classrooms; considers various definitions of inclusion; outlines the positions of various proponents and opponents; identifies some problematic issues; proposes criteria for inclusion plans;…

This annual report describes the activities of the four Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Partnerships created by the Office of Special Education Programs to provide reliable information on IDEA. The Partnerships include: (1) the Associations of Service Providers Implementing IDEA Reforms in Education (ASPIIRE) Partnership; (2)…