Inclusion & ARDs for regular education teachers Federal rules for IDEA require that “to the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities ... are educated with children who are nondisabled; and that ... removal of children with disabilities from the regular [classroom] occurs only if the ... disability is such that education in regular classes with the use of supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily.” State rules provide that support services include, but are not limited to, co-teaching, direct instruction to special education students, collaborative planning, small group instruction, or other support services determined necessary by the admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee. TCTA-initiated legislation and TEA rules require school districts to develop a process for regular education teachers teaching special education students to request a review of and provide input into the development of a student’s individualized education program. The process must include a provision for a timely district response to the request and district notification to the student’s parent of the district’s response. TEA rules also require each school district to ensure that each teacher involved in a student’s instruction has the opportunity to request assistance regarding the implementation of the student’s IEP. State law and TEA rules provide that the regular education teacher who serves as a member of a student’s ARD committee must, to the extent practicable, be a regular education teacher who is responsible for implementing a portion of the student’s IEP. However, if issues considered at an ARD meeting do not
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require a specific teacher’s participation, the parents and the district can agree in writing that the teacher need not attend. If a specific teacher’s participation is required, the parents and the district can agree to have that teacher provide information in writing, in lieu of attending. State rules provide that all ARD committee members must have the opportunity to participate in a collaborative manner in developing the IEP. A committee decision concerning required elements of the IEP must be made by mutual agreement of the required members if possible. TCTA-initiated legislation and TEA rules require that each member of the ARD committee who disagrees with the IEP developed by the ARD committee is entitled to include a statement of disagreement in the IEP. TCTA members who have questions or problems regarding inclusion issues may call the TCTA Legal Department at 888879-8282.
Resources for teachers of students with special health needs
TEA is required to establish and maintain a website (https:// goo.gl/Hq6Y0j) that provides resources for teachers of students with special health needs. It must include information on the treatment and management of chronic illnesses and how such illnesses impact a student’s well-being or ability to succeed in school. It also must provide information on food allergies that are common among students, including how to prevent exposure to a specific food when necessary to protect a student’s health and how to treat a student suffering from an allergic reaction to a food.
