Overview

SPED Staff

Teachers

Students

Parents

Contact Us

SPECIAL EDUCATION IPSWICH HIGH SCHOOL

Information for Parents

Welcome to the Special Education Department at Ipswich High School. This web site is designed to help you understand the processes, resources and requirements for special education. This program follows Federal and state laws, regulations and guidelines for special education. This Web site explains the process required for identifying students with special education needs. It also describes the services and assistance available to help your child make effective academic progress.

The special education program is based on the Federal law for special education (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act - IDEA) and the Massachusetts Special Education Law (MGL c. 71B). These laws protect students with disabilities who are eligible for special education services. The laws and regulations guarantee each student an Individualized Education Program(IEP) designed to meet his or her unique educational needs.

The Massachusetts law requires that all special education students be educated in the least restrictive environment, they have access to all regular education classes and programs, and they receive the appropriate accommodations and assistance they need to be successful.

There is an excellent reference document called “A Parent’s Guide to Special Education.”  Written by the Federation for Children with Special Needs in collaboration with the Massachusetts Department of Education, the Guide is a good resource for parents and contains information on the Special Education laws and process. 

The Parent’s Guide is available at http://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/parents.html.

About Us

The Special Education Department at Ipswich High School offers special education teachers, para-professionals and teacher assistants to support students and regular education teachers. This trained and certified staff enhances and complements the regular education teachers to be supportive and responsive to all students in the general education classroom.

At Ipswich High School, parents are full partners throughout the entire special education process. You know your child best and have seen your child in different situations over time.

Students are an integral part of yearly meetings and the planning of services. When your child is 14 years of age (sometimes younger, if appropriate), the law includes the student at Team meetings as a full participant. At Ipswich High School , students are included in their meetings for several reasons:

• The meetings enhance the students’ understanding of their potential, demystifying their disability and help develop skills to enhance and complement abilities;
• Active student participation helps prepare them for the transition from high school to career and post high school education options;
• We believe students should have a voice regarding their education; and
• The meetings can be an effective tool for inspiring student achievement.

The IEP Process

At Ipswich High School, there is a strong and collaborative problem-solving approach to the pre-referral and referral process. The department works with a pre-referral team to provide training and consultation to parents and teachers in identifying students with special education needs and in accommodating the diverse learning needs of all students.

Extensive tests and evaluations are employed in the eligibility determination of students, categorizing of disabilities and preparing an Individual Education Plan with measurable benchmarks. Students are regularly monitored and meetings are held at least once a year. There is excellent collaboration with the guidance department and outside agencies for transitional services and postsecondary education and training.

We have a highly qualified teaching and para-profession support staff who provide a variety of options to service the individual needs of students. The approaches include: applying frameworks to special education programs, small group instruction, remedial techniques in writing, reading, supported study and organizational skills development, transitional planning, specialized and adaptive technology, counseling and social skills training, pre-vocational, work-study, school to work and life skills programs.

Inclusion strategies are extensive at Ipswich High School and make all courses available to all students. Strategies include regular monitoring of student progress and individual mentoring by the special education case managers and qualified para-professional staff, collaboration with teachers, behavior plans and extensive remedial instruction.

If you are concerned that your child may have a disability that is affecting his or her ability to make progress in school, you should first speak with the classroom teacher: Explain your concerns and ask the teacher to share his or her assessment. The teacher may offer some suggestions to address your concerns.

If your child’s difficulties persist, either you or the teacher can refer your child to the Assistant Principal who serves as the chair of the Pre-referral Team. The Pre-referral Team will conduct an evaluation, make recommendations and suggest instructional support that may be used by your child’s teachers. This Team will determine if additional testing and evaluations are necessary and if a referral for eligibility for special needs is appropriate.

Ipswich High School has an effective Pre-referral Team chaired by the Assistant Principal. The purpose of the Pre-referral Team is to assess current difficulties of students and provide instructional support and strategies. The results of each strategy attempted will be assessed, documented and placed in the student’s record. If a student is later evaluated to determine eligibility for special education, documentation of instructional strategies that have been tried will be available for review by the Team.

Note: You may make a request for a special education evaluation at any time.

Procedures for Eligibility Determination

Referral for a special education evaluation is the first step in the process of determining if your child should receive special education services. The evaluation should examine all areas of suspected disability and provide a detailed description of your child's educational needs. The evaluation should answer these questions:

1. Is the child making effective academic progress?
2. What accommodations, if any, are needed to enable effective academic progress?

A written request for referral for an evaluation for eligibility for special education is sent either by you or the Pre-referral Team. The program manager will consult with teachers and guidance staff and contact you with-in five days of receiving the referral to discuss the referral and your concerns. The program manager will then determine what evaluations are required. Testing will be conducted in all areas of suspected disability.

The Program manager will meet with you, discuss the recommended testing and have you sign a consent form for testing. You must sign for testing before it can be completed. If you prefer, the consent form with a description of the recommended testing can be sent home for your signature.

Evaluations are completed within 30 school days of the school's receipt of your written permission for evaluation. Within 45 school working days, a Team meeting must be held to discuss the evaluations, determine eligibility and complete the IEP for an eligible student.

Parents will receive a written notice of the date, time and location of the meeting, along with a list of the personnel attending the meeting. This list will include you and your child. If you wish to have anyone else attend the meeting, please contact the Special Education Department. Testing results will be available two days before the meeting for you to pick up at the Special Education office.

The Program Manager for Special Education is available to meet with parents before or after the Team meeting to go over tests results and answer any questions you may have. If you have specific questions after the meeting and would like to discuss them with any of the Team’s professionals , a meeting will be scheduled .

For all initial evaluations, the School Psychologist is available to meet with parents to conduct a detailed developmental history. This is an excellent opportunity for the Team to understand your concerns.

All evaluation information is confidential and is seen only by people directly involved with your child such as teachers and Team members. As the parent, you must give written consent before others may have access to this information.

Suggestion: It will be especially helpful to the Team if you bring to the meeting a written statement of your concerns and questions.

Team Meeting Format:

• The Team includes the Program Manager who chairs the meeting, the student, parents, one or more of the student’s regular education teachers, a special education teacher, the student’s guidance counselor and any professionals who have completed testing. The Ipswich High School Principal and/or the Vice Principal may also attend.
• The Team meetings begin with an introduction of all present.
• The Program manager will summarize the reason for the referral
• The Guidance counselor, will discuss the Educational History, past and current performance.
• Teachers, will discuss student performance in their classroom, emphasizing the students’ ability to meet curriculum standards, their social and academic skill level.
• Specific evaluations by the professionals who have completed individual tests will give a summary of their results.
• The Team will discuss the results and ask any questions that they have concerning the evaluations. Remember, you are an intrigal part of this Team.
• The Program manager will ask the Team three questions:
  1. Does the child have a disability? If so, what type?
  2. Does the disability cause the child to be unable to progress effectively in regular education?
  3. Does the child require specially designed instruction to make progress or does the child require a related service or services in order to access the general curriculum?

A copy of the Eligibility Determination form is available here .

Disability types defined by the Massachusetts Special Education Regulations are:

• Autism
• Developmental Delay
• Intellectual Impairment
• Sensory Impairment
• Hearing/Vision/Deaf-Blind
• Neurological Impairment
• Emotional Impairment
• Communication Impairment
• Physical Impairment
• Health Impairment
• Specific Learning Disability

Definitions of each of these disability types and resources for each can be found at:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/definitions.html

Team Meeting Outcomes

• The Team may determine your child has a disability but does not require specialized services in order to make effective progress. In this instance, the student is not entitled to special education services. If, however, the Team determines that the student requires accommodations, the student will be referred to the 504 Accommodations Team chaired by the Vice Principal.
• If your child is not found eligible for special education, the Team will have significant information on how your child learns and will make recommendations to teachers and parents on ways to enhance learning.
• If your child is found to have a disability and requires specialized services to be successful, then he or she is eligible for special education services; the Team will write an Individual Education Plan (IEP).

It is important that your child understand his or her specific disability. This helps the student gain essential knowledge about their learning style, their individual strengths and the reason for specific interventions the Team will make to help them become independent learners.

The goal at Ipswich is to involve the student in every aspect of their learning and by their senior year, they can take a leadership role in identifying their own needs and interventions they require to be successful.

Note: Transitional services and planning and post high school planning are an essential part of the IEP process.

The IEP is a legal contract

The IEP is a legal contract between the school system and parents. The goal of the IEP is to identify the needs of the individual student and the services the school district will provide to address these specific needs. The goals are written with the expectation that they can be achieved annually or by the end of the IEP date.

IEP Process

The IEP process is centered on three key points:

• The involvement and progress of each child with a disability in the regular education curriculum, addressing the unique needs of the student and services necessary to ensure progress;
• The involvement of parents, students, special educators and general educators in meeting the individualized educational needs of students with disabilities;
• The critical need is to prepare students with disabilities for independence, employment and other post-school activities.

Special Education Services

At Ipswich , we offer special courses that are designed to provide the specific disabilities skills that your child requires. For example: If your child has organizational difficulties, we offer a Skills class; for writing, a Writing and Computers class; for reading, a Reading class. We also offer an MCAS Preparation class. Some students require more individual reading assistance. Programs like Wilson, Edmark, SSR and Linda Mood-Bell are provided individually as required.

Small, language-based classes are designed for students who require significant intervention and remedial techniques.

Supported study is offered four times a week during the directed study time at the high school. Students who have learning disabilities who are in regular classes but require specific skills and techniques meet regularly with the special education teachers and the para-professional staff.

Social skills group learning is provided by the adjustment counselor for students who have been identified with social skills difficulties.

Behavior management techniques are provided to teachers and parents. Positive behavior intervention through a behavior plan and scheduled meetings with the adjustment counselor are an important tool. If the behaviors continue, a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) will be recommended.

We have a Life Skills Program that services students who require significant vocational, community experience and functional academics.

To see a list of our current courses, click here.

Click here to see a presentation about our program. It provides additional detail on all the services that we offer. It is important that you understand the Team process to determine the educational needs of your child and provide the appropriate services he or she requires to make effective educational progress.

Psychological Services

Individual and group counseling for students are provided by the school adjustment counselor or the school psychologist. Assisting with positive behavior intervention strategies, consulting with teachers and parents on the emotional and social needs of the student, consulting with outside therapist, physicians and agencies to provide appropriate services and enhance success

Transitional Services

The goals of Special Education are to help students become effective independent learners and prepare for post high school careers. We begin in the ninth grade to discuss individual interests, abilities and skills. We work closely with the guidance department in exploring college options and technical opportunities.

We offer a school-to-work program for those students who benefit from work experiences. In addition, we collaborate closely with outside agencies that provide adult services for students.

Additional Services

Ipswich has on staff a Speech and Language Therapist, Occupation Therapist, Physical Therapist, Vision and Deaf and Hearing Therapist to meet the individual needs of the student.

Ipswich uses a number of technologies to assist with learning and organizational strategies, including the Kurtzweil reading program, Inspiration, and voice activated computer programs.

Life Skills and Pre-Vocational Program

The Life Skills Program services students who benefit from significant vocational, community based experiences and functional academics. Students in this program usually participate in the MCAS requirement by portfolio, and they are serviced until the age of 22. The Life Skills Program is designed in two levels:

• First level is a high school program. The students have an extensive academic program, functional academics, life skills training, integration in the regular education classes with assistants whenever possible, adaptive physical education, vocational training with a job coach at work sites and community based experiences. Students are evaluated for vocational interest and ability. These students participate fully in the high school and participate in senior week and graduation services.
• Second level is designed for students who have completed four years at the high school and require more extensive vocational training and planning for adult services. The program includes functional academic, life skills training, community based experience, social and leisure time and vocational and work experiences for longer time periods. The goal is to increase the independent skills and independent work skills. We work closely with outside agencies to prepare for adult services.

Family and Parent Support Sites
Links and resources for families and parent support:

http://www.doe.mass.edu/sped/links/familyparent.htm

.