Changes to Special Education Policy: What Every Educator Needs to Know

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Changes to Special Education PolicyWhat Every
Educator Needs to Know
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Agenda

• Welcome to Washington
• Reform Issues and Special Education
• ESEA Waivers and Flexibility
• CCRS and Assessments
• Teacher Evaluation
• ESEA Reauthorization
• Federal Budget
• Early Learning
• Higher Education
• Education Sciences Reform Act
• IDEA
• Convention on the Rights of Persons with
  Disabilities

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ChangeIts Everywhere
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Welcome to Washington, Its More than House of
Cards
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2014 Midterm Elections

• CASUALTY LIST

• 31 Retirements (25 House, 6 Senate)
• 13 House Members ran for Senate
• 10 Resigned

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Changes In Education Policy
Political Context
Funding
NEW!!!
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BUT FIRST
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Results driven accountability
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• Next Steps Identifying Seizing Opportunities
• Outreach to State Department of Ed
• Learn about State Systemic Improvement Plan
  (SSIP)

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New Data Shapes Policy
Source Office of Civil Rights, U.S. Department
of Education
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How Is Your School Doing?
http//ocrdata.ed.gov/
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Early education Matters

• Well-designed early childhood interventions have
  been found to generate a return to society
  ranging from 1.80 to 17.07 for each dollar
  spent on the program.

Inforgraphic Source http//www.americanprogress.o
rg/issues/education/news/2013/05/02/62048/infograp
hic-were-getting-beat-on-preschool/ Citation
http//www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9145.ht
ml
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Idea infants toddlers with disabilities program
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1999 1979/child 2013 1257 /child
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Federal Funding Increase since 1999
Increase in children/families served
Decrease Federal share per child
Source The Early Childhood Technical Assistance
Center http//ectacenter.org/
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Idea Preschool program
Lowest Amount in 27 Years!!
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1992 804/child 2014 471/child
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Federal Funding Increase since 1992
Increase in children served
Decrease Federal share per child
Source The Early Childhood Technical Assistance
Center http//ectacenter.org/
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O M G !
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Idea school-aged Program
Source NEA
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O M G !
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Investing in Special/Gifted Education
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Investing in Special/Gifted Education
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Education Legislation Reforms
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• ESEA
• IDEA
• Education Sciences Reform Act
• Higher Education Act

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ESEA Waivers and Flexibility
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American Association of Administrators, Policy
Insider Oct 2011
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200720082009201020112012
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White House Announces Waivers

• September, 2011

• White House Announces Waivers September, 2011

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ESEA Waivers

• Remove 2014 AYP deadline
• Funding Flexibility
• Changes to Accountability
• Flexibility for HQT Plans

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ESEA Waivers

• 4 Conditions
• Adopt College Career Ready Standards
• Develop Assessments that Measure Student Growth
• Develop Differentiated Accountability System
• Develop Guidelines for Local Teacher and
  Principal Evaluations Based on Effectiveness

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ESEA Flexibility

• 45 States, District of Columbia. Puerto Rico and
  the Bureau of Indian Education submitted requests
• 43 States, District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
  approved
• Wyoming and Iowa under review

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Flexibility Concerns

• No 2 State applications are the same. . .

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Transition 1 College Career Ready Standards
43 States District of Columbia, four
territories and the Department of Defense
Education Activity have adopted CCSS.
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Source Fordham Institute
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Transition 1 College Career Ready Standards
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Where Are We??!!
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Transition 2 New Assessments
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Transition 3 New Evaluations

• How Did We Get Here?

We Are Here!
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Transition 3 New Evaluations

• Where Are We Now?

• New Teacher Evaluation Systems Include
• 35 States Washington, DC use student
  achievement as a significant factor
• 27 States Washington, DC require annual
  evaluation
• 19 States use evaluation to drive tenure
  decisions
• 17 States require parent, student, peer surveys
• 8 States are linking student performance to
  teachers and back to teacher preparation programs
  

Source National Council on Teacher Quality
State of the States 2013 http//www.nctq.org/dmsVi
ew/State_of_the_States_2013_Using_Teacher_Evaluati
ons_NCTQ_Report
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Transition 3 New Evaluations

• CECs Position on Special Education Teacher
  Evaluation

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Transition 3 New Evaluations

• Tools for You!

Visit www.cec.sped.org Policy Advocacy
Teacher Evaluation Toolkit for Special Educators!
CEC Position on Special Education Teacher
Evaluation
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ESEA Reauthorization Congress Acts?!
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ESEA Reauthorization

• Has the process stalled???

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20072008200920102011201220132014??2015??
What a difference 8 years makes!!
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2015 House vs. Senate ESEA

• Total Opposites!!

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Where are we in the legislative process??
Passage by House Education Committee
Passage by Senate Education Committee
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Lots of Talking
Senator Lamar Alexander R-Tennessee
Senator Patty Murray D- Washington
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Student Success Act (HR 5) House Version of ESEA

• February 11, 2015 Committee on Education and the
  Workforce passed the Student Success Act
  (partisan vote of 21-16)
• February 26, 2015 HR5 Stalls on House floor due
  to controversy (considered 44 amendments)
• Kline expects to bring HR5 to the House floor
  after the spring recess

CEC Opposed, as did most of the education
disability communities
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Student Success Act (HR 5) House Version of ESEA
Provisions in Student Success Act (HR 5) CEC Supports
Eliminates AYP
Maintains Disaggregation of Subgroup Data
Improves Data Transparency
Assures parents understand the implications of alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards including that students are not precluded from attempting to complete requirements for a regular diploma.
95 student participation rate for all students
UDL
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Student Success Act (HR 5) House Version of ESEA
CEC Expresses Serious Concerns with Student Success Act (HR 5)
Reduces Accountability for Students with Disabilities
Removes the 1 Cap on Alternate Assessments Based on Alternate Achievement Standards
Lacks focus on Professional Development
Includes Performance Pay that is solely Based From Standardized Test Scores
Increases Privatization
Ignores High-Ability Students
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Student Success Act (HR 5) House Version of ESEA
CEC Expresses Serious Concerns with Student Success Act (HR 5)
Eliminates MOE
Permits Title I Portability Provisions
Ignores Early Childhood
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Every Child Ready for College and Career Act of
2015 (Draft)

• January 2015 Alexanders draft Bill released for
  comment
• Senators Murray (D-WA) and Alexander (R-TN)
  agreed to work on a bipartisan bill. Now working
  behind closed doors!
• Senators Murray Alexander expect to mark up the
  bill in Committee the week of April 13th

CEC opposed the draft bill, as did most of
disability community education community split
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Every Child Ready for College and Career Act of
2015 (Draft) Senate Version of ESEA
Provisions in Every Child Ready for College and Career Act of 2015 (Draft) CEC Supports
Eliminated AYP
Maintains Disaggregation of Subgroup data
Early Intervening Services in General Ed, UDL, PBIS
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Every Child Ready for College and Career Act of
2015 (Draft)
Provisions in Every Child Ready for College and Career Act of 2015 (Draft) That Concerns CEC
New Requirements without Adequate Resources
Reduces Accountability for Students with Disabilities
Removes the 1 Cap on Alternate Assessments Based on Alternate Achievement Standards
Lacks Focus on Professional Development
Increases Privatization
Ignores High Ability Students
Permits Title I Portability Provisions
Ignores Early Childhood
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Whats Next for ESEA?
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Where Are We??!!
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Federal Budget
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Trench Warfare!

• Since January 2011 Republicans and Democrats have
  had multiple battles over the budget and
  deficit.
• Republicans are opposed to revenue increases.
• Liberal Democrats are opposed to entitlement
  cuts.
• Education and other nondefense programs have
  borne the brunt of the cuts.
• Outlook not good for breaking stalemate.

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Federal Budget FY 2014
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FY 2014 US DOE Budget
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FY 2015 Where did we end up?
Total Amount
Change
IDEA Part B 11.498 Billion Increase of 25 Million
IDEA Part B Section 619 353.24 Million Level Funded
IDEA Part C 438.60 Million Increase of 100 Thousand
IDEA Part D 225.14 Million Level Funded
Javits 10 Million Increase of 5 Million
SpEd Research 54 million Level Funded
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FY 2016 Presidents Budget

• Requested 70.7 billion in discretionary
  appropriations
• 5.4 increase over FY 2015

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FY 2016 Presidents Budget
Change over FY 15
IDEA Part B Increase of 175 Million 16
IDEA Part B Section 619 Increase of 50 Million
IDEA Part C Increase of 65 Million
IDEA Part D Level Funded
Javits Decrease of 300 Thousand
SpEd Research Level Funded
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FY 2016 Congresss Budget Blueprints

• Both Senate and House Contain Massive Cuts to
  Education
• Budget Blueprints set overall spending cuts, they
  do not specify program amounts
• Sequestration is still in place
• House Education Budget - 135 billion
• From FY 2016 2025 (20 percent below current
  funding levels)
• Senate Education Budget - 63 billion from FY
  2016
• 2025 (8 percent below current funding levels)

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IDEA Full Funding Act
Congressmen Van Hollen (D-MD), McKinley (R-WV),
Walz (D-MN), Gibson (R-NY), Huffman (D-CA) and
Reichert (R-WA)
IDEA Full Funding Act would fully fund IDEA by
2025 (HR 551)
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New Initiatives in Early Learning
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Federal Campaign on Early Childhood Inclusion

• Current join inclusion effort across ED and HHS
• Focus so that all children have access to and
  full participation in high-quality early care and
  education settings.
• Development of a Federal policy statement on
  early childhood inclusion this year
• Activities and resources will be undertaken or
  developed as part of this public awareness
  campaign.

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FFY 2014 Appropriations BillNew Preschool Grants

• 250M in grants to States for preschool grants
• Several application public comment periods
  over 500 comments and one public hearing
• Grants were awarded to 18 of the 40 states that
  applied in December 2014
• These grants are jointly administered by
  Education and HHS 
• States apply for grants to build the capacity to
  develop, enhance or expand high-quality preschool
  programs

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Race to the Top Early Learning

• First year of the RTT-ELC competition, 9 states
  funded (CA, DE, MA, MD, MN, NC, OH, RI, WA)
• In 2012, five more states (CO, IL, NM, OR, and
  WI) were funded
• Then six new awards, 280 million in Fall 2013
  Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey,
  Pennsylvania, and Vermont
• More information about the Race to the Top-Early
  Learning Challenge

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ED Secretary Duncan
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Current Push for ESEA

• Senator Casey (D-PA) has sponsored a Dear
  Colleague letter to Senators Alexander and
  Murray, urging that a dedicated funding stream
  for early learning be created in the pending ESEA
  reauthorization

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Kline Comment Last Congress

• House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman
  John Kline (R-MN)
• The president and I agree more can be done to
  help kids get an early start on the path to
  success, However, with 45 federal programs tied
  to early childhood development and a 13 billion
  annual taxpayer investment, we owe it to the
  American people to examine the strengths and
  weaknesses of current initiatives before crafting
  new ones.

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Toddler Twin Youtube
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Higher Education Act
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2 Major Initiatives in Higher Education
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What is the Problem??

• What is the Department saying
• Teacher preparation programs are not always
  attracting the strongest candidates only 24 of
  all teachers, and only 14 of teachers in
  high-poverty schools, come from the top third of
  college graduates
• More than three in five education school alumni
  report that their education school did not
  prepare them for classroom realities
• 70 of superintendents and principals said
  teachers were not prepared to address the needs
  of students with disabilities.

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Shift to EffectivenessNot Just in K-12
Tie ranking to financial aid eligibility !

• Rate every teacher preparation program on 1-4
  scale (1 best, 4 worst)
• Rating system as proposed by feds
• K-12 student outcomes of program graduates based
  on value added scores
• Employment outcomes for graduates including
  placement and retention
• Customer satisfaction (graduate and principal
  surveys)
• Professional accreditation OR state approval

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Whats To Come?

• Final regulations are expected out soon (CEC and
  TED responded)
• Keep informed stay tuned!!

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Education Sciences Reform Act
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CECs ESRA Recommendations
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Strengthening Education Through Research Act

• Introduced on 4/2/14 and Approved by Full House
  on 5/8/14 by Representatives Kline (R-MN), Miller
  (D-CA), Rokita (R-IN), McCarthy (D-CA)
• Includes key CEC Recommendations
• Prioritizing special education research funding
  within the Institute of Education Sciences.
• Emphasizing the elimination of the achievement
  gap between students with and without
  disabilities.
• Increasing dissemination and collaboration with
  the Office of Special Education and
  Rehabilitative Services (OSERS).
• Increasing the pipeline of early career special
  education researchers.
• Ensuring peer reviewers have expertise in areas
  relevant to grant applications. 

CEC has significant concerns as funding levels
are far too low
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Strengthening Education Through Research Act S.227

• Introduced by Senator Alexander (R-TN) on
  February 4, 2015
• Very similar to House Bill
• CEC has significant concerns as funding levels
  are far too low

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IDEA2020??!!
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UN Convention
UN Convention on the Rights of People With
Disabilities
Outcome U.S. Ratification of the UN Convention
on Rights of People with Disabilities guaranteed
globally
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How many Countries have Signed or Ratified the
CRPD?

• Needed 20 countries to ratify for CRPD to enter
  into force (become legally operative)
• As of March 2015
• 159 signatures to CRPD
• 153 ratifications of CRPD

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CRPD 159 Signatures 153 Ratifications
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What will be the Potential Impact of the CRPD?

1. CRPD as tool to address abuses
2. International Disability Rights Movement
3. International Cooperation Agencies UN Bodies
4. International Law

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Ghana
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Kuwait
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Take Action CECs Legislative Action Center
Visit us in the Expo Hall CEC Central!! www.cec.s
ped.org Choose Policy Advocacy Choose Take
Action!
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Margaret Mead

• A small group of thoughtful people could change
  the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever
  has.

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Get To It!
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Questions?????
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THANK YOU!!!
Deb Ziegler Director Policy
Advocacy and Professional Standards
debz_at_cec.sped.org
Rose Haller-Kaplan Program Assistant Policy
Advocacy and Professional Standards
rosehk_at_cec.sped.org