ORELA Special Education (NT602) cheat sheet

IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requires a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE) for eligible students aged 3–21; eligibility requires one of 13 disability categories plus an adverse educational impact and need for specially designed instruction.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act covers any student with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity; it provides accommodations and does not require specialized instruction, so it is broader than IDEA but lacks IDEA's procedural safeguards.

The IEP team must include the parent, at least one regular education teacher (if the child is or may be in general education), at least one special education teacher/provider, a district representative qualified to supervise and authorize resources, someone who can interpret evaluation results, and, when appropriate, the student.

Evaluations must be conducted before initial placement, use multiple measures and technically sound instruments, be administered in the child's native language, and be free of cultural/racial/linguistic bias; a reevaluation occurs at least every three years unless the parent and district agree otherwise.

Procedural safeguards include prior written notice, parental consent for evaluation and initial services, access to records, independent educational evaluation (IEE) at public expense when the parent disagrees, impartial due process hearings, and a 45-day (or state-set) resolution period.

Discipline rules: a student may be removed for up to 10 school days per year without services; a change of placement beyond 10 days requires a manifestation determination within 10 school days, and a 45-school-day interim alternative placement is permitted for weapons, drugs, or serious bodily injury.

Least restrictive environment presumes education with nondisabled peers and permits removal only when supplementary aids and services cannot achieve satisfactory education; the continuum ranges from general education with supports through resource rooms, self-contained classes, special schools, homebound, and residential placement.

Related services under IDEA include speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, counseling, school health and nursing, transportation, and interpreting services; these are provided only when required for the child to benefit from special education.

Transition planning must begin no later than age 16 (some states earlier) and include measurable postsecondary goals in education/training and employment, plus, where appropriate, independent living, based on age-appropriate transition assessments.

Least restrictive environment (LRE) presumes placement in general education with supplementary aids and services; removal occurs only when education in regular classes with supports cannot be achieved satisfactorily, and the continuum of placements must be considered in order from least to most restrictive.

Free appropriate public education (FAPE) requires individualized special education and related services designed to confer meaningful educational benefit, delivered per a written IEP, at public expense, and under public supervision.

The IEP must contain present levels of academic achievement and functional performance (PLAAFP), measurable annual goals, a statement of special education and related services and program modifications, an explanation of the extent of nonparticipation with nondisabled peers, and progress-reporting procedures.

Procedural safeguards include prior written notice, parental consent before initial evaluation and placement, access to educational records, an independent educational evaluation at public expense when parents disagree with the district, and impartial due process hearings.

Evaluation for eligibility must use a variety of assessment tools and strategies, cannot rest on a single measure, must be conducted in the child's native language, and must be free of racial or cultural bias; reevaluation occurs at least every three years.

Discipline: removal for more than 10 cumulative school days in a year can constitute a change of placement; a manifestation determination review must then occur within 10 school days, and a 45-school-day interim alternative setting is allowed for weapons, drugs, or serious bodily injury.

Related services such as speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, counseling, school nursing, and transportation are provided only when necessary for the student to benefit from special education.

Transition planning begins no later than age 16, with measurable postsecondary goals in education/training and employment and, where appropriate, independent living, informed by age-appropriate transition assessments.

IDEA's 13 disability categories: autism, deaf-blindness, deafness, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, specific learning disability, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairment including blindness.

Specific learning disability identification may use a severe discrepancy model or response to intervention (RTI); RTI tiers are Tier 1 core instruction, Tier 2 targeted small-group intervention, and Tier 3 intensive individualized intervention with frequent progress monitoring.

Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) uses brief, standardized probes in reading, math, and writing to quantify progress; decision rules compare the student's trend line to the goal line to judge whether instruction is effective.

Universal design for learning (UDL) provides multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression/action; accommodations change how a student accesses material, while modifications change what the student is expected to learn.

Evidence-based practices include explicit instruction, direct instruction, mnemonic strategies, graphic organizers, peer-mediated instruction, self-monitoring, and positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS).

Functional behavioral assessment (FBA) identifies antecedents, behaviors, and consequences to build a behavior intervention plan (BIP); the ABC model records antecedent, behavior, and consequence to determine function (attention, escape, access, sensory).

Assistive technology includes devices and services that increase, maintain, or improve functional capabilities; the IEP team must consider AT needs and document devices and services in the IEP.

Co-teaching models include one teach/one observe, one teach/one assist, station teaching, parallel teaching, alternative teaching, and team teaching; each varies the division of instructional responsibility.

The referral-to-placement sequence: pre-referral interventions (RTI), referral, parental consent, full and individual evaluation, eligibility determination by a multidisciplinary team, IEP development, placement in the least restrictive environment, and annual review.

The IEP team must include the parent, a regular education teacher if the student is or may be in general education, a special education teacher, a district representative qualified to supervise and authorize resources, someone who can interpret evaluation results, and, when appropriate, the student.

Prior written notice must be given to parents whenever the district proposes or refuses to initiate or change identification, evaluation, placement, or the provision of FAPE; notice must be in the parents' native language.

The IEP must include present levels of performance, measurable annual goals, a statement of special education and related services, an explanation of the extent of nonparticipation with nondisabled peers, and progress-reporting procedures.

The continuum of placements ranges from general education with supplementary aids and services, to resource rooms, to self-contained classes, to special schools, to homebound or hospital settings, to residential placement.

Manifestation determination asks whether the behavior was caused by or had a direct and substantial relationship to the student's disability, or was the direct result of the district's failure to implement the IEP.

Discipline limits: removal for more than 10 cumulative school days in a year can be a change of placement; a 45-school-day interim alternative setting is allowed for weapons, drugs, or serious bodily injury.

Transition services must begin no later than age 16 and include measurable postsecondary goals in education/training and employment, plus, where appropriate, independent living, based on age-appropriate transition assessments.

Least restrictive environment (LRE) presumes education alongside nondisabled peers; removal occurs only when education in regular classes with supplementary aids and services cannot be achieved satisfactorily, and placement decisions follow the full continuum.

Free appropriate public education (FAPE) means special education and related services that are provided at public expense, meet state standards, include preschool through secondary education, and conform to the IEP.

Evaluation for eligibility must use a variety of technically sound assessment tools, cannot rely on a single measure, must be conducted in the child's native language, and must be free of racial or cultural bias; reevaluation occurs at least every three years.

Procedural safeguards include prior written notice, parental consent for initial evaluation and placement, access to records, independent educational evaluation at public expense when parents disagree, and impartial due process hearings.

Related services such as speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, counseling, school nursing, and transportation are provided only when necessary for the student to benefit from special education.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act prohibits discrimination based on disability and requires accommodations for students with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity; it is broader than IDEA but lacks IDEA's procedural safeguards.

Specific learning disability identification may use a severe discrepancy model or response to intervention (RTI); RTI tiers are Tier 1 core instruction, Tier 2 targeted small-group intervention, and Tier 3 intensive individualized intervention.

Functional behavioral assessment (FBA) identifies antecedents, behaviors, and consequences to build a behavior intervention plan (BIP); the ABC model records antecedent, behavior, and consequence to determine function.

IDEA requires a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE) for eligible students aged 3–21; eligibility requires one of 13 disability categories plus an adverse educational impact and need for specially designed instruction.

The IEP team must include the parent, at least one regular education teacher if the child is or may be in general education, at least one special education teacher, a district representative qualified to supervise and authorize resources, and someone who can interpret evaluation results.

Evaluations must be conducted before initial placement, use multiple measures and technically sound instruments, be administered in the child's native language, and be free of cultural/racial/linguistic bias.

Discipline rules: a student may be removed for up to 10 school days per year without services; a change of placement beyond 10 days requires a manifestation determination within 10 school days.

A 45-school-day interim alternative placement is permitted for weapons, drugs, or serious bodily injury, regardless of whether the behavior is a manifestation of the disability.

Transition planning must begin no later than age 16 and include measurable postsecondary goals in education/training and employment, plus, where appropriate, independent living, based on age-appropriate transition assessments.

Accommodations change how a student accesses material, while modifications change what the student is expected to learn; both must be documented in the IEP.

Evidence-based practices include explicit instruction, direct instruction, mnemonic strategies, graphic organizers, peer-mediated instruction, self-monitoring, and positive behavioral interventions and supports (PBIS).