Dyslexia Conference 2020
Although we will miss seeing you in person this fall, we are excited to present a virtual conference in acknowledgement of Dyslexia Awareness Month, 2020, with events scheduled throughout the month. Please register for sessions below, and check out the free Resources section, as well.
Oct. 12
Department of Teaching and Learning Update
Dear Parent or Guardian,
Now that we have reached the midpoint of the first quarter, please see the following information about ongoing services, supports and opportunities for our students with disabilities, English Learners and Gifted students:
Special Education
APS has developed an inclusive model to phase students back into hybrid instruction. More information can be found here.
On Tue, Oct. 6, Dr. Durán, Bridget Loft, Dr. Kelly Krug, and Heather Rothenbueshcher joined Arlington SEPTA to present awards and honor winners and nominees during SEPTA’s virtual annual Awards Ceremony, recognizing excellence in special education. Read more about the winners and nominees here.
October is Dyslexia Awareness Month. APS is hosting a Virtual Dyslexia Conference, which will feature sessions including: The Science of Reading; Recognizing and Supporting a Student with More than Dyslexia; Dyscalculia: What We Know and Strategies to Help; Read & Write Literacy Software Tool; A Step in the Writing Direction; and Practical Strategies for Parents. More information and registration links can be found here.
October is also Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Awareness Month. In addition to providing professional development for staff on core vocabulary, the Assistive Technology Team is partnering with our Autism/Low-Incidence Disability Specialists and the Parent Resource Center to launch a Project Core Parent Series, a 12-part series of learning modules that aims to build capacity to support students of all ages with disabilities and complex communication needs who are emerging in their communication and literacy skills.
Our Transition Services team, Program for Employment Preparedness (PEP), and Parent Resource Center (PRC) are sponsoring a Transition Series this year, which will feature monthly transition topics. October’s topic, scheduled for October 28th, is Understanding Transition Services and What Needs to Happen. Registration and additional information can be found here.
Complete the Virginia K-12 Special Education Study
and Parent Survey
–BY WED, SEPT. 9TH–
Through December 2020, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission (JLARC), the non-partisan research and oversight agency of the Virginia state legislature, is conducting a study of Virginia’s K-12 special education services. In addition to other topics, the study team is reviewing Virginia’s special education identification and eligibility determination processes, inclusion of students with disabilities in academic and extracurricular experiences, IEP development and implementation, and the state’s special education dispute resolution services, such as due process hearings and state complaint services.
As part of this research, JLARC researchers are seeking input from many different stakeholders, including parents of K-12 students with disabilities, special education teachers, representatives of local special education advisory committees, division-level special education administrators, state-level special education administrators, special education staff in other states, and national experts.
To ensure that our researchers are able to obtain input from parents of K-12 students with disabilities across the state—who are key stakeholders for the study—we have developed an online survey. The survey is designed for parents, foster parents, and legal guardians of students who have received K-12 special education services at any time over the past three years.
In English
To complete the survey please click this link: http://survey.jlarc.virginia.gov/Survey.aspx?s=d045c54ad7de4326a05ac43eb4079634
If you have questions, please contact JLARC staff at SpecialEdSurvey@jlarc.virginia.gov.
En Espanol
La encuesta de JLARC para los padres de los alumnos en Virginia que reciben los servicios de educación especial está disponible en español. Para acceder a más información y completar la encuesta, visite: http://survey.jlarc.virginia.gov/Survey.aspx?s=3f72909b2fd04ae3b3c58b37d78b58d9
Para preguntas acerca de la encuesta, por favor comuníquese con SpecialEdSurvey@jlarc.virginia.gov.
Aug. 20th School Board Presentation
Check out Superintendent Durán’s update to the School Board on Aug 20 with this video: https://livestream.com/aetvaps/events/6861373/videos/210105715 Special Education topics(starting at 20:23) included FAPE, Inclusion, Flexible Instructional Delivery Models, and Special Education Working Group.
Or check out the presentation here.
Parent Academy Videos (as of 8.24.20)
Using Seesaw
Using Canvas
Social Emotional Learning
Activities and Athletes
Fine Arts
Early Childhood/VPI and Pre-K
Students with Disabilities
English Learners
Gifted Students
Career & Technical Education (CTE)
International Baccalaureate (IB)
Parent Resource Center
Monday Message: 2.22.21
Tomorrow evening, Tuesday, February 23rd, the Arlington Special Education Advisory Committee (ASEAC), will welcome Arlington Public Schools Superintendent, Dr. Francisco Durán, to its monthly meeting. This meeting will be held virtually via Zoom, and details and a registration link are provided below. The Parent Resource Center is looking forward to Noche de NOVA on Wednesday evening, and another opportunity to learn more about Northern Virginia Community College during this Spanish language session.
Next week is a week of transition for many students, staff and families as some students return to school as part of the hybrid model. Although this is a transition we have been eagerly anticipating for many, many months, transition periods and the inevitable routine changes that accompany them may pose challenges for some students. We encourage families to keep lines of communication open with the school-based members of your child’s IEP Team and continue to prepare your child for the transition this week. As we mark another milestone of this pandemic, we salute our colleagues, administrators, and the families we are so fortunate to work with. Your patience, strength, fortitude, flexibility, and collaboration have defined our community during these months, and we know you are supporting the development of resilience in your children. We send our best wishes for smooth, exciting and happy transitions next week. As always, please feel free to reach out to the Parent Resource Center at 703.228.7239 or prc@apsva.us if we can be of support.
From the Office of Special Education: 8.25.20
As Arlington Public Schools (APS) prepares to support all learners during the 2020-21 Academic Year, we recognize that students with disabilities have unique learning needs that require careful consideration and close collaboration between families and school staff. Although instruction will be provided virtually during the beginning of the school year, APS has a legal responsibility to provide a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) to each student with a disability. Although schools will be providing remote instruction, FAPE has NOT been waived, and APS is preparing to implement students’ Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) to the fullest extent possible.
Also, the APS Strategic Plan includes a goal that by 2024, 80% of students with disabilities (SWD) will spend 80% of their time in general education settings. As we build towards this percentage, APS will continue to increase our inclusive practices, even while we are virtual.
During the upcoming days and weeks, case carriers will thoughtfully review each student’s IEP to consider any possible needs they may have accessing distance learning, and continue inclusive practices. IEP meetings may be scheduled to align services and supports the student needs in the distance learning model as well as to make any needed adjustments to the current IEP. The goal of these meetings is not to simply reduce hours or make proportional adjustments to services, but rather to ensure that each student receives meaningful instruction and the services needed to continue to make progress. Parents are encouraged to share their input, observations, ideas and questions with the IEP team. Should the IEP Team (which, as always, includes parents) determine to adjust any services, a Prior Written Notice (PWN) will indicate the services the student had been receiving prior to the COVID school closure to ensure IEP teams can resume previous services when APS re-opens to a full time, in-person instructional model.
* Considerations for IEP Teams
* Recovery Services
* ATSS & Student Support Process
* Reopening FAQs-Special Education
