Special Education Action's mission is to ensure parents, educators, and students have the information and tools necessary to fully understand, address, and safeguard the unique needs of all students who require special education.
Recent Articles
Virginia Dept. of Education Announces Investigation of Fairfax County Public Schools, for Allegedly Engaging in Predetermination
The complaint on which the investigation is based alleges FCPS engaged in predetermination, which is a procedural violation of the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act and implementing Virginia regulations.
What Is Predetermination?
Privacy is a Right, NOT an Accommodation
“Teachers should not intentionally allow other students to know that XXXXXX has an IEP and receives special education services.”
The parent didn’t understand that privacy is a right, not an accommodation, simply because the privacy violations modeled by the teacher pointed in the opposite direction.
Who Attends IEP Meetings and What is an IEP Team?
The IEP case manager for the parent’s child replies with a time and a date, and states that the child’s regular education teacher will not be a part of the IEP team.
The school’s proposed IEP team does not comply with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
If the parent agrees to the meeting, he or she will be attending a meeting, but not an IEP meeting with an IEP team as defined by IDEA.
FCPS Releases Final Special Education Audit Report; Bleak Portrait of Broken System Emerges from Report
The report comes as no surprise to parents or educators. It confirms what parents have experienced for decades. Students’ needs are not being addressed pursuant to IDEA, Section 504, and state implementing regulations, teachers are undertrained and under supported, and leadership encourages teachers to be quiet rather than proactive in helping to ensure the needs of students are met.
Virginia State Superintendent Admits Accreditation Standards are Unreliable Measure of School Performance; Number of Failing Students Tripled in Reading, Quadrupled in Math
According to VDOE, “Prior to the pandemic, the number of students statewide who failed an SOL reading test but showed growth — and therefore counted toward their school’s accreditation rating — ranged from 19,000-20,000. With this latest round of accreditation calculations, the number has more than tripled to 61,000.
“Similarly, the number of students who failed a math SOL test before the pandemic but showed growth and counted toward their school’s rating was about 20,000. This year the number has quadrupled to more than 88,000.”