RESOURCES: Education/Special Education

Information on Education & Special Education

• NEW! Preparing Parents and Students for Effective IEP Meetings
• Beginning with students entering the 8th grade in 2006 the law requires a minimum of 16 credits for high school graduation. The Michigan Merit Curriculum defines a common set of required credits for graduation for ALL students. Students eligible for special education services can complete the Michigan Merit Curriculum either through the general curriculum or the 'personal curriculum'. For additional information visit http://www.mighigan.gov/highschool and http://www.michigan.gov.med.o,1607,7-140-28753-178576--,00.html.

• Culture and Parenting: A Guide for Delivering Parenting Curriculums to Diverse Families (PDF) - A guidebook covering parenting education curriculums and tips for making parenting programs more culturally appropriate (University of California Cooperative Extension, University of California, Davis

• Disproportionality in special education – the overrepresentation of culturally and linguistically diverse children (CLD) in special education programs and under-representation of CLD in gifted and/or talented programs – is an important issue related to student achievement. Truth in Labeling is a collaborative effort of the NEA and the National Association of School Psychologists, is a guide which provides basic information about disproportionality and its causes.

• For resources related to IDEA (the federal special education law) and its implementing regulations, visit the the U. S. Dept. of Education' s "one-stop" website.

• IDEA is our nation's special education law. IDEA stands for Individual's with Disabilities Education Act. For information on the IDEA 2004 law and regulations, please do visit NICHCY's IDEA pages by clicking here.

• Students who drop out of school face a difficult future. They are more likely to be unemployed, incarcerated, and/or impoverished. For students with disabilities, the risks are intensified. "The Role of Parents in Dropout Prevention: Strategies that Promote Graduation and School Achievement" is a parent brief available on the website of the National Center on Secondary Education and Transition (NCSET).

• Online Parent Guide on the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA 2004) from the National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) explains the federal laws that underpin special education.

• NICHCY (the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities) serves as a central source of information on:

  • disabilities in infants, toddlers, children, and youth,

  • IDEA, which is the law authorizing special education,

  • No Child Left Behind (as it relates to children with disabilities), and

  • research-based information on effective educational practices.

  • For information on emotional disturbance, including definitions, characteristics and educational implications, click here. Feel free to communicate with us in English http://www.nichcy.org or Spanish http://www.nichcy.org/spanish.htm.

• The PACER Center was founded in 1977 by parents of children and youth with disabilities to help other parents and families facing similar challenges. Today, PACER Center expands opportunities and enhances the quality of life of children and young adults with disabilities and their families.

  • For information on parents helping parents: http://www.pacer.org/parent/parent.htm

  • For information on juvenile justice: http://www.pacer.org/jj/index.htm

  • For information on Project for Parents of Children with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders: http://www.pacer.org/ebd/index.htm

  • Is your Child a Target for bullying? Intervention Strategies for Parents of Children with Disabilities - A curriculum for parents - for information visit: http://www.pacer.org/publications/BullyingFlyer.pdf.

© 2008 Association for Children's Mental Health (ACMH). Design by Jackie D. Igafo-Te'o