Your

Exceptional
Learner

By: Lexi Mazur

Education 230
 Agenda
Discovering your exceptional learner.
What can parents/ guardians do to help the child?
What is an IEP?
What is an IDEA?
What is an RTI?
Are there any additional services available?
Support outside of the classroom.
Summary of the presentation.
Reflection.
References.
 Discovering your Exceptional
Learner
First, your childs teacher, or anyone else who notices your child is struggling, will
request an educational evaluation from the school (Stanberry,2014). No matter who
request the evaluation to be done, the school will always have to have permission
from the parents/ guardians before anything is done. [Educational evaluation: a test
done on your child to take a close look at their academic skills.]
If the evaluation shows that your child has a disability, the next step for the school
is to determine weather your child is eligible for special education services
(Stanberry,2014). They will make the decision based on the evaluation of your child.
However, if your child has a covered disability, they might not be eligible for
special education services. The school may determine that the disability doesnt
keep them from learning adequately in the general education classroom. In that
case, the school wont provide special education services for your child. It will be up
to your childs teacher to teach them accordingly (Stanberry,2014).
This graph shows the percent of children who
qualified for special education services in 2008-2009
depending on where the student lived. Source: 2008-09
Common Core of Data, U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences.
 What can parents/ guardians do
to help the child?
Make sure you know exactly what is going on with your child.
Be sure that every adult who is around your child academically, is aware
of your childs disability.
Try to work with your child for at least 15 minutes every night on the
subject they are struggling with (Stanberry,2014).
Reward them when they are right and getting better at the subject.
Be very encouraging of them and remind them often to never give up.
Always be there for them when they need you.
Be their BIGGEST fan!
This graph shows the percentages of
how many different types of disabilities
are out there in both boys and girls.
 What is an IEP?

An IEP stands for Individualized Education Program.

An IEP is the legal document that describes the educational services
a student receives (Hallahan,2000).
IEPs vary greatly in format and detail from one child to another and
from one school district to another (Hallahan,2000).
Since each student has a very specific and different need, each IEP is
different for each student. The IEPs could not possibly all be the same
because each student is different and unique. Thats what makes
IEPs so important for students.
 What is an IDEA?

IDEA stands for Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.

The IDEA was enacted in 1990 and reauthorized in 1997 and 2004.
this federal law requires that to receive funds under the act, every
school system in the nation must provide a free, appropriate public
education for every child between the ages of three and twenty-one,
regardless of how or how seriously the child may be disabled
(Hallahan,2000).
By law, the school must provide education for a student, no matter
what their needs may be.
 What is an RTI?

RTI stands for Response to Intervention.

RTI is a way of determining weather a student has a learning
disability. Increasingly intensive levels of instructional intervention
are delivered, and if the student does not achieve, at some point, then
they are determined to have a learning disability and is referred to a
special education evaluation (Hallahan,2000).
It is really helpful for the teachers to look at this because this is the
main thing that proves if the child needs the special education service
or not.
 Are there any other services
available?
There ARE other services available for your child.
You can send them to a specialized tutor that can help them in the
subject that they are struggling in.
Talk to other parents/ guardians that have children that need special
education services.
See a counselor to help improve your childs confidences
(Stanberry,2014).
Support outside the classroom

Council for Exceptional Children: Contact customer service at 1-

888-232-7733 or service@cec.sped.org

Family Resource Center on Disabilities: Phone= 312-939-3513;

Email= info@frcd.org

The Family Hope Center: Phone= 1-610-397-1737; Email=

team@familyhopecenter.com
 Summary

Children are all different in their own unique way. I am a strong

believer that no matter the childs circumstance, they all deserve an
equal opportunity to learn and be educated by the best. I believe that
no child should be left behind just because they have a disability.
Teachers, parents, administrators, and other school employees need to
work together as a team to figure out each child and help them learn
accordingly. Our job as a staff member at a school is to educate, love,
and accept each child that walks through the doors.
 Reflection

I chose to talk about these specific topics because I feel they help
understand the basics of special education services. I feel like IEPs,
RTIs, and IDEAs were very important to talk about because they are
pretty much the main focus in special education services. Those three
topics stood out to me the most. I also chose to talk about support
outside of the school because sometimes it is good to have other
opinions other than the schools opinion.
 References

Hallahan, D. P., & Kauffman, J. M. (2000). Exceptional learners:

Introduction to special education. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Stanberry, K. (2014, August 08). Understood Learning.