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Special Education Updates |
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Texas Educators: TEA Needs Your Input
Each year TEA invites groups of Texas educators, both general and special education, to provide feedback on the development of state assessments (STAAR, STAAR Alternate 2, and TELPAS) through educator committees across all assessed grades and content areas. Developing high-quality, aligned questions relies on the expertise and experience of Texas educators from across the state. Participants collaborate with other educators from across the state to review and approve each potential question for state assessments.
The commitment is generally two to three days in Austin with all travel, accommodations, and substitute coverage paid for by TEA. All participants will earn Continuing Professional Education credits. If you are interested or know other educators who would like to participate in a committee, please share this application link. |
 Upcoming Dates
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April 10 - May 19: Texas Parent Involvement Survey window for selected LEAs.
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April 13 from 2-3 CST: TEA Special Education Webinar - Join here.
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April 27 from 2-3 CST: TEA Special Education Webinar - Join here.
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July 17 - 18: Registration open now for the Aligned! 2023 from Child Find to IEP Implementation free virtual conference.
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 Did you know...World Autism Awareness Day is April 2nd?
Visit the United Nations website to learn more about the contributions people with autism make to the world in the home, at work, in the arts, and in policymaking. |
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Department News
Texas Parent Involvement Survey 2023The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004 (IDEA 2004), Section 616(b)(2)(B), requires that states collect data from local education agencies (LEAs) to report annual State Performance Plan (SPP) indicators to the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP). SPP Indicator 8 requires TEA to report the percent of parents of students receiving special education services who agree that schools facilitated parent involvement as a means to improve services and results for children. This year the Texas Parent Involvement Survey window will be April 10 - May 19, 2023
. LEAs selected per cyclical monitoring cycle will receive a link to the survey to disseminate to parents of students receiving special education services. Visit the SPEDTex website to view past Parent Involvement Survey reports.
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School Mental Health Resource DatabaseAre you looking for resources in your school community to promote mental health and wellness? Explore this tool that includes resources recently identified by ESCs, TEA, and partners across the state to support your school, students and their families. Bookmark the site below as resources will be updated on an ongoing basis.
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Learning Ally Audiobook SolutionTEA provides funding for all Texas K-12 public schools and open-enrollment charters to support their struggling readers with the Learning Ally Audiobook Solution. Featuring an expansive library of human-read audiobooks, including popular fiction, literature, and high-quality instructional materials in a wide range of subjects and grade levels, the Learning Ally Audiobook Solution is designed to bridge the gap between a student's ability to decode text and their capacity to understand the content. Visit Learning Ally to get started for free today.
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Designing Appropriate Interventions Using the Taxonomy of Intervention Intensity
The National Center on Intensive Intervention (NCII) has posted their latest webinar which provides an overview of the Academic Intervention Taxonomy Briefs and describes how they can help teachers design productive intervention programs for students with intensive academic needs.
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Inclusion of Students with Significant Cognitive Disabilities: Supports in the General Education ClassroomThis module, developed in collaboration between the IRIS Center and the TIES Center, describes the benefits of including students with significant cognitive disabilities in general education classrooms. It also offers information on how teachers can plan for and teach all students in inclusive classrooms.
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PROGRESS Center: Resources to Support Developing and Implementing High-Quality Educational ProgrammingPROGRESS Center provides information, resources, tools, and technical assistance services to support local educators and leaders in developing and implementing high-quality educational programs that ensure students with disabilities have access to free appropriate public education which allows them to make progress and meet challenging goals.
All its resources are free and can provide valuable information for individuals or be used for professional learning. There are also opportunities for free professional development and coaching from PROGRESS Center staff. Please contact progresscenter@air.org
for more information.
IEP Tip Sheets: These tip sheets introduce key components of the individualized education program. They include brief summaries of federal regulations, tips for implementation, and resources.
Instructional Practice Briefs: These briefs highlight six evidence-based, high-leverage practices that research has shown support implementation of high-quality instructional programming for students with and at risk for disabilities.
Self-Paced Online Courses: These courses focus on how to develop and implement high-quality educational programming for students with disabilities. They include self-paced learning modules, related resources, and a certificate of completion.
Stories from the Classroom: These short videos feature educators, leaders, and young adults with disabilities sharing strategies, tips, and stories from their experiences. Accompanying discussion guides can help leaders use the videos to facilitate conversations.
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The Texas Education Agency will improve outcomes for all public school students in the state by providing leadership, guidance, and support to school systems. |
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