Early intervention is essential for children who are struggling to meet developmental milestones. By providing early support, schools and centers can help children close the gap and succeed in school, while also supporting staff and administrators to feel more equipped and confident in their skills and processes.   Research shows that children who participate in [...]

With massive teaching shortages across the country, many districts are finding themselves starting the 23-24 SY without enough qualified special education teachers. Shortages in special education staff has historically been a common challenge for districts, but this year shortages are at a volume in which has never been seen, coupled with shortages of all teachers, [...]

Special education teachers work in a challenging and often high-stress environment that requires patience, flexibility, and compassion. These teachers work with students who have a wide range of needs, including learning disabilities, emotional and behavioral disorders, and physical disabilities. Unfortunately, this challenging work can take a toll on teachers, and many special education teachers experience [...]

(Republished from Inside IES Research) The Department of Education’s Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR), which IES administers, funds the research, development, and evaluation of new, commercially viable education technology products. Known as ED/IES SBIR, the program’s goal is to grow a portfolio of products that are research-based and ready to be widely deployed to address [...]

SUPPORTING SPECIAL EDUCATION THROUGH CO-TEACHING This summer has recently been called ‘a time of reckoning’ by education experts, policy-makers and district leaders who are thinking ahead to a few short weeks before the 2022- 2023 school year. The shortage of teaching staff, especially special education teaching staff, is calling for a review of staffing practices [...]

2020, more than any year before, has highlighted the longstanding problems within our special education system. And in many cases, the pandemic made those problems worse. For decades, special education teams have been expected to achieve the impossible -- meet every need of every student without the time, tools, or resources to do the job. [...]

We are proud to partner with other education technology platforms, like JumpRope, who share our values and are committed to an equitable education. Please enjoy this post from Sarah Needleman at JumpRope: Meeting the Range of Students’ Needs October 12, 2020 Sara Needleman   Editors note: This post provides a deeper look into the ideas [...]

Over the past few weeks, I have watched the education community come together in a beautiful and generous way – to navigate a situation never thought imaginable.  There truly is some comfort to be found in knowing that we are all in this together.  I have been amazed by the speedy creation and sharing of […]

IEP meetings are often a source of stress for everyone, and often feel ineffective, falling flat of their intention to provide a collaborative plan based on the needs of an individual student. In 2020, let’s change that narrative.  Here are four ways administrators can make IEP meetings positive, productive, synergistic, and data-driven to give each […]