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Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) – Services to infants and toddlers provided under Part C of IDEA. ECI is a federal grant program that assists states in operating a comprehensive statewide program of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities, aged birth through age 2 years, and their families. Early intervention services include multidisciplinary evaluation of needs of children and family-directed identification of the needs of each family as set out in an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP).
Early Childhood Outcomes Center – Promotes the development and implementation of child and family outcome measures for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers with disabilities. These measures can be used in local, state, and national accountability systems. http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~eco/
Early Intervening Services (EIS) – IDEA 2004 allows schools to use 15% of IDEA funds for support services for students not identified with a disability, but who need additional academic and behavioral support to succeed in the general education classroom.
Early Intervention Services – Services to infants and toddlers provided under Part C of IDEA. Part C established the Program for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities, a federal grant program that assists states in operating a comprehensive statewide program of early intervention services for infants and toddlers with disabilities, aged birth through age 2 years, and their families. Early intervention services include multidisciplinary evaluation of needs of children and family-directed identification of the needs of each family as set out in an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP).
Education Data Exchange Network (EDEN) – A set of K-12 statistical reports gathered from state agencies by the U.S. Department of Education. EDEN attempts to gather statistics from each state, such as school populations within subgroups (race, gender, etc.), graduation rates and school spending.
Education Information Management Advisory Consortium of CCSSO – Advocates on behalf of states to reduce data collection burden on states and improve the overall quality of the data collected at the national level. http://www.ccsso.org/projects/Education_Information_Management_Advisory_Consortium/
Education Service Center (ESC) – Texas has 20 ESCs that cover the state. ESCs serve as the first point of contact for school districts, parents, and other community stakeholders. They provides leadership, training and technical assistance. Some training activities are open to parents.
Eligibility – The determination that a student is a child with a disability.
Emotional Disturbance (ED) – As defined under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) “...a condition exhibiting one or more of the following characteristics over a long period of time and to a marked degree that adversely affects a child’s educational performance:
• An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors.
• An inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers.
• Inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances.
• A general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression.
• A tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems.”
• ED includes schizophrenia but does not apply to children who are socially maladjusted, unless it is determined that they have an emotional disturbance. [Code of Federal Regulation, Title 34, Section 300.7©(4)(ii)]
English Language Learner (ELL) – Children whose first language is not English and who are in the process of learning English, also referred to as Limited English Proficient Students (LEP). Under Title 1 and Title III, NCLB provides funding to states for the development of better assessments and accommodations for LEP students in the areas of language acquisition and academic achievement.
Evaluation – The collection of information about a student’s special learning needs, strengths, and interests which helps the admission, review, and dismissal (ARD) committee to determine special education eligibility and to make informed decisions regarding the development of the student’s individualized education program. An evaluation may include giving individual tests, observing the student, looking at educational records, and talking with the student and his/her teachers and parents.
Extended School Year Services (ESY) – An individualized instructional program for eligible students with disabilities that is provided beyond the regular school year. The need for ESY services must be determined on an individual basis by the ARD committee based on the student’s retention and recoupment of academic skills.
Family Educational Rights & Privacy Act (FERPA) – Protects the confidentiality of a student’s records (20 U.S.C. 1232g; 34 C.F.R. Part 99) and applies to all public schools and local education agencies.
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) – Special education and related services that are provided at public expense, under public supervision and direction, and without charge to the parent, and that meet the standards of the state education department. Special education and related services must be provided in conformity with an Individualized Education Program (IEP) as required by IDEA.
Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) – A problem-solving process for addressing student problem behavior. FBA relies on a variety of techniques and strategies to identify the reasons for a specific behavior and to help IEP teams select interventions that directly address the problem behavior.
Functional Skills – Skills needed for independent living, such as cooking, comparison shopping, working with or managing money, using public transportation, and knowing how to be safe in the community.
General Curriculum – The body of knowledge and range of skills that all students in the state are expected to master. In Texas, the general curriculum is referred to as Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS).
General Educational Development Certificate (GED) – Document stating that a student has passed a specific, approved high school equivalency test, usually received in lieu of a traditional high school diploma of graduation.
Government Performance & Results Act (GPRA) – Holds federal agencies accountable for using resources wisely and achieving program results. GPRA requires agencies to develop plans for what they intend to accomplish, measure how well they are doing, make appropriate decisions based on the information they have gathered, and communicate information about their performance to Congress and to the public.
Graduation – The completion of all required parts of an educational program. A student with disabilities may graduate by completing the requirements of his/her individualized education program or may graduate by completing the same program required of general education students.
Hearing Officer – An impartial person in charge of a due process hearing who issues a written decision based upon the evidence and witnesses presented at the hearing.
Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act of 1996 – Federal statute that provides for the development of uniform national health information data standards and privacy standards.
Highly Qualified Teachers – A teacher meets NCLB definition if the teacher has—
• Full State Certification, and
• Bachelor’s Degree (or higher), and
• Demonstrated Competency
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/nclb/hqteachers.html
Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) – Refers to an evaluation conducted by a qualified examiner who is not employed by the district responsible for the education of the child being evaluated; is of no cost to the parent; and is conducted in accordance with district criteria. A parent has a right to request an IEE when they disagree with an evaluation conducted or obtained by the district.
Individualized Education Program (IEP) – A written statement for each child with a disability that is developed, reviewed, and revised according to the requirements of IDEA.
Individual Family Service Plan (IFSP) – Documents and guides the early intervention process for children with disabilities and their families in accordance with Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It contains information about the services necessary to facilitate a child’s development and enhance the family’s capacity to facilitate the child’s development. Through the IFSP process, family members and service providers work as a team to plan, implement, and evaluate services tailored to the family’s unique concerns, priorities, and resources.
Individual Transition Plan (ITP) – A written document created separate from the IEP that addresses services the student needs to move successfully from school to post-school activities.
Infant & Toddler Coordinators Association – Not-for-profit corporation promoting mutual assistance, cooperation, and exchange of information and ideas in the administration of Part C of the IDEA and to provide support to state and territory Part C coordinators. http://www.ideainfanttoddler.org/index.htm
Informed Consent – Procedure to ensure that the parent:
• Has been fully informed of all information related to the proposed activity (in his native language, or other mode of communication)
• Understands and agrees in writing to carrying out the activity for which his consent is sought
• Understands that giving consent is voluntary and may be revoked at any time
• Understands that revoking consent will not apply to an activity that has already occurred
Informed consent is required for an evaluation, a reevaluation and for the initial delivery of special education services.
Interim Alternative Educational Setting (IAES) – A setting other than the student’s current placement that enables the student to continue to receive educational services according to his or her IEP. The IAES must enable the student to continue to participate in the general education curriculum, although in another setting, and progress toward meeting the goals set out in the IEP. Students in an IAES should also receive, as appropriate, a functional behavioral assessment, behavioral intervention services and modifications that are designed to address the behavior violation so that it does not happen again. The particular IAES is determined by the student’s IEP team.
International Classification of Diseases – A detailed description of known diseases and injuries published by the World Health Organization and used worldwide for morbidity and mortality statistics, reimbursement systems, and automated decision support in medicine.
Intervention – A change in instructing the student in the area of learning difficulty to try to improve learning and achieve adequate progress.
Juvenile Justice Alternative Education Program (JJAEP) – Off-campus program operated under the authority of a juvenile board of a county for students subject to expulsion for criminal offenses. The main objective is to take at-risk students coming from diverse backgrounds and rehabilitate them to the point that they can be placed back in their home school districts with a good chance of academic success
Language Proficiency Assessment Committee – Campus-based team that oversees the academic progress of limited English proficient (LEP) students and follows procedures to ensure that exempted LEP students are administered the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) at the earliest practical date.
Learning Disability (LD) – A disorder in one or more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, which may manifest itself in an imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell, or to do mathematical calculations. The term includes such conditions as perceptual handicaps, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction, dyslexia, and developmental aphasia.
Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) – To the maximum extent appropriate, children with disabilities are to be educated with children who are not disabled. Special classes, separate schooling, or other ways of removing children with disabilities from the regular educational environment should only occur when the nature or severity of the disability is such that education in regular classes cannot be achieved satisfactorily with the use of supplementary aids and services.
Limited English Proficient (LEP) – Same as English Language Learner.
Local Education Agency (LEA) – The entity that has legal authority, control and responsibility for public education in a city, county, town (or combination of these), or other subdivision of a state. In Texas, LEA is synonymous with Independent School District.
Locally Determined Alternative Assessment (LDAA) – A locally assigned assessment used to measure the learning of a student receiving special education services whose ARD committee has determined that the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS), TAKS Inclusive (TAKS-I) and/or the State-Developed Alternative Assessment II (SDAA II) are inappropriate. The final administration of the LDAA will occur in the 2006-2007 school year and will be replaced by the TAKS-Alt.
Manifestation Determination Review – A meeting by the IEP committee to determine the relationship between the student’s disability and the behavior subject to a disciplinary action; must be conducted immediately (within 10 days) when the disciplinary action involves the student’s change of placement for more than 10 consecutive or cumulative days within a school year.
Measurable Annual Goals – Goals that a student can reasonably accomplish in a year. The goals are broken down into short-term objectives or benchmarks. Goals may be academic, address social or behavioral needs, relate to physical needs, or address other educational needs. These goals must be measurable. The goals must address the student’s involvement and progress in the general curriculum.
Mediation – A step in the procedural safeguards to assist parents and school personnel in trying to settle disagreements with the help of a trained mediator provided by the Texas Education Agency. Mediation does not take the place of a parent’s right to file a complaint or request a due process hearing.
Medicaid Administrative Claiming – Provides school districts with the ability to receive reimbursement for certain outreach and case management activities.
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) – An informal record, document, or instrument that serves as the basis of a future contract.
Mental Retardation (MR) – Refers to “significant sub-average general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, that adversely affects a child’s educational performance.” It is important to note that the basis for a classification of mental retardation is the source of a student’s learning problem, not the student’s actual I.Q.
Modifications – Instructional supports determined by the ARD committee that will assist the student in mastering the goals of the IEP.
Monitoring & State Improvement Planning Division – Carries out major activities related to the Part B, Part C (formally Part H), and 619 formula grant programs. The Division is responsible for State Plan review and approval, and for monitoring OSEP's formula grant programs to ensure consistency with Federal requirements and to ensure that States and other public agencies continue to implement programs designed to improve results for infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities. Additionally, the Division provides leadership to OSEP's technical assistance provided to the States through the Regional Resource Centers. The State Improvement Planning activities are also managed by the MSIP Division through a cross-cutting team made up of staff from throughout OSEP. http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/osep/msipd.html
Multiple Disabilities – The school may diagnose a student as having multiple disabilities if they occur in combination with each other, cause severe educational problems, and cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for one of the specific impairments.
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