27 Teachers-Coaching Practice that Transform Student Learning
This blog explores the benefits of coaching teachers over a training-only model and supports claims with research and statistics. Easily implemented concrete teacher-coaching practices are included.
Publication Date: August 2023
Publisher: KOI Education
ADE Exceptional Student Services
This webpage offers complete information for all Arizona special education programs regarding regulations, procedures, and compliance. Information and resources for specific special education areas are available.
Publication Date: 2025
Publisher: Exceptional Student Services, Arizona Department of Education
Core Competencies for Special Education Paraeducators
These Core Competencies represent the required knowledge and skills all paraeducators need to safely and effectively support students with disabilities in K-12 settings. These core competencies address the corresponding role of paraeducators in the four aspects of the High Leverage Practices for special educators.
Publication Date: March 2022
Publisher: Council for Exceptional Children
Guidance Manuals for Educators of English Learners with Disabilities: Ideas and Lessons
This report describes ideas and lessons learned from leaders in four states, a statewide association, and a school district, all of which have developed guidance manuals. These ideas and lessons will assist leaders who are creating or are in the process of revising procedures and policies of their own.
Author: Elizabeth Burr
Publication Date: April 2019
Publisher: National Center on Educational Outcomes, University of Minnesota
Instructional Accommodations
This webpage provides detailed information for accommodations in presentation, response, timing/scheduling setting, assessment, including students in the decision-making process, documentation on IEPs and 504 plans, and more.
Author: Sandra Thompson
Publisher: National Center on Educational Outcomes, University of Minnesota
Making the Time: Relationships Among the School Specialists
This study examined the relationships among school specialists; specifically, special education teachers; Child Study Team members, school psychologists and school social workers; and school counselors, who provide support to students with specific learning needs and their families.
Authors: Meredith Drew and Michelle Gonzalez
Publication Date: 2021
Publisher: School Community Journal
Myths and Facts Surrounding Assistive Technology Devices and Services
This document is designed to increase understanding of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act’s (IDEA’s) assistive technology (AT) requirements, dispel common misconceptions regarding AT, and provide examples of the use of AT devices and services for children with disabilities and to highlight the different requirements under Part C and Part B of IDEA.
Publication Date: January 2024
Publisher: U.S. Department of Education
Providing Reading Interventions for Students in Grades 4–9
This practice guide is designed for special education teachers providing reading intervention. It grounds four recommendations (multisyllabic word reading, fluency building, comprehension-building practices, and stretch texts) in high-quality evidence based on research studies focused on reading interventions. Each recommendation includes instructional practices and a short summary of the research evidence that supports the recommendation.
Authors: Sharon Vaughn, Michael J. Kieffer, Margaret McKeown, Deborah K. Reed, Michele Sanchez, Kimberly St. Martin and Jade Wexler
Publication Date: March 2022
Publisher: National Center for Education Evaluation at Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education
Significant Disproportionality in Special Education
This brief summarizes the literature and latest research on disproportionality in special education and offers changes in policy and practice that can reduce significant disproportionality in schools.
Publication Date: July 2023
Publisher: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Supporting Schools During and After Crisis: A Guide to Supporting States, Districts, Schools, Educators, and Students through a Multi-Tiered Systems of Support Framework
This guide describes the use of a multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) framework to restart classrooms and schools in a manner that all students, families, and educators are supported effectively, efficiently, and relevantly.
Authors: Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, State Implementation and
Scaling Up of Evidence-Based Practices Center, National Integrated Multi-Tiered Systems
of Support Research Network, National Center on Improving Literacy, and Lead for Literacy
Center
Publication Date: Revised October 2022
Publisher: University of Oregon
Supporting the Transition from Preschool to Kindergarten
This tip sheet focuses on five areas of focus for a successful transition from preschool to kindergarten and what administrators can do to help support families, students, and teachers. By implementing these tips, school administrators can play a crucial role in facilitating a smooth and successful transition for students with special needs from early childhood to kindergarten.
Publication Date: 2024
Publisher: Vanderbilt Kennedy Center
The Identification of Specific Learning Disabilities: A Summary of Research on Best Practices
This report summarizes research on the identification of SLD and makes recommendations for practice. It begins with a summary of the legal requirements for SLD identification and what constitutes a comprehensive evaluation. It then discusses the attributes of SLD according to different conceptual frameworks and reviews research on the reliability and validity of different methods for SLD identification that emanate from these frameworks. The report concludes with recommendations for best practice, regardless of the specific identification methods employed.
Authors: Jack M. Fletcher and Jeremy Miciak
Publication Date: 2019
Publisher: Texas Center for Learning Disabilities
The Special Education Handbook: A Brief Overview of the History and Requirements of Part B of the IDEA
This handbook provides an explanation of federal and state special education requirements in a readable format that includes relevant citations.
Authors: Kacey Gregson and Shannon Chavez
Publication Date: January 2018
Publisher: Arizona Department of Education
The UDL Guidelines
This new iteration, UDL Guidelines 3.0, addresses critical barriers rooted in biases and systems of exclusion for learners with and without disabilities. These guidelines offer a set of concrete suggestions that can be applied to any discipline or domain to ensure that all learners can access and participate in meaningful, challenging learning opportunities.
Publication Date: July 2024
Publisher: CAST
What Do Special Education Teachers Need from School Leaders to Be Effective?
This article explains effective leadership is crucial in empowering special education teachers to meet the unique challenges of their profession. Key areas are explored where school leaders can provide the necessary support to special education teachers. It also examines effective practices by principals to retain special education teachers, given the high turnover rates in this field.
Authors: Kareem Thompson and Luann Purcell
Publication Date: September 2024
Publisher: Council for Exceptional Children