Throughout this practitioner-oriented paper, we provide a rationale, framework, and supporting materials to promote the development and implementation of personalized, contextualized, and holistic individualized education plans (IEPs) with a strength-based orientation. We believe that adopting strength-based IEP writing practices is vital to…

All students deserve research-based, systematic support and a team that is committed to their success. In this book, Lee Ann Jung lays out a growth planning process that integrates seamlessly with existing IEP and Response to Instruction and Intervention (RTI2) structures and is also suitable for any student who has individualized or personalized…

What is Goal Attainment Scaling? In this article, Lee Ann Jung defines it as a way to measure a student's progress toward an individualized goal. Instead of measuring a skill at a set time (for instance, on a test or other assignment), Goal Attainment Scaling tracks the steps a student takes over the course of a year in a targeted skill. Together,…

Transition for students with disabilities has been the focus of educational policies for several decades. Still, students with disabilities, including those with a specific learning disability (SLD), continue to experience difficulties transitioning to post-school environments, particularly post-secondary education (PSE). The Individuals with…

Having a disability can be one of the most marginalizing factors in a child's life. In education, finding ways to meet the learning needs of children with disabilities can be challenging, especially in schools, districts, regions, and countries with severely limited resources. Inclusive education--which fully engages all children in quality…

Pam Shanks describes Raintree Montessori School, an exemplary inclusion school, and gives credit to the legacy of Dr. Montessori. An inclusive Montessori community begins with "physical integration of all children, progresses to functional inclusion, and finally culminates in the highest level, social inclusion." Each of these levels is…

Learning disabilities are among the most common disabilities experienced in childhood and adulthood. Although identifying learning disabilities in a school setting is a complex process, it is particularly challenging in low- and middle-income countries that lack the appropriate resources, tools, and supports. This guide provides an introduction to…

The science behind the mechanisms and mediators that lead to successful goal accomplishment has been a focus of research since the 1970s. When an individual desires to make a change or accomplish an outcome, research shows that he or she will be more successful if he or she attends to a number of variables that are key in goal setting.…

Over the past decade, there has been an increased emphasis on transition planning for students with exceptional needs. This is in part the result of the mandates contained in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004. This increased emphasis has revealed a number of shortcomings with how transition planning is done…

When considering developing educational programs for students with disabilities, one often thinks first of the annual goals and short-term objectives that are included in the individualized education program (IEP). It is important, though, to connect the short-term objectives (the "now") to long-term goals and dreams (the "future"). Making that…

CAMEO is a system that combines computer technology with a resource of objectives to provide a flexible, time-saving solution to the workload created by individualized education programs (IEPs) for handicapped students. Results of a field test demonstrated that CAMEO reduced preparatory and clerical time without compromising the ability to address…

Microcomputers can store and retrieve thousands of goals or objectives and can be an enormous help in developing individualized education programs (IEPs) for handicapped students. An IEP retrieval software system developed with a menu of 24 curricular areas has generated more than 400 IEPs. (CL)

The Special Program Responding to Intellectual Needs of Gifted designed an assessment and intervention process similar to special education programs. Individual objectives and activities were written based on present functioning. Three years of implementation produced change in excess of chance and maturational projection in 22 of the 26…

The practicum was designed to increase the usefulness of psychoeducational data provided by the school psychologist for educational decision making concerning handicapped students at the elementary level. The first goal was to provide staffing committee members with psychoeducational data in a more useful form than data provided through…

A process to translate results of vocational assessment of learning disabled and behavior-disordered students into individualized education program objectives is described. The process addresses three concerns: (1) appropriate vocational assessment for all; (2) adequate use of assessment results; and (3) inclusion of transition objectives and…