"Evaluation" under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is among the major responsibilities of school psychologists. This concluding article in the series on evaluation under the IDEA provides legal analysis and professional recommendations related to procedural appropriateness. Specifically, it addresses notices,…

This article presents a structured blueprint for school psychologists to assess and intervene in cases of automatically maintained self-injurious behavior (SIB) while adhering to the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) mandate. We outline a six-step process for conducting Functional Behavior Assessments (FBAs) of automatically maintained SIB,…

As states consider non-academic measures of school quality for their accountability plans under the Every Student Succeeds Act, few are choosing to focus on the school climate in which students learn. That's not a surprise, given concerns about the validity and usefulness of existing climate surveys. However, the authors argue, a recent study…

Education reform legislation has led to an upwelling of mandatory teacher evaluation for all elementary, middle school, and high school educators, including those who teach special education. While this reform effort aimed to improve overall teacher effectiveness and student learning outcomes, the teacher evaluation for special education is a…

School psychologists play a critical role in school-based Autism (AU) evaluations. Evidence-based AU evaluations should be multimodal, include multiple informants, and assess functioning across several domains. In the current era of COVID-19, school-based AU evaluations have become increasingly complex with school psychologists having to…

Specific learning disabilities (SLD) identification has consistently been shown to be problematic; however, research has largely focused on SLD identification using test scores only. The present study, therefore, examined SLD identification decisions across identification methods and student evaluation data levels, including test scores,…

A primary focus of recent educational policymaking has been on improving measures of teaching effectiveness, attributable in part to recent federal policies such as the Race to the Top initiative and Investing in Innovation. To date, neither researchers nor practitioners have arrived at a consensus on the best methods for evaluating special…

Over a relatively short period of time, states and districts across the country have embraced reform surrounding teacher evaluation and compensation. Public concern over teacher evaluations, combined with federal initiatives designed to support teacher evaluation reform, led many states to adopt more comprehensive evaluation systems that draw on…

From its inception as a disability category in the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, serving students under the special education category Emotional Disturbance (ED) has been a challenging task for school psychologists. In particular, the vague and ambiguous federal definition has created an environment in which inconsistent assessment…

On any given day, early intervention (EI) providers must manage the individual needs of children with a range of disabilities in a variety of contexts and with varying caregiver/family priorities. Recommended and evidence-based practices as defined by Part C policy (Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act, 2004) and the Division…

An urban Pre-K through 5th grade school referred to as Westvale Elementary School was the focal point for this research study. Westvale was located within an urban district in New York State that was host to approximately 20,000 students. Both the school and the district were labeled as failing under the No Child Left Behind Act. Foucauldian…

Student growth is one of two essential components of South Dakota's Teacher and Principal Effectiveness Systems. In the state systems, student growth is defined as a positive change in student achievement between two or more points in time. "The South Dakota SLO Handbook" provides support and guidance to public schools and school…

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the numbers of children identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) continues to rise. In North Dakota, the percentage of students identified with an ASD has increased from 1.9% of the total population of students with disabilities in 2004 to 6.2% of that same group in 2013-14.…

Until recently, states focused on ensuring the presence of a "highly qualified teacher" in every classroom. Under the 2001 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB), this title described a teacher holding at least a bachelor's degree and the appropriate state license and…

The field of special education, and specifically the area of intellectual disabilities, has undergone dramatic changes in terminology, evaluation practices, service delivery models, expectations for learning, career development, and independent living opportunities. "Guidelines: Intellectual Disabilities in Educational Settings" is…