American public schools must allow parents the ability to be involved in the collaboration and planning aspects of their child's individualized education program (IEP). However, many parents have reported feeling like an outsider in IEP meetings. Historically, families from culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) backgrounds have reported…

In early December 2020, in the middle of the pandemic, the Individualized Education Program (IEP) team at the author's son's school met with her online about supporting her autistic son in his general education social studies class. Looking at the many faces on the screen who had gathered to support her son, the author realized how grateful she…

The COVID-19 pandemic radically altered the educational landscape for parents, teachers, and school-aged children. During the 2019-2020 and 2020-2021 school years, restrictions transformed tools of communication, delivery of instruction, and traditional roles within brick- and-mortar schools. Rather than being relegated to a passive role in their…

The purpose of this study was to use data from the United States' National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS 2012) to present descriptive information on youth and parent participation and youth's role in required Individualized Education Program (IEP)/transition planning meetings by disability category and age groupings (14-22 year olds,…

Physical education (PE) has long been neglected throughout the individualized education programme (IEP) process. Parents often feel unprepared to advocate for PE services within the IEP process. Aim: Thus, the purpose of this study was to outline the development of an advocacy checklist to help parents address PE within the IEP process and to…

Principals play a critical role in creating inclusive schools for students with disabilities, but few studies focus on how principals foster meaningful engagement for parents of children with disabilities, especially within Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings where important education decisions are made. Research focused on principal…

One important aspect of special education research that makes it complex is the variability of the disability categories being studied. This study used the context of Individualized Education Program (IEP)/transition planning and National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS 2012) student and parent survey items associated with this context to…

Communicating with parents is a key role for teachers to foster relationships that will support student learning. This essay and discussion article focuses on a range of strategies teachers can use to promote effective communication with parents of children with special needs. The increasing prevalence of students with disabilities in our schools…

Special education professionals serve as facilitators of Individualized Education Program (IEP) team meetings. This study explores how facilitators see their IEP meeting roles and probes further into how IEP facilitators envision an ideal IEP meeting in school districts with rural schools. Findings indicate that facilitators see their roles in…

Parental participation in the initial Individual Education Program (IEP) meeting is a critical component of the process. Even though parents have rights to be equally involved in making decisions at the IEP meetings, frequently parents aren't prepared to be equal members on the team with school personnel. This study focused on a preparation…

Many refugee students with disabilities are entering their American classrooms for the first time after experiencing adversity and trauma. They may have experienced famine, war, displacement, forced migration and abuse. One can also presume that their special education needs were neglected due to the limited resources that were available to them.…

Inclusive education is promoted as an educational setting that brings together students with disabilities alongside non-disabled peers. As the rise in inclusive education continues, many recognize the Salamanca Statement of 1994 as an influencer. This paper discusses how the vision of inclusion grounded in "the need to work towards 'schools…

Through educational research over the last decade, effective practices have been identified for dealing with difficult and challenging behavior in schools. Still, in too many cases, the results of this research and the practices it suggests have not reached educators at the district or building level. The purpose of this booklet is to offer…

The Individual With Disabilities Education Act mandates that parents should be active participants in the Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting. This qualitative study looked at the IEP process from a critical lens that focused on diverse participants' experiences at their child's IEP meeting. What distinguishes counterstories from a…

Transition planning is an important element of special education. This study is a secondary data analysis of the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 (NLTS 2012) that examined parent, student, and adult service agency involvement in the transition process for secondary students with intellectual disability (ID). The NLTS 2012 is the third…