2010-11-13 LPS - Student Services Staffing & Financial Assessment

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22 3. Resource Room This portion of the study relates to the role of special education teachers in providing academic support to students with IEPs. The term resource room is a bit misleading. Much of the support given is not provided in the resource room but rather the special education teacher works with students in the general education classroom (push-in or inclusion model). This section excludes substantially separate classes. To analyze the role of special education teachers in providing academic support it is best to use a systems-thinking lens when looking at the issue. There are a number of important interrelationships, including: These academic support teachers also have a significant role in the IEP process. They typically conduct half of the required testing for initial and three year IEP evaluations and attend all IEP meetings for students on their caseload. In many schools, paraprofessionals are directed by these special education teachers. The work, role, and staffing levels of special education teachers should not be discussed absent the context of general education efforts and best practices. í¿òß½¸·»ª»³»²¬¹¿° The role and staffing of resource room teachers is best discussed in the context of student achievement. Both general education and special education students in Lexington achieve at very high levels. All comments should be taken in the context of continuous improvement. The achievement gap in Lexington is smaller than that in other high-performing districts throughout the state. This should be a source of pride for the district. While the achievement gap is smaller than that in many districts, it is still large in absolute terms. The special education achievement gap in Lexington is smaller than that in all other high- performing districts in Massachusetts. The special education achievement gap decreases at the higher grades. The special education achievement gap is on a similar scale as the racial achievement gap. The District Management Council 7 Harcourt Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116 - Tel:1877-DMC-3500 | Fax:617-491-5266 |www.dmcouncil.org