Tagged Education
New Resources on the ADA from Institute on Community Integration, University of Minnesota
The new Impact: Feature Issue on the ADA and People with Intellectual, Developmental, and Other Disabilities, from the Insititute on COmmunity Integration, University of Minnesota is now available online.
This issue marks the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with articles by individuals with disabilities, families, advocates, service providers, researchers, and others talking about how the ADA has made a difference in their lives, the lives of their loved ones, and in our nation. At the same time, this Impact also focuses on ways in which the ADA hasn’t fully addressed a number of the barriers faced by people with intellectual and developmental disabilities as they seek equal opportunity and inclusion in their communities. By sharing this range of perspectives, this Impact issue encourages readers to both pause to celebrate the anniversary of the ADA as a turning point in our nation’s journey, and continue traveling toward that horizon of full inclusion we have yet to reach. View the pdf version of the issue here. Get the text version.
Complementing this issue of Impact included over 40 video clips on the Institute’s website, Self Advocacy Online. Here, individuals with disabilities talk about the ADA. View the Institute’s website and video clips
If you would like a complimentary print copy of this issue of Impact email the Institute’s Publication Office at icipub@umn.edu or call 612-624-4512.
Decreasing the Dropout Rate for Minority Male Youth with Disabilities
The National Dropout Prevention Center for Students with Disabilities has recently released a detailed study about increased graduation rates for minority male youth with disabilities. Students with disabilities drop out of school at a rate far greater than student without disabilities and the disparity is even worse for minority males with disabilities. The monograph is comprised of three studies that examine different ethnic populations: American Indian, African American, and Latino. The purpose of their studies was to examine root causes and risk factors of dropout and suggest existing programs and strategies to help these young men stay in school. Susan Faircloth of North Carolina State University examines the impediments to graduation for American Indian males with disabilities. Ivory Toldson of Howard University examines the dropout phenomenon among African American males with disabilities. Robert Lucio of St. Leo University studies Hispanic males with disabilities and their dropout patterns.
AUCD Network Projects Promote Education for Students with Disabilities
Across the country, AUCD members are working to improve educational outcomes for students with disabilities.
In Minnesota, the Institute on Community Integration’s developed the Check & Connect program, an evidence-based intervention to increase student engagement at school and prevent dropout among K-12 students.
Now, Check & Connect has launched an expanded suite of training and consultation options, its staff are conducting new large-scale research studies on its efficacy, and its new Web site has been unveiled. Since its inception, the Check & Connect model has been implemented in 27 states and internationally. Ongoing studies have demonstrated a number of positive results for participating students. Read more…
In the U.S., 80 percent of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) go to public schools, at least 50 percent of them are in general education classes throughout the school day, more than 60 percent have average IQs and are not affected by intellectual disabilities, yet they have the worst graduation rates of any group. In California, UC Davis autism researcher and education specialist Peter Mundy has received a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to apply virtual-reality technology to evaluate social attention and its relation to academic achievement among school children with autism. He also is launching Educational Interventions for Students with Autism, a book for elementary and secondary school teachers that shares current research and evidence-based approaches to training. Read more…
Dan Habib, filmmaker in residence at the University of New Hampshire Institute on Disability and creator of Including Samuel has followed up Including Samuel with new documentary about older students with disabilities. Who Cares About Kelsey? documents Kelsey Carroll’s struggles with emotional and behavioral challenges, and shows innovative educational approaches that help students like her to succeed–while improving the overall school culture and climate. When Kelsey Carroll entered high school, she was a more likely candidate for the juvenile justice system than graduation. During Kelsey’s sophomore year, a new school leadership team implemented Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, the youth-directed planning process RENEW, along with other educational reforms. Through intensive self-directed planning and wraparound supports at Somersworth High, Kelsey began the transformation from a struggling, defiant student to a motivated, self-confident young woman. Read More…
The Meaning of Brown vs. Board of Education for Children with Disabilities
by A. Anthony Antosh, Ed.D. and Andrew Imparato. Originally posted on the American Constitution Society blog.
The 1954 Brown v. Board of Education ruling laid the foundation for the 1975 federal law (now called the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) requiring access to a free appropriate public education for all children with disabilities. Before 1975, about one million American children with disabilities were receiving no education from the public school system. Since then, we have made progress in securing quality, integrated educational opportunities for American children with disabilities, but we still have a long way to go – particularly for children with intellectual disabilities.
There is a history of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities learning, living and working in separate settings. As the Court noted in Brown, “Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.” That statement was a stimulus for a civil rights movement that sought to integrate people with disabilities into every aspect of society. In the 1960s it was rare to find any public school that integrated students with intellectual disabilities. Although progress has been made, we still find widespread segregation of these students. Fifty-six percent of students (ages 6-21) with intellectual disabilities are primarily educated in separate classes or separate schools (United States Department of Education. 31st Annual Report to Congress on the Implementation of IDEA, 2009). The effects of segregation are significant. Twenty-seven percent of people with intellectual disabilities (aged 21-64) do not have a high school diploma (American Community Survey, 2012). The curriculum offered in segregated settings is often vastly different than the curriculum offered in typical classrooms (Wehmeyer, 2003). Students in segregated classrooms are less engaged and spend more time alone (Hunt, Farron-Davis, Beckstead, Curtis, & Goetz, 1994). Continue Reading on ACS blog…
New Education Data Shows Work Remains to be Done
In April, the Department of Education released a new report showing the high school graduation rates for groups of students across the country, including students with disabilities. The report showed a small two percentage-point increase in the graduation rate for students with disabilities from the 2010-2011 to the 2011-2012 school year and great variability between states. In twenty states and the District of Columbia, less than 60% of students with disabilities graduate in four years with a high school diploma. Rates vary from a high of 81% in Montana to a low of 24% in Nevada.
Ten states – Alabama, Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wyoming – have graduation rates between 50% and 60%. These states are excellent places for #6by15 advocacy to encourage your state to get beyond the 60% threshold.
Senator Harkin’s Remarks at CCD Annual Meeting
At the annual meeting of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, Senator Harkin spoke about his vision for the disability community and the goals he thinks the community should pursue. To learn more about those goals, read Senator Harkin’s remarks.
Six by '15 Campaign 