A human-like robot that can mimic emotions and play interactive games can help students with autism develop social skills. Aldebaran Robotics’ “ASK NAO” robot, which is about two feet tall, mimics an emotion with gestures and sounds, and waits for children to recognize the emotion.
Special Ed
6/3/2013
The target graduation rate for special-needs students with individual education plans is 80 percent, a goal that 130 school districts and charter schools met or exceeded. A total of 59 districts and charter schools had 100 percent graduation rates for special-needs students in 2010-11.
6/3/2013
Decades-old limits on the size of special education classes would disappear along with restrictions on the number of disabled students in traditional classrooms under proposals being pushed by state education leaders.
6/2/2013
Seattle Public Schools has 18 months to fix persistent problems in its special-education programs, or risk losing millions of dollars in federal special-education funding or control over how it can spend that money.
5/29/2013
The additional money is needed so the School Department can end the fiscal year in June with a balanced budget. The School Committee is scheduled to vote on the request at its June 5 meeting.
5/3/2013
The suit, joined by parents throughout the state, asserts that California is shirking its responsibility to ensure disabled students receive what's federally guaranteed -- a free and appropriate education. A federal district judge in Sacramento five weeks ago cleared the way for the suit to proceed.
5/2/2013
Pinellas County Schools officials hope to shave about $6.5 million off their budget by retooling special education programs. Closing the K12 Hamilton Disston School in Gulfport and moving the students to other schools is expected to save $1.8 million, while other special education staffing changes are expected to save an additional $4.7 million.
4/29/2013
Jordan Valley School in the Canyons School District in Sandy, Utah is using an iPad to show pictures and icons that help children on the autism spectrum to more easily manage their day so they will know what to expect. Pictures, for example, depict a toilet, handwashing in a sink, reading, and math, among other tasks.
4/15/2013
In a recent analysis, the Seattle Special Education Advisory & Advocacy Council found that in Seattle Public Schools, 40 percent of all long-term or short-term suspensions were received by students identified as having a disability.
4/14/2013
The variety of Bridgeport school programs serving students on the autism spectrum has increased over the last decade as the district has sought to educate more students in its own schools instead of expensive outside programs.
4/14/2013
It started as a transitional program, a way to teach special education students with developmental disabilities how to handle personal finances, find a job and live independently once they left school.
4/7/2013
Twenty-five Darien parents filed a complaint with the state Department of Education on March 20 claiming that the Darien special education system does not meet state standards and that federal funding should be pulled from the town.
3/26/2013
The National School Boards Association (NSBA) is urging a federal appeals court to ensure that school districts are not required to reimburse parents who unilaterally choose educational placements for their children with disabilities if those placements are not appropriate under federal special education law.
3/21/2013
A Florida school district has released video that appears to show a bus driver kicking an autistic student down the stairs. Wilkerson was fired after the Sept. 28, 2012, incident, which Tampa police say resulted in a broken ankle for the young girl, reported NBC affiliate WFLA.com. Wilkerson now faces aggravated child abuse charges, the station said.
3/19/2013
Thanks to Washington's budget showdown, our neediest kids will see the deepest cuts.
Pages
About Us
District Administration is the most widely received, most regularly read publication for K12 district-level school leaders nationwide.