Programs:
Our special education program will provide an inclusive environment for all students. With specially designed instruction that helps meet the needs of every student, we strive for students to be immersed in a traditional classroom setting. This will include outside instruction to ensure our exceptional students are receiving an education tailored to their specific needs and abilities. Having a least restrictive environment for exceptional learners is important in their education because it gives all students, regardless of physical, mental, and emotional abilities, the chance to interact and learn with and from each other. Other settings will also be provided for those who need them. We are dedicated to making sure that each students knows the SPE team and is comfortable with their peers and their teachers. In order to educate our students to the best of our abilities, many different teaching styles will be incorporated into the classroom. Some of these styles include co-teaching, which means there are two teachers that equally share teaching responsibility, small group classes, where students are placed based on their needs, self-contained classes, which are for students who may best learn outside of a general education classroom, and separate schools, in which students will be educated in a separate setting. Other special education programs will include speech and language therapy, and occupational and physical therapy for students who need support concerning their motor skills.
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Exceptional Learners
At Dunder Mifflin, we strive to make sure each student is aware of our special education program. Through inclusiveness and using the least restrictive environment, every student has a chance to learn from one another.
Access to programs:
Our special education program is based on what our students need in order to learn to the best of their abilities. Our team is staffed with professionals that are well trained in the field and dedicated to making the students have the best experience possible in learning. Our staff never stops learning and improving themselves by attending professional development and staying on top of all the new changes and improvements in education. The first step to access our program is an Individualized Education Program (IEP), which a student will be provided with if it is deemed necessary. In order to contain an IEP, a student must be noticeably struggling within the general education program in a way that compromises their education. Once the situation is investigated by both a general education teacher, and a special education teacher or school psychologist, the next step will be to hold a meeting with a panel to discuss possible commodations. The panel of staff in an IEP meeting includes a staff member from administration, a general education teacher, a special education teacher, and the parents or guardians of the student in consideration. Parents or guardians will be part of the process in each step so they are comfortable in the changes and accomodations being made to their student's education. Once an IEP is set in motion, a student will have accomodations in their education that will help their learning immensely. IEPs are renewable, so if there is a change that is not necessarily working, our team will continually work to improve the student’s educational experience. Accommodations through the IEP will be put into place in order to help each student succeed, and our team will also work hard to differentiate their teaching in order to already cater to many students before an IEP is even needed. Access to mainstream classrooms is another unique aspect of our program. We will work hard to make sure each student, if applicable, can have a chance to be apart of the mainstream classroom so that students can learn from each other. While being inclusive in the mainstream classroom, students will also be challenged by the content that is taught. Inclusion goes hand in hand with heterogeneous grouping in the classroom. Heterogeneous grouping means that all students with varying learning abilities will be grouped in a classroom together in order to benefit each student in holding the standards high and making each student accountable. We believe that under no circumstances should students be given an education without having the chance to learn from their peers. Learning comes from challenge and working through problems that we are faced with, so through our content, we will push students to challenge themselves and work through problems so that they will be able to take away skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, and cooperative learning. Here is a link to learn more about MTSS.
Multi-Tiered System of Support
Our program will provide a Multi-Tiered System of Support (MTSS) in order to provide students will support through their academics. MTSS means that all students will be provided with core instruction with instructional and behavioral practices that are based on what our district’s needs are. Differentiation is important for all student in the core layer of MTSS. The MTSS team will check and make sure the practices are being enforced and followed, and then they will gather information on those who are falling behind the norm produced by fellow peers, and they will provide those students with a supplemental layer of support, which is connected to the core instruction that every student is provided with. After making sure those practices are being held in place, the team will find out which students need intensive support along with core differentiation and supplemental support. These layers of support make sure to target each student in some way, while not wasting time and energy on extra support for those that do not need it. Here is a link to learn more about MTSS.