This brochure offers specific communication skills that may be helpful to parents as they develop and maintain partnerships with their child's school. This document was originally published in May 2004 and developed in partnership with the National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities (NICHCY). This resource is available in multiple languages

In this multi-part webinar from the Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE) presenters Lorig Charkoudian, Ph.D. and Erricka Bridgeford of Community Mediation Maryland introduced participants to the concepts and strategies of Inclusive Listening, a system for listening and reflecting for mediation and facilitation. Inclusive Listening has been developed over the last 15 years by mediators and trainers in Maryland. Inclusive listening honors participants' experiences, supporting them to have the conversation in an authentic way.

IEP teams are intentionally composed of parents, educators, and service providers who bring different expertise to the development of effective educational programs. This resource from the Center for Appropriate Dispute Resolution in Special Education (CADRE) includes suggestions on how educators and service providers can effectively collaborate with parents including specific recommendations for IEP meetings.

The National Center on Intensive Intervention has developed the tools charts to assist educators and families in becoming informed consumers who can select academic and behavioral interventions. The charts display reviews of studies of interventions including information about the quality of the study, outcomes, and implementation information. The charts are interactive so that users can filter, sort, compare, and review the data in order to select an intervention that meets their needs.

To provide students with disabilities and their families the best educational experience, the use of the functional behavioral assessment should be a viable option when challenging behaviors are interfering with learning opportunities. As the technology of FBA continues to improve through systematic research, educators should not default to the legal requirements, which may, as we have outlined here, leave considerable gaps.

Teams are a vital part of an effective multi-tiered system of supports (MTSS) across both academics and behavior as well as special education. Making connections across the various teams used in MTSS and special education can be challenging. This resource from NCII and the PBIS Center, provides information about how data-based individualization (DBI) can support IEP implementation and provides a table with key considerations for teams working across the MTSS system.

This module, Parents: Supporting Learning During the COVID-19 Pandemic, from the IRIS Center offers tips to support your child’s learning at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Including learners with significant communication needs in the general education classroom will require additional planning for general and special education teachers as well as related service providers. These include speech-language pathologists, physical and occupational therapists, and vision/hearing specialists. Coordinating the work of these service providers and leveraging their expertise can result in a high quality experience for all the learners in an inclusive class.