http://www.yankton.net/articles/2012/06/26/community/doc4fe92e916e75f972591682.txt

 

YSD Working To Meet State’s Special Education Requirements

By Andrew Atwal
andrew.atwal@yankton.net

Recent special education numbers released for the Yankton School District (YSD) show the district exceeding expectations in some areas, but not quite measuring up to standards in other target areas.

The numbers show that, for the 2010-11 school year, YSD fell below the South Dakota statewide average for graduation rate for students on an individualized education program (IEP), as well as proficiency rates for reading and math for both grades kindergarten to 8th grade and grades 9 through 12.

The proficiency rate in reading for children in grades 9-12 was 6.25 percent, which is below the state average of 22.24 percent. The math proficiency rate for high school students was 18.75 percent, also below the South Dakota average, which was at 19.64 percent.

The numbers for the high school proficiency rates only include data from students in 11th grade since that is the only grade in high school that takes the Dakota Step test. The data comes from test scores on the Dakota Step test, administered to South Dakota students.

Other large school districts in eastern South Dakota that also fell below state target proficiency rates include Brookings, Aberdeen, Vermillion and Sioux Falls.

On the other hand, YSD performed better than the South Dakota average for students dropping out who are on an IEP, participation rates for students on IEP’s and overall suspension or expulsion rate for students with disabilities.

The district also outperformed the state average on students with disabilities being in the regular classroom more than 80 percent of the day, being in the regular class less than 40 percent of the day and being in separate facilities       altogether.

Students could be placed in special education and an IEP program because they are deaf or blind; have a cognitive, emotional, learning or orthopedic disability; autism; traumatic brain injury; or a developmental delay. Students with a speech or language impairment could also be placed in the special education program if they have a speech or language impairment, such as a stutter.

Kathy Wagner, director of student services and head of the special education program for the YSD, said students with a speech or language impairment could bring the scores and numbers up for the program.

“These students are on IEP’s but really have no academic issues,” she said.

Wagner added that she is disappointed the schools did not do better in the four-year graduation rate for students on an IEP, which was at about 73 percent — about 12 percent below the state average of 85 percent. However, she said that some students are served until they are 21, which brings the graduation rate down.

One thing that she was happy about was the 100 percent participation rate that Yankton has for students on IEPs.

“It is excellent,” she said. “It shows that you can’t just exclude kids to bring the numbers up, and schools are not allowed to do that any more.”

She noted the importance of vocational courses being offered at the high school. These classes include skilled labor jobs, including some classes being offered with the Regional Technological Education Center (RTEC).

“We have been working hard to change the mindset that kids must go to a four-year college,” Wagner said. “We need to provide classes for kids that just want to go out into the workforce.”

One of the ways that special education numbers could improve in coming years is through the new school standards that South Dakota will adopt beginning with the coming school year.

Instead of standards being specific to South Dakota, all schools in the state will move to the Common Core set of standards. The standards have been adopted by 45 states, with the main goal being to provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn.

Wagner noted the standards are not dramatically different from the ones that have been in place in the state. However, some topics are expected to be covered and mastered even earlier than they have been      previously.

“One thing we’ll try to do differently is linking the Common Core Standards to the IEP’s for students,” she said. “The 8th grade standards might not be what a particular student needs.”

She added that students on IEP’s have their own plans and goals and these must be linked to the new standards. However, she did note that some families might think that it is more important for their child to learn lifestyle skills and not necessarily what other kids are learning in the classroom.

“IEP’s are not just what schools want, they’re also what parents and guardians want, too,” Wagner said.

“Our goal is to provide the best education that we possibly can for every student that is on an IEP,” she added.

New data, which will include numbers for all students in the district, and not just those students on an IEP, are expected to be released in July.

You can follow Andrew Atwal on Twitter at www.twitter.com/andrewatwal