How one mother discovered a problem with special education and got legislators to help try to fix it

Data suggests that by the time students with learning disabilities are referred for special-education services, wide achievement gaps already exist.

School districts track how much money is spent on students with special needs who receive Individual Education Programs, or IEPs. But they don’t report their budgets for specialized early intervention — before students get IEPs but are in need of help — nor the effectiveness of the interventions they do make. While intervening services — such as specialized literacy instruction — are given from K-12, the emphasis is on the early years.

Why does this matter? Research shows that early interventions — from kindergarten through third grade — can help alleviate learning disabilities and improve student outcomes.

By Valerie Strauss

Full Story: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2017/01/08/how-one-mother-discovered-a-problem-with-special-education-and-got-legislators-to-help-try-to-fix-it/?hpid=hp_hp-cards_hp-card-local%3Ahomepage%2Fcard&utm_term=.4f1e11388b04