Did you know? EC Sections 56520–56525 and 5 CCR Section 3052 state that students who have disabilities that affect their behavior in school have the right to an IEP designed to bring lasting positive behavioral change (5 CCR Section 3052[a])
Click on the link below to learn more.
…believing that a child’s behavior problem is always the result of bad parenting is like believing poor grades are always the result of an ineffective teacher. Even the best teachers have students who get poor grades, and even the best parents can have a child with a behavior problem. The fact is that behavior problems can be a sign of mental and emotional problems.
The above excerpt was taken from this article on the National Mental Health Information Center’s website.
Recently I found myself speaking to quite a number of people, some parents and some professionals on the topic of behaviors that interfere with the public educational learning process.
Here is a great starting point for understanding our responsibilities and how behavioral support plans relate to children who are on an IEP or 504: IEPs for Behavior Problems, Assessments & Interventions from Wrightslaw.
Speaker:
Ron Pekarek, M.S., BCBA
Location:
Tulare County Office of Education
2637 W. Burrell Ave.
Visalia, CA
September 2005 – I found myself speaking at Fresno Pacific University about the use of video and computer technology for assessment and training in special education.
November 2005 – Was a very exciting month for the group as we enjoyed a Question and Answer Session with:
Daniel Openden, Ph.D.
Autism Research & Training Center
Gevirtz Graduate School of Education
University of California Santa Barbara
This was an open forum, question and answer session to discuss Pivotal Response Treatment & Procedures for Including Children with Autism in School and in the Community.
Many thanks to all those who supported this event and a special thank you to the following cosponsors:
The Central Valley Regional Center and the The Tulare County/District Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA)
January 2006 – The first month of 2006 brought together the collaborative efforts of so many people as the Autism Resources website was launched by The Tulare County/District Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA).
February 2006 – The Tulare County SELPA’s Autism Resources website was shared with the Directors of Special Education Committee.
Another exciting guest lecturer honored our group as we inviting you to attend an evening with:
Amy Laurent, Ed.M., OTR/L
is a pediatric occupational therapist who holds a Master’s in Special Education. Currently in private practice, she is a New England affiliate of Communication Crossroads and of Childhood Communication Services. Amy specializes in the education of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and related developmental disabilities. She is a co-author of the clinical manual for the SCERTS Model, a comprehensive educational approach for children with autism spectrum disorders and lectures internationally on topics related to therapeutic and educational intervention for children with ASD. She also serves
as an instructor for the Communication Disorders Department at the University of Rhode Island and for the Communication Sciences and Disorders Department at Emerson College in Boston, MA.
Topic: Behavior and Emotional Regulation
Many thanks to all those who supported this event and a special thank you to the following cosponsors:
The Central Valley Regional Center and the The Tulare County/District Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA)
May 2006 – I was surprised to receive a special award from the Community Advisory Committee here in Tulare County. The Community Advisory Committee (CAC) includes several parents of students with special needs and is appointed by Tulare County school districts and the Tulare County Board of Education. Although I received this award for the development of an on-line resource for parents and teachers of children with autism, this award really represents the efforts and contributions of each and everyone one of you. I simple could not have accomplished it without all of you.
August 2006 – Many of the collaborative efforts here in Tulare County to implement family-centered educational intervention programs for children with autism were demonstrated at the 1st SCERTS Institute in Providence, RI.
November 2006 – Additional opportunities for families and professionals in our area to see the positive impact that their work has on the lives of others were provided as many of the accomplishments were used to train the 280 attendees at the SCERTS Institute in San Jose. The SCERTS collaborators expressed their appreciation to the Tulare County Office of Education & College of the Sequoias Child Development Center and I was invited up on stage to provide a parent perspective during the Q & A portion.
December 2006 – We packed a lot into the final month of 2006. As a guest presenter at Tulare County’s Directors of Special Education Committee meeting I presented parent concerns related to ASD programming within the districts. Much of the information that was presented in that meeting will be made available on this web site in the near future. December also brought about our first training meeting designed to focus on the importance of using visuals supports when interacting with children with autism. The class went over very well. Our goal was to keep the group size small in order to truly support and teach each family how to use various tools and software programs such as Boardmaker. To insure that each family left the group with supports to take home, we had 1 support person available for each family. We will continue offering this class and plan to introduce a more advanced one as well.