Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability
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uidelinesfor Identifying G Children with Intellectual Disability 2007 CT State Department of Education Bureau of Special Education WORKING DRAFT Connecticut State Department of Education George A. Coleman Interim Commissioner of Education Division of Teaching and Learning Programs and Services George P. Dowaliby Interim Associate Commissioner Bureau of Special Education Nancy M. Cappello Interim Bureau Chief Perri Murdica Project Manager Nancy Aleman Patricia Anderson Thomas G. Badway Arthur J. Carey Dana Colon Brian Cunnane Theresa C. DeFrancis Roger D. Frant Carolyn W. Isakson Ann Kammerer Gail Mangs John Purdy Deborah Richards Mary Jean Schierberl Norma Sproul Anne Louise Thompson Lynn Toper Office of Communications Matthew Falconer Editor SERC Jodylynn Talevi Graphic Designer Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability Connecticut State Department of Education Division of Teaching and Learning Programs and Services Bureau of Special Education Revised 2007 Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability Comments The Connecticut State Department of Education is pleased to present this new working draft revision of the Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability. This document is intended to provide guidance for school teams to make appropriate decisions of eligibility for Connecticut students. We welcome your comments about the guidelines, specifically on the following topics: • Sections of the guidelines that may need clarification to make them more useful to your district when making eligibility decisions • Explanation of any special circumstances in the identification process for ID that may not be included in the working draft • Impact of the new guidelines on eligibility procedures in your district • Professional development that has been helpful to your district in making appropriate eligibility decisions • Professional development that may be necessary because of the changes in eligibility decisions Please send your comments on these topics by July 1, 2007, to [email protected]. Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability CONTENTS Foreword................................................................................................................................... i Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................. ii Rationale ................................................................................................................................. iii Executive Summary.................................................................................................................1 Identification Process for Intellectual Disability ..............................................................1 Criteria for Eligibility .......................................................................................................2 Further Information: Intellectual Functioning and Adaptive Behavior ...........................3 Other Considerations ........................................................................................................4 Programming in the Least Restrictive Environment.........................................................5 Available Forms and Other Sources of Information.........................................................5 Section I - Overview of Intellectual Disability.......................................................................7 Conceptual Definition of Intellectual Disability...............................................................9 Developmental Period.....................................................................................................10 Applying Criteria Accurately and Conscientiously ........................................................10 Section II - Prerequisites to Appropriate Identification ....................................................11 Effective Instruction........................................................................................................13 Culturally Responsive Teaching/Pedagogy ....................................................................16 Early Intervention-Early Intervening (EI-EI) Services...................................................17 Section III - Evaluation Process............................................................................................21 Referral to Determine Eligibility for Special Education and Related Services..............23 Nonbiased Assessment....................................................................................................23 Influence of Attitudes and Perceptions in Assessment and Identification......................25 Determining Need for Evaluation...................................................................................26 The Role of Families in the Evaluation Process .............................................................27 Design of a Comprehensive Evaluation..........................................................................27 Section IV - Criteria for Identifying Intellectual Disability...............................................31 Measurement of Intellectual Functioning .......................................................................33 Intellectual Functioning Classification Criteria.....................................................33 Measurement Considerations.................................................................................34 Instruments.................................................................................................35 Other Considerations .................................................................................35 Measurement of Adaptive Behavior ...............................................................................36 Adaptive Behavior Classification Criteria.............................................................36 Measurement Considerations.................................................................................39 Instruments.................................................................................................39 Use of Clinical Judgment...........................................................................40 Section V - Eligibility Determination ...................................................................................43 Eligibility Determination ................................................................................................45 Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability Flowchart to Determine Eligibility for Intellectual Disability........................................47 Intellectual Disability Eligibility Documentation ...........................................................49 Section VI - Special Considerations in Identification of Intellectual Disability...............51 Intellectual Disability versus Specific Learning Disability ............................................53 Concomitant Conditions and Disabilities .......................................................................54 Cognitive Assessment of Particular Populations ............................................................56 Eligibility at Reevaluation ..............................................................................................56 Section VII - Programming in the Least Restrictive Environment...................................59 Least Restrictive Environment Statutory Requirements.................................................61 Determining the Least Restrictive Environment.............................................................61 Appendix A: Flowchart to Determine Eligibility for Intellectual Disability..........................65 Appendix B: Intellectual Disability Eligibility Documentation .............................................67 Appendix C: Reviewed Adaptive Behavior Scales ................................................................69 Appendix D: Evaluation and Determination of Eligibility.....................................................71 Appendix E: Understanding Disproportionality .....................................................................75 Appendix F: Checklist for Intervention Quality Indicators ....................................................79 Appendix G: Synopsis of the Settlement Agreement - P.J., et al. vs. State of Connecticut, Board of Education, et al.................................................................................83 Appendix H: Points to Consider in Determining Programming in the Least Restrictive Environment ....................................................................................................87 References................................................................................................................................89 Guidelines for Identifying Children with Intellectual Disability FOREWORD For many years, legislation in Connecticut has been directed toward making improvements in addressing appropriate services for children and adults with disabilities. In its Position Statement on the Education of Students with Disabilities (2001), the Connecticut State Board of Education “encourages the implementation of educational models that promote multiple instructional strategies, which encourage and accommodate students in the general environment to the maximum extent appropriate.” The Connecticut State Board of Education also supports the principle that