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A teacher, other educator or parent/guardian may notice or recognize certain behaviors or challenges that the student is exhibiting. The person then tracks whether this is a one time event for the student or if it is continuous and possibly when they are seeing the behavior or challenge exhibited most.

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Language Acquisition Difficulty or Learning Disability? How to Differentiate and Support English Language Learners with a Learning Disability - LD@school

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English Language Learners and students with learning disabilities are both at risk for lower achievement in language & literacy, but for differing reasons.

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The teacher will try to differentiate between whether the student is facing a language difficulty or a learning difficulty. They may do this by comparing the students' exposure to the language that instruction is in and their home language. They can provide tools such as a translator or worksheets in their home language to see if the student is able to understand and respond in the home language. They can also pair students who are having language difficulties with a student who is proficient in the language to see if this would benefit them. If these methods benefit the student, it is likely that it is a language issue. If these methods do not help the student, it is likely a learning disability.

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IRIS | Page 2: Distinguishing Between Disability and Language Difference

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Delays in social and communication development might occur when children are learning two or more languages. Because such delays can be red flags for further developmental problems in the areas of social-emotional development and cognition, early childhood educators must determine their cause: langu…

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Based on their observations and collected data, the teacher, educator or parent may refer their student to the special education department, sharing their observations. Based on the shared information, the special educators will review to see if the child is exhibiting any behaviors correlated with a disability. They will then decide if further testing is required or not.

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Distinguishing Language Acquisition from Learning Disabilities | PaTTANpod [S3E4]

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While the student is undergoing testing and observations, the in class educator may provide differentiated instruction to better support the student's learning, whether they have a disability or not.

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Differentiating Instruction: It’s Not as Hard as You Think

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If the student exhibits behaviors or challenges correlated with a disability yet it is not completely clear or the disability cannot be diagnosed by observation alone, the student will undergo diagnostic testing to see if they have a disability. Testing may include reading, writing, and language tests and more.

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Based on testing results and other observations, the special education team decides whether the student's behavior/challenge qualifies as one of the 14 disabilities that require an IEP and special education services. If the team decides that the behavior/challenge does qualify, the student would move on to step 6. Whereas, if the behavior/challenge does not qualify, a parent or guardian may look into a 504 plan in order to receive certain in-classroom supports for the student.

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Our first Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (SECAC) meeting of the school year will be this Thursday, September 28 at 7PM.

*Meetings are hosted virtually in Zoom and Interpretation is available.

Information, videos and presentations from our monthly SECAC meetings are listed on the SECAC website.

Adult Services Night will be held on Wednesday, October 25, 2023

Time: 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.

Location: Richard Montgomery HS Cafeteria

250 Richard Montgomery Drive, Rockville, MD

The meeting will include a presentation from:

The Developmental Disabilities Administration (DDA)

The role of the Coordinator of Community Services in the TY process

Families will have a chance to speak with provider agencies regarding the services they offer. *NO REGISTRATION REQUIRED FOR THIS MEETING!

This interactive map allows you to locate any special education program in MCPS. Use the drop down menu filters to find all the locations for a specific program or use the search bar to locate a specific school. If you are viewing this map on a phone, filters will not be available.
MCPS Pre-K and Elementary School Services Map MCPS Middle School Services Map MCPS High School Services Map

MCPS Family Support Center provides information to families to include resources, answering questions, hosting virtual support sessions, and upcoming events.

*NEW for 2023-24 - MSDE Parent Information Series to include:

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Our first Special Education Citizens Advisory Committee (SECAC) meeting of the school year will be this Thursday, September 28 at 7PM. *Meetings are hosted virtually in Zoom and Interpretation is available. Information, videos and presentations from our monthly SECAC meetings are listed on the SECAC website.

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Teachers, educators and parents/guardians monitor the progress of the student and whether the implemented methods are benefitting them.

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If the student is diagnosed with a disability that qualifies for special education support, an IEP is created that includes specific accommodations and supports for the student.

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Students whose motivation, outstanding talent, performance, or potential for performing at high levels of accomplishment are identified at the local school level to receive accelerated and enriched instruction. Each school has instruction tailored for students identified as gifted and talented.

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Moving forward, the student will have special education instructors and teachers monitor and discuss the success of their IEP once a year. They will update and adjust accordingly once a year.

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Accommodations and services listed in the student's IEP are implemented in the classroom along with any other differentiated instruction and supports that have benefitted the student in the past.

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The special education instructors and teachers discuss what accommodations, supports and other modifications have helped the student and what has not helped the student. They modify the initial IEP based off of this information.