Student Receiving Services for Special Education:  Ms. Coleman explained that there are a number of laws that govern and regulate the services provided to student in special education programs.  These include issues such as complying with documentation procedures, communicating with parents in a timely (legally specified) manner, assuring that there are certified teachers to provided needed services, providing the student with the most appropriate learning environment, etc.  

 

Child Custody:  Ms. Coleman shared that school administrators must be attentive to child custody issues.  Legal custody of a child is something that can change and school administrators must be certain that children are being released to adults with legal rights to take custody of the child.

 

Privacy and Confidentiality:  Ms. Coleman discussed the ways that modern technology can facilitate communication, but how one needs to be even more attentive to the ways that communication about confidential information is handled.  This applies, for example, to e-mails that might contain sensitive information.  She also mentioned that school administrators still need to attend to “traditional” formats like printed reports that contain student information.  This material, she emphasized, must always be disposed of in a way that protects the students’ privacy.

 

Bilingual Education:  Ms. Coleman reflected on the number of legal and ethical principles that regulate the services provided for English-language learners.  Some of these included that need to have a parent representatives at meetings of the Language Proficiency Assessment Committee, regular assessment of student progress, respecting the rights of parents to deny bilingual services, and providing English-language learners with a qualified and certified teacher.

 

Child Abuse:  Ms. Coleman discussed the extreme importance of following all laws that are designed to protect children from abuse.  Whether this abuse is inflicted by a family member or a member of the school staff, that are strict protocols for reporting suspected child abuse.  These protocols must be followed in order to ensure the safety of the child. 

(R. Coleman, personal communication, August 22, 2018)

 

Special Education: This organization’s website offered a number or resources for special education.  One issue that seemed to appear in a number places (articles, books, webinars) was the practice of inclusion. The website provides a strong reminder that inclusion must be more than simply having a student present in the general education classroom.  For it to be a truly inclusive experience, the student must be included in as much as is possible (e.g., daily schedule, extra-curricular activities, field trips, assemblies, etc.)(ASCD, 2018b). 

 

Students and Immigration Law:  There was an important article regarding immigration raids.  This is timely given the heightened tension regarding immigration.  The article explore the emotional and cognitive impact on students when their parents are apprehended during immigration raids.  Readers are encouraged to consider ways to support children who are forced to endure these traumatic experiences (National Education Association, 2018b).