ERIC Number: ED392195
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1996-Feb-7
Pages: 27
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Disproportionate Representation: A Critique of State and Local Strategies. Policy Forum Report (Washington, D.C., September 14-15, 1995). Final Report.
Markowitz, Joy
This document reports on the purpose, implementation, and outcomes of a policy forum on strategies used to address the disproportionate number of students from minority ethnic/racial groups receiving special education. Participants included representatives of state education agencies, local education agencies, the university/research community, general education, the Office for Civil Rights, and advocacy groups. The policy forum's purpose was to critique preliminary findings of a case-study investigation in three states and to identify specific strategies for addressing the disproportionate representation problem. Strategies were identified for the following six areas: (1) the importance of school staff trained to work with culturally, racially, and linguistically diverse students and recruitment of staff reflecting this diversity; (2) the need for on-going professional development opportunities for school personnel in such areas as positive classroom management, effective instructional practices, and non-biased assessment; (3) the need to inform and involve communities in addressing issues of disproportionality; (4) the need for involving parents early in the child's school career; (5) the need for closer collaboration between general and special educators; and (6) the need for special education data, disaggregated by race/ethnic group, to understand disproportionality and focus strategies. A list of forum participants and the agenda are attached. (DB)
Descriptors: Change Strategies, Disabilities, Disability Identification, Disproportionate Representation, Educational Policy, Educational Strategies, Elementary Secondary Education, Ethnic Groups, Minority Groups, Multicultural Education, Parent Participation, Professional Development, Regular and Special Education Relationship, School Community Relationship, Special Education, Student Placement, Teacher Recruitment
Publication Type: Collected Works - Proceedings; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: Policymakers; Practitioners
Language: English
Sponsor: Special Education Programs (ED/OSERS), Washington, DC.
Authoring Institution: National Association of State Directors of Special Education, Alexandria, VA.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Note: Prepared by Project FORUM. For related documents, see ED 374 637, ED 378 716, and ED 379 812.