While the changes are confusing, let us not be distracted from the substance of the matter. One of the most exciting aspects of the revisions to both federal and state special education laws is the renewed emphasis on all students gaining access to the general curriculum. As many have already discovered, the new IEP forms implement the requirements in IDEA that students' goals and objectives support their progress in the general curriculum. Subject by subject, the team must determine the student's present level of performance, the impact of a student's disability on their progress, their specific instructional needs and identification of the necessary supports and services which will enable them to make effective progress.

At the risk of overexposure, I would like to share with Newsline readers the academic successes witnessed within my own family over the past year. As a high school student, my daughter who has Down syndrome is very much a part of the general education environment with support from special education. Topics covered in Early British Literature found her engaged in a study of Beowulf, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, King Arthur, Shakespeare, David Copperfield and other classics. American History included exposure to the Declaration of Independence, political developments of the 1800's, US expansion, the Progressive Era (early 1900's), World Wars I & II, and on through the civil rights movement of the 1960's. Science included Biology from the parts of the microscope, to measuring in metrics. Topics included evolution, fossils & geological formations, dissecting a pig, to understanding genes and cells. Math focused more on money skills and the fundamentals (which was appropriate for her). She completed over a dozen book reports of various types, such as: a biography of Emily Dickinson, two of C.S. Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia, The Wizard of Oz, A Winter's Tale by Shakespeare and others.

As I look back at the year's accomplishments, there are a couple of thoughts that come to mind. First of all, it is clear she is receiving a high quality education. In her situation, it would be easy to imagine that most of this was well beyond her. That would be true if it had been presented without accommodations. But in fact, the accommodations and support did enable her to truly engage in the educational process. Second, she was able, in most cases, to relate these lessons to her daily life circumstances. For example, on a trip to the Grand Canyon last summer, she recalled much of what she had learned about the rock formations and the evolution of the Canyon.

I am intrigued by much of the discussion that is emerging at the present time within special education circles, among parents and professionals alike. I have heard people ask, "Well, exactly what is the general curriculum?" or, "She's not a candidate for that!" The OSEP monitoring report identified this issue as one of the primary issues our state needs to address within special education. Administrators admitted to the federal monitors, without hesitation, that they "don't teach general education subjects at their school," or "they have no content specialists".

Someone has challenged my wife and myself about our thoughts on this by saying, "but when is she going to learn functional skills or life-skills?" Our goal is for our daughter (and our son) to become as independent as possible. What this implies is being prepared for and holding a job that will provide the resources necessary to become independent. Presently, students with significant disabilities experience unemployment rates that exceed 70%. The most functional skills I can imagine in our times, in our economy, are the literacy skills and awareness that comes from a high quality education. We will not neglect the practice of those skills, but for the first time we are no longer being asked to choose between special ed or curriculum, job skills or academics. The new IEP is structuring a change that is long overdue.

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