Page 13 - Choices into Action

MEETING THE NEEDS OF ALL STUDENTS
Exceptional Students
Guidance and career education issues are very important to those students who have been identified as exceptional. These students may have to manage significant issues related to their exceptionalities. They may also face challenges related to their sense of identity, their develop- ment of self-confidence, their realistic self- assessment of their abilities, and the develop- ment of strategies for overcoming barriers and maximizing independence.
Some exceptional students may experience diffi- culty in making the transition from one grade level or course to another, from one school or school district to another, and from secondary school to postsecondary education, work, or community living. Detailed planning, including modifications to orientation and exit programs, that reflect the recommendations of students’ Individual Education Plans (IEPs) will help these students progress more smoothly. Since September 1998, school boards are required to include a transition plan as part of the IEP for each exceptional student aged fourteen or over (except for students identified solely as gifted).
Schools are in the unique position of being able to provide a variety of coordinated activities to meet each exceptional student’s strengths, needs, and interests, leading to further educa- tion, work, and/or community living opportuni- ties. Each exceptional student’s success in accessing postsecondary options and the neces- sary supports in the future depends on advanced planning, as well as linkages with other community agencies and other partners.
To help deal with the many challenges that exceptional students may face, starting in Grade 7, all exceptional students and their par- ents and teacher-advisers should take into con- sideration the students’ IEP when they develop annual education plans (see page 16).
The annual education plan and the IEP (particu- larly the transition plan portion of the IEP) have similarities in that both:
– take into account the student’s particular strengths, interests, and needs, as well as the expectations for the student’s learning during the school year;
– are a tool to help teachers monitor and com- municate student growth;
– are developed with reference to the same kinds of focus questions (e.g., What are the student’s goals and aspirations? How effective are the strategies and resources selected to support the student’s learning? Should changes be made?);
– are flexible, working documents that can be adjusted as necessary.
They are different in that the annual education plan is developed by the student with the assis- tance of parents and a teacher, while the IEP (including the transition plan) is developed under the direction of the principal, with the participation of parents, the student, and broader school board and community agency personnel as appropriate. The IEP therefore con- tains more detailed information that is not gen- erally found in the annual education plan (e.g., the identification of modified or alternative learning expectations where appropriate; accom- modations required; assessment and evaluation strategies).
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CHOICES INTO ACTION