Page 76 - Special Education in Ontario, Kindergarten to Grade 12: Policy and Resource Guide

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Special Education in Ontario, Kindergarten to Grade 12 Draft
and to plan a program to meet a student’s needs. The in-school team and the out-of-school professionals may conduct additional educational assessments as well as professional assessments, including health, speech and language, and psychological assessments.
The Identification, Placement, and Review Committee (IPRC) requires an individual educational assessment before making a decision about the identification of a student as exceptional or the placement of a student in
a special education program. This assessment is often conducted by, or under the direction of, the in-school team. Other professional assessments, which are described below, may be part of the IPRC process as well.
An Integrated Process of Assessment and Instruction
Teachers can adjust instructional strategies, resources, and environments effectively to help all students learn only if they have accurate and reliable information about what their students know and are able to do at any given time, and about how they learn best.
Learning for All: A Guide to Effective Assessment and Instruction for All Students, Kindergarten to Grade 12 (2013, p. 28)
The use of evidence-informed assessment and instructional strategies that draw on principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and differentiated instruction, combined with ongoing monitoring and responsiveness to a student’s progress, is essential to support the learning of students with special education needs.
Classroom educators use an integrated approach to assessment and instruction, drawing on information gathered through ongoing assessment to inform instruction and improve learning.
Research in education, as reflected in the ministry policy document
Growing Success: Assessment, Evaluation, and Reporting in Ontario Schools
(2010), has focused on three types of assessment:
• assessment for learning; • assessment as learning; • assessment of learning.