Page 60 - CARING and SAFE SCHOOLS in ONTARIO

three persons, one of whom must be a principal or supervisory officer of the board. A school board trustee may not be on the IPRC (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2001, p. D4).
Individual Education Plan (IEP): A written plan describing the special education program and/or services required by a particular student, based on a thorough assessment of the student’s strengths and needs – that is, the strengths and needs that affect the student’s ability to learn and to demonstrate learning (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2004, p. 6).
in-school support team: A school-based team that suggests teaching strategies to classroom teachers who have students with special education needs and that recommends formal
and informal assessments. An in-school support team is made up of people with various types of expertise who work together. In most schools, the core members of the team would include the principal or vice-principal; the school special education resource
teacher (if available); a guidance teacher-counsellor (especially at the secondary level), and possibly the student’s current teacher and/or the “referring” teacher (adapted from Ontario Ministry of Education, 2001, pp. C6–C7). When appropriate, the team may also include representatives from the school board and/or the community.
language disorder: A disorder that affects the acquisition, organization, retention, understanding, and/or use of verbal or non-verbal communication.
mental health: A state of mind that enables people to enjoy life and deal with everyday challenges such as making choices and decisions, adapting, coping, and communicating about their needs and desires. (See Chapter 3.)
mental health problems: Mental, psychological, and emotional problems and dysfunctions ranging from diagnosable conditions requiring medical treatment (see mental illness) to the more common psychological and emotional struggles and difficulties that affect most people from time to time. Mental health problems can affect a person’s ability to enjoy life and deal with everyday challenges, and can impede learning. (See Chapter 3.)
mental illness: A diagnosable mental condition that usually requires medical treatment, including mood, psychotic, and anxiety disorders. Mental illnesses involve a range of psychiatric and emotional problems that vary in intensity and duration and may recur from time to time. (See Chapter 3.)
mitigating factors: Factors, identified in Ontario Regulation 472/07, “Suspension and Expulsion of Pupils”, that must be taken into account by a principal when considering whether to suspend or expel a student. The absence of risk to others in the school and/or the student’s inability to control his or her behaviour or understand the consequences of the behaviour are examples of mitigating factors. (See Chapter 1.)
modifications: Changes made in the age-appropriate grade-level expectations for a subject or course in order to meet a student’s learning needs (Ontario Ministry of Education, 2004, p. 25).
multidisciplinary team: A formal or informal group or learning community made up of internal and/or external resource personnel with various types of expertise who work together to:
• support students and parents;
• collaborate, consult, and share information and knowledge to identify strategies that may increase students’ learning success and close achievement gaps.
A multidisciplinary team can play a significant role in helping classroom teachers address difficulties that a student may be experiencing in the classroom prior to and after formal
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Caring and Safe Schools