Roxboro Middle School’s
Special Educational Needs Policy
June, 2013
Philosophy:
We, at Roxboro Middle School, believe that all students have the potential to learn,
and we will differentiate to meet their social, emotional, intellectual, and physical
needs. All staff members are responsible for understanding the needs of each
student within our school community and will work to differentiate according to
their learning styles. We, as teachers, must be sensitive to the diversity of our
student population, and will provide meaningful and equitable access to all
curriculums.
In alignment with the International Baccalaureate philosophy, we offer an inclusive
program where intervention is critical for developing effective learners. Through
differentiation, we provide opportunities to support students with educational
needs. We also use differentiation to enhance positive self-esteem, develop respect
and concern for others, and instill a deeper understanding of responsibility.
Mission:
Our mission at Roxboro Middle School, in partnership with our families and
the community, is to empower students to be caring, respectful, life-long learners.
Our school community develops self-motivated learners actively engaged in
rigorous, reflective learning that fosters intercultural understanding.
We recognize students have unique learning styles and use a holistic
approach to cultivate communication and collaborative skills for tomorrow’s
leaders in the community, nation, and world.
Why We Provide Services to SEN Students:
Federal and state law mandates that Roxboro Middle School provide a free and
appropriate public education (FAPE) for every child in its jurisdiction.
The Student Assistance Team (SAT) was established by the district to enable
students, parents and staff to gain a better understanding of students' strengths and
needs in order to provide targeted intervention for academic, behavioral, socialemotional, motor, medical, and/ or communicative interventions.
Roxboro embraces the Response to Intervention (RTI) model which provides
targeted, systemic, research-based interventions for students with different learning
needs.
What We Provide to our SEN Students/Eligibility and Services:
When a parent or teacher has academic or behavioral concerns about a student, a
request for consultation is made to the school Student Assistance Team (SAT).
Roxboro Middle School has developed this team to meet the needs of struggling
learners. SAT members meet regularly to design interventions to target the
identified needs of a struggling student. The team can include the principal,
general education teachers, intervention specialists, guidance counselors, parents,
custodial adults, and related service staff (Speech and Language Therapist, School
Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, and Physical Therapist). These
interventions are progress monitored by staff and reported back to the SAT,
including the parents, to determine the effectiveness of the interventions.
If the student is not making enough progress with the interventions, a member of
the SAT could recommend a Multi-Factored Evaluation (MFE), which requires
parental consent. An MFE includes testing in the areas of cognition, achievement,
communication, social-emotional development, adaptive behavior, and fine/gross
motor. The School Psychologist and related service staff administer assessments
with input (observations, interviews, checklists, anecdotal records) from teachers,
parents, administrators, support personnel, and students. An MFE determines
eligibility for special education and related services. This evaluation is conducted
every three years to determine continuation of services and can be found on the
district server.
Once eligibility is determined an Individual Education Program (IEP) is written.
An IEP is a yearly plan with measureable goals, objectives, and services to meet
the needs of the individual student. The SAT implements, collects data, and
reports progress on the IEP. The IEP is reviewed each quarter to evaluate the data
and the Case Manager reports progress to the team, including parents. The IEP is
a confidential digital document with a hard copy on file. When a student transfers
from one building to another, all necessary documentation is shared to ensure
continuation of interventions and services, which may be updated as needed.
Students who have identified needs that impact major life activities, such as
speaking, learning, working, concentrating, and thinking, can be found eligible to
receive a Section 504 Accommodation Plan. These 504 plans provide specific
accommodations for students to have access to and make progress in the general
curriculum. A team, which includes the parents, principal, general education
teacher, guidance counselor, and nurse, reviews these plans annually.
How We Provide Services to SEN Students:
The school community provides special education services through licensed
intervention specialists, gifted teachers, speech and language therapists, physical
therapists, and occupational therapists The school community, including general
education teachers, collaborates with these professionals to provide a continuum of
special needs services in resource rooms and general education classrooms.
Based on data provided by formative and summative assessments, we progress
monitor to ensure the least restrictive environment. Teachers use a variety of
instructional strategies to meet the needs of all students. These include but are not
limited to the following:
 Visual aids
 Demonstrations
 Dramatizations
 Small, structured collaborative groups
 Graphic organizers
 Use of technology
 Use of mother tongue or best language to develop ideas and plans
Future Goals for Services for SEN Students:
 Increase all teachers’ knowledge of evidence-based practices to support
struggling and gifted learners
 Increase staffs’ awareness/acceptance of inclusive practices
 Continue analyzing data to monitor progress and inform instruction
 Continue to monitor and evaluate professional development for staff
 Improve SEN students’ ability to reflect and assess their own learning
Note: Parts of this document are a modification of other IB schools’ SEN
policies.