1.
What special education settings do you offer? What special education services are available for students who need them?
At Achievement First, we are committed to closing the achievement gap for each and every child, including each of our scholars with IEPs. We believe ALL scholars will learn with the appropriate levels of support and it is both appropriate and necessary to invest different levels of resources in different scholars (fair is not always equal). All scholars must be exposed to a diverse set of peers including scholars who learn differently so that they can serve as the next generation of leaders in our communities and succeed in a competitive world. We also know that “doing” special education well in the context of an achievement gap is hard work. We
are looking for innovators in the field to continuously strengthen our program.
Specifically, we will meet each child's IEP goals in full compliance with all state, local, and federal laws and regulations. Since scholar need varies across our schools, the programs offered across our schools differ. Some schools have CTT programs in all grades, while other schools offer a SETSS model. We aim to match our programs to our scholar needs.
2.
What type of support do special education teachers receive?
Achievement First supports teachers with ongoing professional development, including on-going planning sessions and weekly coaching observations and meetings. These weekly coaching meetings are based on the individual teacher’s needs and focus on providing support to ensure that the teacher is constantly honing his/her craft. Teachers are typically coached by a dean, principal, or master teacher in the same school.
Special educators at Achievement First also closely collaborate with other teachers and support staff, including social workers or counselors and paraprofessionals.
3.
How do teachers at Achievement First differentiate for their students?
Achievement First's program –intensive reading focus, data-based instructional decisions, and interventions in reading, math, and writing – is based on both a special education and Response to
Intervention model. Many of our special education students are successful in a full inclusion setting while others may need additional supports along the special education continuum and/or related services including pull-out support, push-in support, collaborative team teaching, speech therapy, occupational therapy, social work, and paraprofessional support.

4.
What percent of your student population has IEPs?
Depending on the school site, 9% to 16% of our student population has IEPs. We actively recruit families of scholars with IEPs.
5.
What does a typical day look like for a special education teacher at Achievement First?
It depends on the school and the scholars’ needs. Some special education teachers provide a combination of push-in and pull-out services to supplement scholars’ instruction. Other special education teachers spend all of their time team teaching. Still other teachers have a combination of both team teaching and push-in/pull-out roles. We know that a strategic schedule contributes to a special education teacher’s effectiveness (and happiness!), and aim to create a schedule based on the needs of scholars.
6.
How do you use data to gather information about your scholars?
We use proficiency and growth assessments to gather information about our scholars. Some of the assessments we use are the Fountas and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment, GRADE, STEP, and internal interim assessments. We compare scholars with IEPs to general education scholars to measure our own success. Our goal is that our students with IEPs grow at least as much as their general education peers. Then, we adjust this expectation for scholars with very specific needs.
7.
What type of behavioral support do you provide for scholars?
Achievement First's program –intensive reading focus, data-based instructional decisions, and interventions in reading, math, and writing – is based on both a special education and Response to
Intervention model. We see a large decrease in negative behaviors when scholars’ academic needs are met.
However, a small percentage of scholars struggle behaviorally and need more support. Each of our schools has a social worker or counselor to meet student needs. Additionally, most schools utilize a Child Study Team structure to assist scholars who struggle behaviorally and some schools have hired a behavioral interventionist to offer additional expertise. Other scholars have utilized paraprofessionals to support scholars.
8.
How do you support scholars with intellectual disabilities?
We currently have a very small population of scholars with intellectual disabilities. Each of their programs is unique to their needs.
9.
How are you trying to grow and improve your special education program?
It is our goal to meet the needs of all scholars and to serve the same student population as our neighborhood schools. In order to do this, we are committed to building and improving our special education program.