by Common Ground | Feb 18, 2016 | Features
Last winter, President Obama signed into law The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The new law replaces No Child Left Behind (NCLB), which had been on the books since 2002. Like NCLB, ESSA reauthorizes the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) and...
by Common Ground | Oct 6, 2015 | Features
There are many things that can cause or prompt challenging behavior in a student with disabilities. Recognizing that behavior may be rooted in prior traumatic experience can help educators develop effective responses that not only reduce unwanted behavior, but also...
by Common Ground | May 14, 2015 | Features
An 8-year-old boy with Asperger’s Syndrome is suspended from his elementary school after getting frustrated in class and balling his fist around his pencil, an action that the school called “aggressive.” A 10-year-old boy with emotional and behavioral...
by Common Ground | Sep 25, 2014 | Features
By: Nina Peckman, Esq. and Mary Coogan, Esq. In New Jersey, approximately 7,600 children live in foster care situations; many of them have learning issues, some of which have not yet been identified. Because of the complexity of the special education system, it can be...
by Common Ground | Aug 15, 2014 | Features
For many students with disabilities, technology can be ‘the great equalizer,’ facilitating access to learning opportunities previously closed to them. Technology, and in particular, mobile devices (Apple’s iPad, iPod and iPhone) have led to sea...
by Common Ground | Apr 22, 2014 | Features
By STAN KARP The New York Times says it’s “clearly the most important education reform in the country’s history.” But a recent Gallop poll says nearly two out of three people have never heard of it. ‘It’ is the “Common Core,” a new set of tougher curriculum standards...
by Common Ground | Nov 4, 2013 | Features
By Laura Cohen, Clinical Professor of Law and Director, Criminal and Youth Justice Clinic, Rutgers School of Law – Newark “Roughly half of the nearly 500 children in custody on any given day are eligible for special education services…”Lost in his orange...
by Common Ground | Jun 28, 2013 | Features
By Michael C. Selbst, Ph.D., BCBA-D Like reading and math, social skills can be taught.Many children with social skills difficulties and pragmatic and social language needs require support and instruction throughout the summer months in areas such as...
by Common Ground | Feb 28, 2013 | Features
Disability Mandates Include School-Based Mental Health Services By Alvin E. Doyle As a nation, we strive to create educational environments in which students feel safe and can learn, and in which educators have the tools and strategies they need to educate all...
by Common Ground | Nov 12, 2012 | Features
Key Findings: Students with disabilities reported using many services on campus and overwhelmingly attributed their success to a significant relationship with either a professional staff member at the Office of Disability/Special Services or a faculty member....
by Common Ground | Nov 12, 2012 | Features
“The increase in higher education aspiration, college enrollment, and degree completion by students with disabilities has been enabled by public policy and social developments of past decades.”More students with disabilities are enrolling in higher...
by Common Ground | Sep 19, 2012 | Features
“One exciting trend in the AT marketplace is the use of off-the-shelf consumer electronics in the classroom to assist students with a wide range of learning differences.”By Brian S. Friedlander, Ph.D. From iPads to iPhones, we are living in a world in...
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