IDEA requires that students with disabilities be involved in, and make progress in, the general education curriculum. This refers to the same subject matter and skills that children without disabilities are expected to learn: math, science, history, and so on. Moreover, most children with disabilities are educated in the general education classroom, alongside their peers who do not have disabilities.
To read more about IDEA's strong preference for student placement in the regular educational environment, please visit our separate page, Considering LRE in Placement Decisions. (LRE stands for the "least restrictive environment.")
To find strategies to improve student success in the general education curriculum and classroom, explore the following themes and links.
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General Education Curriculum Web Sites
- Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (Free)
http://www.free.ed.gov/
Resources from the US government for various age levels and subject areas.
- The Gateway to Educational Materials (GEM)
www.thegateway.org/
A searchable database of general education curriculum materials sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education.
- The Educator's Reference Desk
www.eduref.org/
This database of lesson plans (formerly known as the AskERIC Lesson Plans) is searchable by grade, subject area, and keyword. The lessons are mainly from the general curriculum, but many can be adapted for children with disabilities.
- E-subjects: Curriculum and Lesson Plans
www.esubjects.com/
The site is broken into areas for students, parents, and teachers. Some materials can only be accessed with a subscription to the site.
- DiscoverySchool.com
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/
DiscoverySchool.com provides innovative teaching materials for teachers, and is constantly reviewed for educational relevance by practicing classroom teachers in elementary school, middle school, and high school. You can browse lesson plans either by grade or by subject. The Curriculum Center also offers activities, worksheets, puzzles, quizzes and more to help you teach science.
- Sites for Teachers
www.sitesforteachers.com/
Sitesforteachers.com provides only links to sites that contain teacher's resource and educational material. Sites are ranked by popularity.
- A to Z for Teachers
www.atozteacherstuff.com/
A to Z Teacher Stuff provides access to thousands of lesson plans through theme and lesson plan pages, as well as LessonPlanz.com.
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About Reading
The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, our nation's general education law, stresses reading as an indispensable basic skill that all students need to have. To that end, the law funds a number of reading initiatives, including the well-known programs:
- Reading First, which provides States and districts with funding for comprehensive, research-based reading instruction for students in grades K-3; and
- Early Reading First, which provides funding that may be used for early literacy programs (with children ages 3-5), professional development, or pre-reading activities that are research-based.
For those interested in connecting with additional resources on reading instruction, research-based methods, NCLB’s reading programs, and statistics on how America is reading, here are some starter resources that will lead to an unbelievable amount of more information:
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Emphasizing Mathematics
NCLB designates mathematics as a core academic subject and mandates that all public school students in the U.S. will be proficient in math by the year 2013. Math is also to be found in IDEA’s definition of core academic subjects.
The federal government has been busy since the passage of NCLB working to improve mathematics teaching and student performance. Here’s just a sampling of their activities:
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In February 2003, t
he Secretary held a Summit on Mathematics, with two follow-up meetings since. The Summit has led to the release of Teacher Knowledge Action Plan: Mathematics and several working papers, all of which are available at: http://www.ed.gov/rschstat/research/progs/mathscience/index.html
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In February 2006, the American Competitiveness Initiative was launched and includes the Math Now program that will focus on strengthening math education in the early grades and middle school so that students enter high school ready to take challenging coursework. Find out more about the initiative and Math Now at:
http://www.ed.gov/about/inits/ed/competitiveness/math-now.html
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In 2006, President Bush created the National Mathematics Advisory Panel whose purpose is to advise the President and Secretary of Education on the best use of scientifically based research on the teaching and learning of mathematics. The Panel’s preliminary report was released in January 2007 and is available online at: http://www.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/mathpanel/pre-report.pdf
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The Department’s Institute of Education Sciences funds the What Works Clearinghouse, which has reviewed and reported on math curricula designed for use in elementary schools as well as math curricula for middle schools, which offers math teachers, school districts, and States valuable research-based guidance. Numerous reviews on the effectiveness of various math curricula are available at:
http://www.w-w-c.org/
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The Department operates the Mathematics and Science Partnership (MSP),
a formula grant program intended to increase the academic achievement of students in mathematics and science by enhancing the content knowledge and teaching skills of classroom teachers. Partnerships between high-need school districts and the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) faculty in institutions of higher education are at the core of these improvement efforts. Other partners may include SEAs, public charter schools or other public schools, businesses, and nonprofit or for-profit organizations concerned with mathematics and science education. More information about these grants is available at:
www.ed.gov/programs/mathsci/index.html
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The Mathematics and Science Partnership has flowered into MSPnet, an electronic learning community for the Partnership implemented by the National Science Foundation (
http://hub.mspnet.org/).
The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) also has much to contribute to improving both student and teacher proficiency in mathematics—among other things, its:
These resources can be, and have been, a valuable tool for States in developing their own academic standards for students in math.
And speaking of State policies with respect to mathematics instruction—visit the Education Commission of the States for Mathematics and Science Education in the States, which identifies components of state policies most likely to positively impact teachers and students of mathematics and science at the high school level. Online at: http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/68/73/6873.htm
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As with math, lots of hard work is going on to improve student performance in science, including the highly influential element of teacher proficiency in the subject matter. This includes Mathematics and Science Partnership mentioned above and its spin-off, MSPnet. Here’s a quick rundown of other selected initiatives that your participants may be interesting in learning more about:
Much work was done before NCLB was on the scene, such as the of the National Science Education Standards by the National Research Council in 1996. These are available online at: http://books.nap.edu/readingroom/books/nses/
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The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) is part of an ongoing effort to implement the
standards in classrooms throughout the country. NSTA offers all sorts of information, professional development opportunities (including Institutes and Web seminars), and connections, at:
http://www.nsta.org
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The National Institutes of Health (NIH) are getting into the swing, too.
NIH offers the NIH Curriculum Supplement Series, interactive teaching units that combine science research discoveries from NIH with state-of-the-art instructional materials. Each supplement is a teacher’s guide to two weeks of lessons on science and human health. The series is free (to science teachers and school administrators), consistent with the National Science Education Standards, targeted at grades K-12, and full of real scientific data. Read about these supplements at: http://science.education.nih.gov/customers.nsf/supplements
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Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (FREE) offers a wide range of science materials to teachers and student for free, organized by the areas of: earth sciences, life sciences, space sciences, and physical sciences. See what’s available at:
http://www.free.ed.gov/subjects.cfm?subject_id=41
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Visit the Education Commission of the States for
Mathematics and Science Education in the States, which identifies components of state policies most likely to positively impact teachers and students of mathematics and science at the high school level. Online at: http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/68/73/6873.htm
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Additional “Content Area” Resources
Please note that the “national standards” listed below are not necessarily the same as the standards of instruction and achievement that any one State may prescribe. The national standards we’ve listed have typically been developed by the professional organization(s) associated with a subject, often in collaboration with other key organizations in the field. These may guide work in that profession, but for the purposes of IDEA and NCLB, the standards that a State establishes for teaching and learning are essential to understand. The organizations below may keep track of individual State requirements or be able to put participants in touch with the State agency who can provide the details about State content standards.
Foreign languages:
National Standards for Foreign Language Education
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)
http://www.actfl.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3392
State Standards and Curriculum Frameworks for Foreign Languages
Education Commission of the States
http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/39/41/3941.htm
Culturally & Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) Early Childhood Research Institute
www.clas.uiuc.edu/
The CLAS Early Childhood Research Institute collects and describes early childhood/early intervention resources that have been developed across the U.S. for children with disabilities and their families and the service providers who work with them.
The Foreign Language Teacher's Guide to Learning Disabilities
www.fln.vcu.edu/ld/ld.html
Links to sites and articles with information pertaining to teaching foreign languages to students with various disabilities. Some information is specifically on curriculum, adaptations, and activities, but most of the information is on general resources.
NCELA, the National Clearinghouse for English Language Acquisition and Language Instruction Educational Programs
www.ncela.gwu.edu
NCELA provides links to state-by state policies and resources as well as compiled information on meeting the educational needs of linguistically and culturally diverse students in the U.S. Curriculum standards, information on accommodations for state-wide assessments, and state policy information available in foreign languages, are linked to if available.
Foreign Language Lesson Plans and Resources
www.csun.edu/~hcedu013/eslsp.html
Links to many pages of lesson plans for teaching foreign languages. The lessons are designed for regular education classes, but can be adapted for special education.
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Civics and government:
National Standards for Civics and Government
Center for Civic Education
www.civiced.org/index.php?page=national_standards_for_civics_and_government
Civics or Citizenship Education Standards and Curriculum Frameworks, a report highlighting selected state standards and/or curriculum frameworks with an explicit link to civics or citizenship education.
http://mb2.ecs.org/reports/Report.aspx?id=117
State Citizenship Education Policies.
Education Commission of the States
http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/48/84/4884.doc
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Economics:
Voluntary National Content Standards in Economics
National Council on Economic Education (in partnership with the National Association of Economic Educators and the Foundation for Teaching Economics)
http://www.ncee.net/ea/program.php?pid=19
The EconomicsAmerica® Program
National Council on Economic Education (NCEE)
http://www.ncee.net/ea/
The Economics Classroom: A Workshop for Grade 9-12 Teachers
Anneberg Media
http://www.learner.org/resources/series159.html
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The Arts:
A Guide to Teaching Arts
TeachingArts.org
http://www.teachingarts.org/stories/storyReader$115
The Art of Teaching the Arts: A Workshop for High School Teachers
An 8-part professional development workshop for use by high school dance, music, theatre, and visual art teachers. (Other workshop titles addressing the teaching of the arts are available.)
Anneberg Media
http://www.learner.org/resources/series202.html
National Organizations Involved in Teaching The Arts
Many different organizations can be grouped under the umbrella of “Teaching the Arts,” each with its own standards. To find out what those area, you have to visit each individual professional organization. TeachingArts.org makes a list of these organizations available, with links to their Web sites.
http://www.teachingarts.org/weblist
State Policies Regarding Arts in Education.
Education Commission of the States
http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/63/92/6392.pdf
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History:
National Standards for History
National Center for History in the Schools
http://nchs.ucla.edu/standards.html
State Standards and Curriculum Frameworks for World History/Geography
Education Commission of the States
http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/39/42/3942.htm
Federal Resources for Educational Excellence (FREE) offers a wide range of history materials to teachers and student for free, organized by the areas of: U.S. history topics, U.S. history time periods, and world studies. See what’s available at: http://www.free.ed.gov/HandSS.cfm
How Students Learn: History in the Classroom
National Academies Press, 2004
http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11100
The Teaching American History Grant program is a discretionary grant program funded under Title II-C of NCLB. The program supports competitive grants to local educational agencies, with grants used to improve the quality of history instruction by supporting professional development for teachers of American history. Read more at: http://www.ed.gov/programs/teachinghistory/index.html
Presidential Academies for Teachers of American History and Civics Education, which offer workshops for both veteran and new teachers of American history and civics to strengthen their knowledge and preparation for teaching these subjects. Described at: http://www.ed.gov/programs/ahc/index.html
The Center for Teaching History with Technology
The Center aims to help K-12 history and social studies teachers incorporate technology effectively into their courses. The Center provides a multitude of free online resources as well as workshops and consultation services.
http://thwt.org/index.html
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Geography:
Geography for Life: National Geography Standards
National Council for Geographic Education
http://www.ncge.org/geography/standards/teacher/
Teaching Geography.
Annenberg Media
http://www.learner.org/channel/workshops/geography/
State Standards and Curriculum Frameworks for World History/Geography
Education Commission of the States
http://www.ecs.org/clearinghouse/39/42/3942.htm