CONTINUUM OF SPECIAL EDUCATION SERVICES THROUGH IDENTIFICATION OF ACADEMICALLY APPROPRIATE PLACEMENT AND SUPPORT

WHEREAS, the AFT believes all students deserve a free, public education where they are placed in an academically appropriate setting and provided with a high-quality continuum of services so they can thrive; and

WHEREAS, about one in five California school districts has especially poor outcomes for their students with disabilities. and people with disabilities are overrepresented at all stages of the criminal justice system—from jail and prison to probation and parole; and

WHEREAS, special education is not a place where students with disabilities are educated separately from their general education peers but, rather, a service or services provided in a variety of ways and settings, based on a student’s individual needs; and

WHEREAS, the least restrictive environment (LRE) fluctuates for each student in light of changing educational needs, and the continuum of the LRE expresses how much access a student has to general education courses and peers while still making meaningful progress in their individualized education program (IEP) goals; and

WHEREAS, a majority of students with disabilities are served in inclusive classrooms where co-teaching has become a common approach for inclusion; however, TK-12 educators who co-teach have a lack of support from administrators and little time to plan; and

WHEREAS, improving the educational experiences and outcomes of students with disabilities in the United States and elsewhere hinges on the capacity of both general education and special education teachers to meet students’ learning needs, but research shows that teachers in both categories are underprepared; and

WHEREAS, inclusion practices and settings are sometimes used as a catchall for students who need special education services; such practices seem to be motivated by the ability to cut costs because districts save money when they no longer run separate programs for students with disabilities; and

WHEREAS, while the need for special education services often surpasses the allocated funding, lack of funding is never an appropriate motivation for student placement, and each public agency must ensure that a continuum of alternative placements is available to meet the needs of children with disabilities for special education and related services; and

WHEREAS, school districts should never decide placement; rather, it is the responsibility of the IEP team (parents, teachers, counselors and other specialists) to determine what needs a student has, what services will be put in place to meet those needs, and where those services will be provided; and

WHEREAS, currently, districts are not held accountable in any meaningful way for the ongoing implementation and maintenance of the efficacy of programs for students with disabilities:

RESOLVED, that the AFT will advocate at the national level for meaningful systems of support and accountability for districts in their implementation and maintenance of the continuum of services to ensure programmatic efficacy and appropriateness of student placements; those systems should include:

1. Systematic and consistent use of feedback from non-administrative certificated and classified educators, who are involved in providing and supporting special education services, to inform best practices and foster the improvement of programs and services;
2. Providing sufficient training and support to any certificated and classified educator prior to implementation of a new program, practice and/or process that educators are expected to participate in which may include and are not limited to: increased push-in support, class size limits where being in an overcrowded classroom cannot be considered a least restrictive environment, where class size limits are not negotiable via contract, the AFT will direct lobbying resources at city and state level legislation, and provide legal support for union members engaged in worker action on these issues including work stoppage; and
3. Providing at least yearly training and ongoing administrative support for certificated and classified educators who provide and support special education services; and

RESOLVED, that the AFT will create a Special Education Services Task Force comprised of special educators, case managers, paraeducators, paraprofessionals, IEP team associates, school psychologists, school social workers, speech language pathologists, any additional members under the related service providers umbrella, and any additional IEP team member attendees, to address needs in special education services at the national level.

Adopted May 28, 2025