Legalities and Funding
Special Education Advisory Committee (SEAC)
SEAC's are established within each school board
School Board Obligations
School boards must establish a SEAC.
School boards provides an opportunity for SEAC to be heard by the board committee before the board makes any decisions about recommendations put forward by SEAC.
School boards make available the personnel and facilities that the board considers necessary for the proper functioning of the committee.
School boards provide SEAC members and their alternates with information and orientation within a reasonable time after a SEAC member is appointed.
Legislation
SEAC operates locally within the area of jurisdiction of a board.
SEAC is affiliated with an association or organization that is incorporated under federal or provincial law and not of professional educators
SEAC operates throughout Ontario to further the interests and well-being of exceptional children or adults
A new SEAC is formed every four years after the election of board trustees.
Employees of a school board cannot be a member of the SEAC.
Funding
The board must ensure that the SEAC is provided with the opportunity to participate in the boards annual budget.
The board must ensure that the SEAC is provided with the opportunity to review the financial statements of the board
Role and Responsibilities
SEAC provides important advice on special education to the local board
SEAC makes recommendations to their board on anything that impacts the establishment, development and delivery of special education programs and services.
SEAC may make recommendations to the school board on anything impacting the establishment, development and delivery of special education programs and services.
SEAC may participate in the annual review of the boards special education plan.
SEAC participates in the boards annual budget as it relates to special education.
Policy and Procedure Memorandums
PPM1: Ontario schools for the blind and deaf as resource centres
- Services are made available to students who are hearing-impaired, visually impaired, and deaf-blind
PPM8: Identification of and Program Planning for Students with Learning Disabilities
- School boards must identify and program plan for students with learning disabilities
- The Identification, Placement, and Review Committee (IPRC) will identify students who have learning disabilities.
- Recognition and the identification of learning disabilities through early and ongoing screening of children
- Programming will be delivered through a range of instructional approaches and intervention strategies, including universal design for learning and differentiated instruction PPM11: Early Identification of Children’s Learning Needs
- School board must have procedures to identify each child’s level of development, and these procedures are a part of continuous assessment
PPM59: Psychological Testing and Assessment of Pupils
- There must be informed consent given before any kind of assessment is conducted
- Information should be kept confidential, and reports and assessments should be discussed with parents, principals, and teachers
- Regulation 271, Pupil Records, reports may be removed if requested by specific individuals
PPM76C: Alternative educational programs and services for deaf, blind, and deaf-blind exceptional pupils
- placement s include resource/withdrawal settings as well as self-contained classes
- Programming will be provided by a teacher with qualifications to teach blind, deaf, or deaf-blind pupils.
PPM 81: Provision of Health Support Services in School Settings
- Requires services with local level school boards, home care programs, agencies, facilities and centers working with Ministries of Health, Education, and Community and Social Services.
- School boards will be responsible for establishing or updating their policies for the provision of these support services. Such as administering oral prescribed medications, as well as assistance for physically disabled pupils, and services such as speech remediation, correction and habilitation.
PPM 140: Incorporating Methods of Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) into Programs for Students with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)
- Purpose: to provide direction to school boards to support their use of applied behaviour analysis (ABA) as an effective instructional approach
- Intended to strengthen collaborative working relationships between parents, schools and community, as this supports positive learning for pupils with ASD
PPM 156: Supporting Transitions for Students with Special Education Needs
- Individualized transition plans that reflect a student’s strengths and needs provide the foundation for successful transition experiences
- A transition plan must be developed for all students who have an IEP, as a collaborative process
Funding for Special Education
Special Education Grants (SEG)
for costs of programs, services and/or equipment for special education students
High Needs Amount (HNA)
Funds for the cost of intensive staff support
Special Incidence Portion (SIP)
for high-needs students who require more than 2 full-time staff
Facilities Amont (FA)
funding students in government facilities
Special Education Per Pupil Amount Allocation (SEPPA)
for special education but based on total enrollment
Foundation Grants (FG)
cover the basic costs common to all students
