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8 in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, M ar ch 2 9, 20 18 | Y O U ' R E I N G O O D H A N D S E m p l o y e e B e n e f i t s S o l u t i o n s f o r S m a l l t o M e d i u m S i z e d B u s i n e s s e s • Be in control of your em ployee benefits program . • Reduce costs, not benefits. • Im prove plan m anagem ent. • Unknow n liabilities can be catastrophic. As an em ployer, are you vulnerable? W e know how to find and m itigate these risks. As a fu ll serv ice ben efits advisor, w e save you tim e , m o ney and provide p e a c e of m ind. C a ll us to a r ra n g e a n o o b lig a tio n c o n s u lta tio n . 289-430-6185 m ic h a e l@ m b s e c u re fin a n c ia l.c o m www.mbsecurefinancial.com Michael Barrow NEWS Special-ed recommendations guide by stakeholder perspectives VERONICA APPIA vappia@metroland.com Perspectives from 15 different focus groups were used as research for Phase 2 o f Halton District School Board's special education review - a strategy that clashed with the expectations o f certain members o f the special education advisory com m it­ tee (SEAC) on Tuesday evening. Elana Gray, an external reviewer for Phase 2 o f the review, presented the find­ ings to the committee at J.W. Singleton Centre on M arch 6. She noted that through collecting inform ation on current practic­ es and procedures, this phase focused on examining the elementary special educa­ tion referral, identification and placement options for students with autism, learning disabilities and giftedness. The focus groups involved in the re­ search were com posed o f school staff members, staff from student services, SEAC representatives and parents o f stu­ dents with autism, learning disabilities and giftedness. In total, approximately 50 staff mem bers and 50 parents volunteered to partake in the survey. Gray noted that the key findings o f these perspectives indicated parents in this particular sample expressed concern about implementation and development o f individual education plans in the class­ rooms, as well as inconsistent referral practices from staff at different schools across the board. Parents also expressed the opinion that greater progress is seen from students in self-contained classes, rather than resource support classes. Am ong staff, key concerns were ex­ pressed about the potential unreliability o f prim ary gifted screening and a lack o f contentment with screening success rates. They also voiced concern about inequities between the exceptionalities, saying they felt that prim ary identification is often ex­ pected for gifted children and not neces­ sarily expected for students with autism or learning disabilities. Trustee A m y Collard says the opinions expressed in the review were often incon­ sistent, noting that she finds it important for these perspectives to be presented in such a way that they are not confused with facts. "There is an inconsistent referral pro­ cess that seems to extend from a lack o f staff knowledge, then we see that staff is unhappy with the low screening success rates and I have to wonder if that is be- • See EIGHT, page 36 Join us at our OPEN HOUSE EVENTS SATURDAY APRIL 7 10 am - 1 pm Fe n n e ll C a m p u s A ll P ro g ram s THURSDAY APRIL 12 5 pm - 8 pm Stoney C reek Cam pus for Skilled Trades and Apprenticeships Find out more at mohawkcollege.ca/openhouse I m o H a i U K COLLEGE Choose a p ro v id e r fo r yo u r business th a t 's also a partner. 8 o u t o f 10 sm all bus iness cu s to m e rs a lre a d y co n s id e r C ogeco a tru s te d adv iso r.1 Le t us he lp y o u r bus iness succeed. C o n ta c t y o u r local A cco u n t E xecu tive A u g u s tin e M a th ia s a b o u t re lia b le s o lu tio n s fo r y o u r bus iness. 1 -8 4 4 -3 0 6 -2 2 3 1 S ) co g eco .ca /sp e c ia lis ts c o G e o o Switch on amazing 1. According to a telephone survey conducted betweenJune 1 and August 31,2017 by Cible Recherche/Vox Opinion from Cogeco Business Solutions customers in Quebec and in Ontario. Weighted data by province and number of services held. BUSINESS SOLUVDNS mailto:michael@mbsecurefinancial.com http://www.mbsecurefinancial.com mailto:vappia@metroland.com