Continuing Education & Professional Development
Unraveling The Mysteries Of The Special Education System: A Guide For Community Based Mental Health Practitioners
Overview: Don’t know the difference between RTI and an LRE? Not sure why one student has a neurological impairment while another has a traumatic brain injury? Frustrated in your efforts to interact with the special education people at the local public school? If you answered “Yes” or “YES!” to any of these questions, this seminar may be for you.
Many community-based social workers and mental health practitioners who deal with children and adolescents have reason to access services through the special education departments of their local public schools. This can be a frustrating experience for everyone as the operating assumptions and legal requirements that underpin the work of special educators frequently differ from those that inform the work of community-based professionals. Unraveling the confusion that can occur in these situations is the purpose of this seminar. This seminar will examine these areas of difference and explore how they impact on the experience of families and professionals when it’s necessary to access special education services for children.
Have you been waiting for nearly a year to get the school to do a special education eligibility evaluation for one of your clients? At the end of this seminar, you should be able to understand why you’ve been waiting. You should also have an idea about how to speed up the process.
Objectives: Seminar Participants will: 1) be able to identify two philosophical differences between their approach to working with clients and the approach taken by special education departments in the public schools; 2) be able to explain the implications of these differences for everyday practice in special education settings; 3) receive information on recent trends in special education and understand how these trends are likely to effect daily practice in special education environments; and 4) have a better understanding of special education terminology.
Method(s) of Instruction: Lecture, case presentation, discussion, Power point outline and handouts will be provided.
Fee: $125
CE Contact Hours: 5
Date: Thursday, March 13, 2008
Time: 9:30am–3:30pm
Instructor(s): Dr. Michael Boyle
Michael Boyle, PhD received his PhD in counseling psychology from NYU. He has been a school psychologist for nearly 30 years in the Hillsborough, NJ public schools. He is a Certified School Psychologist and has worked as adjunct faculty at The College of New Jersey and as a consultant. He has been in private practice as a psychologist in Lawrenceville, NJ since 1994.