Littlestown Area SD staff say special-education needs rising; district to train teachers

Speaker 1, a district staff member, told the meeting the Littlestown Area SD is seeing more students with disabilities and that the district must provide professional development so teachers can meet those needs. “So we have to learn to educate teachers,” Speaker 1 said, adding repeated emphasis that staff are learning “how to educate students with autism” and students with multiple disabilities.

Speaker 1 said some families arrive with outside medical diagnoses but the district conducts educational evaluations to determine whether the diagnosis affects a student’s learning and therefore qualifies the student for special-education services. “So we do an educational evaluation. So we have to determine if that diagnosis is affecting their education. And if it is, then they qualify under specific criteria for special education purposes,” Speaker 1 said.

Participants asked whether the rising numbers stem from new enrollments or families moving into the district; Speaker 1 said regional increases are responsible and that evaluations can begin as early as preschool. The conversation touched on dyslexia and reading disabilities; Speaker 2 asked whether dyslexia is handled inside special education or via outside sources, and Speaker 1 said school psychologists assess reading disabilities and support students when criteria are met.

The district did not announce specific new hires or funding in the discussion. Next steps described in the meeting included additional professional development for teachers and continued use of school-based evaluations to determine services.