1993-Annual Town Report - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

In the area of Special.Education, a total of 217 stu- has been involved in the development of programs for dents from ages three through twenty-one are current- young children. A' grant for $22,500 was awarded ly being serviced within our system. Special Mashpee. Project C.R.E.A.T.E. is funded by Chapter Education programs range from monitoring of a stu- 188 in the Mashpee community for the sixth year and dent's progress to more substantially separate pro- provides for an integrated preschool, lending early grams for the more substantially disabled child. childhood library, outreach program for young chit- Mashpee continues to expand programs for the inclu- dren, playgroups and screening. It assists the public sion of students with special needs. Substantial num- schools in reaching youngsters at an early age and pro- bers of students now receive services in the regular viding services prior to school entrance. Over 170 classroom. Mashpee families of young children participated through Project C.R.E.A.T.E. this year. The Cape Cod Collaborative for Special Needs con- tinues to serve the Mashpee Public Schools with a cur- Federal Special Education grants awarded the rent caseload of four Mashpee students. In addition, Mashpee Public Schools totalled $85,125. Mashpee continues to collaborate with surrounding Additionally, funds totalling $13,650 were received to public school districts, human service agencies and supplement early childhood special needs programs. with Cape Cod Child Development, Inc., in providing appropriate programming for Mashpee students. The The Mashpee Public Schools continue to success- Director of Special Education also works in coopera- fully meet the needs of children identified as having tion with Falmouth High School and Cape Cod Tech special needs. Through a comprehensive range of pro- personnel in providing programming for high school- gram offerings, children are served within the least aged youngsters with special educational needs. restrictive setting whenever possible in a manner con- sistent with thea individual educational plans. one hundred ninety kindergarten children were screened this year resulting in thirty-four referrals for Reading continues as the centerpiece on the educa- further evaluation. A total of 222 student's education- tional table set by Mashpee educators. Reading per- al plans were reviewed and updated including full meates all aspects of learning. It encompasses the evaluations. A total of 21 students moved into the dis- communicative arts- writing, listening, speaking and trict with educational plans which were implemented. reading. Reading instruction spans the school system, Frequently these students required further evaluations grades K through 8. and meetings. Additionally, 45 preschool age children were screened and 25 preschoolers were evaluated The methods and materials used in reading instruc- after screening. A total of 101 students were referred tion are under the continuous focus of a very active by teachers and parents through the Educational curriculum review team consisting of professionals Service Team (EST). across the grades. Inservice is continuous and has been provided to The goals of the team is to ensure that the mastery staff and parents on the issues of inclusion- grading, of reading skills becomes an integral part of each stu- strategies in the classroom, assessment, homework, dent's school and home life. eligibility; parenting, referral, the special education processes and procedures, and screening. The This year was the firstp Year for the im lementation Mashpee Public Schools was the recipient of addition- of schoolwide reading text adoption. The staff, stu- al state funds for staff development and training. dents and parents have been most receptive to the new Project TEAM provided for on-site program develop- materials. This adoption was made possible by the ment and evaluation, as well as summer training for continuing support of education by townspeople the towns eo le- teachers on the issues of mainstreaming. Additional a support for which the schools are mostg rateful. funding through the State Department of Education, for inservice to teachers on the issues of mainstream- In conclusion the Mashpee School System during ing and referral was approved in the amount of p Y • pp $4,500. 1993 still remains one of the fastest growing school districts in the Commonwealth. Growth has made it The Mashpee Special Education Parent Advisory very difficult to maintain the same level of services. Council (SEPAL}meets regularly and is expanding its membership. A parent manual developed by the On behalf of all staff members, I wish to thank the Council is available to all parents through the Special citizens of Mashpee for their support. Education office and the Guidance Department at p pp each school building. Respectfully submitted, The Director of Special Education, acting as Co- Dr. Lincoln A. DeMoura Chairman of the Early Childhood Advisory Council, Superintendent of Schools 86