Instructional Settings

The Mainstream setting is an instructional setting where students with disabilities receive instruction in a core content area or another curricular area in the general education classroom. The student does not receive any push-in or pull-out services for instruction from the campus-based special education teacher in that particular content. The student may receive IEP accommodations and/or modifications.  Mainstreaming aims to provide students with disabilities the opportunity to participate in the same learning experiences as their peers, to the greatest extent appropriate. These are provided by the general education teacher in consultation with the special education contact teacher.

SDI In-Class is for students who access TEKS through accommodations and/or modifications in the general education setting. A student’s IEP must include the provision of specially designed instruction, such as teaching prerequisite skills, pre-teaching vocabulary, and key concepts, or re-teaching. Routine use of strategies that change the way content is accessed and the different ways that students can demonstrate their learning. Minutes on the schedule of service page are documented as weekly minutes and serviced by a special education teacher or paraprofessional.  The Special Education teacher or paraprofessional will collaborate with the general education teachers on a regular basis in order to effectively implement specially designed instruction and provide the necessary support for students. SDI services are individualized according to the needs of the student and based on ARD committee recommendations.

SDI Pull-Out/Resource is for students to receive intensive direct instruction from a special education teacher in a separate setting from the general education classroom. SDI must address specific goals in the student’s IEP. IEP goals should be aligned to the grade level TEKS and identified deficit skills based on assessments. Students who receive a resource program should have pull-out services daily. Some students may need to be pulled out once or twice a week to address prerequisite skills, pre-teach vocabulary, and key concepts, etc.

 BASE is for students with severe emotional/behavioral concerns that adversely affect the student’s learning or the learning environment for other students. The needs of students in the BASE Class cannot be met appropriately in other settings, such as a general education classroom, a combination of general education classes and special education supports, or other special education settings. This classroom provides an educational environment with a high level of structure and individualization to address the student’s social and behavioral skills that are needed to be successful in the general education setting. Students' behavior and social skill needs are supported through positive behavior supports focusing on teaching deficit skills through the use of explicit instruction, modeling, practice/role play, and feedback of appropriate behaviors. BASE is for students who have a Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP), social skills, organizational, or study skill IEP goal that requires interventions and academic instruction. Interventions could include social skills groups, a morning check-in, and afternoon check-out, direct teaching on organizational and study skill goals, etc.

Life Skills classes provide intensive instruction using a functional approach in areas of academic, self-help, vocational, socialization, as well as daily community living skills that promote independence. Students in the Life Skills class have a cognitive disability that requires them to access the TEKS through prerequisite skills that are linked to the grade-level curriculum.

In addition to specialized academic instruction, students need support throughout the day in areas such as expressing his or her needs, getting from place to place, eating lunch, negotiating social situations, and/or taking care of personal needs.

Life Skills instruction focuses on the following:

• Assisting each student in experiencing success in academic and/or elective subjects at his/her ability level, integrating academic instruction into meaningful age-appropriate functional activities.
• Assisting each student in securing functional/self-help, vocational, and job-related skills as appropriate.
• Assisting each student in obtaining socialization skills to be used in daily and community living.
• Increasing skills that lead to independence within the community.

Academic Life Skills (ALS): Students in ALS exhibit significant academic needs, which are pervasive in all core academic areas.

Academic and Vocational Life Skills (AVLS)Secondary Level Only: Students in the AVLS setting exhibit severe needs in all of the following areas:

• communication,
• daily living skills,
• social skills,
• and vocational skills.

AVLS classes provide a more intensive instructional environment for functional-based skills to promote independence to the maximum extent possible in the areas of academic, self-help, vocational, socialization, and daily community living.

Functional Life Skills (FLS): The FLS program provides instruction for students with severe to profound delays in the area of cognition who are generally non-ambulatory and/or medically fragile. Instruction in the FLS classroom emphasizes basic life skills with the integration of functional prerequisite academics. FLS classrooms focus on the following:

• establishing skills to tolerate environments,
• communicating needs,
• and independent self-care skills (dressing, grooming, etc.).

The FLS instructional environments promote opportunities for sensory stimulation and social interactions.

ECSE is a program for students with disabilities aged three, four, and some five-year-olds. These classes are designed to provide instruction for students with delays in cognition, communication, psychomotor, self-care, and social-emotional areas. Options for the ECSE program include self-contained, inclusive/blended classrooms and kindergarten with special education support through specially designed instruction.

Students who attend a private/homeschool within the boundaries of AISD may be referred for special education evaluation if the parent suspects the student has a disability.

• If the student resides in AISD and attends a private school in AISD, the parent may contact the school their child would attend if enrolled in AISD.
• If the student resides in AISD and attends a private school located outside of AISD, the parent should contact the school district in which the private school is located. The law changed on July 1, 2005, and requires the district in which the private school is located to provide services for parentally placed private school children (20 USC 1412 (a)(10)(A)(II).
• If the student resides outside of AISD and attends a private school within the boundaries of AISD, the parent may contact the Special Education office at spedhelp@argyleisd.com.

AISD consults with private/homeschools in AISD regarding the plan to expend the proportionate share funds used by the district to provide services for students. If you have a concern or comment regarding the plan for services, please contact the Special Education office at spedhelp@argyleisd.com.