12 Things to Know About the GAO Report and Hearings on Restraint and Seclusion in Special Education

Are you the parent of a child with autism or pervasive developmental disorder(PDD)? Are you concerned about your school districts reaction to your child’s negative behavior? Have you seen the recent news about the Government Accounting Office (GAO) report, and the legislative hearings being held on the use of restraint and seclusion in school districts? Would you like to have more information on the GAO report and legislative hearings so that you can use it to benefit your child’s education? This article is for you; Information on the Government Accounting Office report entitled: Special Needs Kids Abused in Schools, and recent legislative hearings.

Things you need to know from the GAO report:

1. Congressional auditors have uncovered widespread abuse of restraint to discipline special education students in US schools!

2. Serious problems with the way that children with disabilities are being treated in public schools; including the use of deadly prone restraints (which means that the child is face down)!

3.

Many special needs children are subjected to the use of restraints and seclusion that may cause them permanent emotional damage!

4. Many school personnel that have injured or caused the death of a child in school, due to the use of restraints are still working in school settings!

5. Experts have long recommended that children should only be isolated (secluded) when they posed an immediate threat to themselves or others. But CNN found that seclusion or isolation was often used as a punishment by teachers to make a child follow instructions!

6. What frustrates experts the most is that efforts to force unruly children to comply, by the use of restraints and seclusion, do not actually work!

7.

Report talked about a school Centennial School at Lehigh University for students with severe emotional disturbances. The staff was able to decrease use of restraint and seclusion from 1,000 documented cases to 0 documented cases. They taught children new skills, helped them calm down when upset by giving them space, used positive attitudes and positive supports when needed etc.

There experience should be a beacon to all schools; positive behavioral supports as well as teaching of needed skills does work in decreasing negative behavior! Rather than relying on punishment and the use of seclusion and restraint.

The GAO report was used as part of the hearing that was held May 19th 2009 in Washington DC on the use of restraints and seclusion in school districts. The legislators found:

8. No evidence that restraint and seclusion help change a child’s negative behavior!

9. That the practice of using restraint and seclusion in school districts is an unacceptable practice, and needs to be changed!

10. That state laws are patchy at best! Even when state laws exist, enforcement is almost non existent!

11. A federal registry of school personnel that injured children in schools must be developed. Teachers are going from state to state to avoid state wide registries. A federal registry would prevent this, and keep children safe!

12. That Federal legislation is required to limit or end the practice of restraint and seclusion in school districts. State laws are too scattered and not enforced to help children not be victims of child abuse at school.

Restraint and Seclusion do not work to improve a child’s behavior. Also punishment does not bring about long term behavioral change. Positive behavioral supports which are developed from a appropriately developed Functional Behavioral Assessment does work to positively improve a child’s school behavior. Insist on the use of FBA’s and Positive Behavioral Supports to help your child be able to learn, and to prevent injury and death!

New Department of Education Reveal

For anyone graduating college over the past few years, you know how overwhelming student debt can be. And, if you’re like most, you’re banking on the new career to help clear that debt – some faster than others. A. Harrison Barnes, career coach and Hound.com founder, tells us about a new chart, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Education, that shows the repayment rates for every college, graduate school and even job training program within the U.S. The numbers were pulled from the debt loads of every single student who either dropped out or graduated college between 2004 and 2008. Read on – you might be surprised at what’s what, says the Hound.com founder.

More than 90% of Cal Tech graduates were paying on their loan balances, as were those who graduated from Christian liberal arts Dordt College.

Generally, says A. Harrison Barnes, nursing programs, those schools with Christian foundations and surprisingly – liberal arts students – were more likely to remain committed than some others. For Dordt and Cal Tech, the average financial total was around ,000 per student. For those students who were carrying more than ,000 and making efforts to pay down there debt, odds are, they attended Williams, Lafayette, Gettysburg and Colby. U.S. News reports those schools offer impressive financial aid programs.

Going south, you’ll discover the University of Mobile, a private Christian school located in Mobile, AL reported only about 33% of the students who owe money are making payments of any kind (and payments of are counted in the “repayment” column). Other schools with lower repayment ratios include Grambling State and Fisk. Liberty University, recently announcing its new management system, reports a repayment ratio of 45%, says the Hound.com founder.

Ah…but things aren’t always as they seem. It’s important to keep in mind that those who went on to graduate school and hadn’t begun making payments yet (and won’t until they’ve completed grad school) are considered, for purposes of the poll, to be in the “no pay” column. A few deans report that students are indeed making payments – on time and every month, but are only making the minimum payments that did not cover any of the principle on their loans, but they too are being counted as non-payers. Barnes says it’s important to keep perspective.

As with surveys of this magnitude, there are bound to be those who disagree with the algorithms used. Still, despite any slight imperfections or fluctuations, the big picture is clear. The bad news is there likely will no cuts to any school’s tuition. Costs have been on the rise for decades and that trend is likely cemented into place. Barnes says the key to repaying student debt is to maintain consistency. Try to pay as much on the principle as possible and keep on moving forward.

Annual Report For Congress
National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson today released here annual report to Congress, identifying the need for tax reform as the number one priority in tax administration. The Advocate expressed continuing concern that the IRS’s increasing use of hard-core enforcement actions, particularly tax liens, is inflicting unnecessary harm on financially struggling taxpayers. The report also examines challenges the IRS is facing in implementing the new health care law.

Tax Reform

There has been near universal agreement for years that the tax code is broken and needs to be fixed, Olson said in releasing the report. Yet no broad-based attempt to reform the tax code has been made. This report documents the burdens the tax code imposes on taxpayers and explores why many taxpayers may nevertheless feel wedded to key aspects of the current system, undermining efforts at reform.

Individual taxpayers find return preparation so overwhelming that about 60 percent now pay preparers to do it for them. An additional 29 percent use tax software packages costing or more. IRS researchers recently estimated that the annual monetary tax compliance burden of the median individual taxpayer (as measured by income) is 8.

Tax Reform Challenges and Public Awareness. The report discusses why efforts at tax reform which usually focus on eliminating tax breaks in exchange for lower rates have not succeeded. It is sometimes suggested that taxpayers are looking for a free lunch that they want to see lower rates but keep their tax breaks and retain their government benefits, all while balancing the budget, Olson said. But this perspective overlooks the fact that federal tax and spending policies are complex, and most people don’t have the time to study these policies in detail. Our aim is to improve public knowledge of the trade-offs involved and to help policymakers and the taxpaying public conduct a more informed conversation about tax reform alternatives.

The report attempts to improve awareness of the extent to which taxpayers benefit from tax breaks by discussing the subject in detail. The report attempts to improve awareness of the connection between taxation and spending by recommending that the government provide all taxpayers with a taxpayer receipt each year that presents a breakdown showing how their federal dollars are spent.

The Special Interests Are Us. The report there is a widespread belief that the influence of entrenched special interests is the biggest roadblock to comprehensive tax reform. There is no doubt that many provisions in the tax code benefit narrow groups of taxpayers, the report says. But the dirty little secret is that the largest special interests are us the vast majority of U.S. Taxpayers. Virtually all of us benefit from certain exclusions from income, deductions from income, or tax credits.

These tax breaks (known as tax expenditures) now total .1 trillion a year. Among the largest are the exclusion of employer contributions for health care, the exclusion for retirement plan contributions and earnings, the mortgage interest deduction, reduced tax rates for dividends and capital gains, exclusions for Medicare benefits, the earned income tax credit, and the deduction for state and local taxes. Other popular benefits include the child and dependent care credits; the deductions for charitable donations and contributions to traditional IRAs; and exclusions for distributions from Section 529 education savings plans, for contributions to Flexible Spending Accounts (both medical and dependent care), and for public transportation subsidies.

If you are filing your taxes online this year or need online tax help please feel free to contact us at http://onlinetaxpros.com.

Understanding your Cibil Report

We are all familiar with the anxiety and uncertainty that we feel when applying for a loan. After all, it’s the lender who decides whether we can own our dream home, our first car, or whether our children can pursue higher education. In a nutshell, a better life depends on the lender’s decisions.

While other factors do play a part in the lender’s decision, the Cibil Credit Information Report (CIR) plays a crucial role in a lender’s decision to approve a loan application.

Previously, lenders would treat all loan seekers equally. Each applicant, if approved by the lender’s internal credit policy, would be charged at the same interest rate for a particular loan size and purpose. The lenders would charge a higher interest rate to all the borrowers, in order to compensate for the possible default of a small portion of the loan disbursed. In other words, it’s like a professor (the lender) punishing an entire class (borrowers) for the mischief played by a few students (defaulters).

Today, Cibil CIRs provide lenders the ability to differentiate between those who have honoured their obligations responsibly and those who have defaulted.

Individuals who have appropriately managed their obligations build ‘reputation collateral’ with lenders. This allows those individuals to negotiate better terms with a lender.

What Is a Cibil CIR?:

A CIR is a month on-month record of an individual’s loan-related EMI (home loans, personal loan, automobile loans and so on), credit card or overdraft payments.

Described below is a detailed description of sections and information contained in a CIR.

Consumer Information:

This section provides the lender with your name, date of birth, gender, an identifying number (such as PAN , Voter ID or Passport Number) and contact details (telephone numbers and addresses). Up to four addresses are provided on the CIR. These details indicate who the information, on that CIR pertains to. This provides the lender with an overview of the CIR. It includes the total number of accounts and enquires (up to the past 24 months) on your CIR.

Account(s):

The most important section of your CIR, this section contains the details of your credit facilities. The account section contains the name of the lender’s, the type of credit facilities (home loan, Car loan, credit card, etc), the account number’s, whether single or jointly held, when each account was opened, date of the last payment, loan amount, current balance and most importantly, a month-on-month record of up to three years of your payments.

Enquiries:

This section provides you with details regarding your loan applications such as, the name of the lender, date of the application, the type of loan and its size. The enquiries are captured for a period of seven years. Simply put, this section indicates how ‘credit hungry’ you.

Military Education Advances Career

After active duty service, many soldiers can’t find jobs because their military skills ar not enough to help them compete with college degree holders in the workforce. That’s why many federal and private organizations support them with followed programs.

Returning soldiers might consider taking college courses or enrolling in degree programs online or on campus as part of Montgomery GI Bill benefits. Individuals who served in any branch of the US Armed Forces for more than 90 days after the date of September 10, 2001, are also eligible to take advantage of a Post-9/11 GI Bill that could help them complete campus-based or online degree programs by paying up to the highest in-state tuition and fees. In addition, for some, there are allowances for housing and books. A US Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs in August approved an expansion of the Post-9/11 GI Bill as well.

The expansion is known as the Veterans Employment Act of 2010.

With it, veterans would receive Post-9/11 educational assistance also for apprenticeships and job training, and the Labor Secretary would provide monthly allowances to unemployed veterans enrolled in eligible full-time employment training programs where they learn skills related to in-demand careers. The Veterans Employment Act also calls for ways that colleges, universities and technical schools could provide veterans with academic credit for military experience and training.

The unemployment rate among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans for July 2010 was 11.8 percent, about 4 percent higher than the rate for the same month last year, as well as the July 2010 rate for veterans overall, according to the Marine Corps Times.

The Veterans Employment Act calls for the Small Business Administration to help veterans of Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom in some areas to receive entrepreneurial training and counseling and to assist veterans who own and control businesses. States, on the other hand, through grants would be able to establish volunteer and employment opportunities for veterans in state conservation projects, while the Secretary of Defense provides veterans with employment in military construction projects. In addition to programs that would help veterans build upon existing information technology and healthcare skills when entering careers in these fields, the Veterans Employment Act directs the Labor Secretary to encourage the employment of veterans in the energy industry.

Some veterans interested in filling state jobs related to the environment and increasingly “green” jobs within the energy industry and elsewhere might consider online degree and certificate programs that could help them update existing skills. A 2009 White House study estimates that by 2016 green jobs will have grown by 52 percent from 2000 levels. To create what some refer to as “green collar” jobs, President Barack Obama in 2008 said he would spend 0 billion over the course of a decade, a Time magazine article reported.

Veterans have an array of college, university and technical school programs related to the environment from which to choose. Institutions throughout the country last year established or announced more than 113 academic programs with sustainability focuses, the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Education reports. As Illinois colleges and universities add new green classes, they’re filling up quickly, a summer 2010 report in suburban Chicago’s Daily Herald noted. In California, where the state intends to slash carbon emissions by 25 percent into 2020, gas and electric companies have suggested that mechanics be trained in natural gas technology, an article in the community college magazine Affinityonline reported.

The focus at community colleges particularly is on training for “green collar” jobs that Affinityonline reports often require manual labor. These types of jobs might be found in sectors such as energy, agriculture, construction, transportation and alternative fuels – and they don’t necessarily require a bachelor’s degree, the online publication noted. Veterans particularly are a focus of natural gas programs scheduled to start in 2011 at a community college and a technical school in Pennsylvania, where they might receive instruction in welding and brazing, rotary drilling and more.

Educational Frenzy!!!
Having arrived at the close of the first quarter of the new school year and having completed fall conferences, I find there is not even the briefest pause in the frenzied push to bring all students to my states specified level of reading achievement as evidenced by a specified range of scores on my districts specified assessment. This frenzy continues on as though all children develop neurologically at a specified rate, as though all children mature physically and emotionally at a specified rate, as though their homes, environments, diets, bedtimes, exercise, and life stressors all align with a specified uniformity. It would appear as though a specified time is spent, each evening, reading or being read to by all children in all homes, regardless of all the diversity of cultural and family norms today. Even more ludicrous, it would appear that all time spent by all children in front of all forms of electronic toys and devices, including television and play-stations, is specified including content and duration of time.

The momentum of this frenzy is being maintained and fueled, at least in my world, under the umbrella of the RTI process (Response to Intervention) a procedure of progress monitoring come of age with the passage of IDEA 2004. The constant assessment and data analysis that accompanies this progress monitoring under this RTI paradigm shift is wearing me out, and my peers as well. I find myself caught in a quandary of when and how to carry out formal and informal assessment of benchmarks and progress monitoring during the instructional day. This data, once collected, must be analyzed aside from the demands and rigors of delivering good instruction and mandated curriculum which extend long beyond a reasonable workday. In addition, the reporting and regurgitating of this data takes place before or after the workday with the preparation thereof taking place outside of the workday as well. Those of us who are caught up in this new paradigm know that all these intrusive added variables come at a sacrifice of our energies, time, and our abilities to deliver good instruction and to give the best of ourselves as educators to our students. It has not been specified to us as yet, however, just how to achieve these impossible demands and be good at what we are suppose to be doing, which is to teach to the ends that children learn!

I am discovering, however, that there are some very talented individuals who are very aware of the struggles of educators, like me, desperately trying to make sense of all of this frenzied madness. One such individual is Diane Ravitch, former Assistant Secretary of Education under the first president Bush and a nationally recognized scholar and historian of education. Ms. Ravitch has reversed her stance on issues such as standardized testing, school choice and the No Child Left Behind Act as noted in an article posted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution on March 5, 2010, authored by Maureen Downey a longtime reporter for the AJC, http://blogs.ajc.com/get-schooled-blog/2010/03/05/diane-ravitch-education-has-become-search-and-destroy-mission-and-teachers-are-the-targets/. These individuals are also intensely dedicated to the education and the well being of our nations youth as well.

So, as I take this moment to pause at the close of this first quarter of the new school year, this article and the voices it represents, gives me hope in knowing that there are others out there working to make sense of this madness and moving forward toward rational resolutions as well.

http://www.truth-for-education.com/2010/11/01/educational-insanity-compounded/

Reflexology – Online Education Opportunities

Careers in reflexology are expanding due to the growth and popularity of natural healing. There are a number of online reflexology schools and colleges that allow students to train for a career in this area. Students who wish to obtain a career can receive training from a variety of online programs, but hands on learning may also be necessary in order to learn all aspects of the therapy. Certification and education requirements will vary depending on the state and the individual students desired career goals. With a diploma or certificate from an online school students will prepare for careers working in doctor’s offices, spas, sports facilities, gyms, clinics, and more. Online education opportunities in reflexology will teach students that the art includes various forms of touch therapy.

Reflexology is considered to be a form of bodywork that consists of applying pressure to specific areas of the hands and feet using various techniques.

These techniques include the use of acupressure and massage on the individual and area being treated. The application of pressure on specific areas helps to activate the body’s natural healing response system and provide relief to the gland, part, or organ of the body that is affected. The areas included are the hands, feet, and ears. Reflex points on these parts of the body trigger a healing process that corresponds to other areas of the body. Students can learn these techniques and areas by enrolling in an online educational program that will provide the appropriate coursework.

Coursework for an accredited online education in the field of reflexology may consist of:

human anatomy
acupressure
massage therapy
reflex points
spirituality
biology
nutrition
physiology
health

…and more.

These areas of study will allow the student to obtain the knowledge and skills needed for a career in the field of natural healing. Some schools may offer programs of study that are focused entirely on foot reflexology, while others provide instruction on the entire body. Students may be provided with the opportunity to specialize in areas such as clinical or meridian therapy, maternity reflexology, chakra balancing, and more.

Students will find that by pursuing an education in reflexology may take anywhere between six and twelve months to complete. With an online education students will be required to complete 150 to 300 hours of course study along with hands on practice. The average cost for this type of education may be somewhere around 00 to 00. Student may need to spend an extra 0 to 0 for various supplies like books, charts, and a massage table or chair. With an accredited education certificate holders will be able to pursue a number of careers.

Career opportunities for those with training can include acupressure therapist, massage therapist, physical therapy assistant, massage therapy assistant, physical therapist, or reflexologist. The medium income for a certified reflexologist is reported to be around ,000 annually. The average earnings are stated to be anywhere from to for a one hour session, and from to 0 for a one and a half hour session.

If an education and career in this field are of interest to you then an accredited online school may be just what you need to start an exciting career in natural healing. The American Commission for Accreditation of Reflexology Education and Training (ACARET) is approved to accredit quality training facilities that offer students the best possible educational training. Students can begin by finding an online reflexology program and enrolling today.

DISCLAIMER: Above is a GENERIC OUTLINE and may or may not depict precise methods, courses and/or focuses related to ANY ONE specific school(s) that may or may not be advertised at PETAP.org.

Copyright 2010 – All rights reserved by PETAP.org.

Notice to Publishers: You may use this article on Ezine or on your Website; however, ALL links must remain intact and active. Failure to retain links is expressly prohibited and violators will be prosecuted extensively by law.

Aarkstore Enterprise Indian Bulk Drugs Report Market Research Reports
Introduction
The Indian API (bulk drugs) manufacturing industry is estimated to have touched USD4.10 billion by 2007, growing at CAGR of 18.81% during 2003-07. India ranks fourth in terms of volume among the top 15 drug manufacturing countries. Cygnus releases the latest version of the Indian Bulk Drugs Industry Insight to capture the present domestic market scenario, along with the major players and their key financials

Key Findings & Highlights

- The global pharmaceutical market was valued at USD712 billion in 2007.
- According to IMS Health, treatment costs per day declined by 20-40% in 2007 in therapy
Areas
- Generics continued to replace branded prescriptions in the major therapeutic classes,
increasing their share of total dispensed prescriptions to 67.3 %.
- In 2007, North America, which accounts for 45.9% of global pharmaceutical sales, grew by
4.2% to USD304.5 billion

- The market size for the global bulk drugs was USD77.32 billion in 2005 and was
estimated to be USD92.21 billion in 2007

- Indian companies have the distinction of developing cost-effective technologies for
manufacturing bulk drugs and intermediates that conform to global standards.

For more information please contact :

http://www.aarkstore.com/reports/Indian-Bulk-Drugs-Report-12374.html

http://www.emarketreports.com

http://www.aarkwebsolutions.com/

From:Aarkstore Enterprise
Contact: Neel
Email: press@aarkstore.com
URL: www.aarkstore.com

For more Releted Reports

http://www.aarkstore.com/reports/Prefeasibility-report-on-Captive-Power-Plant-12531.html

http://www.aarkstore.com/reports/Vocational-Education-and-Training-in-India-12556.html

Special Education Degree Programs

Special education teachers work with children and youths who have a variety of disabilities. A small number of special education teachers work with students with severe cognitive, emotional, or physical disabilities, primarily teaching them life skills and basic literacy. However, the majority of special education teachers work with children with mild to moderate disabilities, using or modifying the general education curriculum to meet the child’s individual needs and providing required remedial instruction. Most special education teachers instruct students at the preschool, elementary, middle, and secondary school level, although some work with infants and toddlers.

The Department of Special Education has distinguished itself in preparing professionals to work in an increasingly pluralistic and technological society. Our department ranks consistently among the top 10 departments nationally that offer graduate programs in Special Education according to the annual U.S. News & World Report (U.S. News and World Report, 2008). Our graduates have gone on to assume a variety of professional roles including teacher, counselor, administrator, researcher, policy maker, analyst, and advocate.

Online colleges provided innumerable degree programs. some undergraduate online degree programs, such as an Associate of Arts Degree is a general education course that is designed for the ambitious student whose intentions are to managed to acquire their first portion of a post-secondary education, have the opportunity to enroll into one of numerous online colleges Master Degree programs. one in particular, the Master of Science in Special Education.Education Administration:This specialization will prepare you for a career in educational leadership or  administration or supervisory positions. Special Education: A specialization in special education is a great choice for those …

Many distance learning programs also offers an accelerated program where you can earn your online degree even faster. However the time needed to complete an online education degree also depends on how much time and effort you .To be a special education teacher one needs to have both the innate interest and desire to work with students. People with a good deal of patience and understand would find a good career in a special education degree. They will train to work with students with special physical, mental, and emotional needs. Special needs range from physical, mental, behavioral, or psychological. Special education is always important because all humans need to be treated with respect and dignity, regardless of their intelligence and capability level. People with a strong constitution and unlimited determination do well in the field of special education. Without people who are willing to work with the intellectually or physically challenged, some of these people would fall by the wayside, uncared for. This cannot be accepted in our modern times.

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