High-Leverage Practices

Collaborative Partnerships 

Collaborative partnerships are vital to the success of ALL students.  However, students with significant cognitive and complex may particularly benefit from collaborative partnerships between special education and general education teachers, as well as other partners, such as family members, related service providers, and agency professionals. The objective of collaborative partnerships is for all students to receive the support they need to optimize educational outcomes. 

Featured Resource: The 5-15-45 Tool | TIES Center 

• Hoping to increase collaboration between special education and general education teachers?  This tool provides a planning framework for general and special education teachers to use for instructional planning and brainstorming ways to address learning barriers, whether they have 5, 15, or 45 minutes!  

Family Engagement 

Family members are important collaborative partners, especially for students with significant cognitive disabilities and complex needs.  Family members, such as parents, are experts on their children’s medical histories and experiences in outside therapies, as well as their children’s interests and motivations.  They also serve as a link to post-secondary experiences.  Truly engaging families in authentic discussions and collaborative planning increases educational outcomes for students with significant cognitive disabilities and prepares them for the journey to the adult world. 

Featured Resource: Engaging Families in the IEP Process: A Guide for Schools (pattan.net) 

• Do you want to meaningfully engage families in the IEP process but aren’t sure where to start?  Use this PaTTAN publication to help shape conversations with families and build collaborative relationships. 

Developing a Universally Designed Classroom 

Every classroom has students of varied abilities, strengths, and interests. Students need a classroom and instruction that can be flexible to meet their individual needs; this is the focus of Universal Design for Learning (UDL). UDL can especially benefit students with complex learning needs by designing instruction that prevents barriers and maximizes access. 

Featured Resources: 

• Tools for Implementing Universal Design for Learning from Novak Education Tools for Implementing Universal Design for Learning (novakeducation.com) Looking for free resources and tools to help you implement UDL? Then this page from Novak Education is for you! From guidance for teachers, administrators, and professional development; to observation tools, rubrics, and student surveys, this page has free and useful resources for anyone interested in UDL! 
• CAST: UDL At A Glance: This video is a great place to start to learn about provides a brief overview of what Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is and how it can support teachers. For more information on the UDL guidelines, you can visit https://udlguidelines.cast.org/  
• The Goal of UDL: The goal of UDL is learner agency. Read more about how to design learning environments that are purposeful, reflective, resourceful, authentic, strategic, and action oriented at this link. 

Direct and Explicit Instruction 

Direct and explicit instruction consists of a range of strategies characterized by clear instructional goals, skills taught in a sequence, use of modeling and guided practice, specific feedback, distributive and cumulative practice, and high student participation and engagement (Archer and Hughes; Direct Instruction). Direct instruction, and its components, have been found to be effective in increasing student achievement (Hattie rankings, Visible Learning). This type of instruction matches the learning needs of students with complex learning needs, as they benefit from instruction being focused, clear, and systematic. 

Featured Resources: 

Data-Based Individualization: Data abound in our classrooms, but do teachers always know how to effectively use data to increase the effectiveness of their instruction? Explore this link to find out what data-based individualization is, and how it can support teachers to assess, individualize, and intensify their instruction for students with disabilities.  

Can you implement DBI to support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities?: In this video, Dr. Chris Lemons shares what we know about how Data-Based Individualization (DBI) can support students with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and what the research still needs to explore.  

Planning Instruction for Students with Cognitive Disabilities and Complex Needs 

Students with complex learning needs benefit from proactive instructional planning, which includes both Universal Design for Learning (UDL) strategies, as well as individualization of instructional content.  While PA Dynamic Learning Maps provides resources for planning instruction specifically for the subjects of ELA, mathematics, and science, it is possible to adapt all content areas to provide robust instruction to students with significant cognitive disabilities and complex needs.   

Featured Resource: 

Planning Instruction for Students with Complex Needs Guidance Document: PaTTAN has developed a guidance document to walk educators through the process of lesson planning and instruction.   

Computer Science (CS) for All 

Fields related to STEM and Computer Science are fast-growing and plentiful in today’s job market.  Therefore, it is beneficial for all students, including those with significant cognitive disabilities and complex needs, to obtain instruction in the field of computer science. Not sure how to begin providing computer science instruction to your students?  Check out the PaTTAN CS for All website for tools and resources to assist you in this process. 

Featured Resource: 

CS Educator Toolkit: One of many great resources on the PaTTAN CS for All page, the CS Educator Toolkit includes information and resources to help educators provide computer science instruction to all learners, including students with significant cognitive and complex disabilities.