Somersetpace Wiki

Welcome to the Somerset PACE Wiki
Somerset P.A.C.E. (Parent Advisory Council for Education) is an information organization, and a resource for support and networking, for parents, guardians, and interested individuals in Somerset concerning children who have special needs, disabilities, and/or learning disorders.

Somerset P.A.C.E. provides education to parents and the broader community on Special Education issues and services. We work towards the understanding of, respect, support, and appropriate education for all children with special needs in our community and to insure that students' needs under the "old" Chapter 766 (now entitiled: "Special Education Law and Regulations") and other applicable laws are being met.

As a state-mandated, system-wide volunteer organization, we serve as a resource and advisor to parents of children with special needs from preschool through high school, serving all Somerset schools. We work closely with the Somerset Public School administration to identify areas of need and act in an advisory role to the Somerset School Committee.

We offer a broad range of information, contacts, networking opportunities; and, we encourage members to share information (books, tutors, interventions, etc.) that they have found useful in guiding their children's education. We help connect parents with other parents and professionals dealing with similar issues.

Our membership is open to parents and guardians of children with special needs and anyone interested in special needs education in Somerset. We are parents with children who have learning differences. We have monthly educational presentations on a variety of topics.

This wiki will provide support and information to families looking for guidance in the special education process.

Photo Credit: Creative Commons Some Rights Reserved. Photo by D. Sharon Pruitt

Special Education
Special education is the education of students with special needs in a way that addresses the students' individual differences and needs. Ideally, this process involves the individually planned and systematically monitored arrangement of teaching procedures, adapted equipment and materials, accessible settings, and other interventions designed to help learners with special needs achieve a higher level of personal self-sufficiency and success in school and community than would be available if the student were only given access to a typical classroom education.

Common special needs include learning disability, communication challenges, emotional and behavioral disorders, physical disabilities, and developmental disabilities. Students with these kinds of special needs are likely to benefit from additional educational services, different approaches to teaching, access to a resource room and use of technology.

Intellectual giftedness is a difference in learning and can also benefit from specialized teaching techniques or different educational programs, but the term "special education" is generally used to specifically indicate instruction of students whose special needs reduce their ability to learn independently or in a classroom, and gifted education is handled separately.

The opposite of special education is general education. General education is the standard curriculum presented with standard teaching methods and without additional supports.

From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special_education

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