Special education students placed in Fort Bend ISD’s collaborative teaching classrooms achieved growth in reading and math skills, indicating the effectiveness of the program, according to a report presented during FBISD’s Aug. 13 board meeting. The co-teach program teams one special education teacher with a general education teacher to instruct students with special needs along with their neurotypical peers, said Deena Hill, executive director of special education and learning support for FBISD. The 2017-18 school year was the second year of the program’s implementation. “Not only are [special education students] getting exposure to curriculum at the same pace as the general education students—and they’re able to keep up with that curriculum—but they’re also getting some really positive experience being around non-disabled peers,” Hill said. Data is analyzed based on the number of co-teach classrooms, and some students may attend two co-teach classes for English language arts and math, FBISD media relations specialist Amanda Bubela said. In 2016-17, 222 classes utilized the co-teach model, and in 2017-18, 251 classes utilized it. Based on assessments given to 218 elementary, 233 middle and 126 high school students at the beginning, middle and end of the 2017-18 school year, results show approximately 38-57 percent of special education students in co-teach classrooms have achieved average or above average growth in reading at each level, according to FBISD data. In math, 176 elementary, 230 middle and 88 high school special education students were assessed, and, of those students, 46-60 percent of them showed average or above average growth at each level, according to district data. “Many of our high schools did not consistently give the [assessment] three times a year, so we had a smaller population of children to look at their growth,” Hill said. These results indicate students are improving, but it takes 4-5 years to measure exactly how effective the program is, she said. However, an audit conducted by Gibson research and consulting firm revealed there is still room for improvement in co-teach classrooms and the district’s Department of Special Education as a whole. “We need to be more consistent in how we’re implementing this, and schools may need more support,” said Greg Gibson, president of the firm. There were also delays in meeting federally required evaluations to examine whether students need special education or continued special education services, Gibson said. The delays were caused by large volumes of demand for services, Hill said. “We have been able to get additional positions and we’ve hired [personnel],” she said. “We feel pretty good.” Administrators will continue to monitor co-teach students as the program continues into its third year, Hill said. Staff expects to have a larger data pool for the 2018-19 school year as they work to assess students more consistently.