"What's The Big I.D.E.A.?" Training Monographs©

All Texas Local Education Agencies (LEAs) must complete a state-designed Special Education Self-Assessment (SESA) every year.

The SESA requires annual Professional/Staff Development on 21 of 23 Compliance/Strategy Items (topics) included in the SESA rubric, with designated trainees that include general educators, special educators, administrators, support staff, and others. 

Training on some topics is required more frequently.

“What’s The Big I.D.E.A.?"© is a complete system to meet these requirements!

Traditional approaches such as dedicated in-service days/sessions, online videos or slideshows, sending staff for off-site workshops, or contracting with presenters is not feasible to meet SESA standards, given a required minimum of 24 trainings to rate Proficient and the significant number of staff to be trained. Cindy developed the "What's The Big I.D.E.A.?"© Training Monographs© system to meet this unique need for specialized professional/staff development tailored to the topics and requirements. 

"What's The Big I.D.E.A.?"© is designed not only to cover all required topics but also to explain key information on each topic in a user-friendly format.  Each Training Monograph© provides core knowledge for staff from both General Education and Special Education.  Clear and concise language makes them suitable for a wide audience, including paraprofessionals and parents.  

“What’s The Big I.D.E.A.?” © is a school-year subscription-based service. Training is delivered via 19 “What’s The Big I.D.E.A.?” © Training Monographs©, each a single page legal size PDF document. The 19 Training Monographs© cover all 21 Compliance/Strategy Items (topics) identified for Professional Development in the Special Education Self-Assessment. All required topics are covered either in a dedicated Training Monograph© or in a Training Monograph© dedicated to two related topics. Topics that specify more than one training a year are also included as subtopics (subsections with headings in bold) on one or more additional Training Monographs©, and many are referenced in other Training Monographs©. Therefore, no other training materials are needed to meet SESA Proficient standards, even for topics requiring training multiple times a year.

As an example, Child Find is covered in a single Training Monograph©.  However, it is also revisited in other Training Monographs©.  In the Special Education Self-Assessment, Child Find training must occur "more than once" (for Proficient) or "multiple times" (for Exemplary) each year.  Using all Training Monographs© together as a Professional/Staff Development system will help your program meet this requirement.

The content quality in the Training Monographs© is unparalleled. Organized to not only meet topic requirements in the Self-Assessment, Training Monographs© are also sequenced to teach/remind the learner of the critical components for a compliant and child-centered Special Education process. Special Education laws, rules, regulations, and processes are organized in a logical sequence rather than the order of SESA rubric.

“What’s The Big I.D.E.A.?” Training Monographs©

#1 - Child Find #10 - State Assessment Participation

#2 - Family Engagement #11 – Behavior & the IEP

#3 - Interventions & Referrals #12 - IEP Implementation

#4 - Dyslexia & Related Disorders #13 - Instructional Strategies (Accommodations)

#5 - Initial Evaluations #14 - Secondary Transition

#6 – Reevaluations #15 - Graduation

#7 - An F.A.P.E. in the L.R.E. #16 - Early Childhood Transition

#8 - Properly Constituted ARDC #17 - Behavior & Discipline

#9 - IEP Content & Development #18 - School & Family Connections

#10 - State Assessment Participation 

#11 – Behavior & the IEP 

#12 - IEP Implementation

#13 - Instructional Strategies (Accommodations)

#14 - Secondary Transition 

#15 - Graduation 

#16 - Early Childhood Transition 

#17 - Behavior & Discipline 

#18 - School & Family Connections 

#19 - Data Analysis

The system is provided electronically as a school-year subscription service. Subscribers have unlimited use of Training Monographs© for the current school year to deliver the training via printed and/or electronic distribution. Instead of sending trainees instructions on how to access a series of online videos/slideshows, the LEA sends the single-page Training Monograph© PDFs electronically to each learner via Google Forms, Microsoft Forms, locally designed distribution systems, or direct email. Every Training Monograph© has an optional, editable Proficiency Quiz, and Quizzes are imbedded into each Google Form and Microsoft Form. Information is presented in short segments (“Micro Trainings”) throughout the year instead of lengthy workshops. This results in improved retention rates and multiple opportunities to reinforce learning. The system provides an annualized cycle of training rather than an annual overload of information.

Support Documents and complimentary consultation are included with each subscription. Since training is locally controlled, subscribers may also use the Training Monographs© for in-person training, using the pre-formatted Attendance Roster and optional Facilitator’s Guide. Subscriptions include a simplified Distribution/Documentation Schedule in Microsoft Excel with free online video consultation to customize it for the LEA.  There is an easy-to-follow color-coded chart that summarizes the Professional Development standards from the Self-Assessment rubric and documents how the Training Monographs© meet those standards. Editable text documents are provided to communicate with staff and to distribute the Training Monographs©and Proficiency Quizzes. Complimentary consultation and support via video conferencing, email, text, and phone are included with each subscription. Since Special Education is ever-evolving and changing, the text-based PDF Training Monographs© can be updated if needed throughout the school year, so learners receive current, compliant information.