We are continuing our series of episodes on the subject of eligibility, which will carry over into March. There is SO much to cover! We are joined today by a returning guest, who discusses what she is seeing in the trend of school districts denying IEPs to children who clearly meet eligibility requirements and trying to exit students out when they have needs and disabilities that are impacting their education. Join us for a closer look!

Peggy Schaefer is a board-certified Neurological Music Therapist (NMT), and her work focuses on how the brain processes rhythm and applies it to non-musical interventions. She studied with Dr. Michael Thaut at Colorado State University, which is where this research-based approach originated. The application has been widely used with patients who have Parkinson’s disease and has been proven to be as effective as medication. Peggy’s past work has been with US service members in neurological rehab, stroke patients, Parkinson’s patients, and those with traumatic brain injuries.  

Show Highlights:

• What Peggy is seeing as a trend in children being denied IEPs, one-to-one aides, and services for alternative communication
• How taking away these students’ rights is a civil rights issue
• Why it’s frustrating when the school personnel talk about what they don’t understand regarding what an individual student needs in order to learn
• How workplaces have become more flexible since COVID—but schools have become more inflexible
• How the system wears down teachers AND families
• Why punishing and shaming a child doesn’t work for long-term change
• How effective communication can make all the difference in the IEP process
• Why it’s as simple as listening to what the child says they need

 Links/Resources:

Connect with Peggy: www.theimperfectplace.com  

Contact us on social media or through our website for more information on the IEP Learning Center: www.inclusiveeducationproject.org   

Thank you for listening! 

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