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Special Education

THE TERM SPECIAL EDUCATION MEANS SPECIALLY DESIGNED INSTRUCTION, SPECIAL CLASSES, PROGRAMS AND SERVICES, AT NO COST TO PARENTS, TO MEET THE UNIQUE NEEDS OF A CHILD WITH A DISABILITY.

Under federal and state statutes, children requiring special education are those children who have one or more of the following disabilities, which adversely affect their educational performance and who require specially designed instruction:

  • autistic
  • deaf-blind
  • hearing impaired
  • learning disabled
  • intellectually disabled
  • multi-handicapped
  • orthopedically impaired
  • other health impaired
  • emotionally disturbed
  • speech/language impaired
  • visually impaired/blind
  • traumatic brain injury
  • developmentally delayed (infants and preschool age)

Special education is available to preschool children who have attained the age of three years and whose degree and type of disability, based on the evaluation by the Planning and Placement Team, is such that the absence of special education will impair the child's educational development to the extent that it is unlikely that the child will be able to make satisfactory educational progress when the child attains school age.

Under state statutes, school districts are required to identify gifted and talented students. However, programming for such students is optional and left to the discretion of each local board of education.

A Student Referral Form is used to document all referrals to special education.

In accordance with the Berlin Public Schools procedures relative to Confidentiality of Education Records, as mandated by both state and federal regulations, students' confidential records should be destroyed when the data are no longer relevant for the provision of educational services to the student. Confidential records are, in no event, retained beyond six (6) years following a student's graduation, or the graduation of the class to which he/she belonged. Confidential records record students' special education testing and program; these are not regular school records.

Pursuant to these procedures, the confidential records of students who were, at any time, members of the graduating class of 2014 will be destroyed on August 30, 2020. Students have the right to inspect their records prior to destruction. Upon receipt of a written request, an appointment will be made for a staff member to explain and interpret all educational data. If desired, a copy can also be made available to the student. This does not include students' high school cumulative files. Please do not call the high school. Former special education students should send written requests to the Director of Pupil Personnel Services, Berlin Public Schools, 238 Kensington Road, Berlin, CT 06037, only if the student had a special education file.