Easy Education Ideas on the Future

After a nurse receives the certificate or diploma necessary to work legally as a registered nurse, he or she is eligible to enroll in nursing continuing education, which emphasizes specialized fields in the nursing and medical fields and returns another certificate upon completion of the program. Some of the continuing nursing education fields available to registered nurses are: legal issues of health care, nursing administration and managerial skills, distinctive health care issues such as brain injury or paraplegic care, and working as an instructor in the physical, medical or social sciences. Educational institutions differ in the types of courses that they offer to the nurse wanting to pursue further advancement in the field of nursing, such as programs, which allow a R.N. to succeed as a nurse practitioner, or even eventually a physician.

Depending on the regulations held by the state in which a nurse obtains her degree, he or she may have to take nursing continuing education courses in order to retain their license.

These are referred to as “continuing education units” or CEU’s, and are necessary for anyone employed in the medical field as they will instruct the nurse or physician about the latest developments and advances in medicine. Some of the states which do not mandate continuing education are Maryland, South Dakota, Virginia, and Connecticut. About half of all other states demand a certain amount of continuing education to maintain licensure. However, an advanced practical nurse is allowed to forego the nursing continuing education process in only one state, Arizona. The other forty-nine states ask for re-recertification by supplemental education courses to keep a license if you are an advanced practical nurse.

A good thing about nursing continuing education is that many registered nurses are able to attend these courses for free because their current employer will offer a grant that will pay for them, which is reimbursed to them by the government. In addition, there are several CEU programs available online, which offer flexible scheduling for the nurse who is working full-time but needs to be re-certified by taking a certain amount of courses. CEU classes can consist of a one-time seminar to lengthier sessions that may need to be tested over when completed. One “contact hour” is equal to sixty minutes, with ten “contact hours” needed to accomplish one CEU. An example of what are needed regarding “contact” hours is the California’s requirement that a registered nurse must show that he or she has finalized thirty contact hours in two years for the state to grant a renewal of a nursing license.

However, be aware that these nursing continuing education points will not supplement the earning of a degree. These CEU units merely represent what is needed for a registered nurse to keep the licensure necessary to be employed as a certified nurse. The fundamental reason behind CEU’s is so nurses can remain cognizant of relevant, up-to-date information in order to better assist the sick and injured.

First, it is important to understand that Special Education services are meant to help your child succeed as a student and as an individual. Hopefully it is no surprise when your child is referred for Special Education Services. This referral can come from you, the teacher or anyone else who works with your child. Once your child is suspected of having a disability or believed to require extra services, a referral is placed.

What is a referral? Paperwork is submitted to a team called the CSE or Committee on Special Education. Generally the team consists of teachers, the school psychologist and other people who work with your child. What you may or may not know, the most valuable member of the CSE is the parent. After all, you know your child best!

Once the referral is received, the student is evaluated. Different members of the CSE meet with your child and evaluate through observations, and various assessments.

It is important to note, that this can NOT happen without your consent. Usually, the initial evaluation includes: a physical examination, psychological assessments, social/emotional history, observation of your child in their classroom and any other appropriate assessment. This could also include speech and/or language, behavior evaluation etc.

Once the evaluation has been completed, a CSE meeting will be scheduled. It is important that the parent be present and is aware of their rights. At the CSE meeting, the results of the evaluation will be discussed and recommendations will be made. If you disagree with the results, you have the right to request that an outside agency evaluate your child, at the expense of the school district.

If your child is eligible to receive special education services, the Committee must select a disability category that is most appropriate for your child.

Again, if you disagree with the committee, you have the right to seek mediation.

Once your child is deemed eligible to receive services, the committee will be responsible for developing an IEP or Individual Education Plan for your child. When creating your child’s plan, their strengths and needs will be taken into consideration. The IEP will document goals that your child will attempt to meet with the support of special education services. The IEP will also indicate where the services will take place. It is important to note that Special Education services are based on a spectrum that ranges from the least restrictive environment or LRE to the most restrictive environment.

Once the IEP has been implemented, you should receive written progress reports documenting how your child is progressing with their goals. Once a year, the CSE will meet to review the IEP. Every three years, a reevaluation will take place, similar to the initial referral to CSE to determine if your child still requires the support of Special Education services.

Hopefully this has “unpacked” the special education process for you.