From the Principal's Desk:
I have always felt for parents who try to keep up with the acronyms, abbreviations, and jargon of educators. Teachers don't mean to be exclusionary with the language they use, but sometimes they take it for granted that parents know what educators are talking about when they something like, "You might want to check your child's IEP at the next ARD to see if his BIP needs to be updated, so that we can place him in the correct LRE."
Excuse me? What did you just say?
It can get confusing, especially when you have a child in a special program with its own unique vocabulary and jargon. The following is a list of common acronyms that you may come across sometime when communicating with a teacher:
ADD - Attention Deficit Disorder *** ADHD - Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder *** AEP - Alternative Education Placement *** AI - Auditory Impairment *** AISD - Arlington Independent School District *** ARD - Admission, Review, and Dismissal Meeting *** BIC - Behavior Intervention Class *** BIP - Behavior Intervention Plan *** CBRC -Citizen's Budget Review Committee *** CMT - Crisis Management Team *** CPS - Child Protective Services *** CUM - Cumulative Folder *** DIDC - District Instructional Decision-Making Committee *** ED - Emotionally Disturbed *** ESL - English as a second language *** GT - Gifted and Talented *** IEP - Individual Education Plan *** ISS/OCS - In-school Suspension/On-campus Suspension *** LD - Learning Disabled *** LPAC - Language Proficiency *** LRE - Least Restrictive Environment *** MAC - Mastery Assistance Center *** OHI - Other Health Impaired *** OI - Orthopedic Impairment *** PE - Physical Education *** PEIMS - Public Education Information Management System *** PTA - Parent Teacher Association *** SBDM - Site-Based Decision Making *** SI - Speech Impaired *** SPED - Special Education *** TAKS - Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills *** TEA - Texas Education Agency *** TEKS - Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills *** VI - Visually Impaired ***