Is "doing what works" working for special education?

The passage of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) made doing "what works" a focus of school improvement.  The what works principle is as simple as it sounds--that schools and teachers should use methods for teaching that have been proven to be effective.   In keeping with efforts to align general and special education, the 2004 Amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) also adopted the what works principle.  And it does make perfect sense--who could possibly argue with doing what works?  One could argue that IDEA has always included the principle of what works in its requirement for an appropriate education--but the principals are somewhat different.

The NCLB takes 2 basic approaches to identifying what works.  First, it emphasizes use of methods that are based on research.  Second, it uses standardized assessment and a school's progress toward the goal of educating all children as methods of identifying success.  IDEA has always required assessment of individual progress, but the 2004 amendments added the requirement to use evidence based methods and emphasized inclusion of special education students in standardized testing and school progress.

So has it worked?  Honestly, I'm not sure and perhaps it's too early to know.  At this stage it is easier to look at implementation than outcomes. 

Research Basis for What Works

The Institute for Education Sciences publishes a What Works Clearinghouse that 

"aims to promote informed education decision making through a set of easily accessible databases and user-friendly reports that provide education consumers with high-quality reviews of the effectiveness of replicable educational interventions (programs, products, practices, and policies) that intend to improve student outcomes." 

In other words, the WWC reviews the research and identifies what works and what doesn't.   There is also a new website from the Department of Education called Doing What Works.  To a large extent, content on the DWW website is based on the information from the WWC website--but their focus is on explaining how effective methods work and how to implement them.  I first found out about the DWW site from a news alert from the National Association of Special Education Teachers.  

While both sites have much to admire and quite a lot of good information about the research basis for teaching math, reading, and English--I couldn't find anything on special education or related services.   

So, is there a comparable resource for special education instructors and directors?

I am also wondering the extent to which schools trust the assessments of what works on these websites . . . my very limited experience suggests that some instructors and administrators prefer to rely on their own and their colleagues' personal experiences.   

In short, my current perspective is that the what works principle in special education is still mostly on the books . . . at least as far as reviewing the research base goes . . . but, please, let me know if there is more going on out there than I know . . . .