Making a Difference in the Era of Accountability: Update on NCLB and IDEA 2004  (2005). By Barbara J. Moore-Brown, EdD, CCC-SLP; & Judy K. Montgomery, PhD, CCC-SLP. Thinking Publications. Address for purchase of item: Thinking Publications, 424 Galloway Street, Eau Claire, WI 54702. Telephone Number for Purchase: 1-800-225-GROW. Website address: www.ThinkingPublications.com. Cost: $20.00, which includes manual listed above or $70.00, also includes 2001's Making a Difference for America's Children, a preface to the 2005 publication. Reviewed by Jacqueline J.S. Ferrell, MS/CCC-SLP, Groton, SD.

Description:
Barbara J. Moore-Brown and Judy K. Montgomery's Making a Difference in the Era of Accountability: Update on NCLB and IDEA 2004 is a brief summary of the recent passage of the reauthorized law cited as the "Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004" and the correlation and impact of that law in accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. While the population targeted by the authors is educationally based speech-language pathologists or administrators, it would also be essential for private practitioners, consultants, or hospital-based therapists, who would not receive direct instruction by schools regarding the impact of the law. The authors stress the importance of maintaining an adequate base of knowledge in education law so that the practitioner can uphold compliance with both NCLB and IDEA 2004. This manual does require some background knowledge on IDEA and frequently builds upon the 2001 text, Making a Difference for America's Children, which new practitioners may require a copy of in order to properly understand the references made by the authors.

Critique:
Moore-Brown and Montgomery have developed a user-friendly document that is a nice preparation for examining the recent law changes. Background information regarding the key principles and programs of No Child Left Behind allow the therapist to formulate a basis of knowledge necessary for understanding the collective interaction of NCLB with the components of IDEA. The reader with a generous amount of baseline knowledge regarding current law should devote several hours of time to reviewing this manual. They offer a great product for the listed price, given the complexity of the law and the ease at which the authors present the new changes, including a comprehensive appendix containing excellent references and resources. The importance of writing clinically significant, educationally relevant, yet objectively measurable goals is stressed. While the authors recognize the validity of state-recognized certification and have reworded the law in a more easily understood manner, a misconception that all "temporary certification[s]…are prohibited" (24) exists in the wording of this publication. The actual wording in the Federal Register, (Vol. 70, No. 118), states that related services personnel, "…have not had certification or licensure requirements waived on an emergency, temporary, or provisional basis." Temporary licensure in speech-language pathology, offered by such states as Iowa and Minnesota, is a non-renewable, certifiable short-term licensure that permits service delivery in the aforementioned states under specific stipulations, including that the applicant validates ASHA licensure. ASHA also strongly believes that the proposed rules on Part B need to be clarified for related service personnel. Perhaps this is a result of the recent announcement that the Part B final regulations may be delayed until summer 2006, which may stymie many practitioners relative to the interpretation of the law, specifically at the individual state levels.

As a whole, Moore-Brown and Montgomery have generated an intelligible, integrated manual for use with educationally-based speech-language pathologists. However, this product is limited by the delayed rulings and the interpretations made by individual states, which could cause the information provided in this manual to demonstrate a lack of specificity necessary to maintain compliance with the law.