Navy Times

For military families, a permanent change of station can mean more than adjusting to a new school. Government Accountability Office officials told Military Times that parents have repeatedly reported problems transferring educational records and individualized education programs when military families move, sometimes delaying services or leaving educators to reconstruct a child’s needs. A new GAO review found gaps at multiple stages of the Department of Defense Education Activity’s process for identifying and supporting students with specific learning disabilities, including screening, referrals, evaluations and instruction. GAO officials said those gaps can compound, affecting when students receive help and the quality of the services they receive. “Those are gaps that, when you add them up, they multiply, and they have a compounding effect on when and the quality of services that students receive,” said Jennifer Gregory, a GAO assistant director who oversees part of the agency’s special education work…