Editor’s note: This post contains snippets about stories, resources, and observations that the SET authors didn’t quite develop into full-blown posts over the past week. I’m hoping we can catch up with our in-boxes, but we didn’t want you, Dear Readers, to miss them. Some of them may later appear as a part (or parcel) of a full-blown post.—JohnL
On 16 October, Tania Tirraoro of Special Needs Jungle published a white paper “The government must not ignore stark warnings about lack of mainstream SEND capacity reported by its own research” that raises a shipload of issues about inclusion and special education in the UK.
Writing for Education Week 14 October 2026, Caitlynn Peetz Stephens published “How New Federal Guidance on Disability Could Impact K-12 Special Education.” She asked an expert, Meghan Burke, about how the change in interpretation of Olmstead might affect transition planning.
In her article of 15 October 2026 for ADDitude: ADHD Science & Strategies, Ayrn Honaker has an advice message: “The Lies We Heard (and Told Ourselves) About ADHD: The world is largely aware of ADHD, but does it truly understand? Jessica McCabe sees lots of room for improvement. Here, the founder of ‘How to ADHD’ reflects on the persistent misconceptions, knowledge gaps, and threats facing people, especially mothers, with ADHD today.”
Education Week advertised a third-party Webinar entitled “Special Education Disputes & Rising Costs: Protecting Your District” that (the ad says) will examine “what these pressures mean for district leaders and where they can take action.” The session is slated for 28 October 2026. I think this link is to registration: https://events.zoom.us/e/view/lZ4LbRGiRAqKMVgXoB65tA/purchase. (SET’s publication of this note is not an endorsement of the Webinar.)
Over on Robert Pondiscio’s ‘stack, The Next 30 Years, Linda Diamond published a guest post 23 October 2026 that blunts a couple of critiques of Direct Instruction. In “What People Don’t Know About Siegfried Engelmann and Direct Instruction: The critics either bemoan the scripts that they believe strip away creativity or believe DI is only useful for teaching decoding. Both criticisms are incorrect,” she explained why DI is not just about decoding and simple skills and that it removes joy from teaching.