Helping America's 6.5 million students with disabilities achieve in school will be the topic of tonight's monthly U.S. Department of Education TV show, available on various television networks, cable outlets and at downlink sites across the country.

This month's Education News Parents Can Use show will be broadcast live from 8-9 p.m. EDT and carried on the Web at www.connectlive.com/events/ednews/. A full listing of viewing options is available at http://registerevent.ed.gov/.

"The education centerpiece of the Bush administration has been to leave no child behind -- and that most certainly includes students with disabilities," said U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige. "We should measure success not by how many children we identify as having disabilities, but by how much they -- and all children -- learn."

To help achieve that goal, the department has proposed that Congress reauthorize the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) to provide for stronger accountability for results, simplified paperwork, doing what works and increasing choices and meaningful involvement for parents.

Tonight's broadcast will address such issues as:

-- How can schools and districts provide a quality education for students with disabilities?

-- What do parents need to know about early reading intervention for children classified with disabilities?

-- How can schools increase the number of students with disabilities graduating from high school?

-- How can students make a successful transition from secondary school to the "adult world," either to pursue higher education or vocational endeavors?

-- How can children with disabilities be successfully integrated into general education classrooms?

-- In what ways can parents work with schools, districts and groups to ensure their children have the best possible education?

Among the guests will be Robert Pasternack, assistant secretary for special education and rehabilitative services. He will be joined by Reid Lyon with the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development, researcher Amanda VanDerHeyden and principal Laurie Emery of the Vail, Ariz., school district. They will address early intervention and early reading issues.

Also appearing on the show will be Isabel C. Garcia with Parent to Parent of Miami, Inc., in Miami and L.C. Thomas, a parent of two children with disabilities who are students in the Opelika, Ala., public schools, discussing transitions and life after high school.

Education News Parents Can Use offers one-on-one interviews, how-to demonstrations, and brief conversations with parents, educators, community, business and religious leaders, and education experts. As always, viewers can call in their questions to a phone number that will be posted on the screen.

The show is broadcast on the third Tuesday of every month during the school year. Besides local cable systems, the program is carried live on the Dish Network, and is rebroadcast nationally on the Discovery Network's TLC (The Learning Channel), the Channel One Network, and various Public Broadcasting Service stations.

Details about the series are available at: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OIIA/television/index.html. Next month's broadcast will address educational technology on June 17.

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