(EDF 670) Critical Issues in Special Education
Syllabus of Record
Catalog Description: Examination of current crucial issues in the administration of special education. Three credits.
Unit Mission, Philosophy, Values:
Our Mission:
“Teaching, Leading and Learning in a Democratic Society”
The College of Education prepares candidates who enhance the individual growth of their students while working to establish policies and practices that promote the principles of democratic education. The College articulates this mission as Teaching, Leading, and
Learning in a Democratic Society.
Philosophy:
Student Potential, Ethical Implications
Believing that schools function as social and political entities as well as for the growth of individuals, the College of Education prepares teachers and leaders a) b) to enhance the academic and personal potential of their students to evaluate the social and ethical implications of educational policies and practices.
Values:
“Expertise, Equity, Liberal Education, Social Responsibility”
The College of Education values expertise to guide our practice, equity to guide our interactions, liberal education to guide our perspectives, and social responsibility to guide our commitment to democratic education. We value these ideals in our preparation of candidates, our development of faculty, and our relationships with the larger community we serve.
Unit and Program Standards Unit Standards:
This course supports the competencies required by the Michigan Administrative Rules for
Special Education for approval as a Supervisor and Director of Special Education, and the professional standards established by the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), a constituent member of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).
Specialty Program Standards: Council for Exceptional Children (CEC)
Course Standards and Assessment: Knowledge and Skill Base for All Beginning Special
Education Administrators
Special Education Standard #1: Foundations
Knowledge:


Laws and policies for general and special education. (SA1K1)
Evolution of laws and policies that impact the lives of individuals with exceptionalities and their families from birth through adulthood. (SA1K2)
 Political and economic issues that affect policy development. (SA1K3)
 Research related to educational change. (SA1K8)
 Human resources management, recruitment, personnel assistance and development, and evaluation. (SA1K10)
 Sources of funding (SA1K11)

 Laws and policies governing the discipline of all students and implications for individuals with exceptional learning needs. (SA1K12)
 Legal and ethical issues of behavior management of individuals with exceptional learning needs. (SA1K13)
Special Education Standard #8: Assessment
Skills:
 Advocate for the participation of individuals with exceptional learning needs in accountability systems. (SA8S1)
Implement procedures within the assessment accountability system to ensure the  participation of individuals with exceptional earning needs (SA8S2)
 Develop and implement ongoing evaluations of special education programs and practices. (SA8S3)
Special Education Standard #9: Professional and Ethical Practice
Skills:
 Advocate for individuals with exceptional learning needs and their families.
(SA9S2)
 Respect and support individuals with exceptional learning needs in self-advocacy.
(SA9S3)
Special Education Standard #10: Collaboration
Knowledge:
Skills:
 Approaches for involving parents, family, and community members in educational planning, implementation, and evaluation. (SA10K1)
 Role of parent and advocacy organizations as they support individuals with exceptionalities and their families. (SA10K2)
 Develop and implement intra- and interagency agreements that create programs with shared responsibility for individuals with exceptional learning needs.
(SA10S1)
 Promote seamless transitions of individuals with exceptional learning needs
 across educational and other programs from birth through adulthood. (SA10S2)
Implement administrative procedures to ensure clear communication among administrators, instructional staff and related service personnel. (SA10S3)
 Engage in shared decision making to support programs for individuals with exceptional learning needs. (SA10S5)
 Consult and collaborate in administrative and instructional settings. (SS10S7)
Common Assessment: Final Research Paper
Major Topics
 History of Special Education in Michigan
 How we got to where we are today. 25 YRS OF SPEC. ED. IN MICHIGAN.pdf
 Early data on inclusion
 Q uestion: Why is inclusion so unpopular in many schools?
 Discussion of disability terms and the addition and impact of LD, SEI,
SXI, PPI, AI, ADD. (Document 6 and 18)
 Would we be better off without labels?
 IDEIA 2004 (USOE website)
 What changed from 97? See Issue 2 in text
 What is the intent of the law? ( Document 8 and 9 & 10 and 20 & 21)

 Is MI an IDEA State?
 Over-representation of minorities in spec. ed.
 Grade retention
 No Child Left Behind and IDEIA
 General education intervention - RTI
Research related to Inclusion – old and new (D Progress report on  inclusion, dropouts, jobs (Documents 28,29,30,31 32 and 33)
 The meaning of “General Education Intervention”.
 What the literature says about GEI.
 Getting specific about disability criteria.
Putting “Education” back into special education. 
 Early Childhood Pre-observation and Intervention
 Transition and Employment Rates
 Medicaid
Course Knowledge Base
This course is based on a framework provided from multiple sources including:
Educational Policies Commission, The Purposes of Education In American Democracy,
Washington, D.C.: National Education Association of the United States and the American
Association of School Administrators,1938
Equality of Educational Opportunity, Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Government Printing Office, 1966.
Critical Issues in Special and Remedial Education, Algozzine and Issyldyke, 1993. Edited by
Robert J. Cross.
LRE RESEARCH STUDY - A PL-94-142 IDEA PROJECT FOR THE STATE OF MICHIGAN,
ROBERT J. CROSS Ph.D. AND JUDITH SMITH Ph.D., AUTHORS,1994
IDEA 97; IDEIA 2004
The Good - and bad - news about the re-authorized IDEA; Robert J. Cross Ph.D. and
Tamara Cross Esq. ; School Bus Fleet Magazine, Dec. 1997
Clear policy needed to handle DNR orders; Robert J. Cross Ph.D. and Tamara Cross Esq.;
School Bus Fleet Magazine, March 1998
How Would You Respond?; Robert J. Cross Ph.D.; School Bus Fleet Magazine, August, 1997
Compliments, Not Criticisms, the Key to Student Behavior Management; Robert Cross
Ph.D.; School Transportation News, November, 1998
451, Michigan Special Education Mandatory Act of 1992.
Using a Transdisciplinary Service Delivery Model to Increase Parental Involvement in Special
Education, Cross, Robert J., ERIC Via US Office Of Education Publishing, 2007.