- Where is the gap?
Litigation & Legislation
 Earlier, many students with disabilities were being
excluded or participated in inferior educational
programs
 PL 94-142 was implemented to help with Education for
All Handicaped Children act; initially defined and
funded special education practices
Education for All Handicapped
Children Act (94-142)
 Passed in 1975
 Most significant piece of legislation related to
special education to date
 PL 94-142 & its subsequent amendments &
reauthorizations provide guidelines, requirements,
funding
 Amendments & reauthorizations were made –
these directly / indirectly affected current law
 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(PL 108-446), passed in 2004 (IDEA 04)
Education for All Handicapped
Children Act (94-142)
 6 major principles to guide the education of
individuals with disabilities
Provision of a free, appropriate, provisional education
(FAPE)
ii. Use of nondiscriminatory evaluation
iii. Development of IEP
iv. Implementation of due process procedures
v. Right of parental Participation
i.
Free Appropriate Public Education
• All children between the age of 3-21 including children
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with disabilities must receive; free, appropriate, public
education
Appropriate education varies on the unique needs of each
student
Every attempts must give students they require based on
their unique needs
Have laws that require schools to provide more than the
standards set by the law
Educators to maintain high expectation for student
disabilities
Special Education in Singapore
 ICP only for 3-6 years old, available in selected
childcare centres
 Caters only to visually impaired, physical disability,
hearing impaired and development delay
 Fees varies, only subsidies available
 EIPIC, CEL etc.
Child Find
• States that all children with disabilities, including
those who are homeless, wards of the state, and who
attend private schools, be identified and evaluated
to determine if they need special education services
• Accomplished through community awareness
advertising, large-scale screening
programme
• All levels of disabilities and those who are at risk for
having disabilities
Child Find – identify and evaluate
 No database/statistic on children who have disabilities
/ risk of having disability
 Basic children vaccination and check ups
 Government provides means-testing subsidies for
disability services to ensure affordability for all
Child Find – special education
services
 Has not passed a legislation for special education and
to include these children with disabilities in regular
classroom
 There are only policy guidelines
 Enabling Masterplan 2007 -2011: Children with
Special Needs - shall receive a quality education that
maximise potential
The Individualized Educational
Program (IEP) in America
 All children with disability must have an IEP
 IEP is developed at the beginning at age 3
Infants& Toddlers - Inidividualized
Family Service Plan ( IFSP)
 Include child's development program and the role of
the family as well
Individual Education Plan (IEP) – In
Singapore
 Set up with a separate learning goals for the child
 Help the child to be educated based on his/her specific
needs
 Receive help and training from paramedical
professionals such as psychologists, occupational
therapists etc.
Conclusion on IEP
 IEP - is to set up teaching programs
 Reviewed every 6 months
 Important during IEP meeting sessions with parents
The Least Restrictive Environment
(LRE)
 States that students with disabilities be educated with
children without disabilities to the maximum extent
appropriate.
Rights of Parents and Procedures
• rights and responsibilities of both parents of child
with disability & LEA(local education agency)
have been specified by number of procedural
safeguards into IDEA04(individuals with disabilities
education act 2004)
• parents can;
- examine all records relating to their child
- participate in meeting( identify, evaluate &
educational placement of child)
- obtain educational evaluation
Rights of Parents and Procedures
 safeguard system
- mechanism to ensure decisions
regarding
educational program for student
with disability
are fair
Rights of Parents and Procedures
i.
disagreement between parents & LEA
- process hearing & hearing officer who
determines
(i) if student not receiving FAPE
(ii) parents unable to make decision of
child's FAPE
(iii) deprivation of students education
benefit
Rights of Parents and Procedures
 Due to cost and time, additional safeguards included
that are designed to avoid process hearing
- include resolution session> filing due to
process complaint & dispute resolution
process
Evaluation Procedures
Guidelines relating to Evaluation
 Time frame
 Initial; Follow-up etc
 Guidelines in place regarding reevaluation
 Determine educational needs of a student
 Guidelines in place when assessing a student
 Use variety of assessment tools & strategies
 Determine content of IEP
 Evaluation cannot be a single measure or assessment
Evaluation Procedures
 Nondiscriminatory evaluation procedures. Assessments &
evaluation materials are:
 Selected & administered so as not to be discriminatory on a
racial or cultural basis
 Administered in the language and form - to yield accurate
information
 Valid & reliable
 Administered by trained & knowledgeable personnel
 Administered in accordance with instruction provided by
producer of assessment
 Students must be assessed in all areas of suspected disability