Issues, Laws, and Trends in Education
Special Education and the Law
Special Education Law
I. Constitution
a. 14th Amendment
i. Section. 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States
and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United
States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or
enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities
of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any
person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor
deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of
the laws.
II. Law
a. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P.L. 93-112) Section 504
i. As part of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504 became the first
federal civil rights law to protect the rights of individuals with disabilities.
ii. Section 504 provides that: “no otherwise qualified handicapped individual
in the United States shall, solely by reason of his/her handicap, be
excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected
to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal
financial assistance"
iii. What does this mean for students?
1. Discrimination against individuals with disabilities is prohibited by
the federal government within programs and activities receiving
federal financial assistance, including public schools
2. Students who have a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more of their major life activities are
protected; those who have disabilities such as orthopedic
impairments or conditions such as hepatitis, but do not qualify for
special education services are included. School districts must
implement procedures to ensure that students with disabilities have
access to the full range of programs, activities and services.
3. A student's 504 plan describes all reasonable accommodations that
include a change in routine, method or approach (RESNA, 1992),
and must be stated on the IEP or a separate form. Examples such as
changes in time requirements and testing accommodations are
included as well as AT devices and services.
b. Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (Public Law 94-142)
i. In 1975, Congress passed Public Law 94-142 (Education of All
Handicapped Children Act), now codified as IDEA (Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act). In order to receive federal funds, states must
develop and implement policies that assure a free appropriate public
education (FAPE) to all children with disabilities. The state plans must be
consistent with the federal statute, Title 20 United States Code Section
1400 et.seq. (20 USC 1400)
ii. The Education for all Handicapped Children Acts is more commonly
known as the EHA; it had as its purpose:
1. To guarantee a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) for
all children with disabilities, ages 5-21
2. Special Education and related services must be free, provided by
the public agency at no cost to the parents
3. Appropriate education is the provision of regular and special
education and related services designed to meet students'
individual educational needs.
4. To develop an Individualized Education Program (IEP) for each
child eligible for special education and related services; plan is
based on multi-disciplinary assessment and includes a statement of
specific special education and related services to be provided to the
child
5. To the maximum extent appropriate, all children and youth with
disabilities will be educated in the least restrictive education
(LRE) environment
6. Parents have the right to participate in every decision related to the
identification, evaluation, and placement of their child. Parents
must give consent for any initial evaluation, assessment or
placement decision. Due process procedures assure parents rights
to appeal.
c. 1986 Amendments (P.L. 99-457)
Preschool and Infant/Toddler Programs. In 1986, an amendment to the EHA,
extended the purpose of EHA to include children ages 0-5 and included:
i. To extend the guarantee to a Free and Appropriate Public Education
(FAPE) to children with disabilities, ages 3-5.
ii. To establish Early Intervention Programs (EIP) for infants and toddlers
with disabilities, ages 0-2
iii. To develop an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) for each family
with an infant/toddler with disabilities
d. 1990 Amendments (P.L. 101-476) - In 1990, amendments were again added to
EHA, considerably adding components to the law:
i. To rename the EHA as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
(IDEA). The amendment also replaced the phrase "handicapped child"
with "child with a disability".
ii. To provide Transition Services for students by age 16
iii. To extend eligibility to children with autism and traumatic brain injury
iv. To define Assistive Technology Devices and Services for children with
disabilities for inclusion in the IEP
v. To extend the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) to require the child,
to the maximum extent appropriate, be educated with children without
disabilities -- in the same class s/he would have been but for the disability
e. 1997 Amendments (P.L. 105-17) - 1997 amendments further strengthened the
rights of students with disabilities.
i. To extend LRE as an assurance that all students would have "access to the
general curriculum"
ii. To "consider" Assistive Technology Devices and Services on the IEP's of
all students. Use of school-purchased AT in a child's home or other
settings is required if the child needs access to those devices to receive
FAPE.
iii. To include orientation and mobility services to the list of related services
for children who are blind or have visual impairments, as well as for other
children who may also need instruction in traveling around their school, or
to and from school.
f. Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990
(P.L. 101-336)
i. In 1990, the ADA was passed, giving full civil rights to all individuals
with disabilities. It extends Section 504 by prohibiting discrimination in
public and private sector employment, public accommodation,
transportation, state and local government services and
telecommunications.
ii. For students with disabilities, the ADA prohibits discrimination and
extends the right of access to ALL educational programs and services
whether or not the school receives federal funding.
III. Court Cases
a. Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children (PARC) v. Pennsylvania (1972)
i. Recognized educational rights for children with disabilities.
ii. Mentally retarded students ages 6-21 should be provided with access to a
free public education and that children with disabilities should be placed
in regular classes when possible or in special classes when necessary.
b. Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia (1972)
i. Extended the PARC decision to all school age children with disabilities,
holding that they must be provided with a free and adequate education.
IV. Have students present their cases.
a. PARC v. Pennsylvania
b. Mills v Board of Ed of D.C.
c. Board of Education of the Hendrick Hudson Central School District v. Rowley
d. Timothy v. Rochester SD
I. The History of Special Education Law
a. Critical Event #1
i. Compulsory attendance laws
ii. The exclusion of students with disabilities
iii. Parental advocacy
iv. Council for Exceptional Children, 1922
v. Cuyahoga Council for Retarded Children, 1933
vi. National Association for Retarded Citizens (The ARC), 1950
b. Critical Event #2
i. Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
1. “In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be
expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an
education. Such an opportunity, where the state has undertaken to
provide it, is a right that must be available to all on equal terms.”
-Chief Justice Earl Warrenc. Critical Event #3
i. Right to Education Cases
ii. The Seminal Cases
iii. Early Federal Involvement
1. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965
2. The Education of the Handicapped Act of 1970
3. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
4. The Education Amendments of 1974
d. Critical Event #4
i. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (P.L. 94-142)
ii. Six Principles of IDEA
1. Focus of EAHCA
2. To ensure access to public education for students with disabilities
3. Reauthorizations of the EAHCA
4. 1986 The Handicapped Children’s Protection Act
5. 1990 The Infants & Toddlers with Disabilities Act
6. 1997 The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
7. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of
1997
e. Critical Event #5
i. Board of Education v. Rowley
458, U.S. 176 (1982)
1. Free Appropriate Public Education
“We hold that the state satisfies the FAPE requirement by
providing personalized instruction with sufficient support services to
permit the child to benefit educationally from that instruction” (Rowley,
pp. 203-204)
ii. The Rowley Twofold Inquiry
1. Has the state complied with the procedures in the act?
2. Is the IEP reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive
educational benefits?
f. Critical Event #6
i. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997
(IDEA '97)
ii. The underlying theme of IDEA '97 was to improve the effectiveness of
special education by requiring demonstrable improvements in the
educational achievement of students with disabilities
iii. Goal of IDEA '97
“To move to the next step in providing special education: To improve and
increase educational achievement of students with disabilities” H.R. 10595
g. Critical Event #6
i. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
ii. NCLB Accountability
NCLB focuses on:
•Increasing the academic achievement of all public school students
•Improving the performance of low-performing schools
•Requiring schools to adopt scientifically based instructional practices
NCLB accomplishes this by:
•
Requiring states to measure the progress of students and groups of students,
including students with disabilities, every year
•Reporting the results of these measures to parents
•Requiring states to set proficiency standards that schools must attain within
a set period of time
h. Important Things to Understand About NCLB
i. NCLB is a reaction to low academic achievement in America’s students
ii. NCLB is sweeping legislation that will exert a profound influence on
education
iii. NCLB recognizes and embraces science
iv. NCLB will affect the ways that universities prepare teachers and teachers
teach their students
v. NCLB is here to stay (although there will be modifications to the law)
i. Critical Event #7
i. President’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education:
A new era: Revitalizing special education for children and their families
(11/2/01)
ii. Major Findings
•
•
•
•
•
•iii.
•
•
Process and compliance are often placed above results
The wait-to-fail model of special education prevents prevention
Lack of scientifically based approaches in general education results in
inappropriate placements
A culture of compliance results in too much attention has been diverted
from the first mission of schools: educating every child
Many of the current methods of identifying children with disabilities lack
validity & many children are misidentified
The current system does not always embrace evidence-based practices,
Major Recommendations
Focus on results—not on process: The IDEA must retain the legal and
procedural safeguards necessary to guarantee a FAPE while providing
opportunities and improved student outcomes
Embrace a model of prevention not a model of failure: Special education
must move toward early identification and swift intervention using
scientifically based instruction and teaching methods
•
Consider children with disabilities as general education children first:
General and special education must work together to provide effective
teaching because both systems share responsibilities for children with
disabilities
j. Critical Event #8
i. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act
of 2004
ii. Focus of IDEA 2004
1. To increase the academic achievement of students in special
education
2. Focus on writing measurable goals and actually measuring them
3. Focus on progress monitoring
4. To increase accountability for results
5. To streamline the special education process
k. Challenges to Special Education
i. Conduct relevant assessments of students’ educational needs
ii. Implement research-based instructional programming, based on these
assessments, that confers meaningful educational benefit
iii. Monitor students’ progress using data- based formative evaluation systems
iv. Changes in Special Education Law
II. The History of Special Education Law
a. Critical Event #1
i. Compulsory attendance laws
ii. The exclusion of students with disabilities
iii. Parental advocacy
iv. Council for Exceptional Children, 1922
1. To unite those interested in educational problems of"special
children"
2. To emphasize the education of "special children" rather thanhis/her
identification
3. To establish professional standards for teachers in thefield of
special education.
v. Cuyahoga Council for Retarded Children, 1933
vi. National Association for Retarded Citizens (The ARC), 1950
b. Critical Event #2
i. Brown v. Board of Education, 347 U.S. 483 (1954)
1. “In these days, it is doubtful that any child may reasonably be
expected to succeed in life if he is denied the opportunity of an
education. Such an opportunity, where the state has undertaken to
provide it, is a right that must be available to all on equal terms.”
-Chief Justice Earl Warrenc. Critical Event #3
i. Right to Education Cases
1. PARC v. PA
2. Mills v District of Columbia Board of Ed.
ii. Early Federal Involvement
1. The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965
2. The Education of the Handicapped Act of 1970
3. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
4. The Education Amendments of 1974
d. Critical Event #4
i. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 (P.L. 94-142)
ii. Six Principles of IDEA
1. Zero Reject - Locate, identify, & provide services to all eligible
students with disabilities
2. Protection in Evaluation- Conduct an assessment to determine if a
student has an IDEA related disability and if he/she needs special
education services
3. Free Appropriate Public Education - Develop and deliver an
individualized education program of special education services that
confers meaningful educational benefit.
4. Least Restrictive Environment - Educate students with disabilities
with nondisabled students to the maximum extent appropriate.
5. Procedural Safeguards - Comply with the procedural requirements
of the IDEA.
6. Parental Participation - Collaborate with parents in the
development and delivery of their child’s special education
program.
iii. Focus of EAHCA
1. To ensure access to public education for students with disabilities
iv. Reauthorizations of the EAHCA
1. 1986 The Handicapped Children’s Protection Act
2. 1986 The Infants & Toddlers with Disabilities Act
3. 1990 The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
4. 197 The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments
of 1997
e. Critical Event #5
i. Board of Education v. Rowley
458, U.S. 176 (1982)
1. Free Appropriate Public Education
“We hold that the state satisfies the FAPE requirement by
providing personalized instruction with sufficient support services to
permit the child to benefit educationally from that instruction” (Rowley,
pp. 203-204)
ii. The Rowley Twofold Inquiry
1. Has the state complied with the procedures in the act?
2. Is the IEP reasonably calculated to enable the child to receive
educational benefits?
f. Critical Event #6
i. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Amendments of 1997
(IDEA '97)
ii. The underlying theme of IDEA '97 was to improve the effectiveness of
special education by requiring demonstrable improvements in the
educational achievement of students with disabilities
iii. Goal of IDEA '97
“To move to the next step in providing special education: To improve and
increase educational achievement of students with disabilities” H.R. 10595
g. Critical Event #6
i. The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001
ii. NCLB Accountability
NCLB focuses on:
•Increasing the academic achievement of all public school students
•Improving the performance of low-performing schools
•Requiring schools to adopt scientifically based instructional practices
NCLB accomplishes this by:
•
Requiring states to measure the progress of students and groups of students,
including students with disabilities, every year
•Reporting the results of these measures to parents
•Requiring states to set proficiency standards that schools must attain within
a set period of time
h. Important Things to Understand About NCLB
i. NCLB is a reaction to low academic achievement in America’s students
ii. NCLB is sweeping legislation that will exert a profound influence on
education
iii. NCLB recognizes and embraces science
iv. NCLB will affect the ways that universities prepare teachers and teachers
teach their students
v. NCLB is here to stay (although there will be modifications to the law)
i. Critical Event #7
i. President’s Commission on Excellence in Special Education:
A new era: Revitalizing special education for children and their families
(11/2/01)
ii. Major Findings
•
•
•
•
•
•iii.
Process and compliance are often placed above results
The wait-to-fail model of special education prevents prevention
Lack of scientifically based approaches in general education results in
inappropriate placements
A culture of compliance results in too much attention has been diverted
from the first mission of schools: educating every child
Many of the current methods of identifying children with disabilities lack
validity & many children are misidentified
The current system does not always embrace evidence-based practices,
Major Recommendations
•
•
Focus on results—not on process: The IDEA must retain the legal and
procedural safeguards necessary to guarantee a FAPE while providing
opportunities and improved student outcomes
Embrace a model of prevention not a model of failure: Special education
must move toward early identification and swift intervention using
scientifically based instruction and teaching methods
•
Consider children with disabilities as general education children first:
General and special education must work together to provide effective
teaching because both systems share responsibilities for children with
disabilities
j. Critical Event #8
i. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act
of 2004
ii. Focus of IDEA 2004
1. To increase the academic achievement of students in special
education
2. Focus on writing measurable goals and actually measuring them
3. Focus on progress monitoring
4. To increase accountability for results
5. To streamline the special education process
k. Challenges to Special Education
i. Conduct relevant assessments of students’ educational needs
ii. Implement research-based instructional programming, based on these
assessments, that confers meaningful educational benefit
iii. Monitor students’ progress using data- based formative evaluation systems
iv. Changes in Special Education Law: Started with issues of access and has
developed into issues of quality.