Special Education Laws and Policies Flashcards
Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA 2004)
Guarantees every eligible student a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
Schools must:
Find & ID students who have a disability
Involve parents in decision making
Evaluate students in a non-discriminatory manner
Develop an IEP for each eligible student designed to enable the child to be involved and make progress in the general curriculum
Provide special instruction, related services, and supplementary aids and services
Provide services in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
Maintain education records/files
Provide processes for resolving parent complaints & grievances
Wright’s Law
Provides info about SPED law, education law, and advocacy for children
Eligibility Categories for SPED (13)
Autism
Deaf-blindness
Deafness
Emotional disturbance
Hearing impairment
Intellectual disability
Multiple disabilities
Orthopedic impairment
Other health impairment
Specific learning disability
Speech or language impairment
Traumatic brain injury
Visual impairment
Developmental delay
Board of Education v Rowley
Questioned the issue of what is appropriate education for special needs children
Amy was an 8 year student w/ hearing impairment
Supreme court ruled that Amy’s educational program complied with the substantive requirements of FAPE b/c she performed better than the average child in her class
Supreme court concluded that Amy’s IEP offered an education = to that provided to non-handicapped classmates
Irving Independent School District v Tatro
Defined “related services” to include health services
Clarified services that could only be provided by an MD and those that could be provided by an RN
Court determined the definition of “related service” includes nursing care but not medical services (services that can only be provided by an MD)
“Bright line test” - a related service must be provided to students if it will assist the student to benefit from SPED and the service doesn’t have to be performed by an MD
Brown v Board of Education
Ruled that segregation within public schools was illegal, ending as a matter of law segregation based on race
Renamed IDEA in 1990 and reauthorized in 2004
Mills v Board of Education of the District of Columbia
School system in Mills argued it was incapable of providing a publicly supported education for SPED students due to lack of financial resources
Court held that no child may be denied a public education b/c of mental, behavioral, physical or emotional handicaps or deficiencies
School system’s failure to provide an education could not be excused by claiming insufficient funds
Honig v Doe
Dealt with the issue of expelling a disabled child based on actions arising out of that child’s disability
Court ruled that a school district may not unilaterally exclude or expel a disabled child from the classroom setting for dangerous or disruptive conduct growing out of their disabilities
Court created “10 day rule” = school can suspend a child up to 10 days without parental consent or court intervention
Manifestation Determination Review must be held if school is seeking a change of placement, suspension or expulsion
Gave rise to the need of BCBAs conducting what is known as a functional behavioral assessment or an FBA
Timothy W v Rochester, New Hampshire, School District
Appealed an order from the district court that held that a child that is profoundly handicapped is not eligible for SPED if he can’t benefit from such educaiton
School district argued that his disability was so severe that he was unable to benefit from any provided education
Court held that the act provides for zero-reject policy and that under the act such severely disabled children are in fact given the highest priority and protection under the act itself
Related services were also defined as equally important as SPED needs (ex: OT, PT, SLP, AT, socialization, eating, dressing, and ADLs)
