The Evolution Of Special Education
A step into history..
What is special education?
When Influences Have Shaped Special Education?
Early 20th century: Parent Advocacy Groups
1965: Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA)
1972: Congressional Investigation
PARC deal with the exclusion of children with mental retardation from public schools.
Mills involved the practice of suspending, expelling and excluding children with disabilities from the District of Columbia public schools.
1975: Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EHA)
Known as Public Law 94-142
Congress intended that all children with disabilities would "have a right to education, and to establish a process by which State and local educational agencies may be held accountable for providing educational services for all handicapped children."
The law was passed to meet four huge goals:
- To ensure that special education services are available to children who need them
- To guarantee that decisions about services to disabled students are fair and appropriate
- To establish specific management and auditing requirements for special education
- To provide federal funds to help the states educate disabled students
1990: Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
ADA adopts the Section 504 regulations as part of the ADA statute. In turn, numerous “504 Plans” for individual students start to become more common place in school districts.
Section 504: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act protects individuals with disabilities from discrimination due to disability by recipients of federal finance assistance.
1990: EHA replaced with Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
1997: Reauthorization of IDEA
2001: No Child Left Behind (NCLB)
The U.S. Department of Education emphasizes four pillars within the bill:
- Accountability: to ensure those students who are disadvantaged, achieve academic proficiency.
- Flexibility: Allows school districts flexibility in how they use federal education funds to improve student achievement.
- Research-based education: Emphasizes educational programs and practices that have been proven effective through scientific research.
- Parent options: Increases the choices available to the parents of students attending Title I schools.
2004: Additional Reauthorization of IDEA
Major Provisions of IDEA
1. Free Appropriate Public Education
2. Appropriate Evaluation
3. Individualized Education Plan
4. Least Restrictive Environment
5. Parent Participation
6. Procedural Safeguards
Which Laws Do What?
IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Act
ADA: Americans with Disabilities Act
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
Miss. McPhail
Email: brittany.mcphail@maine.edu
Website: www.twitter.com/missmcphail
Location: New Brunswick, Canada
Phone: (506) 426-1337
Twitter: @missmcphail