Laws in brief

Introduction n The information I will be sharing with you came from the text book: n Including Students with Special Needs: A practical guide for classroom teachers, 4th edition, n By Marilyn Friend and William D. Bursuck

Brown v. Board of Education n In 1954, the courts found that it is unlawful to discriminate against any group of people n The court introduced the concept of integration into public education

Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 n Specifically Section 504 n This prevents discrimination against individuals with disabilities n Whether they are children in schools or adults in the work place

Section 504 n The following are some of the areas in which a 504 can be given: u Asthma u Extreme Allergies u Physical disabilities u ADD/ADHD

Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) n It protects all individuals with disabilities from discrimination n It requires employers to make reasonable accommodations n Such as: u Ramps u Elevators u Automatic doors

Education for the Handicapped Act (EHA) n In other words PL of 1975 n This law made a lot of changes in the area of Special Education u Mandated the concept of least restrictive environment (LRE) u Specifically described categories of disabilities

PL cont. n Clarifies related services n set out procedures for identifying a student n Out lined the rights of parents who disapprove of the educational services offered

PL nTnThis has been re-authorized many times

In 1990 n The name of the law was changed to Individuals with disabilities Education Act (IDEA) u To reflect the “person first” language, not the disability u The term :Handicapped was removed and was replaced with Disability u It added Birth to 5

In 1997 nTnThe laws was changed so that a regular education teacher must be on the IEP team

December 2004 n The most recent re-authorization of IDEA is PL n Made more refinements in Special Education u Clarified the requirements for being licensed as a special education teacher

PL cont. n Stream lined some procedures and paper work n Specified that all students must participate in all assessments done by the local school district

NO Child Left Behind Act of 2001 n Is intended to raise academic standards and improve student achievement n Basically, every student will be proficient in math and reading by 2014 u In other words, they want every child at grade level by 2014

NO Child Left Behind Act of 2001(cont.) n English as a second language students u have 3 years of school before they have to take the tests F In my district, they take the IMAGE during that time

English as a second language students n It can take 3-5 years for a student to gain social language n It can take 5-7 year for this same student to gain school language