Children And Young People With Disabilities

The publication of the Warnock Report in 1978 caused ground-breaking changes to the education system. It changed the way in which society viewed children and young people with disabilities, and, moved towards a philosophy for an inclusive education (Moore 2009). Warnock (2010) states that many reports and a considerable amount of legislation have emerged since then, These include, 1981 Education Act establishing the recommendation 's, The National Curriculum 1988, The Education Act 1993, 1994 Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs, Excellence for All Children 1997, 2001 SEN and Disability Act, ‘Barriers to Inclusion ' (Department for Education and Skills 2004) ‘Special Educational Needs: A New Look (2005). In the 2005 review Warnock suggests that there should be no priority made to mainstream or special schools, only the needs of the child, also, either setting should be considered as long as it has provision to support the needs of the pupil (Warnock, Norwich and Terzi, 2010) HAVE I REF ALL ABOVE CORRECTLY???????

Schools have legal obligations to give students with a disability opportunities and choices comparable to those without a disability through the Disability Discrimination Act of 1992 and the Disability Standards of Education 2005 (Department of Education and Training, n.d). To meet these standards, schools must be welcoming and reasonably accommodate for new students. We used the three phase inclusion process when Amir transferred to our school at the start of the year. The three flowing phases; preparation, transition and consolidation help all stakeholders inclusively plan for the best possible transition of a new child where their needs are provided for (Lyons, 2014, pg 80). Inclusive schools help support all students, teachers should work closely with the learning support team at their school to help them decide the best resources and strategies to meet students’ needs and promote their wellbeing (Lyons, 2014, pg 83). Amir has consultations with all relevant stakeholders at the start of the term to set learning goals and then at the end of the term to reflect on his achievements and what could be improved on. All teachers need to use their professional judgement and act ethically as their work significantly impacts the future of the learners in their class (Churchill, & Keddie, 2013, pg 539). Amir’s school promotes diversity and is strongly against bullying. At the start of each year we

Coordinated admissions aim to ensure that as far as is practical, every child in a local authority area who has applied in the admissions round receives a place. And with the exception of grammar schools, who do not have to take pupils who are not up to scratch academically, schools must take all comers. Even those with challenging behaviour. Youngsters with special educational needs who don’t have a statement are treated in the same way as everyone else although this may sometimes require reasonable adjustments for them in the school or particular support for any special educational needs, as defined in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Anyone providing services for children with special needs – health, education or social service departments, as well as voluntary organisations – must act within the legal framework. Legislation can change at any time and all health, education and social care practitioners, also Early Years workers, should be alert to new Acts and Regulations. There have been many changes to legislation in the UK over recent years which have affected this and a gradual increase in entitlements for these pupils.

On October 1st 2010, the Equality Act came into force. This consolidated and strengthened the previous equality laws. This act prevents children and their families from being discriminated, victimised or harassed because of their age, sex, race, religion or disability. Through this act each child, whether already in the setting, or applying through admissions, will be treated in a fair and equal way, with aims for all children to have reasonable provisions to allow them to access all educational areas. Although a school is not expected to make adjustments that are not reasonable, they are expected to make general adjustments, reasonably planned within the school’s approach to planning for SEN children. The Equality Act 2010 outlines four definitions of discrimination, direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, discrimination arising from a disability and harassment and victimisation. This allows school settings to have clearer expectations and implement them. The Equality Act 2010 and the Discrimination Disability Act (DDA) (2005) both aim to ensure each and every child has access to a broad and balanced academic and social curriculum. Following this code of practice in a school, confirms that all members of staff provide the same high-quality teaching to children, as well as displaying professional behaviour.

The Common Assessment Framework 2009 aims to identify additional need and promotes information sharing and coordination of services. Working Together to Safeguard 2003 outlines legal requirements for safeguarding, promoting welfare, roles and responsibilities of professionals and working together to keep children safe. The Munro Review 2012 regards the rights, wishes and feelings to shape the provision of services. The Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements of the Statutory Framework for EYFS 2014 outlines responsibilities for childcare providers for children 0-5 years. Special Educational Needs and Disability Code 2014 provides guidance relating to promoting the welfare of children and young people with special educational needs and

Background and Facts: The Education for All Handicapped Children Act was passed in 1975. It required public schools to give equal educational opportunities for children who suffered from a disability. The school would work together with the child’s parents to form an educational plan. An important piece of this law was the ‘stay-put’ provision. During a dispute of a disabled child’s educational placement, the child was entitled to remain in their current setting until the matter was resolved.

The way we interact with our colleagues and others in society is regulated by law. The Equality Act 2010 brings together all previous acts relating to equality and discrimination. The Act applies to all services provided to the public. The Act protects all individuals and groups from discrimination. Early years settings must be aware of these laws and have a policy in place regarding equality of opportunities and for supporting

Robert’s rights to inclusion is reinforced by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act (2001) which gave Robert the right to attend mainstream school and to be educated alongside his peer (Thomas and Vaughan, 2005). The Act strengthened further the Disability Discrimination Act (1995) which makes discrimination again Robert unlawful. The United Nation Convention on the Right of the Child Article 23, highlights that a child with a disability should have effective access to and receive an education ( Jones , 2004) Tassoni (2003) underlined that The Children Act (1989) spelled out the idea that all children have rights. It required protecting all children, but also highlighting the needs and rights of vulnerable children. As with Robert, he is a child in need and as such the school and LEA has legal duties to make sure that Robert is achieving within society.

SEND provision is essential in ensuring that all children have the same opportunities for progress and achievement despite their personal needs. It is here that SEND and inclusion therefore go hand in hand. Schools must be aware that, without this equality, ‘pupils can move from demoralisation to disruptive behaviour and truancy’ because they are made to feel like “failures” for having learning difficulties and/or disabilities (DfE 1997). It is also important to recognise that this support must be evident outside of academia. The Warnock Report states that provision needs to be integrated into the physical and social as well as educational activities of a school, enabling the child concerned to equally

Although estimates vary, research shows that approximately one percent of the world’s population is affected by intellectual or developmental disabilities (IDDs) (Maulik et al., 419). Developmental disabilities refer to a wide range of severe, long term disabilities which affect physical or cognitive functioning; developmental disabilities appear before age twenty two. Intellectual disabilities refer to a specific category of developmental disabilities that “…are categorized by a limited mental capacity and difficulty with adaptive behaviors…” (NIH, 2010). Adaptive behaviors include, “…conceptual skills (e.g., language, money and time concepts), social

The life of an individual born with developmental disabilities 50 years ago differs greatly from an individual born today. A lot of progress has been made in the field of mental health over the past half decade. Many new or revised acts have improved the attitude towards individuals with disabilities and the aid that is available to them.

What assets appear to be a recognized and logical resource for people with a developmental

The health of adults with developmental disabilities (DD) is an understudied topic in medicine and public health. DD’s are a group of severe, chronic conditions that can impair cognitive and/or physical functioning. DD’s manifest prior to the age of 22 and result in significant functional limitations in 3 or more of the following activities of daily living: self-care, receptive and expressive language, learning, mobility, self-direction, capacity for independent living, and economic self-sufficiency. This leads to the need for interdisciplinary services, individualized supports, and other forms of assistance through the lifetime.1 Many intellectual disabilities (ID) such as Down syndrome and fetal alcohol syndrome fall within the

The idea of children with disabilities, whether they be mild or severe has been a very controversial and misunderstood topic. In the past inclusion has brought about huge changes for not only the students, but also the parents and families of these children, and staff at schools. Teachers and education professionals were the first to really feel the wrath and intimidation of this dramatic shift in education. There were several different factors that were coming about that made it very difficult for schools and teachers, the unorganized mandates were strict and didn’t allow much time for change. “President Gerald Ford signed the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) into law in 1975. Since the original passage of the EAHCA, the law has been amended four times and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)” (Conroy, Yell, Katsiyannis, & Collins, 2010, para.1).