Procedures for Participation of Students with Disabilities in Virginia’s Accountability System

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act was passed to promote equal access to federally funded programs for people with disabilities. It was focused on nondiscrimination in the programs or activities that receive federal funding. A person would be defined as disabled if they have physical or mental impairment, has a record of the impairment, and is regarded as having the impairment. Section 504 is used for students who do not qualify for special education and is most frequently used for students with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder and AIDS. To be eligible under Section 504 the child must undergo an evaluation with assessment tools that will accurately demonstrate the child’s specific area of educational need.

The right of entry to education resources is more than uncomplicated admission to a college. The right to use means to provide students with the devices they will need to be victorious in higher learning. Students with a recognized disability ought to be no omission. In reality, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, “ensure that all qualified persons have equal access to education regardless of the presence of any disability.” Objective replacement, class waivers, and revision of classroom management, testing and course necessities are all illustrations of behavior to supply access for the learner with a disability. A break down to the creation of such practical adjustments can place schools in breach of federal and state statutes, ensuing expensive fines.

In recent years, legislative mandates, like the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA), have required students to participate in the same assessments that general education students are taking. Although these new, controversial mandates resonated with a lot of people, critics argue that they cause more harm than good. According to Inclusion: The Pros and Cons—A Critical Review, Carl Savich states that the federal legislation on inclusion took the attention away from the general and advanced students with “a concomitant lowering of standards” (Savich 1). However, supporters of these new mandates state that the pros vastly outweigh the cons. According to Assessment and Accommodations, Stephen Luke states that inclusion

Not to mention, that this has given many disabled individuals chance to a quality education. This case has made congress take a closer look at the individualize needs that is acquired for students by mandating the school to find a program that will help students individual needs in educational system. “Power imbalances between parents and school districts cannot be eliminated, but the mandatory provision of information will go a long way” (Kotler, p.553, 2014). This help secure a people with disabilities a chance for a better future in educational system.

Students with disabilities should also be allowed to be educated in the least restrictive environment. This means students should remain in the general education classroom for as much time as is possible for student success. In short, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act levels the educational playing field for students with disabilities.

Prior to 1975, no federal requirements existed for students with disabilities to attend school, or requirements for schools to attempt to teach students with disabilities (Salvia, Yesseldyke, & Bolt, 2013, p. 25). However, upon the enactment of several federal laws, such as Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) and No Child Left Behind (NCLB), student with disabilities received access to free, appropriate public education which in turned required students with disabilities to participate in statewide assessments. According to Public Law 94-142 (now included in IDEA), it requires an individual education program (IEP) for students with disabilities. As part of the IEP, it contains items such as present levels of academic achievement and functional performance, measurable annual goals, criteria of progress, special education and related services as well as documenting any necessary accommodations needed for statewide assessments. The author provides a comparison of statewide assessments including items such as participation, accommodations and types of assessments between the states of Texas and Massachusetts.

Students with disabilities are increasingly being included in large scale, high-stakes testing programs despite inadequate accommodations. In recent years, the school system has increased pressure on students in regards to testing. In the past, Kentucky has done a poor job of including impaired students in its statewide assessments; mainly in failing to provide the mandated accommodations for disabled students. In order to help these students with their learning skills, test scores, appropriate testing accommodations and the performance of students with disabilities. Results indicate that most Kentucky students have been included in the CATS assessment, but many the scores obtained from disabled students may not be reliable due to

All qualified students with disabilities living inside of the school district area are entitled to a “free and appropriate education”. To be appropriate the educational program must be designed to meet the individual needs of the student, as outlined in their IEP, to the same

High Stakes Testing has been overly integrated in the education systems. High-stakes testing are used to determine grade retention, school curriculum, and whether or not students will receive a high school diploma (Myers, 2015). Since the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) of 2001, high stakes testing has become the norm and mandating that students must pass a standardized test before moving up in grade. As a special education director, the focus is to ensure the student’s accommodations are being followed. Accommodations help increase students’ academic performance. “Both the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) of 2004 and No Child Left Behind (NCLB) call for students with disabilities to participate in the general education curriculum and in testing programs to the maximum extent possible for each student (Luke and Schwartz, 2010).” Throughout the years, high stakes testing is becoming more common than ever before. The reality is high stakes testing is one indicator in evaluating children with specific needs. This paper will discuss, the violation of the statutory language regarding assessment based on IDEA, the strategies and goals of a remediation, staff training, common Core and PARCC assessment, and funding for the remediation plan under IDEA.

The Toms River High School East Child Stud Team (CST) would like to provide comments and concerns relating to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), No Child Left Behind, and Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 requirement of assessments in public schools and that all students must participate, with the sole focus on the state of New Jerseys decision to use the PARCC. Specifically, considering the impact is has on students classified with learning disabilities. I would like to urge you to think about reevaluating the procedure of using the PARCC and other standardized tests that are geared to general education students to assess our students because it seems to be doing more harm than good. During the

In 1990 the Public Law 94-142 was renamed as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. IDEA is in every school building now exerting responsibilities on everyone in the community. The main goal of IDEA is to treat everyone as equals and giving them their full rights. The requirements

Our district makes a conscious effort to comply with the guidelines set forth by Section 504 of The Rehabilitation Act to ensure the needs of students experiencing difficulties as a result of a physical or mental impairment which prohibits them from experiencing success in the learning process. Our district has policies and procedures in place for the purpose of assisting special education teams in making eligibility determinations for Section 504 placement. The established policies and procedures will assist the district to ensure that all guidelines and requirements of the Section 504 plan have been developed and fulfilled to meet the specific needs of the student.

Students with disabilities can participate in these assessments in one of four ways: (a) regular assessment of grade-level content standards based on grade-level academic achievement standards, (b) regular assessment of grade-level academic content standards with appropriate accommodations based on grade-level academic achievements, (c) alternate assessment of grade-level academic content standards based on grade-level academic achievement standards, and (d) alternate assessment of grade-level academic content standards based on alternate academic standards.

In today’s educational environment, all students expect to receive the same level of instruction from schools and all students must meet the same set of standards. Expectations for students with learning disabilities are the same as students without any learning difficulties. It is now unacceptable for schools or teachers to expect less from one segment of students because they have physical disabilities, learning disabilities, discipline problems, or come from poor backgrounds. Standardize testing has resulted in making every student count as much as their peers and the most positive impact has been seen with the lowest ability students. Schools have developed new approaches to reach these previously underserved students while

A second law dealing with special needs students is section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. This act requires that schools, which receive federal funding, provide equal education to all handicapped children in the schools jurisdiction (W.E.A.C, 2001). This act also requires that handicapped children be educated with other children who are not handicapped to the maximum extent (W.E.A.C, 2001). This requirement clearly points to inclusion as the best option available for handicapped students, in the opinion of the federal government. Section 504 has helped handicapped people in other areas as well. The act requires that public buildings make architectural changes to increase accessibility for those with special needs (Choate, 1997). This part of the act was important because it put an end to school?s using the structure of the school building as an excuse for providing an unequal education to those children who were handicapped or disabled.