Special Education Reform
The Education system in America has had a lot of improvement over the years. Given the opportunity to the divers’ society to enhance their level of education to a higher level. It also has given the educators the opportunity to advance their skills and express their knowledge to their students as well. They were able to do all this with the assistance of the Federal Government. Truscott et al,(2004) were concerned with the decision making that may affect students of Special Education or Special Educators. They were concerned with what the differences between General Education Special Education, and they found out that not much was known of the Special Education and it was not properly represented in the discussions meetings. They suggested assigning a team member to represent Special Education for a specific topic. Through this study, the” Disability Law” became a focus point, Including Special Education in the decision making of the disabled. Truscott et al, (2004) “The result of this study suggested that when Special Education representation was general or implied, however discussions that included Special Education were infrequent.” P123. They went further to emphasize that: “These members of the educational community need to clearly advocate representation special education discussions of general education.”p124. About the turn of the century when social, economic, and political changes were taking place in the country,
Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2015 - The SEN Code of Practice expresses that children have SEN if they have a learning difficulty that requests special educational provision to be made for them and that it is unlawful for educational providers to discriminate against a pupil with SEN or a disability.
The amount of people who live with disabilities is a controversial number. Depending on what law and diagnostic tools used, a person may have a visible disability, or one that may lie beneath the surface of his or her appearance. Some people believe that the term “disability” is merely a label use to hold back, or prescribe helplessness. Meanwhile, individuals who have been properly diagnosed with disabilities struggle to maintain respect and acceptance every day. In plain language, there is a lot of misunderstanding between people with disabilities and those without. It is firstly important to get everyone on the same page regarding the definition of disability.
For the state of Indiana as an administrator I need to familiarize myself with the Special Education Rules Title 511 Article 7 Rules 32-49 (Indiana Dept. of Ed, 2014). Article 7 was brought to my attention by my special education coordinator at Laurel School Mrs. Christy Sheehan. This article will help me access the guidelines of Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) and the Individual Education Programs (IEP) along with the instruction from Mrs. Sheehan. This article will help me indicate what key areas I need to know as a future administrator. As I become an administrator I know I will have to familiarize myself with the entire 134 page article, but for now I will focus in on five areas. This article and area of study is new to me being a physical education teacher that isn’t familiar with all the laws of special education. It can be overwhelming looking into this document, but as an administrator I need to familiarize myself with all aspects of education.
America used to thrive on its education system and that is why it became one of the greatest nations in the world. Education is the backbone of our country, and we must give high priority to improve its current condition. Unfortunately, in the past couple of decades, the education system has been regressing. It has been on the decline and not as effective. The quality of education in a country has an influence on GDP growth, social cohesion and social well being in general. In order to improve the quality of education in the U.S., the following must be taken into consideration: the structure of our education system must be reanalyzed, we must compare and contrast our education system to systems of other countries with higher rankings, and finally, there must be a solution.
When Public Law 94-142 was passed in 1975 it had a positive impact on the education for children with disabilities. Millions of children in the United States were supported by the law. These children had previously been excluded entirely from the education system.
This week’s readings discussed consequences for special education students. It was very interesting to see the different court case rulings for each case. Teachers, administrators and parents need to make sure they have everything accurate when taking a case like many of these to court. In this paper I will discuss the five key points in the articles and readings stood out to me the most, how and if my beliefs changed or were altered, and how I might apply the content to the classroom and instruction.
There have also been landmark court cases like Brown v Board of Education and Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children v. Pennsylvania (PARC) which as a result set the wheels in motion for special education reform. The Education for Handicapped Children Act of 1975 was amended and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education ACT (IDEA) in 1990, has had the greatest impact on special education in public schools. When the law was originally passed in 1975 it required all school districts that accepted federal funds to provide disabled students, ages 5-21, equal access to an education in the least restrictive (LRE) setting possible. Schools were to also disperse funds equally among all students and provide free of charge, the necessary
In 1997, the United States Department of Education stated that disproportionate representation in special education is a problem, predominately affecting African American boys. The Individuals with Disabilities
Rules, regulations, and federal laws for special education have improved as the years have gone by. This essay will indicate how educators teaching special education must comprehend the mandates of the Individual with Disability Act (IDEA), student and parental rights. This essay will also explain how court cases (past and present) and IDEA has given special education students the ability to receive a Free Appropriate Education (FAPE). My interview with Ms. Patricia Pritchett, Coordinator of Special Education in DeKalb County School District, was able to give me information and guidelines in reference to their county procedures and policies for the special education department. The interview with Ms. Pritchett gave me insight as to special education legal framework and how the constant changes that affects students with disabilities and regular education students.
In what type of school do you teach? (Type an “X” next to the appropriate description; if “other” applies, provide a brief description.)
Within the past decades and a big discussion has occurred regarding the most appropriate setting within which to provide education for students in special education. Although the change in the educational environment is significant for handicapped student the concepts of inclusion also bring up new issues for the regular education classroom teachers.
Special Education is a topic of controversy with many advocates fighting for the justice children and adults with special needs so rightfully deserve. With laws being passed and modified so frequently, it is important that the educators being brought into the world have an extensive knowledge of the developmental needs of many different types of children. With this knowledge and their constant measures to keep up to date with the fast-moving world of education, they will be able to deliver an appropriate atmosphere that is in accordance with the law that ensures ethical practices and guidelines are always being followed.
Special education has faced many changes during the last century. During this time there have been many opinions on the way students with differences should be taught and treated. This paper will discuss the history of special education during the twentieth century. We will also discuss the laws associated with Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Finally we will discuss the current and future challenges that the laws have on special education.
The importance of education for all children, especially for those with disability and with limited social and economic opportunities, is indisputable. Indeed, the special education system allowed children with disability increased access to public education. Apart from that, the special education system has provided for them an effective framework for their education, and for the institutions involved to identify children with disability sooner. In turn, this promotes greater inclusion of children with disability alongside their nondisabled peers. In spite of these advances however, many obstacles remain, including delays in providing services for children with disability, as well as regulatory and
According to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, students with disabilities should be placed in a “least restrictive environment.” One of the main ideas of this act was to improve the learning experiences of students with disabilities by giving them learning opportunities outside of a special education classroom. The number of students with disabilities being placed in their general education classrooms is increasing more and more each year. The U.S Department of Education’s 27th annual report to Congress on the implementation of The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (2005) indicates that the number of students with disabilities in general education classrooms has risen to almost 50 percent. This is about a 17 percent increase from the 1997 U.S