The Rights Of Students With Disabilities

There are a number of landmark court cases of special education in the country that have become the basis of how we currently provide services to students with disabilities. Diana v. California State Board of Education (1970) and Larry P. v. Riles (1984) are two of these landmark court cases that highlight nondiscriminatory assessments. Below is the analysis of the two court cases in four major sections: The Legal Cases, Summary, Future Practice, and Comparison and Contrasts.

The two important court rulings were the Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children v. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1971 and Mills vs. The Board of Education of the District of Columbia in 1972 (ERIC Clearinghouse, 1998). These court decisions showed that “the responsibility of States and local school districts to educate individuals with disabilities is derived from the equal protection law of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution.”(ERIC Clearinghouse, 1998, n.p.)

Throughout the ages, people with disabilities have been hidden away at homes or institutions and were often not educated. This was common practice and as such, when the education system was designed, children with disabilities were not even considered. Then, starting soon after the civil rights movement in the 50’s, a series of lawsuits was brought against school boards and the federal government took notice. Then the Education for all Handicapped Children Act of 1975 was passed and these children were finally allowed the education they deserved. As time went

The Public Law 94-142 is the landmark legislation that affected special education. Public Law 94-142 changed its legislative title which resulted from the enactment of Public 101-476 on October 30, 1990, to The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA is also known as the "Bill of Rights" for children with exceptionalities and their families. This law is the most important pieces of the federal legislation ever passed on behalf of children with special needs.

The case of Brown v. Board of Education (1954), found that education was an important function. The courts viewed education as playing an important role in the future of the United States and since states chose to provide it, education then is a right that must be available to all on equal terms ( (Murdick, Gartin, & Fowler, 2014). The question of equal terms has been an uphill battle for families that have children with disabilities. There were many acts that addressed educational issues of children with disabilities. The elementary and Secondary Act of 1965 was created to improve education for children that were disadvantaged and it expanded funding. 1974 Education of the Handicapped

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 2004 the case of Deal v. Hamilton County Board of Education was coming to a close after reaching the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Ohio. Within this essay, detailed examination of this case, along with issues that developed the case, disagreement points, parties involved, and final outcome will be explored. This case was initiated in 1999 and reached the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in 2004. The Individuals with Disabilities Act has given parents and caregivers to student’s unparalleled

In the early 1970’s parents of students with disabilities went to federal court when their local school districts did not provide services to meet their children’s educational needs. In Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Citizens (PARC) v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1971), a Pennsylvania court ruled that all children, regardless of disability, have a basic right to an education under the Fourteenth Amendment. In Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia (1972), a federal court ruled that the District of Columbia schools could not exclude children with disabilities from the public schools. Cases like this focused public attention on the issue of educating children with disabilities. The social and political pressure then resulted in landmark federal legislation to address the educational rights of these children.

This case was a very significant ruling for special education evident with numerous studies positing that the ruling of this 1982 case was perhaps the most important special education decision by the Supreme Court and to this day, continues to have a profound effect on the education of students with disabilities. Additionally, this was the first time that the Supreme Court had to interpret portions of the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA 1990), which was then the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) as it relates to what constituted a free and appropriate education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE).

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was a legal protection for people with disabilities. It is a civil rights law in which prohibits any discrimination against people in any programs from discriminating. Congressman Charles Vanik from Ohio, and Senator Humphrey from Minnesota, proposed this amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. It is a civil rights mandate, not a special education law. When examining schools and educational systems, in the past, there seemed to be detrimental experiences in which students with a handicap and/or disability were discriminated upon. They needed a mandate and legal protection in which protected them in order to receive equal

Until that time, many states had laws that excluded children with certain types of disabilities from attending public school. These included children who were blind, deaf and children labeled "emotionally disturbed" or "mentally retarded." Many of these children lived at state institutions where they received limited or no educational services. Having a disability does not automatically qualify a student for special education services under the IDEA. The disability must result in the student needing additional or different services to participate in school. For example, a child who is diagnosed autistic. Children with disabilities who qualify for special education are also automatically protected by Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

This ruling initiated the integration of blacks and whites and fueled other movements like feminism and the disability rights movement. Following this decision, in Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children v The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (1972), children won the guarantee that they would be educated in a way that matched their needs and that would be free of charge (Friend, 2014). In the same year, 1972, the Mills v Board of Education ruling required schools to provide services regardless their districts ability to pay (Mastropieri, 2006). These impactful rulings were the beginnings of change and inclusion of all students in public education. In addition to these historic Supreme Court rulings, there were many legal mandates that were established that addresses the issues that were discussed in the courts.

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.

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.

The Education for all Handicapped Children Act (EHA) had an overall goal of desegregating disabled children in schools, as well as work on integrating them in classrooms with their non-disabled peers. Until the Civil Rights Movement, not much attention was brought to the fact that children with disabilities had very little rights and were kept isolated and not given a proper education, if any at all. Because of the attention brought to the poor and unjust treatment of children with disabilities and the significant court cases dealing with the fourteenth amendment such as Mills v. Board of Education of the District of Columbia, The EHA was passed in 1975. There were high hopes for this act, including keeping disabled students integrated