Description
Develop a PowerPoint presentation of 10-15 slides to be used at a teacher in-service for other educators. Your in-service presentation should address the following points:
- How educators can ethically, actively and respectfully engage students with ASD in their classrooms.
- How educators can use active engagement strategies and current educational research to support and promote the success students with ASD while safeguarding their legal rights.
- How educators can ensure they are providing a supportive environment to all students.
- Identify additional resources that are available to educators who have students with ASD in their classrooms.
Include a minimum of three scholarly references. Include slide notes, a title slide and a references slide within your presentation. Use graphics, videos, and interactive features whenever possible and appropriate.
While APA format is not required for the body of this assignment, solid academic writing is expected, and in-text citations and references should be presented using APA documentation guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.
This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment to become familiar with the expectations for successful completion.
You are required to submit this assignment to LopesWrite.
Read “Evidence-Based Practice for Special Educator Teaching Students with Autism,” by Marder and Fraser, located on the Johns Hopkins School of Education website.
http://archive.education.jhu.edu/PD/newhorizons/Journals/specialedjournal/MarderandFraser
Review the Code of Ethics.
http://www.naset.org/2444.0.html
Review the Special Education Professional Ethical Principles and Practice Standards.
http://www.cec.sped.org/Standards/Ethical-Principles-and-Practice-Standards
Chapter 4: The people
Before examining in detail the substantive and procedural requirements and the
remedies available under the laws relating to special education, it is useful to have a
sense of the various individuals who are involved in these issues. These include the
students themselves, their parents, educators, administrators, related service providers,
advocates, and decision makers. The following sections describe the major characteristics of these people. This chapter focuses on those individuals primarily from the
perspective of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
StudentsCategorizationNot all students with disabilities are covered by the IDEA. To be
eligible for the protec-tions under the IDEA, a student must fit into the definition of a
“child with a disability” under the law. The definition includes 13 categories of
disabilities. The definition states,Child with a disability means a child evaluated in
accordance with §§ 300.304 through 300.311 as having mental retardation, a hearing
impairment (including deafness), a speech or language impairment, a visual impairment
(including blindness), a serious emotional disturbance (referred to in this part as
“emotional disturbance”), an orthopedic impair-ment, autism, traumatic brain injury,
another health impairment, a specific learning dis-ability, deaf-blindness, or multiple
disabilities, and who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related
services.Each of these categories of disability has its own specific requirements that
must be met in order for a student to be eligible to receive services under the law.
These requirements are discussed in more detail in Chapter 6. States may also have a
category for children ages 3 through 9 experiencing developmental delays with physical
devel-opment, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional
development, or adaptive development.1 In October 2010, “Rosa’s Law” went into
effect. That law required a change in the term mentally retarded to intellectually disabled in all federal statutes and regulations.2It should be emphasized that the student
must not only fit into one or more of the listed categories but must also require special
education and related services because of the disability in order to be eligible for
services. Some have raised concerns about the categorization system used for
providing special education services under the IDEA. One concern is that the
categorical labels do not always accurately reflect the characteristics of the students.
Additionally, labeling may stigmatize the student, and once a student is labeled, it may
be difficult to change the label. Some believe that attaching a label to an individual may
well result in a self-fulfilling prophecy.3Some contend that the labels or categories do
not help teachers to identify the appropriate means of providing instruction and training.
As a result, some profession-als have recommended that the classification of students
be noncategorical. These recommendations have been implemented in some states.
For example, Texas, Colorado, and California train and certify special educators
noncategorically. The move away from categories had positive results in a variety of
programs throughout the country. The 2004 amendments to the IDEA provided states
with some additional discretion in this area by stating that the IDEA does not require
states to classify stu-dents by disability as long as each student who has a disability as
defined by the law and needs special education and related services is regarded as a
child with a disability. In other words, a state does not have to categorize students as
learning disabled (LD), speech/language impaired, other health impaired, and so on. It
could instead just develop a system that provides that students who meet any of the
categories of dis-ability under th The People 55While some of the legal issues relating
to labeling will be discussed more fully in Chapter 6, a few general points should be
noted here. Within the categories set out by the IDEA definition of a child with a
disability, a wide degree of difference exists among students. The educational needs of
students within these categories are corre-spondingly widely disparate. And even
students with the same functional level may have differing educational needs because
of a variety of factors. It should, therefore, be apparent that attaching a label to an
individual provides only the most general infor-mation about that student. It is one of the
reasons that individualized educational programming that goes beyond the student’s
label is required for students with dis-abilities under the IDEA. Placement and services
cannot be based just on the label.Gaps in CoverageOne category not covered by the
IDEA is gifted and talented. Although the IDEA does not provide coverage for this group
of students, many states provide special educa-tional programming for gifted students.
Several other categories of students are not comprehensively covered by the IDEA. The
first is the chronically ill student, the stu-dent with an illness such as cancer or diabetes
who may be frequently absent from school for treatment or because of illness. Students
could be covered under the law in the “other health impaired” category, but only if they
require special education and related services by reason of the disability. A student who
is frequently absent and needs a program of homebound instruction because of illness
may fit the definition.Similarly, a student with HIV or another infectious disease may
meet the defini-tion of a child with a disability for purposes of the IDEA under the “other
health impaired” category, but only if the student requires special education and related
ser-vices as a result of the disability. If the student does not require special education
services, the student could still be protected under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).This distinction in coverage can be
important if the student is seeking to take advantage of the procedural safeguards noted
in Chapter 3 that are available under the IDEA that are not available under Section 504
or the ADA. More information about the procedural safeguards under these different
statutes is provided in Chapter 12.An additional category of students are those with
attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These
conditions may affect the concentration abilities and other behaviors. At one time, there
was a debate about whether this condition should be treated as a separate disability
under the IDEA or whether it would fall under the definition of learning disability or other
health impair-ment. Because of this debate, the 1990 amendments to the IDEA required
that the United States Department of Education solicit public comments on the issue.As
a result of the comments, the United States Department of Education listed ADHD as
one of the chronic or acute health problems that can fit in the other health impaired
category.5 As with other students with chronic illness, having ADHD alone is not
sufficient to be eligible for services under the IDEA. The student must meet the other
requirements of the other health impaired category and must require special education
services. While some of the legal issues relating to labeling will be discussed more fully
in Chapter 6, a few general points should be noted here. Within the categories set out
by the IDEA definition of a child with a disability, a wide degree of difference exists
among students. The educational needs of students within these categories are correspondingly widely disparate. And even students with the same functional level may
have differing educational needs because of a variety of factors. It should, therefore, be
apparent that attaching a label to an individual provides only the most general information about that student. It is one of the reasons that individualized educational
programming that goes beyond the student’s label is required for students with disabilities under the IDEA. Placement and services cannot be based just on the
label.Gaps in CoverageOne category not covered by the IDEA is gifted and talented.
Although the IDEA does not provide coverage for this group of students, many states
provide special educa-tional programming for gifted students. Several other categories
of students are not comprehensively covered by the IDEA. The first is the chronically ill
student, the stu-dent with an illness such as cancer or diabetes who may be frequently
absent from school for treatment or because of illness. Students could be covered
under the law in the “other health impaired” category, but only if they require special
education and related services by reason of the disability. A student who is frequently
absent and needs a program of homebound instruction because of illness may fit the
definition.Similarly, a student with HIV or another infectious disease may meet the
defini-tion of a child with a disability for purposes of the IDEA under the “other health
impaired” category, but only if the student requires special education and related services as a result of the disability. If the student does not require special education
services, the student could still be protected under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).This distinction in coverage can be
important if the student is seeking to take advantage of the procedural safeguards noted
in Chapter 3 that are available under the IDEA that are not available under Section 504
or the ADA. More information about the procedural safeguards under these different
statutes is provided in Chapter 12.An additional category of students are those with
attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These
conditions may affect the concentration abilities and other behaviors. At one time, there
was a debate about whether this condition should be treated as a separate disability
under the IDEA or whether it would fall under the definition of learning disability or other
health impair-ment. Because of this debate, the 1990 amendments to the IDEA required
that the United States Department of Education solicit public comments on the issue.As
a result of the comments, the United States Department of Education listed ADHD as
one of the chronic or acute health problems that can fit in the other health impaired
category.5 As with other students with chronic illness, having ADHD alone is not
sufficient to be eligible for services under the IDEA. The student must meet the other
requirements of the other health impaired category and must require special education
services.FOR THE USE OF GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY STUDENTS AND
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UNAUTHORIZED USE IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. Copyright © 2014 by SAGE
Publications, Inc. 56 SPECIAL EDUCATION LAWThe medically fragile student in most
cases is protected under the IDEA, but such individuals are a group for whom education
agencies may have difficulty providing ser-vices. Medically fragile students include
those who might require suctioning6 or some other similar attention to ensure that
medical conditions do not cause injury to the stu-dent. Until 1999, there was an
unsettled legal debate involving some of these students: The mainstreaming principle
discourages homebound instruction, so the issue for school districts became how far
they had to go in providing related services that some may consider medical in nature
(like suctioning, catheterization, operating a portable ventilator for the student, etc.). A
related issue is who has to provide the services. Does a school nurse provide the
services, or can an aide or classroom teacher provide services?Understandably,
teachers are often concerned about liability related to the safety and health of medically
fragile students. If teachers are to provide services, school districts must ensure that
teachers are appropriately and adequately trained to provide them, that a backup plan is
available when there are emergencies, and that a clear pro-cedure has been developed
for providing such services.7A case that helped to resolve this issue is the Supreme
Court decision in Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F.8 In that case, a
high school student who had been paralyzed at age four required a variety of services
for his physical needs while in school. These services included bladder catheterization,
suctioning of a tra-cheotomy tube, feeding, positioning, and ventilator services. The
services required some degree of training but did not require that a physician perform
them. The Supreme Court held that, although they are intensive and costly, if a doctor is
not required to perform the services and the student requires the services to be able to
attend school, then the educational agency has the obligation to provide or fund these
services during school hours under the IDEA.Another category of students who may fall
through the cracks between special and regular education is the slow learner. Unless a
student is defined as learning disabled, intellectually disabled, or one of the other
categories of disability under the IDEA, he or she is not entitled to the individualization
and special attention accorded to the student with a disability under the
IDEA.Historically, regular education was often geared toward the average student,
which meant that the slow learner’s needs might not be met in a traditional educational
pro-gram. Today, there are ongoing efforts in many places to provide differentiated
instruction within the classroom for all students to address the different learning styles
and abilities of students. These efforts are outside of the IDEA’s
requirements.Additionally, over the years, there has been some disagreement among
profession-als about the definition of learning disabled. Some contend that the definition
used in the IDEA has led to the misclassification of some students, with some students
who are really slow learners being classified as learning disabled under the law and
others who are actually learning disabled not being classified as learning disabled under
the law. Congress and the United States Department of Education attempted to address
some of the issues with the learning disability classification when the IDEA was
amended in 2004, and new implementing regulations were issued in 2006. These
change Students who are socially maladjusted constitute another category that is not
spe-cifically covered under the IDEA. There has been a substantial controversy over the
years about whether to identify or even separate socially maladjusted students from
those who meet the definition of emotionally disturbed and whether it is possible to do
so. The definition of emotional disturbance in the IDEA’s regulations states that it does
not include students who are socially maladjusted unless they have an emotional
disturbance.9 Thus the issue becomes whether the social maladjustment can be separated diagnostically from other ailments the student may have that could be covered
under the emotionally disturbed category.10Students who are addicted to drugs or
alcohol present unique difficulties. Alcohol and drug addiction itself is not considered a
disability under the IDEA. These students would be protected under the IDEA only if
they required special education and related services under one of the recognized
categories of disability. Even when such students are not entitled to special education
under the IDEA, there may be instances in which they would be given some protection
against adverse treatment because of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act or the ADA.
Clearly, this is an area where there is an increas-ing need for services, but at this point,
the primary responsibility for these services does not fall on the school system within
special education mandates.In sum, most students entitled to special education are
more different from each other than they are alike. They are more like other students in
the school system than they are different. But for most of them, their differences require
specialized instruc-tion and some accommodation if they are to benefit from the
educational system.It is also important to note that historically, most attention to special
education students has occurred on the elementary school level. This is reflected in
program-ming and teacher training. There has, however, been an increasing recognition
in the education field of the importance of early education and the transition at the
second-ary level to the workplace or postsecondary opportunities. This recognition is
reflected in changes to the IDEA promoting prevention and early intervention (including
early childhood and infant programs) and an increasing emphasis on vocational training
and transition services for special education students.ParentsWho Are Parents?When
determining the special education placement of an individual entitled to ser-vices under
the IDEA, the individual who will usually be asked to consent to the evaluation,
placement, or other decision is the parent. Children under the age of majority as defined
in state law (usually 18 years of age) are generally presumed legally incompetent under
the IDEA to consent to decisions made on their behalf. The prefer-ences of the
individual may be a consideration, particularly with matters such as tran-sition services,
and the student may participate in the special education process, but the parents make
the decisions. As a result, the procedural protections under the IDEA menti 58 SPECIAL
EDUCATION LAWstudent is under the age of majority. Once the student reaches the
age of majority, the procedural and other rights under the IDEA transfer to the student
unless the student has been determined to be incompetent under state law.11 The
parents maintain a right to notice along with the student under the IDEA even when the
student reaches the age of majority.12For purposes of the IDEA, whenever reference is
made to decision making or involvement by the parent, the term is intended to include
not only the actual parent but also possibly a grandparent, a stepparent, a surrogate
parent appointed by the court or a social service agency, or a court-appointed
guardian.13 The intent is that the per-son who is legally responsible for the student shall
be the person responsible for mak-ing special education decisions. In instances where
the student is a ward of the state, a surrogate parent would have to be appointed or
some other arrangement would have to be made, because the term does not include
the state itself in the role of parent.Given the divorce rate in the United States, it is not
unusual for a student to have parents who do not live in the same household. When one
parent has legal custody, ordinarily that parent will have the authority to make decisions
about special educa-tion placement and will be the party to whom notice of special
education decisions is to be sent. In fact, both parents continue to have rights under the
IDEA unless the divorce decree specifies otherwise. Problems can arise, however,
where divorced par-ents have joint legal custody of a student. Must the school send
both parents copies of all general school notices or only notices about special education
matters? While there is not a great deal of litigation in this area, it is an issue that arises
from time to time. It seems that where there is joint legal custody, both parents retain
their rights under special education law, even when the parents disagree. This may
mean that one parent signs off on an education plan while the other seeks to challenge
it through a due pro-cess hearing. It is possible that, in extreme cases, an interim
judicial action may be necessary pending the final resolution of a case. One of the few
cases to address this issue indicates that while it is unreasonably burdensome to send
copies of routine announcements about school activities to both parents with legal
custody, they are probably both entitled to access to school records.14 It is probably
also advisable to send both parents notices about testing, placement, and other special
education matters that relate to the individual student.The Role of ParentsParents are
an essential component to the effectiveness of the IDEA. Only by requiring that parents
be apprised of their rights and informed of the procedures available is the attainment of
the IDEA goals possible. Parental participation requirements include mandatory
notification of parents at various stages of the process and mandates ensur-ing that the
opportunity for parental participation is available.15Although there is probably a general
consensus about the significance of the parental role in carrying out the requirements of
the IDEA, there are those who believe that not all students with disabilities are
benefiting from the IDEA, because they do not all have strong parental advocates. The
thought is that aggressive middle-income FOR THE USE OF GRAND CANYON
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Copyright © 2014 by SAGE Publications, Inc. 60 SPECIAL EDUCATION
LAWenactment of special education requirements, much has changed in terms of
teacher preparation, so the challenges are different.In spite of the initial negative
reaction to the IDEA, teachers have come to accept and embrace the inclusion
requirement as a fact of life in public education, and there is improvement in the amount
of support provided to the regular classroom in the form of consultation with special
educators, teaching assistants, volunteers, and others. In addition, the teacher
education programs for new teachers are likely to include experience with special
education issues and educational methodology for students with disabilities. Some
states now require experience with special education for all teachers. Teachers are also
more likely to have access to in-service training relating to special education issues to
compensate for knowledge they did not receive while acquiring their teaching
degrees.Although the attitude and preparation of the regular education teacher has
improved since 1975, there are still some serious obstacles for this teacher. The initial
funding promises and plans of the IDEA have not been entirely fulfilled by the federal
government, and there remain significant problems of understaffing in the regular
classroom. For example, placement for a student with a mild intellectual disability may
be appropriate in the regular classroom, but the student may need additional support for
certain aspects of the educational program and there may not be funding to pro-vide a
teacher’s assistant.In addition, coordination and cooperation between regular classroom
teachers and special education teachers are needed. These two groups should
communicate needs, problems, and solutions to each other. Another concern is that the
regular edu-cation teacher may need more in the way of training relating to identification
of dis-abilities, behavior management, and direct instruction methods for students who
do not learn from the traditional teaching strategies. Teacher education programs, state
certification requirements, and local hiring practices should require regular education
teachers to demonstrate these skills. A number of positive improvements have occurred
in these areas, but the need to improve regular education teacher preparation for
providing special education programming in the regular classroom is ongoing and in
serious need of attention.18 In addition to providing training and support services,
increasing the financial compensation of educators will be an essential component if
future efforts are to be successful.The 2004 amendments to the IDEA recognized the
need to have high-quality teachers and high-quality professional development training
so that teachers who provide services to students with disabilities have the skills and
knowledge necessary to use scientifically based instructional practices to improve the
academic achieve-ment and functional performance of students with disabilities.19
Under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the 2004 amendments to the IDEA, both
regular education teachers and special education teachers must contend with the highly
qualified teacher (HQT) requirements in NCLB. To be highly qualified under the IDEA, a
spe-cial education teacher now must (1) obtain full state certification as a special education tea a bachelor’s degree.20 There are slightly different requirements for teachers
who teach students to meet alternative achievement standards.21Special education
teachers that teach core academic subjects to students with dis-abilities must meet the
requirements for a highly qualified special education teacher noted above and they must
also meet the NCLB requirements for each core area taught. This means the teacher
must have a bachelor’s degree, obtain state certification, and demonstrate competency
in the core academic area taught.22 Core academic sub-jects are defined as English,
reading or language arts, mathematics, science, foreign language, civics and
government, economics, arts, history, and geography.23 Special education teachers
who teach two or more core subjects exclusively to students with disabilities are subject
to different requirements. These teachers must (1) meet the requirements of NCLB for
any elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher or (2) if the teacher is not new to
the profession, demonstrate competence in the core academic subjects taught in the
same way that NCLB requires for an elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher
who is not new to the profession; or (3) in the case of a new special education teacher
who teaches multiple subjects and who is highly qualified in mathematics, language
arts, or science, demonstrate competence in the other core academic subjects in which
the teacher teaches in the same manner as required by NCLB within two years of
hire.24To ensure that special education teachers are highly qualified, the IDEA requires
states that receive funds to establish and maintain qualifications to ensure that personnel that provide services to students with disabilities are appropriately and adequately
prepared and trained. They must have the content knowledge and skills to serve students with disabilities.25One of the skills of the special education professional is being
able to work with the regular educators in developing an appropriate program to
maintain the student in the least restrictive setting. Historically, many special education
teacher training pro-grams were developed to match definitional categories, and this
practice continues in some programs today. For example, training programs for
teachers of students with learning disabilities existed separately from teacher training
programs for teachers of students with behavior disorders (BD). But the interrelationship
of the various special education teacher preparation programs was minimal. While there
have been improve-ments in this area, it is important that this trend continue.26In recent
years, regular education and special education teachers have begun working in
collaboration. Such positive interaction is most likely to occur where there is supportive
school leadership. With the increase in another education trend—site-based
management—it will be critical that school principals have a mechanism by which to
stay current on special education requirements and the best practices to implement
them.A major concern for both the regular classroom and the special education program is teacher shortages. There continues to be a shortage of teachers adequately
trained to provide education to special students. While the IDEA requires program
personnel development for states receiving funding, the low pay and high demands of
teaching in general (and special education teaching in particular) continue to keep FOR
THE USE OF GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY STUDENTS AND FACULTY ONLY.
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USE IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. Copyright © 2014 by SAGE 62 SPECIAL
EDUCATION LAWspecial education understaffed. This situation is even more
problematic in rural and inner city areas.27 Some schools have responded to teacher
shortages by using tempo-rary certification as a vehicle to meet certification
requirements. There is much con-cern about whether teachers with temporary
certificates are adequately prepared.Previously, one of the ironies of the IDEA was that
often teachers of specialized subjects—such as art or woodworking—were the least
likely to have teacher prepara-tion to address the needs of the special student but were
the most likely to have the child with a disability placed in the class. It was not unlikely
for a student with certain disabilities to be placed in a segregated special education
class for most of the academic-type subjects but to be placed with his or her ageappropriate peers for music or art. Over the years, this practice has become less
common due to the least restrictive environment requirements in the IDEA and
increasing focus on inclusion and mainstreaming, but it is still important that teacher
certification and teacher train-ing programs recognize that teachers of special subjects
need training in behavior management, in communicating with the regular education
and special education teacher, and in teaching methodology.Another important area is
vocational education teacher training. There is an increasing awareness today that high
school students, who are at the end of the pub-lic education service system, need to be
provided with skills that will enable them to be productive members of society. One of
the primary goals of the IDEA is to pro-vide students with the knowledge and skills they
need to lead productive and inde-pendent adult lives, including preparing them for
further education and employment.28 With recognition of the importance of this
transition has come the knowledge that our public school systems are not adequately
staffed with appropri-ately trained vocational teachers.AdministratorsOne of the most
important administrators in providing special education is the local director of special
education. That person has the responsibility for ensuring that local schools are
adequately staffed with appropriately trained personnel and for overseeing the
development and implementation of the individualized education programs for each
student in the local school district. The special education director must also develop the
data necessary for obtaining funding from the state educational agency. The special
education director must plan systematic steps to help students move between regular
education and special education. It is essential that special education directors be able
to communicate with the local principal and local board of education to ensure that
appropriate policies are made and carried out.The attitude and knowledge of the local
superintendent and the school principal are also critical to the effective implementation
of special education policy. The tone and philosophy comes from the top. These are
individuals who signal by their priori-tization and personal attitudes the importance of
various educational issues.29At the state level, administrators responsible for special
education must develop the program plans for federal and state funding, ensure
appropriate funding to the FOR THE USE OF GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY
STUDENTS AND FACULTY ONLY. NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION, SALE, OR
REPRINTING. ANY AND ALL UNAUTHORIZED USE IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.
Copyright © 2014 by SAGE local school districts, and have teacher certification
requirements that ensure compre-hensive teacher preparation. It is important that state
administrators be able to coor-dinate and cooperate with other social service providers
as certain types of placements fall under the responsibility of several agencies. It is
necessary not only to coordinate the appropriate services to be provided but also to
establish which agency’s budget will fund those programs.In many states, particularly
states with large populations, an intermediate level of regional administration has been
developed. Regional activities often include develop-ment of in-service programs and
cooperative plans for providing certain services among local education agencies within
the regions.Other PersonnelProviding special education involves a variety of other
individuals within the educ
Before examining in detail the substantive and procedural requirements and the
remedies available under the laws relating to special education, it is useful to have a
sense of the various individuals who are involved in these issues. These include the
students themselves, their parents, educators, administrators, related service providers,
advocates, and decision makers. The following sections describe the major characteristics of these people. This chapter focuses on those individuals primarily from the
perspective of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
StudentsCategorizationNot all students with disabilities are covered by the IDEA. To be
eligible for the protec-tions under the IDEA, a student must fit into the definition of a
“child with a disability” under the law. The definition includes 13 categories of
disabilities. The definition states,Child with a disability means a child evaluated in
accordance with §§ 300.304 through 300.311 as having mental retardation, a hearing
impairment (including deafness), a speech or language impairment, a visual impairment
(including blindness), a serious emotional disturbance (referred to in this part as
“emotional disturbance”), an orthopedic impair-ment, autism, traumatic brain injury,
another health impairment, a specific learning dis-ability, deaf-blindness, or multiple
disabilities, and who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related
services.Each of these categories of disability has its own specific requirements that
must be met in order for a student to be eligible to receive services under the law.
These requirements are discussed in more detail in Chapter 6. States may also have a
category for children ages 3 through 9 experiencing developmental delays with physical
devel-opment, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional
development, or adaptive development.1 In October 2010, “Rosa’s Law” went into
effect. That law required a change in the term mentally retarded to intellectually disabled in all federal statutes and regulations.2It should be emphasized that the student
must not only fit into one or more of the listed categories but must also require special
education and related services because of the disability in order to be eligible for
services. Some have raised concerns about the categorization system used for
providing special education services under the IDEA. One concern is that the
categorical labels do not always accurately reflect the characteristics of the students.
Additionally, labeling may stigmatize the student, and once a student is labeled, it may
be difficult to change the label. Some believe that attaching a label to an individual may
well result in a self-fulfilling prophecy.3Some contend that the labels or categories do
not help teachers to identify the appropriate means of providing instruction and training.
As a result, some profession-als have recommended that the classification of students
be noncategorical. These recommendations have been implemented in some states.
For example, Texas, Colorado, and California train and certify special educators
noncategorically. The move away from categories had positive results in a variety of
programs throughout the country. The 2004 amendments to the IDEA provided states
with some additional discretion in this area by stating that the IDEA does not require
states to classify stu-dents by disability as long as each student who has a disability as
defined by the law and needs special education and related services is regarded as a
child with a disability. In other words, a state does not have to categorize students as
learning disabled (LD), speech/language impaired, other health impaired, and so on. It
could instead just develop a system that provides that students who meet any of the
categories of dis-ability under th The People 55While some of the legal issues relating
to labeling will be discussed more fully in Chapter 6, a few general points should be
noted here. Within the categories set out by the IDEA definition of a child with a
disability, a wide degree of difference exists among students. The educational needs of
students within these categories are corre-spondingly widely disparate. And even
students with the same functional level may have differing educational needs because
of a variety of factors. It should, therefore, be apparent that attaching a label to an
individual provides only the most general infor-mation about that student. It is one of the
reasons that individualized educational programming that goes beyond the student’s
label is required for students with dis-abilities under the IDEA. Placement and services
cannot be based just on the label.Gaps in CoverageOne category not covered by the
IDEA is gifted and talented. Although the IDEA does not provide coverage for this group
of students, many states provide special educa-tional programming for gifted students.
Several other categories of students are not comprehensively covered by the IDEA. The
first is the chronically ill student, the stu-dent with an illness such as cancer or diabetes
who may be frequently absent from school for treatment or because of illness. Students
could be covered under the law in the “other health impaired” category, but only if they
require special education and related services by reason of the disability. A student who
is frequently absent and needs a program of homebound instruction because of illness
may fit the definition.Similarly, a student with HIV or another infectious disease may
meet the defini-tion of a child with a disability for purposes of the IDEA under the “other
health impaired” category, but only if the student requires special education and related
ser-vices as a result of the disability. If the student does not require special education
services, the student could still be protected under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).This distinction in coverage can be
important if the student is seeking to take advantage of the procedural safeguards noted
in Chapter 3 that are available under the IDEA that are not available under Section 504
or the ADA. More information about the procedural safeguards under these different
statutes is provided in Chapter 12.An additional category of students are those with
attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These
conditions may affect the concentration abilities and other behaviors. At one time, there
was a debate about whether this condition should be treated as a separate disability
under the IDEA or whether it would fall under the definition of learning disability or other
health impair-ment. Because of this debate, the 1990 amendments to the IDEA required
that the United States Department of Education solicit public comments on the issue.As
a result of the comments, the United States Department of Education listed ADHD as
one of the chronic or acute health problems that can fit in the other health impaired
category.5 As with other students with chronic illness, having ADHD alone is not
sufficient to be eligible for services under the IDEA. The student must meet the other
requirements of the other health impaired category and must require special education
services. While some of the legal issues relating to labeling will be discussed more fully
in Chapter 6, a few general points should be noted here. Within the categories set out
by the IDEA definition of a child with a disability, a wide degree of difference exists
among students. The educational needs of students within these categories are correspondingly widely disparate. And even students with the same functional level may
have differing educational needs because of a variety of factors. It should, therefore, be
apparent that attaching a label to an individual provides only the most general information about that student. It is one of the reasons that individualized educational
programming that goes beyond the student’s label is required for students with disabilities under the IDEA. Placement and services cannot be based just on the
label.Gaps in CoverageOne category not covered by the IDEA is gifted and talented.
Although the IDEA does not provide coverage for this group of students, many states
provide special educa-tional programming for gifted students. Several other categories
of students are not comprehensively covered by the IDEA. The first is the chronically ill
student, the stu-dent with an illness such as cancer or diabetes who may be frequently
absent from school for treatment or because of illness. Students could be covered
under the law in the “other health impaired” category, but only if they require special
education and related services by reason of the disability. A student who is frequently
absent and needs a program of homebound instruction because of illness may fit the
definition.Similarly, a student with HIV or another infectious disease may meet the
defini-tion of a child with a disability for purposes of the IDEA under the “other health
impaired” category, but only if the student requires special education and related services as a result of the disability. If the student does not require special education
services, the student could still be protected under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).This distinction in coverage can be
important if the student is seeking to take advantage of the procedural safeguards noted
in Chapter 3 that are available under the IDEA that are not available under Section 504
or the ADA. More information about the procedural safeguards under these different
statutes is provided in Chapter 12.An additional category of students are those with
attention deficit disorder (ADD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). These
conditions may affect the concentration abilities and other behaviors. At one time, there
was a debate about whether this condition should be treated as a separate disability
under the IDEA or whether it would fall under the definition of learning disability or other
health impair-ment. Because of this debate, the 1990 amendments to the IDEA required
that the United States Department of Education solicit public comments on the issue.As
a result of the comments, the United States Department of Education listed ADHD as
one of the chronic or acute health problems that can fit in the other health impaired
category.5 As with other students with chronic illness, having ADHD alone is not
sufficient to be eligible for services under the IDEA. The student must meet the other
requirements of the other health impaired category and must require special education
services.FOR THE USE OF GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY STUDENTS AND
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Publications, Inc. 56 SPECIAL EDUCATION LAWThe medically fragile student in most
cases is protected under the IDEA, but such individuals are a group for whom education
agencies may have difficulty providing ser-vices. Medically fragile students include
those who might require suctioning6 or some other similar attention to ensure that
medical conditions do not cause injury to the stu-dent. Until 1999, there was an
unsettled legal debate involving some of these students: The mainstreaming principle
discourages homebound instruction, so the issue for school districts became how far
they had to go in providing related services that some may consider medical in nature
(like suctioning, catheterization, operating a portable ventilator for the student, etc.). A
related issue is who has to provide the services. Does a school nurse provide the
services, or can an aide or classroom teacher provide services?Understandably,
teachers are often concerned about liability related to the safety and health of medically
fragile students. If teachers are to provide services, school districts must ensure that
teachers are appropriately and adequately trained to provide them, that a backup plan is
available when there are emergencies, and that a clear pro-cedure has been developed
for providing such services.7A case that helped to resolve this issue is the Supreme
Court decision in Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F.8 In that case, a
high school student who had been paralyzed at age four required a variety of services
for his physical needs while in school. These services included bladder catheterization,
suctioning of a tra-cheotomy tube, feeding, positioning, and ventilator services. The
services required some degree of training but did not require that a physician perform
them. The Supreme Court held that, although they are intensive and costly, if a doctor is
not required to perform the services and the student requires the services to be able to
attend school, then the educational agency has the obligation to provide or fund these
services during school hours under the IDEA.Another category of students who may fall
through the cracks between special and regular education is the slow learner. Unless a
student is defined as learning disabled, intellectually disabled, or one of the other
categories of disability under the IDEA, he or she is not entitled to the individualization
and special attention accorded to the student with a disability under the
IDEA.Historically, regular education was often geared toward the average student,
which meant that the slow learner’s needs might not be met in a traditional educational
pro-gram. Today, there are ongoing efforts in many places to provide differentiated
instruction within the classroom for all students to address the different learning styles
and abilities of students. These efforts are outside of the IDEA’s
requirements.Additionally, over the years, there has been some disagreement among
profession-als about the definition of learning disabled. Some contend that the definition
used in the IDEA has led to the misclassification of some students, with some students
who are really slow learners being classified as learning disabled under the law and
others who are actually learning disabled not being classified as learning disabled under
the law. Congress and the United States Department of Education attempted to address
some of the issues with the learning disability classification when the IDEA was
amended in 2004, and new implementing regulations were issued in 2006. These
change Students who are socially maladjusted constitute another category that is not
spe-cifically covered under the IDEA. There has been a substantial controversy over the
years about whether to identify or even separate socially maladjusted students from
those who meet the definition of emotionally disturbed and whether it is possible to do
so. The definition of emotional disturbance in the IDEA’s regulations states that it does
not include students who are socially maladjusted unless they have an emotional
disturbance.9 Thus the issue becomes whether the social maladjustment can be separated diagnostically from other ailments the student may have that could be covered
under the emotionally disturbed category.10Students who are addicted to drugs or
alcohol present unique difficulties. Alcohol and drug addiction itself is not considered a
disability under the IDEA. These students would be protected under the IDEA only if
they required special education and related services under one of the recognized
categories of disability. Even when such students are not entitled to special education
under the IDEA, there may be instances in which they would be given some protection
against adverse treatment because of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act or the ADA.
Clearly, this is an area where there is an increas-ing need for services, but at this point,
the primary responsibility for these services does not fall on the school system within
special education mandates.In sum, most students entitled to special education are
more different from each other than they are alike. They are more like other students in
the school system than they are different. But for most of them, their differences require
specialized instruc-tion and some accommodation if they are to benefit from the
educational system.It is also important to note that historically, most attention to special
education students has occurred on the elementary school level. This is reflected in
program-ming and teacher training. There has, however, been an increasing recognition
in the education field of the importance of early education and the transition at the
second-ary level to the workplace or postsecondary opportunities. This recognition is
reflected in changes to the IDEA promoting prevention and early intervention (including
early childhood and infant programs) and an increasing emphasis on vocational training
and transition services for special education students.ParentsWho Are Parents?When
determining the special education placement of an individual entitled to ser-vices under
the IDEA, the individual who will usually be asked to consent to the evaluation,
placement, or other decision is the parent. Children under the age of majority as defined
in state law (usually 18 years of age) are generally presumed legally incompetent under
the IDEA to consent to decisions made on their behalf. The prefer-ences of the
individual may be a consideration, particularly with matters such as tran-sition services,
and the student may participate in the special education process, but the parents make
the decisions. As a result, the procedural protections under the IDEA menti 58 SPECIAL
EDUCATION LAWstudent is under the age of majority. Once the student reaches the
age of majority, the procedural and other rights under the IDEA transfer to the student
unless the student has been determined to be incompetent under state law.11 The
parents maintain a right to notice along with the student under the IDEA even when the
student reaches the age of majority.12For purposes of the IDEA, whenever reference is
made to decision making or involvement by the parent, the term is intended to include
not only the actual parent but also possibly a grandparent, a stepparent, a surrogate
parent appointed by the court or a social service agency, or a court-appointed
guardian.13 The intent is that the per-son who is legally responsible for the student shall
be the person responsible for mak-ing special education decisions. In instances where
the student is a ward of the state, a surrogate parent would have to be appointed or
some other arrangement would have to be made, because the term does not include
the state itself in the role of parent.Given the divorce rate in the United States, it is not
unusual for a student to have parents who do not live in the same household. When one
parent has legal custody, ordinarily that parent will have the authority to make decisions
about special educa-tion placement and will be the party to whom notice of special
education decisions is to be sent. In fact, both parents continue to have rights under the
IDEA unless the divorce decree specifies otherwise. Problems can arise, however,
where divorced par-ents have joint legal custody of a student. Must the school send
both parents copies of all general school notices or only notices about special education
matters? While there is not a great deal of litigation in this area, it is an issue that arises
from time to time. It seems that where there is joint legal custody, both parents retain
their rights under special education law, even when the parents disagree. This may
mean that one parent signs off on an education plan while the other seeks to challenge
it through a due pro-cess hearing. It is possible that, in extreme cases, an interim
judicial action may be necessary pending the final resolution of a case. One of the few
cases to address this issue indicates that while it is unreasonably burdensome to send
copies of routine announcements about school activities to both parents with legal
custody, they are probably both entitled to access to school records.14 It is probably
also advisable to send both parents notices about testing, placement, and other special
education matters that relate to the individual student.The Role of ParentsParents are
an essential component to the effectiveness of the IDEA. Only by requiring that parents
be apprised of their rights and informed of the procedures available is the attainment of
the IDEA goals possible. Parental participation requirements include mandatory
notification of parents at various stages of the process and mandates ensur-ing that the
opportunity for parental participation is available.15Although there is probably a general
consensus about the significance of the parental role in carrying out the requirements of
the IDEA, there are those who believe that not all students with disabilities are
benefiting from the IDEA, because they do not all have strong parental advocates. The
thought is that aggressive middle-income FOR THE USE OF GRAND CANYON
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LAWenactment of special education requirements, much has changed in terms of
teacher preparation, so the challenges are different.In spite of the initial negative
reaction to the IDEA, teachers have come to accept and embrace the inclusion
requirement as a fact of life in public education, and there is improvement in the amount
of support provided to the regular classroom in the form of consultation with special
educators, teaching assistants, volunteers, and others. In addition, the teacher
education programs for new teachers are likely to include experience with special
education issues and educational methodology for students with disabilities. Some
states now require experience with special education for all teachers. Teachers are also
more likely to have access to in-service training relating to special education issues to
compensate for knowledge they did not receive while acquiring their teaching
degrees.Although the attitude and preparation of the regular education teacher has
improved since 1975, there are still some serious obstacles for this teacher. The initial
funding promises and plans of the IDEA have not been entirely fulfilled by the federal
government, and there remain significant problems of understaffing in the regular
classroom. For example, placement for a student with a mild intellectual disability may
be appropriate in the regular classroom, but the student may need additional support for
certain aspects of the educational program and there may not be funding to pro-vide a
teacher’s assistant.In addition, coordination and cooperation between regular classroom
teachers and special education teachers are needed. These two groups should
communicate needs, problems, and solutions to each other. Another concern is that the
regular edu-cation teacher may need more in the way of training relating to identification
of dis-abilities, behavior management, and direct instruction methods for students who
do not learn from the traditional teaching strategies. Teacher education programs, state
certification requirements, and local hiring practices should require regular education
teachers to demonstrate these skills. A number of positive improvements have occurred
in these areas, but the need to improve regular education teacher preparation for
providing special education programming in the regular classroom is ongoing and in
serious need of attention.18 In addition to providing training and support services,
increasing the financial compensation of educators will be an essential component if
future efforts are to be successful.The 2004 amendments to the IDEA recognized the
need to have high-quality teachers and high-quality professional development training
so that teachers who provide services to students with disabilities have the skills and
knowledge necessary to use scientifically based instructional practices to improve the
academic achieve-ment and functional performance of students with disabilities.19
Under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) and the 2004 amendments to the IDEA, both
regular education teachers and special education teachers must contend with the highly
qualified teacher (HQT) requirements in NCLB. To be highly qualified under the IDEA, a
spe-cial education teacher now must (1) obtain full state certification as a special education tea a bachelor’s degree.20 There are slightly different requirements for teachers
who teach students to meet alternative achievement standards.21Special education
teachers that teach core academic subjects to students with dis-abilities must meet the
requirements for a highly qualified special education teacher noted above and they must
also meet the NCLB requirements for each core area taught. This means the teacher
must have a bachelor’s degree, obtain state certification, and demonstrate competency
in the core academic area taught.22 Core academic sub-jects are defined as English,
reading or language arts, mathematics, science, foreign language, civics and
government, economics, arts, history, and geography.23 Special education teachers
who teach two or more core subjects exclusively to students with disabilities are subject
to different requirements. These teachers must (1) meet the requirements of NCLB for
any elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher or (2) if the teacher is not new to
the profession, demonstrate competence in the core academic subjects taught in the
same way that NCLB requires for an elementary, middle, or secondary school teacher
who is not new to the profession; or (3) in the case of a new special education teacher
who teaches multiple subjects and who is highly qualified in mathematics, language
arts, or science, demonstrate competence in the other core academic subjects in which
the teacher teaches in the same manner as required by NCLB within two years of
hire.24To ensure that special education teachers are highly qualified, the IDEA requires
states that receive funds to establish and maintain qualifications to ensure that personnel that provide services to students with disabilities are appropriately and adequately
prepared and trained. They must have the content knowledge and skills to serve students with disabilities.25One of the skills of the special education professional is being
able to work with the regular educators in developing an appropriate program to
maintain the student in the least restrictive setting. Historically, many special education
teacher training pro-grams were developed to match definitional categories, and this
practice continues in some programs today. For example, training programs for
teachers of students with learning disabilities existed separately from teacher training
programs for teachers of students with behavior disorders (BD). But the interrelationship
of the various special education teacher preparation programs was minimal. While there
have been improve-ments in this area, it is important that this trend continue.26In recent
years, regular education and special education teachers have begun working in
collaboration. Such positive interaction is most likely to occur where there is supportive
school leadership. With the increase in another education trend—site-based
management—it will be critical that school principals have a mechanism by which to
stay current on special education requirements and the best practices to implement
them.A major concern for both the regular classroom and the special education program is teacher shortages. There continues to be a shortage of teachers adequately
trained to provide education to special students. While the IDEA requires program
personnel development for states receiving funding, the low pay and high demands of
teaching in general (and special education teaching in particular) continue to keep FOR
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EDUCATION LAWspecial education understaffed. This situation is even more
problematic in rural and inner city areas.27 Some schools have responded to teacher
shortages by using tempo-rary certification as a vehicle to meet certification
requirements. There is much con-cern about whether teachers with temporary
certificates are adequately prepared.Previously, one of the ironies of the IDEA was that
often teachers of specialized subjects—such as art or woodworking—were the least
likely to have teacher prepara-tion to address the needs of the special student but were
the most likely to have the child with a disability placed in the class. It was not unlikely
for a student with certain disabilities to be placed in a segregated special education
class for most of the academic-type subjects but to be placed with his or her ageappropriate peers for music or art. Over the years, this practice has become less
common due to the least restrictive environment requirements in the IDEA and
increasing focus on inclusion and mainstreaming, but it is still important that teacher
certification and teacher train-ing programs recognize that teachers of special subjects
need training in behavior management, in communicating with the regular education
and special education teacher, and in teaching methodology.Another important area is
vocational education teacher training. There is an increasing awareness today that high
school students, who are at the end of the pub-lic education service system, need to be
provided with skills that will enable them to be productive members of society. One of
the primary goals of the IDEA is to pro-vide students with the knowledge and skills they
need to lead productive and inde-pendent adult lives, including preparing them for
further education and employment.28 With recognition of the importance of this
transition has come the knowledge that our public school systems are not adequately
staffed with appropri-ately trained vocational teachers.AdministratorsOne of the most
important administrators in providing special education is the local director of special
education. That person has the responsibility for ensuring that local schools are
adequately staffed with appropriately trained personnel and for overseeing the
development and implementation of the individualized education programs for each
student in the local school district. The special education director must also develop the
data necessary for obtaining funding from the state educational agency. The special
education director must plan systematic steps to help students move between regular
education and special education. It is essential that special education directors be able
to communicate with the local principal and local board of education to ensure that
appropriate policies are made and carried out.The attitude and knowledge of the local
superintendent and the school principal are also critical to the effective implementation
of special education policy. The tone and philosophy comes from the top. These are
individuals who signal by their priori-tization and personal attitudes the importance of
various educational issues.29At the state level, administrators responsible for special
education must develop the program plans for federal and state funding, ensure
appropriate funding to the FOR THE USE OF GRAND CANYON UNIVERSITY
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Copyright © 2014 by SAGE local school districts, and have teacher certification
requirements that ensure compre-hensive teacher preparation. It is important that state
administrators be able to coor-dinate and cooperate with other social service providers
as certain types of placements fall under the responsibility of several agencies. It is
necessary not only to coordinate the appropriate services to be provided but also to
establish which agency’s budget will fund those programs.In many states, particularly
states with large populations, an intermediate level of regional administration has been
developed. Regional activities often include develop-ment of in-service programs and
cooperative plans for providing certain services among local education agencies within
the regions.Other PersonnelProviding special education involves a variety of other
individuals within the educ
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