History of Special Education

The classification of Autism was introduced by Dr. Leo Lanner of John Hopkins University.

The National Association for Retarded Citizens came about. NARC was formed by 23 individual advocacy groups that had the same belief so they came together as one. During the passing of IDEA, the NARC consisted of over 200,000 members. NARC helped with litigation and making sure that all parts of the judicial process were met.

A landmark court case that overturned Plessy v. Ferguson case saying that “Separate is not equal”. This court case brought attention to black v. white’s in school and special need students v. general education students. This case encouraged the formation of many advocacy groups to inform the public of need of special education programs.

The ESEA did not make it law to educate students with disabilities but it did give grants to state school sand institutions that put into place programs to educate students with disabilities.

Sided in favor of students with intellectual and learning disabilities in state-run institutions. PARC v. Penn called for students with disabilities to be places in publicly funded school settings that met their individual educational needs, based on a proper and through evaluation.

The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia students classified as “Exceptional”. This includes those with mental and learning disabilities and behavioral issues. This ruling made it unlawful for the D.C. Board of Education to deny these individuals access to publicly funded educational opportunity.

This center was made at UC Berkley by Ed Roberts to support the needs of individuals with disabilities so they can live independently and away from nursing homes and other institutions.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act allows protection from discrimination of special needs and disabilities. Tis law is considered the first law giving protection to students with special needs. This law includes FAPE and LRE. Students are eligible when they have either a physical or mental disability that inhibits their learning experience.

This act made sure that all students with disabilities are educated in public schools. EAHCA included providing free educations, special education for children 3-21, supplemental services, due process, zero reject, and least restrictive environment.

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) means that with a student’s IEP , they must also be in as many regular education classes as possible. This ensures that the student has social experiences. In LRE classrooms paras and aids are usually required.

A landmark case that designed the Rowley Two-Part test in determining whether FAPE is being met according to a student IEP. The two part test consists of questions asking if the school fulfilled the procedures of IDEA and “is the IEP developed through the procedures of the act”. If these two questions are answered correctly, then FAPE and IDEA have been met.

Signed by Ronald Regan the Handicapped Children’s Protection Act was a law that gave parents of children with disabilities more say in the development of their child’s Individual Education Plan (IEP)

The Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law by President George W. Bush. The act promises people with special needs will have the same rights as everybody else. This includes both school and work. This act also stated that people with special needs cannot be discriminated against in schools, the workplace, and everyday society such as public transportation.

The individuals with disabilities Education Act was also signed into law by George W. Bush. This law includes 6 pillars: FAPE, LRE, IEP, evaluation, parent/student participation, and all procedural safeguards for participants. This law also has 4 sections.

No Child Left Behind was signed into law by President George W. Bush. This law states that all students should be proficient in math and reading by 2014. This law had some states asking to not be part of it. Some schools have been caught falsifying scores while others took it seriously and reported if they were not proficient.

The re-authorization of IDEA made many changes to the original. The changes include the IEP, due process, and student discipline.