Introduction

History of Discrimination

IDEA

Section 504

ADA

Conclusion

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Special education could not be what it is today without IDEA. It was passed by Congress in 1975 and has been revised several times since then. IDEA was enacted into law in order to ensure that all children with disabilities were protected and entitled to their rights. In 1986, IDEA was revised to include infants and preschoolers.

Until this revision, IDEA only covered individuals with disabilities who were in the age range of 6-21. In a nutshell, IDEA was created to make sure children with disabilities received a free and appropriate education specifically designed to meet each student’s unique needs. There are six major principles that support this notion of a free and appropriate education. They are:

Zero Reject: The zero reject principle states that it is the school’s responsibility to educate ALL children with disabilities. The nature or severity of the disability is irrelevant. It is the responsibility of the state education agency to locate and evaluate all children who have disabilities or are suspected of having disabilities, from birth to age 21 who live in that state.

Nondiscriminatory Identification and Evaluation: When determining if a child has a disability or is in need of special education, the school must use fair and accurate evaluation procedures that are unbiased and multifaceted. Evaluations should always be given in the child’s native language. Evaluations should also control for any possible bias of race, culture, or language.

Free, Appropriate Public Education (FAPE): This is to assure that all students with disabilities receive an appropriate public education that is provided at no cost to the family. Also, an individualized education program (IEP) must be developed for any child receiving special education. Each child receiving special education must have his or her educational goals included within the IEP.

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE): This principle demands that students with disabilities be educated with their peers without disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate. If this means a student can function in the same classroom as his peers so long as he has aids or supports, those aids or supports should be provided to that student by the school. Students with disabilities should only be removed to separate classes or schools if the nature or severity of their disabilities prevents them from receiving an appropriate education in the general education classroom, even with aids and supports.

Due Process Safeguards: Safeguards are included in IDEA to protect the rights of students with disabilities and their parents. These major safeguards are:

(a) Parental consent must be obtained before any evaluations are conducted or placement decisions are made in regards to special education.
(b) Confidentiality of all student records must be maintained by the school, although records must be made available to the child’s parents should they request them.
(c) If parents disagree with the school’s evaluation decisions regarding their child, they may get an independent evaluation at public expense.
(d) If parents disagree with the school’s decision(s) regarding identification, evaluation, placement, or services, they may request a due process hearing.
Parent and Student Participation and Shared Decision Making: The parents and students (whenever possible) must be included in all decisions regarding the student’s education. This includes designing and implementing special education services, placement decisions, IEP objectives and goals, and related services.

As a peer tutor, the least restrictive environment principle described above affects you also. As more students who have disabilities become more included in the general curriculum, there is more of a demand for support in the general education classes. It is typically more comfortable for a student with a disability to have a peer assist him or her in the classroom instead of one of the teacher’s assistants. This is more natural and keeps the student with a disability from standing out among the rest of his or her peers in the classroom.

IDEA is one of the most significant and positive things to happen to the field of special education. Now let’s look at some anti-discrimination laws that protect individuals with disabilities, starting with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. These anti-discrimination laws are important because they are not only concerned with education, but with other aspects of society as well.