Carol Ann Heath, Ed.D. Children with Disabilities, Early Intervention Services, Special Education, Uncategorized

Changing Special Education

In spite of what many younger educators and parents of children with disabilities may think, special education has formally existed since post the World Wars era. Limb loss and head injury were the initial issues addressed by hospitals and adult services. Schools for the deaf and blind have existed since the 1800s. The first school for the deaf in the United States was founded in 1817 in Hartford, Connecticut. The first school for the blind was the Perkins School for the Blind, founded in 1829 in Massachusetts. Major access by a wider range of children with disabilities occurred in the mid-1900s, with public and private schools available within some communities and institutional settings. By 1960, special schools were the main strategy to provide educational services, particularly for students with significant disabilities.

In the 1970s, several states had begun to enact laws mandating educational services to all students with disabilities, 5-18 years of age. By the mid-1970s, some states had enacted requirements, three to 21 years of age but many of these students were still served in separate classrooms or special schools. Through the 1970s, some states had begun to provide classes in general education settings, with services provided within these settings, including occupational, physical, and speech therapy.

The Education for Handicapped Children Act was a Federal law passed in 1975 and required states to provide special education to all children 5 to 18 years of age nationwide through assessments of their needs and the development of individualized education programs (IEPs). The IEP detailed individual education interventions and therapies for each student with a wide range of disabilities.

In 1990, the law was reauthorized as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1990. After 1990, multiple reauthorizations have been enacted by Congress. These authorized many student changes to support children with disabilities and their families, including preschool special education services. In 1986, Part H, now Part C, was enacted, authorizing services for children from birth to 3 and provided funding to states to develop programs.

Carol Ann Heath, Ed.D. Uncategorized

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Carol Ann Heath, Ed.D. Children with Disabilities, Early Intervention Services, Special Education

Washington Post and Rights of Students with Disabilities: My field has moved back, not forward.

To say I was let down would be an exaggeration. I waited with great hopes for the Panel Discussion on the current chaotic state of the education of students with disabilities and the lack of implementation of the requirements of the IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act).

The panel discussants were eloquent, polished in their presentations, and vibrant. They included the secretary of the federal Department of Education, the Ford Foundation program officer for disability rights, and the CEO of the National Center for Learning Disabilities. The moderator did not ask challenging questions but encouraged the presenters on the theme of their professional expertise. 

The title “Disability Rights in U. S. Schools” was only lightly touched on but on the broadest subject of access throughout life and work settings. The major themes included the shortage of teachers, professional development, salary, working conditions, and respect for the profession, all very critical issues in teacher retention. 

The rights of students with disabilities, over 15% of the public school student population, to implementation of their IEPs (Individualized Education Plans) in the appropriate educational setting were not mentioned. For some students, this would be in an inclusive classroom, while for others, special settings may be appropriate for the implementation of their IEP. The role of parents and their rights in the special education process were not mentioned. At the state and local level, where special education happens, the costs of special education are an explosive issue for education budgets, frequently a target for advocates of non-disabled students. Federal funding covers less than 10% of the costs, depending on the wealth of the state and local system. 

Key to a discussion of the rights of students with disabilities is the recognition of the specific legal and procedural requirements, in addition to the push for inclusive educational environments, and teacher training and compensation.

Carol Ann Heath, Ed.D. Children with Disabilities, Early Intervention Services, Special Education, Topic of the Day, Uncategorized

Changes in Attitude and Language

Check out this article from USA TODAY:

‘I am not ashamed’: Disability advocates, experts implore you to stop saying ‘special needs’

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/health-wellness/2021/06/11/disabled-not-special-needs-experts-explain-why-never-use-term/7591024002/

Having worked in the fields of early intervention services and special education for many decades, this story has a tired theme but one that may resonant with younger parents and professionals. My first teaching job was in 1971. I was teaching a class of “multiply handicapped” students in a school for the severely mentally retarded and educable children.

In 1975 the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EAHCA) a comprehensive federal law known as Public Law 94-142, was enacted. It required public schools to provide a free appropriate education for all children with disabilities, ages 3 to 21. When the law was reauthorized in 1990 it was changed to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Subsequently the terms of “retarded” and physical handicaps were discarded and collapsed to the disabled.

During this time, the concept of “special needs” crept into the increasingly benign language and included those with mental health, cognitive impairments, physical disabilities, and increasingly, autism. Many parents described their children as having unique learning needs or accommodations.

Then, while I was teaching graduate students, the term of humanity first was the preferred description. Students with disabilities or students with learning challenges, emphazing that all children were children and the accompanying descriptions were secondary coniderations.

This article emphasizes the new movement with an emphasis on identify first, hence the return of the disabled student, child, or adult. It appears to be in keeping with the societal movement toward identifyinng differences as primary, underemphasizing our membership in humanity and our wholeness.

Given my longevity in this field, I am not comfortable returning to a term that can be used as a pejorative description. It has taken many years for the disabled to achieve parity with the able-bodied. When we live in a country with a President who used disability mannerisms as a political tool and a poor attempt at humor, we need to be reminded that we are all people with unique needs.

Carol Ann Heath, Ed.D. Children with Disabilities, Special Education, Uncategorized

What Happened Before Special Education and Early Intervention?

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Photo by Ann H on Pexels.com

Many scholarly texts exist on what this nation has accomplished related to services for young children and school-age children in childcare and school settings.  Prior to this century, the focus was more on societal attitudes towards individuals with disabilities and not on access to services or the legal rights of the disabled.  Many children with disabilities were subject to abuse, abandonment, and isolation within institutional settings.  As the Enlightenment spread and the rise of Christianity across the world, a focus on the medical treatment of disabilities emerged.  Europe began making instruction available during the eighteenth century.  The United States followed in the nineteenth century, battling decades of bias and stigmatization.