Your Big City View.

Take your big breath as we gaze out over the big city view of special education.  Don’t feel the fear of the heights just enjoy the overview. 

The problem most of us have when we start with an overlook of the special education system is that it is often like looking out the top of a very tall building.   The view may be spectacular, but the city can look overwhelming.   Add in a bit of a fear of heights and we want to back right away from that edge.   Yet where do we spend most of our time?  We spend in on the ground.  Learning the streets, the stores, and how to get home is what is essential in a city. 

This is how special education law and advocacy actually will be in practice – it will be walking the city streets, climbing up the hills, and dealing with mail delivery.    That said, it is important to look out in a wide overview at the beginning, see where the city begins and ends, and take a moment to take in the view. It is not meant to give you a fear of heights or to overwhelm you, it is just meant to give you a good picture of the totality of the laws.   And do not worry, from there we are going to be spending most of our time in the local streets and learning how to be street smart.   I mean knowing those streets called FAPE and LRE – the Least Restrictive Environment – those are a must when it comes to navigating this city, but for right now, just tae a look out. The other pages start to take you along the streets - this just gives you a view of the city.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 

This is the primary federal law providing the structure for special education in the public school system.  It is your neighborhood, and these will be your streets.  In other words, if you forget every other law we discuss, this is the one to remember.  

IDEA is the law that provides for special education procedural safeguards and rights and ensures that public schools provide an appropriate education for students with disabilities. It provides the requirements for school system for education of students with educational challenges. This law ensures students with a disability are provided with a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) that is tailored to their individual and unique needs and delivered with specialized instruction.

 IDEA is composed of four sections that apply to the provision of public education, divided into parts A through D.    IDEA is what provides the guidance and requirements for your child’s IEP; which includes the structure of the IEP, the continuum of services and placements that must be offered, the least restrictive environment, related services, transition services,  and all of the other available components that we will discuss in this book.   This law is found at 20 USC § 1400, with regulations appearing at 34 CFR § 300. It is important to understand this law will be referenced in both ways throughout this book. Both are citations to IDEA. 

The purpose of IDEA is:

 a) To ensure that all children with disabilities have available to them a free appropriate public education that emphasizes special education and related services designed to meet their unique needs and prepare them for further education, employment, and independent living;

(b) To ensure that the rights of children with disabilities and their parents are protected;

(c) To assist States, localities, educational service agencies, and Federal agencies to provide for the education of all children with disabilities; and

(d) To assess and ensure the effectiveness of efforts to educate children with disabilities.  34 CFR § 300.1 & 20 U.S.C. 1400 (d) 

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

We will also be covering this law so that you have a good understanding of the difference between a Section 504 plan and an Individualized Education Plan (IEP).   Section 504 is an antidiscrimination law that is often used to provide for accommodations for the disabled children, whether or not they qualify for special education services under the IDEA. A Section 504 Plan is simply an accommodation plan and can be used for children with ADD, diabetes, cancer, or any other disability that significantly affects their ability to function. This law is found at 29 USC § 794, with regulations appearing at 34 CFR § 104.

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

FERPA gives parents of all students the right to inspect all information maintained by the school district in connection with their child.   FERPA is often misunderstood by parents and it is often misused by schools which is why we are going to be covering this a bit as well throughout the book.   How many parents are there out there who are told that you cannot observe your child’s program because of FERPA and that you might see other children?  Show of hands now…..  That said, I bet this same group is always welcomed on field trips where you do in fact see other children, right?  This is why actually learning about FERPA can be helpful.   There are no private rights under FERPA, which means that you cannot privately enforce FERPA violations even when you unfortunately find that IEP blowing across the parking lot or get a copy of another child’s entire file by accident.  This law is found at 20 USC §1232g, with regulations appearing at 34 CFR § 99.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on disability. It protects students, employees, and anyone who has a disability. It is thanks to the ADA we see handicap parking spots, handicap access doors, and that we have accessibility in public schools.   We will not be covering the ADA in this book but it can be helpful to recognize this law and know that it can be used in education discrimination matters.  This law is found at 42 USC § 12101, with regulations appearing at 28 CFR § 35.