(VERMONT) Act 157
In 1996 Act 230 was reauthorized as Act 157 and requires that schools develop a comprehensive educational support system (ESS) with the capacity to provide a range of social, academic and behavioral supports. Act 157 extends the focus beyond academics to include those factors that may have a detrimental impact on a student's school performance (i.e. nutrition, mental health, challenging life circumstances). IST's became educational support teams (EST's) to reflect the broader focus.
(FEDERAL) The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1997
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as PL 94-142 is now called, makes special education and related services (physical education, counseling, transportation, etc.) a federal entitlement for students with disabilities. It requires that these students be offered a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment and focuses on parent participation, procedural safeguards and confidentiality. Amendments have extended the entitlement for education to students three to five and addressed the needs of infants and toddlers with disabilities and their families. States receiving federal education funds are required to identify and evaluate students with disabilities and offer them an individualized education plan (IEP) or, in the case of infants and toddlers, an individual family service plan (IFSP) of special education and related services.
On the website for GreatSchools, a national nonprofit whose mission is to inspire and guide parents to become effective champions of their children's education at home and in their communities, Brett Schaeffer provides a clear and concise overview of the history of IDEA and the 2005 Re-authorization1. As I read in my exploration of the history of education in America with Joel Spring, it became apparent that addressing the needs of students with learning disabilities was not taken seriously until advocacy led to legal action in the late 1960s. Since then, parents, educators and Learning Disability (LD) advocates have continually combined forces (every five years as the IDEA legislation comes under review) to enhance the legal proceedings and rights for special needs students. Historically, their efforts have related to providing services to students with disabilities, access to the general curriculum (1997 Re-authorization) and most recently (2005 Re-authorization) to the identification of learning disabilities. Previously, IDEA required that learning disabilities be determined through the significant discrepancy model. This compared a student's intellectual capabilities to their actual academic success. Although this model does clearly identify learning disabilities, it requires that the student fall behind in school before disabilities can be addressed. Advocates instead supported Response to Intervention (RtI), an approach that seeks to "prevent academic failure through early intervention, frequent progress measurement and increasingly intensive research-based instructional interventions for children who continue to have difficulty."2 The requirement for significant discrepancy was removed from the 2005 IDEA re-authorization.
(FEDERAL) Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
This law protects people with disabilities from discrimination in any program or activity receiving federal funding. Students with disabilities that substantially limit a major life activity such as learning, working, hearing, speaking, etc. may require an individual accommodation plan or specific services to ensure access to education and school sponsored activities.
(FEDERAL) Title 1
Title I is one of the nation's oldest and largest federal programs supporting elementary and secondary education. More than 90 percent of the school systems in the United States receive some sort of Title I funding.
Through Title I, the federal government disburses money to school districts based on the number of low-income families in each district as determined by census data. Each district uses its Title I money to supplement and improve regular education programs offered to help students meet state standards.
Title I is based on three important ideas:
1. All students should have a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and to reach, at minimum, proficiency on state academic standards and assessments.Students served by Title I funds include migrant children and youth; children and youth with limited English proficiency; children and youth who are homeless; children and youth who have disabilities; children and youth who are neglected, delinquent or at-risk; children in preschool activities; and any child or youth who is in academic need.
2. Local districts, schools, and parents know best what their students need to succeed. The Title I program allows them to decide how to use these funds to implement research-based proven practices to help students who are failing or who are at risk of failing in school.
3. Parents are partners in helping all students achieve. They have the right to be involved in the design and operation of their school's Title I program, and, at the same time, a responsibility to help their children succeed in school.
MY REFLECTIONS: As I read through these items I found that, although it was insightful for me to encounter them, they have an abstract relation to the specifics of being a teacher. I decided that I should focus my time here on the nitty gritty of an IEP. Guided by real IEPs, I created an entirely fictional one and explain my understanding in the following Voicethread:
1 Schaeffer, B. (2010). The history and reauthorization of IDEA. Retrieved May, 2012, from http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/legal-rights/803-the-history-and-reauthorization-of-idea.gs?page=2↩
2 Cortiella, C. (2007). Response-to-intervention: An emerging method for LD identification. Retrieved May, 2012, from http://www.greatschools.org/special-education/LD-ADHD/883-emerging-method-for-ld-identification.gs↩
I love the use of Voice Thread here although it was a little sluggish in the download, for some reason. Are you familiar with Mel Levine's work on special needs? What do you know about the Reauthorization of IDEA and introduction of RtI? Karla
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