Running Head: The History and Importance of IDEIA 1

The History and Importance of IDEIA:

Supporting Exceptional Children

Rebecca L. Pinkerton

Dakota State University

The History and Importance of IDEIA 2

Abstract

IDEIA was developed to help children with disabilities receive the same rights that

nondisabled students acquired. This essay is to elaborate on the importance of Individuals with

Disabilities Education Improvement Act and how it affects children with a disability. It discusses

IDEIA and the history behind it, including court cases that influenced and built parts of IDEIA.

Some court cases include ​Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Stuart v. Nappi, ​and ​Honing

v. Doe​. All thirteen categories of disabilities in IDEIA will be interpreted. Throughout the essay

accommodations, Free Appropriate Public Education, and IEP’s will be thoroughly examined.

Disabilities, impairments, handicaps, and at risk students will be defined. Also, the process of the

IEP is clearly laid out.

The History and Importance of IDEIA 3

The History and Importance of IDEIA

Before 1975, children with a disability were regarded in the most deficient of terms and

were not acknowledged. Schools and other public places had the right to ban a child or an adult

with a disability. Then there was the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which included Section 504.

Section 504 states that states who receive federal funding were banned on the bases of

discrimination, exclusion, or segregation of people with a disability (Aron & Loprest, 2012).

Those covered by Section 504 must be qualified under the state that the child is in and the federal

law depending on the program.Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act or

IDEIA was established in 1975 by Congress and signed by President Ford. Education for All

Handicapped Children Act was revised in 1990 to Individuals with Disabilities Act and then in

2004 to Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA).

IDEIA has several parts that have been added to it over the years to ensure children with

disabilities can receive equivalent rights as those who do not have a disability. Part one and two

were established when IDEIA was created. Part one states that all students with a disability can

attend public school with service that are designed to meet their needs. They were allowed to

have a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment, which is

in a classroom alongside those who are nondisabled. Part two authorizes federal grants to states

to help fund the cost of having special education services for students between the age of three to

twenty-one (Aron & Loprest, 2012). Part three was established in 1986 as a federal grant, eleven

years after IDEIA was created. It focuses more on children who are born with a disability or

significant delay to age two. The goal was to focus on enhancing infants with a disability in order
The History and Importance of IDEIA 4

for it to reduce the cost, improve academic opportunities, improve futuristic opportunities, and

improve the likelihood of that child being able to depend on themselves in the future.

Court Cases

Many court cases have influenced the creation of IDEIA. One of them being ​Brown v.

Board of Education of Topeka​ was the beginning of a movement to revitalize how the school

system can open their doors to more diverse students. ​Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka​ in

1954 was a supreme court case that states that racial segregation within public schools violated

the equal dependent clause of the fourteenth amendment (McBride, 2006). It made it so those of

different races could go to the same schools. This brought up the question, “Why couldn’t

children with disabilities have the same rights to a proper education as children who are

nondisabled?”

More court cases were established during the time of IDEIA to better benefit

children.One of the court cases was ​Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children (PARC) v.

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in 1972​. It states that since the courts could not prove that

children with a disability was unteachable or to demonstrate a rational reason to segregate them

from other children, they were allowed a free public education (Heward 2006). PARC also

included that the parents had the right to know in advance if anything were to change on their

child's Individual Education Program (IEP).

When disciplining exceptional students, there are several court cases that regulate the

disciplining factors. In 1978, ​Stuart v. Nappi ​mandated that a school district cannot discipline an

exceptional child if the behavior is related to their disability (Zilz 2006). Also, in 1988 ​Honing v.

Doe​ confirmed that a school district cannot suspend exceptional children for more than ten days
The History and Importance of IDEIA 5

due to it potentially causing them a setback in their academics. To determine whether or not the

student's disability was the cause and what to do in case it was not the cause the IEP team forms

a review called Manifestation Determination. ​Timothy W. v. Rochester School District of 1989

ruled that if an exceptional child would only benefit a small amount or none at all from special

education services than the school does not have to provide them. However, this ruling was

appealed later that same year and ruled that public schools must educate all children with

disabilities regardless of how little they may benefit. Finally, the ​Board of Education of the

Hendrick Hudson Central State District v. Rowley of 1982 ​determined that exceptional children

would receive special services such as assistive technology that the school would provide when

needed to benefit their academic performance.

Major Principles of IDEIA

There are six major principles that IDEIA must follow such as Zero Reject, Least

Restrictive Environment (LRE), Procedural Safeguards, Parent Participation and Shared

Decision Making, Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), and Nondiscriminatory

Evaluation. Zero Reject refers to schools being banned from rejecting children with a disability.

Schools must educate all children with a disability no matter the severity. Each state is required

to identify, evaluate, and locate exceptional children from birth to twenty-one. LRE is where

exceptional children are in the general education classrooms for an appropriate amount

depending on the severity of their disability for their day and when it is necessary they are taken

to a separate classroom or school. Such as a exceptional student who has a reading learning

disability is taken out of the general education classroom during reading period and they must go

to the special education classroom. For example, an exceptional child who is taken to another
The History and Importance of IDEIA 6

school could have a disability that is so severe they need medical attention all the time and the

public school that they are in cannot provide those services. The IEP should include why a child

needs to be in a separate classroom and how much time an exceptional child should be in the

general classroom compared to the special education classroom. Procedural Safeguards is where

the rights of the parent and exceptional child must be protected and remain confidential. A

school must obtain a parent's consent to evaluate their child to see if they are eligible for special

education. If there is a conflict a parent may request for a due process hearing however, most of

the time conflicts between the school and parent are resolved without going to court.

According to the IEP the parent of an exceptional child or nondisabled child must be

notified before any changes are conducted to their child's education. Both the child and the

parent must have a say in the planning and implementation of special education services that will

be needed. Their inputs and wishes must be included when developing the child's goals and

placement decision (Heward 2006). A school must provide a FAPE to all exceptional students

regardless of their severity. An IEP must be developed to specify how that child is academically

performing, measurable annual goals, and the services provided for those students to obtain those

goals. A Nondiscriminatory Evaluation is when a school is unbiased in evaluating a child to see

whether that child has a disability and needs special services. Schools must also use multiple

tests and evaluations to determine whether they are eligible for an Individual Education

Program(IEP).

Categories

Exceptional children are defined as being either above or below the norm to an extent

that special educational services are needed (Heward 2006). However, unlike Section 504 that
The History and Importance of IDEIA 7

included all students with a disability, IDEIA must be from select categories that are included

with impairments, disabilities, handicaps, and children who are at risk. An impairment is when a

child has a reduction or loss pertaining to a specific body part whether it’s partially functioning

or not at all. For example, a child with glasses has a vision impairment but that can be overcome

with glasses. A disability is when a child's impairment limits their ability to perform in certain

activities. For example, if a child has one leg it can potentially limit their ability to perform in

gym or any everyday activity. Heward states that being handicapped is a disadvantage that is

encountered with those who have a disability or impairment and struggles interacting with the

environment. For example, a child with a handicap performs perfectly in everything except for

the situations where their disability or impairment is affected. However, not all children who

have a disability do not have a handicap. At risk includes children who have a greater than

average chance of developing a disability, but at the moment are performing a little higher than

the bordering line. Categories include one of the four terms.

There are thirteen categories and within them are almost six million children that IDEIA

supports. The largest category containing forty-two percent of children with a disability is

Specific Learning Disabilities, which is when a child has difficulty with reading, writing,

speaking, math, and listening. Then follows Speech or Language Impairments, Other Health

Impairments, Intellectual Disabilities, Emotional Disturbance, Autism, Multiple Disabilities,

Developmental Delay, Hearing Impairment, Orthopedic Impairment, Visual Impairment,

Traumatic Brain Injury, and Deaf-Blindness. From age three to nine the number of children with

a disability increases, but after age nine it starts the decrease until age seventeen. A lot of

children are affected by many disabilities but only one can be identified and placed on the IEP.
The History and Importance of IDEIA 8

Process of Qualification

Individuals Education Program is a complex development. The first thing is for the child

to become eligible. For an exceptional child to become eligible their teacher or parent must first

show concerns about their students education and report it to the school district. A teacher should

first try some trial and errors in the classroom. For example, try moving the student around in the

classroom such as sitting upfront or sitting next to students who are respectful and cause little

distractions. Then notify the parents and receive their consent to perform testing to evaluate if

they need special services. One test will not be able to qualify a student for an IEP, which means

there must be multiple tests, parental input, and direct observations.

The evaluations must be unbiased, for example if the child speaks another language then

the tests must also be in that language. Once it is established that a child requires an IEP the

general education teacher must work with the special education teacher to develop the IEP. The

IEP must be designed to meet the child's disability. It must have specifically designed

instructions, related services, assistive technology , and supplemental aids when needed. Several

factors the IEP must include are measurable annual goals, a statement of the services being

provided, a statement on how much the student will participate on state and district tests, a

positive behavior plan if needed, transition needs and services before age sixteen (Heward 2006).

Student’s should be re-evaluated every three years.

Some exceptional children may need some accommodations which must be stated in the

IEP. For example, a child may struggle with reading therefore will need the special education

teacher to read it to them or there may be shorter questions. Some accommodations are

highlighted textbooks, braille textbooks, extended times on tests or assignments, frequent

The History and Importance of IDEIA 9

feedback, and positive reinforcements (Durheim 2015).The IEP team also regulates how much

time is spent in the general education classroom and special education classrooms. Parents must

consent to the placements of their child. A school district must send prior notice of IEP meetings,

adhere by the timeline, involve a student's parent(s), make sure the entire team is there and

notified properly, completing all required components in the IEP, and performing the IEP as it is

instructed (Yell et al., 2016).

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References

Aron, L., & Loprest, P. (2012). Disability and the education system.​ The Future of Children,

22​(1) Retrieved from

http://www.ezproxy.dsu.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/151929

8175?accountid=27073

Durheim, M. (2015, October 30). A parent's guide to Section 504 in public schools. Retrieved

November 10, 2016, from ​http://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/section-504-2/

Heward, W. L. (2013). ​Exceptional Children: An Introduction to Special Education​ (10th ed.).

Upper Saddle River, NY: Pearson Education.

McBride, A. (2006, December). Brown v. Board of Education (1954). Retrieved November 11,

2016, from http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/rights/landmark_brown.html

Yell, M. L., Katsiyannis, A., Ennis, R. P., Losinski, M., & Christle, C. A. (2016). Avoiding

Substantive Errors in Individualized Education Program Development. ​Teaching

Exceptional Children​, ​49​(1), 31-40. doi:10.1177/0040059916662204

Zilz, W. (2006). Manifestation determination: rulings of the courts. ​Education & The Law​,

18​(2/3), 193-206. doi:10.1080/09539960600919928