Special Education Overview

Student learners with disabilities can be provided "special education" which refers to a range of services that can be provided in different ways and in different settings.

Special education can also be  known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, special ed., SEN or SPED. Special education is the practice of educating students in a way that provides accommodations and modifications that address their individual differences, disabilities, and special needs in the American education system.The most current version of Public Law is P.L. 108-446, passed in 2004 and called the “Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004.” It's still most commonly referred to as IDEA, or IDEA 2004 to distinguish it from other reauthorizations.

Special education refers to a range of services that can be provided in different ways and in different settings. There’s no “one size fits all” or “cookie cutter” approach to special education. It’s tailored to meet the needs of students with disabilities. Special education focuses on helping kids with disabilities learn. Special education and the right to be educated in United States of America falls under the various civil rights movements within the United States of America history and have influenced the laws. Other countries have special education laws and regulations across the entire world. 

In the United States of America laws, The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act  (IDEA) is the federal law that defines and regulates special education. It requires public schools to provide special education services to children ages 3 to 21 who meet certain criteria. Even further it assists families with earlier interventions and services at birth (0) to three years old. “Child Find”  (link).

To qualify, a student must:

• Have a documented disability in one of the 13 documented categories covered by IDEA
• Need special education in order to access the general education curriculum

According to IDEA Part B Regulations Section 300.8:

Child with a disability means a child evaluated in accordance with §§300.304 through 300.311 as having an intellectual disability, a hearing impairment (including deafness), a speech or language impairment, a visual impairment (including blindness), a serious emotional disturbance (referred to in this part as “emotional disturbance”), an orthopedic impairment, autism, traumatic brain injury, an other health impairment, a specific learning disability, deaf-blindness, or multiple disabilities, and who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services. Visit Section 300.8 for more on disability categories as outlined in IDEA Part B Regulations.

Learn how to find out if a child is eligible for special education. (link). When kids are found eligible, the next step will be to create an Individualized Education Program (IEP). For kids who are in preschool or younger, you may want to learn about early intervention .

Making learning accessible to kids with disabilities means finding ways to remove the barriers to their learning. Access is an important term in education.

• Placements, which is the way schools talk about deciding to place a child in one type of classroom rather than another. 
• Specific learning disability: The largest category under which kids get special education service, especially those who learn and think differently
• Related services: Support to help meet IEP goals that isn’t necessarily specialized instruction.
• Accommodations: Changes that are made to how a student learns. 
• Modifications: Changes that are made to what a student is taught or expected to learn.

School districts have a process in place to determine which students are eligible for special education. This process involves a full evaluation  that looks at the ways kids think. It also looks at other aspects of development. Either the school or a child’s family can request an evaluation . If the school agrees to evaluate, the testing will be conducted at no cost to the family.

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Special Education Overview

Special education can also be  known as special-needs education, aided education, exceptional education, special ed., SEN or SPED. Special education is the practice of educating students in a way that provides accommodations and modifications that address their individual differences, disabilities, and special needs in the American education system.The most current version of Public Law is P.L. 108-446, passed in 2004 and called the “Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004.” It's still most commonly referred to as IDEA, or IDEA 2004 to distinguish it from other reauthorizations.

The term ‘Special Educational Needs’ is used to describe learning difficulties or disabilities that make it harder for children to learn than most children of the same age. Children with Special Educational Needs (SEN) are likely to need extra or different help from that given to other children their age.

Thirteen Documented Categories

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires public schools to provide special education services to eligible students. IDEA covers 13 disability categories. Not every student who struggles in school qualifies. The student learner must be IDENTIFIED.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires public schools to provide  and  to eligible students. But not every child who struggles in school qualifies. To be covered, a child’s school performance must be “adversely affected” by a disability in one of the 13 categories below.

Specific learning disability (SLD)

The umbrella term “SLD” covers a specific group of learning challenges. These conditions affect a child’s ability to read, write, listen, speak, reason, or do math. Here’s what could fall in this category:

• Dyslexia
• Dysgraphia
• Dyscalculia
• Auditory processing disorder
• Nonverbal learning disability

SLD is the most common category under IDEA. In 2018, 34 percent of students who qualified did so under this category.

Other health impairment

The umbrella term “other health impairment” covers conditions that limit a child’s strength, energy, or alertness. One example is ADHD , which impacts attention and executive function .

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

ASD is a developmental disability. It covers a wide range of symptoms, but it mainly affects a child’s social and communication skills. It can also impact behavior.

Emotional disturbance

Various mental health issues can fall under the “emotional disturbance” category. They may include anxiety disorder, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and depression . (Some of these may also be covered under “other health impairment.”)

Speech or language impairment

This category covers difficulties with speech or language . A common example is stuttering. Other examples are trouble pronouncing words or making sounds with the voice. It also covers language problems that make it hard for kids to understand words or express themselves.

Visual impairment, including blindness

A child who has eyesight problems is considered to have a visual impairment. This category includes both partial sight and blindness. If eyewear can correct a vision problem, then it doesn’t qualify.

Deafness

Kids with a diagnosis of deafness fall under this category. These are kids who can’t hear most or all sounds, even with a hearing aid.

Hearing impairment

The term “hearing impairment” refers to a hearing loss not covered by the definition of deafness. This type of loss can change over time. Being hard of hearing is not the same thing as having trouble with auditory or language processing.

Deaf-blindness

Kids with a diagnosis of deaf-blindness have both severe hearing and vision loss. Their communication and other needs are so unique that programs for just the deaf or blind can’t meet them.

Orthopedic impairment

An orthopedic impairment is when kids lack function or ability in their bodies. An example is cerebral palsy.

Intellectual disability

Kids with this type of disability have below-average intellectual ability. They may also have poor communication, self-care, and social skills. Down syndrome is one example of an intellectual disability.

Traumatic brain injury

This is a brain injury caused by an accident or some kind of physical force.

Multiple disabilities

A child with multiple disabilities has more than one condition covered by IDEA. Having multiple issues creates educational needs that can’t be met in a program designed for any one disability.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XWocnh2v-Xe-n6SanFiLjotD3smgEHe1fcqK9eCgJvo/edit?usp=sharing