WHAT YOUR CHILD’S SCHOOL DIDN’T TELL YOU ABOUT SPECIAL EDUCATION

By Elliott L. Schoen, J.D., M.Ed.

For more than twenty years States that receive Federal special education funding have been subject to Federal statute and regulations that require these States to compel local school districts to provide children, age 3-21, who have identified disabilities, to a free appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment through special education and related services, and assistive technology. This law has been the cornerstone for moving children with disabilities into the mainstream of life, creating educational opportunities, and providing for meaningful lives. However, the districts, generally, do little to ensure parents know the rights they and their children have to a free appropriate education. Consequently, many parents with children with special education needs do not know and understand the rights they and their children have under the law. To ensure children with special educational needs receive educational services necessary for them to meaningfully benefit from the educational program, parents must know and demand the rights the Federal special education law gives them and their child. Otherwise, the Districts will get away with denying children the full benefit of special education, related services, and assistive technology they need to have meaningful educational benefits.

The special education laws, first known as P.L. 94-142, the Education for Handicapped Children’s Act, and later known as IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, most recently reauthorized in May 1997. The law gives parents many specific and detailed rights designed to allow them to meaningfully participate in the planning, development, and implementation of an individual education plan for their child. Under the law, a team of people who are familiar with the child, including the parents, whomever the parents wish to participate, a special education teacher, regular education teacher, a representative of the school district, and related professionals, develop the individual education plan for a child, with annual goals, and short term instructional objectives, special education and related services that will be provided and assistive technology necessary for a child to receive meaning educational benefit in the least restrictive environment. Children eligible for special education are determined by comprehensive evaluations paid for by the school district

The school district has an obligation to develop an individual education plan before the start of the child’s school year, and then implement the child’s individual educational plan. Implementation is generally shown by daily teaching plans and data collection by teachers and related professionals. Parents have the right to request the team to meet to review their child’s individual plan during the course of the school year. The school district cannot change the child’s individual education plan, without convening the team to review the plan with the parents participation.

On occasion a school district fails to follow the law, or a child fails to receive meaningful educational benefit from the individual educational plan developed by the district. In those cases, parents have rights to file a complaint against the school district and have an independent hearing officer hear their complaint at a due process hearing. After a hearing, which is similar to a court trial, the hearing officer makes a written decision declaring if a district violated the law, and if parents are entitled to reimbursement for educational services the parents provided a child, or compensatory education. If the parents prevail, they can ask the Federal District Court to have the district pay their attorney’s fees. There are also rights to appeal the decision of a hearing officer.

Also, parents can make a written complaint to the State Department of Education, to determine if the District violated the special education law. Alternatively, under a section of the American with Disabilities Act, commonly known as section 504 parents can make a written complaint to the Federal Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights, alleging that their child was discriminated by the school district because the child was denied a free appropriate public education, or request a due process hearing. Section 504 is a Federal civil rights law, which applies to all children who have identified handicaps under the special education law, and children who are not in special education, but require reasonable accommodations in the regular education program to give them equal opportunities to benefit from educational programs as other children.

To give the law meaning, parents, must be educated in the basics of the IDEA, the rights they and their children have, and the obligations school districts have to parents and children. Parents must network and share information about special education services in the districts. Parents must be persistent to demand that the districts provide their children with special education and related services, and assistive technology necessary for the child to meaningfully benefit from the educational program.

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