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Jean-Marc-Gaspard Itard and Victor, the "Wild Boy of Aveyron"
Itard worked with Victor to teach him basic life skills and beginner level academia. Itard developed the idea that persons with disabilities or special needs should be compared to themselves in order to gauge true growth. His work also encouraged the field to adopt the idea that all children, no matter the severity of their needs, should be taught to become contributing members of the community. -
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas
Most people know Brown v. BOE as the case that integrated schools, but "separate cannot be equal" applies to more than just race. Up until this point, special education was in separate schools or classes. Research in the 50s and 60s proved that students with disabilities do better in general education classrooms. -
Law Banning Eugenics
Until 1970, there were still states in which persons with disabilities could have been sterilized. The idea of persons with disabilities having children has had a large effect on the stigma behind having disabilities. A eugenics movement of persons with disabilities in Germany was actually the first step in what we now know as the Holocaust. -
Diana v. State Board of Education of California
Non-English speaking students should be assessed for disabilities in their native language. This has limited the number of students who have been wrongly labeled with an intellectual disability due to a language barrier. However, the overcompensation of this problem has also led to some Hispanic and Asian students with disabilities not being helped when they should be. -
Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children c The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (PARC)
Confirmed that students with disabilities are entitled to free public education and tailored instruction to their needs. -
LarryP. v. Riles
A case won to ensure that test would not discriminate based on race. It has been proven, even after this case, that IQ tests and even standardized tests are inherently discriminatory. This is also shown in the fact that African American students are labeled for disabilities at a disproportionately high rate. -
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
Further protects individuals with disabilities. This law more broadly defines disabilities, even more than the IDEA policy. However, it does not allocate funding toward the implementation of this policy. IDEA does have funding. Some students can be covered under 504, but not IDEA. Some students can be covered under both. -
Education of the Handicapped Act
The first federal law to directly address the education of children with disabilities. -
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Education of the Handicapped Act was reauthorized and renamed IDEA. There were many amendments to this Act as the law was reauthorized and changed from 1974-now. -
American Disabilities Act of 1990
Protects persons with disabilities beyond public education. This broadly ensures that persons with disabilities have full access to enjoy and live life. -
Reauthorization of IDEA
The reauthorization of IDEA in 2004 was the most recent significant change in policy for the IDEA policy. It raises standards, amends the IEP's to include more parent involvement, and defines special education teacher qualifications.
Very important parts of IDEA include:
-Zero Reject
-Child Find
-Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
-Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
-Nondiscriminatory Evaluation
-Parent and Family Rights to Confidentiality
-Procedural Safeguards -
Rosa's Law
Rosa's Law, signed by President Obama, changes federal language to be more inclusive when speaking of persons with disabilities.
