Legislation and policy lead to action. In the absence of law or policy, situations are addressed on a case-by-case basis or they are sometimes ignored. Legislation and policy become extremely important when they relate to groups that have traditionally been marginalized, such as students with disabilities or students with gifts and talents, and…

Based on Maryland's 2017-2018 Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) results, nearly half of all entering kindergarten children show foundational skills indicating they are fully ready for kindergarten, more than a third are approaching readiness, and 18% have emerging readiness skills. Results for the 2017-2018 school year show a slight increase…

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework for curriculum design, instruction, and assessment that gives all students equal opportunities to learn and to demonstrate what they have learned. UDL is built on the premise that there is not one kind of learning. Learning differs across tasks, across development, and among individuals. UDL is…

A report by the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO-10-519) revealed that, despite legislation obligating states and schools to provide equal access, opportunities for physical activity are limited for children and youth with disabilities (GAO, 2010). This document is the initial response to the GAO recommendation that "the…

Although schools have made great strides educating students with disabilities in mainstreamed academic classrooms, some advocates and physical educators say sports programs and physical education classes are the final frontier for full inclusion in public schools. In the past few years, advocates for such students have been demanding greater…

Raising academic standards and eliminating achievement gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged students are America's prime national educational goals. Current federal and state policies, however, largely ignore the fact that the childhood poverty rate in the United States is 21%, the highest in the industrialized world, and that poverty…

On November 14, 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court announced its decision in "Schaffer v. Weast." This special education decision concerned which party bears the burden of persuasion when parents challenge a school district's Individualized Education Program (IEP) in a due process hearing. In this article, we define burden of persuasion and…

This guidebook is intended to assist parents of children with disabilities who will be returning to the state of Maryland because of Senate Bill 588, which strongly discourages out-of-state placements of individuals with disabilities or other special needs. The first section is on "getting ready" and provides a summary of Senate Bill…

The report presents results from a survey of four states (Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, and Nebraska) regarding mandates for the provision of special education services for children below 3 years of age. An overview of each state's mandate contains a brief description of the law and how it came to be; an explanaton of the way responsibilities are…