During the past two decades, scholars, educators, and special interest organizations, including advocacy groups, have critically examined and debated the ethical and legal use of aversive interventions with individuals with disabilities. These interventions comprise a broad spectrum of behavior management techniques including but not at all…

Recent efforts to change the teaching profession and teacher preparation include a number of innovations to use portfolio assessment, value added measures (VAM), accountability metrics and other corporate education reform ideas. These approaches may provoke considerable potential legal consequences. Traditional constitutional and civil rights…

This review of case law on aversive interventions for students with disabilities identifies legal boundaries and protections for students in five categories: electric shock, noxious substances, corporal punishment, restraints, and timeout. It finds that, despite the emergence of positive interventions, qualified support for aversive interventions…

Explores two aspects of financial dilemmas in postsecondary education and disability law: who pays for funding of students' auxiliary aids and for how long. Suggests that in the 1998 Rehabilitation Act Amendments, Congress implicitly acknowledged that agencies may sometimes be unable to offer students a full range of vocational services,…

The author reviews cases involving suspension and expulsion from school of handicapped students. The role of procedural safeguards is considered. Differences between approaches of the office of Civil Rights and the Bureau of Education for the Handicapped are examined. (CL)

Reviews 1998 cases of discrimination against students, focusing on discrimination on the basis of gender, ethnicity, and disability and on hazing. Cases did not usually involve the blatant discriminatory acts that inspired antidiscrimination legislation. They involved increasingly complicated and subtle forms of discrimination and required more…

Analyzes the unique legal and policy issues concerning special education and intradistrict school choice. Describes the methodology for examining intradistrict parental-choice programs of five major cities and appraises their compliance with current legal requirements. Choice programs combining a child-centered approach with consideration of…

This transition policy update presents regulatory language associated with key provisions of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act Amendments of 1990, as set forth in the August 14, 1992 issue of the "Federal Register." The discussion focuses on: the inclusion of youth with disabilities within the term…

The study examined standards applied by judges and hearing officers in deciding disputes related to the least restrictive environment (LRE) placement of handicapped children. The historical basis of the requirement is reviewed, focusing on court decisions; the requirements of P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act regarding…

The paper analyzes issues in bilingual special education and identifies knowledge gaps in the provision of appropriate education to exceptional minority students. The legal bases of bilingual education and special education are reviewed and the intersection of legal issues in bilingual special education is noted. Definitions of the population are…

Discusses several of the principal issues involved in litigation over disability discrimination in colleges and universities, focusing on enforcement in both administrative and judicial arenas. Concludes that discrimination legislation is complex and may unnecessarily exclude qualified disabled individuals from employment, education, and other…

The author points out that although parents have the right to due process as mandated by P.L. 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act), the schools have the advantage over parents in terms of time, money, resources, and determination. Findings from a national survey of due process hearings included that hearings are requested for…

This monograph introduces a series on youth with cognitive or behavioral disabilities and the juvenile justice system. The first section discusses the importance of prevention and early intervention to divert youth with disabilities from entering the justice system. It offers examples of such efforts and considers early and later intervention…

Six articles review and analyze 1996 court litigation concerning higher education. Topics include: federal immunity law; tort-accident cases (traditional tort rules in the college or university setting); disciplinary and academic decisions pertaining to students; employment discrimination; and disability discrimination. (MSE)

The paper explores recent legal and programmatic changes in the education of the handicapped in Massachusetts. A first section highlights some aspects of the law, including court interpretations of the meaning of "appropriate education" and examples of state legal standards that are different than federal standards. Also addressed are…