An often-used idiom states: "you can't lose what you never had." Yet contrary to this expression, it "is" possible to lose what you never had--at least when special education support is concerned. In Ontario, as in other jurisdictions, special education exists as a codified system. An ever-changing nexus of discourses and…

This guide was developed by the Louisiana Department of Education to help parents navigate the complex system that oversees special education in Louisiana's public schools. Each school year, local education agencies (LEAs) are required to provide parents a copy of the procedural safeguards. These safeguards are used to inform parents of the…

Since the enactment of the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (IDEA's forerunner) in 1975, an important requirement has been Child Find activities. According to Shapiro and Derrington (2004), Child Find is broadly defined as the entire range of activities, including public awareness, identification, referral, eligibility determination, and…

Charter school authorizers are the entities granted power in state charter statutes to create charter schools. As the entity that initially approves a charter application, oversees delivery of services, and renews or revokes schools' ability to operate, charter authorizers must take seriously their role and be informed regarding their…

Special education, for students ages 3 to 21, is guided by federal and state requirements. The federal requirements are referred to as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). IDEA protects the rights of students with disabilities and the rights of their parents. The state requirements are referred to as the Ohio Operating Standards…

This article provides a concise and objective synthesis of the federal legislation, regulations, and agency policy interpretations; state laws; and case law, including hearing officer and complaint investigation decisions, concerning specific learning disability (SLD) identification since the 2006 IDEA regulations. The results reveal wide latitude…

About 13 percent of children aged 3 through 21 enrolled in public schools received special education services in school year 2015-16, and about 3 percent of children from birth through age 2 received special education services. Concerns about the difficulties identifying and evaluating children for special education have been raised by the media,…

Individuals who serve as surrogate parents fulfill an important role in the life of a child with a disability. Surrogates have become increasingly important in special education because a growing number of children are living outside their family for some period of their lives. Like parents, surrogates of children with disabilities are granted a…

This resource is a set of three tools state education agencies (SEAs) can use with their districts, schools, and providers to assist them in tracking the finances, services, and student data associated with Coordinated Early Intervening Services (CEIS). These three tools include one for provider(s), school(s), and local education agencies (LEAs).…

As a result of the upcoming Federal reauthorization of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA), practitioners and researchers have begun vigorously debating what constitutes evidence-based assessment for the identification of specific learning disability (SLD). This debate has resulted in strong support for a method that…

The public education of students with disabilities in the United States is governed by federal policies that promote school improvement, protect students from discrimination, and provide those who need it with special education and related services to meet their individual needs. This article explains the legal aspects of teaching students with…

The 1997 Amendments of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) states that children placed in private schools by their parents are no longer afforded the right to special education services. However, IDEA does state that child find activities between public school representatives and private schools are to remain intact. This study…

The use of response-to-intervention (RTI) to identify children and youth with specific learning disabilities (SLDs) is described with multiple illustrations. Essential components of the RTI process are specified at multiple tiers of intervention, each essential to valid SLD identification. The RTI goals are prevention in general education, early…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) requires 95% participation in state achievement testing. Students with the most significant cognitive disabilities participate in states' alternate assessments based on alternate academic achievement standards (AA-AAAS). A growing number of these students are also English learners (Christensen et al., 2018).…

The debate over school vouchers continues as more states offer government dollars to fund private schooling for students as a method of improving choice and quality in K-12 education. Previous research in the charter school sector has found that special education enrollment discrepancies between charters and traditional public schools is likely…