Children and youth experiencing homelessness face unique challenges in accessing and succeeding in school. Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act, reauthorized in 2015 by Title IX, Part A of the Every Student Succeeds Act (42 U.S.C. § 11431 et seq.; hereafter the "McKinney-Vento Act"), establishes the definition of…

The word "homeless" typically does not bring to mind images of children and youth; but in reality, more than 1 million children and youth experiencing homelessness have been identified by U.S. public schools every year since the 2010-2011 school year (National Center for Homeless Education, 2016). Further, the number of students…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA; P.L. 108-446) is the primary source of federal funding to states for the identification and education of children with disabilities. The majority of IDEA appropriations are allocated to states by formula to carry out activities under Part B, which covers 14 disability categories. Each state is…

Homelessness is a devastating circumstance for any child or youth, but for youth on their own, the stresses of homelessness are multiplied. The myriad of challenges faced by youth experiencing homelessness on their own puts these students at risk of dropping out or school failure. Subtitle VII-B of the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act…

States participating in the four federally-funded assessment consortia are required to establish a "common definition of English Learner." This includes the two Race to the Top academic assessment consortia and the two Enhanced Assessment Grant English language proficiency (ELP) assessment consortia. This paper provides guidance that…

Teacher incompetence and the identification of incompetent teachers have become major educational issues. With the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB), every student is expected to be taught by a "highly qualified" teacher. Although "highly qualified" does not guarantee competent teaching, the two often go…

The author examines implications of the P.L. 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act) definition of learning disability, and cites two cases to illustrate two basic problems: that the definition is both overinclusive and underinclusive, and that it does not consider underlying causes. (CL)

The Vocational Education Amendments of 1968 require the expenditure of 25 percent of the basic grant to States to provide the disadvantaged and the handicapped with vocational education programs. This publication discusses the specific requirements of the federal law and describes classification systems for identifying the disadvantaged and…

Reviewed are the provisions of the Headstart, Economic Opportunity Community Partnership Act of 1974 which amended an earlier law to require that 10 percent of children enrolled in Head Start programs within each state be handicapped. (DB)

The Individuals with Disabilities Act (Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act; IDEIA, 2004) has been reauthorized, and new parameters for defining learning disabilities (LD) have been established that provide more flexibility for corresponding state and local regulations. The field now has a unique opportunity to shape the…

The paper discusses a study of the current criteria for identifying and defining specific learning disabilities (SLD) across the States, in light of Public Law 94-142's requirement that local education agencies implement federal SLD criteria in order to receive federal funds for SLD students. Aspects of the states identification procedures…

In this book the author discusses the field of Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) as one in which practitioners are highly committed, dedicated and willing to learn. Generally, they try to do their very best for the children with whom they work. However, the author also shows that the field has hitherto been neglected in the areas of…

A review of the legal basis for and a model of operationalizing definitions of handicapping conditions is presented along with a trend analysis of the association between operationalized criteria and stability in incidence rates. The role of Public Law 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act), Public Law 93-380, and Section 504 of…

The document, half of which consists of appendixes, presents a report to the Utah State legislature by the Social Services Interim Committee regarding child abuse and neglect. The problems that Utah faces with child abuse and neglect are summarized, and the appropriate steps currently being taken are outlined. National progress and trends in…

Presented is a digest of state and federal laws relating to education of handicapped children. Provided in Part 1 is information on the laws of the 50 states and the District of Columbia under the following subject categories: right to an education, population, definitions, identification and placement, administrative responsibility, planning,…