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This act prohibited the discrimination of a person of disability for having a disability in regards to programs receiving federal financial assistance, federal employment, and in the employment practices of federal contractors. This law also provided the integration of a 504 Plan (under Section 504), which gave students with disabilities the right to reasonable accommodations. This paved the way for special education (Rehabilitation Act of 1973, n.d.).

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Education for all Handicapped Children Act of 1975

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Education for all Handicapped Children Act of 1975

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This act required that all public schools in the United States that were given federal funding, would provide students with disabilities equal access to education and at least one free meal per day (Education for All Handicapped Children Act, 2004). This act was the beginning of the Individualized Education Plan process. One of the main emphases surrounded an observation and focus of placing each student in the least restrictive environment, given their unique learning needs. In regards to IEP writing in our district, we are required to state that full continuum considered the 'RSP/SDC/ED/etc, to be the least restrictive learning environment, given "students" unique learning needs. This shows from a legal perspective that our students' individual needs were considered before offering the least restrictive learning environment for each student.

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The Handicapped Children's Protection Act of 1986

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The Handicapped Children's Protection Act of 1986

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This act was created and instated to provide families with direct cost relief to matters related to lawsuits that had to do with violating EHA laws. This act was sparked by the Smith v. Robinson case in 1984. "It was found that existing enforcement mechanisms of disability rights did not cover how, when and/or where legal costs are to be resolved" (Craft, 2016). This is important because it keeps the schools accountable for following through with the IEP for each special education student. Craft (2016) goes on share this act states that "if parents deem their child's IEP unsuitable, they have the right to a hearing run by the State Education Department and to bring their case to state and/or federal court." At my school district, our district's attorney meets with our special education department annually to discuss adaptations to special education laws to ensure that we follow through with our mission of offering Free and Appropriate Education to all students.

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Title II of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990

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Title II of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990

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This was a non-discrimination policy that focused on the prohibition of discrimination against qualified people with disabilities in all areas of public life, such as jobs, education, transportation, and al private places that are open to the general public (What is the Americans with Disabilities Act, 2021). This was an important step in regards to the goals that students in special education began to set for their unique futures.

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Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1990

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Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 1990

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This act ensures that all students with a disability are provided a Free and Appropriate Public Education. This education must be geared toward the individual and unique learning needs of each student. IDEA and FAPE ensured that each school can adequately serve all students. This act was a revision and improvement from the already existing Education for all Handicapped Children Act from 1975. In California, we make sure that our students have a post-secondary transition plan authored in the student's IEP before they reach the age of 15. This is helpful for the student in regards to planning out their future.

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This 1997 amendment to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) mandates that public schools need to create an IEP for each student that is found to have an eligible disability. This emphasized the team aspect involved in the Individualized Education Process to our education system. The IEP process is very important to the success of our students with special needs. From a federal level, each student receiving special education services requires an IEP that documents services, goals, and accommodations that the school district can offer each student. At my school district, there is counseling to address social emotion concerns, multiple levels of specialized academic instruction, speech and language services, Adaptive PE, Occupational Therapy, and many other services provided. As a case manager at my school, it is my responsibility to ensure that we are giving each student the necessary resources to be successful while continuing to push that student to be participating in the least restrictive learning environment each year.

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IDEA: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: History and Summary

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George W. Bush was the president that was responsible for signing the NCLB Act of 2001. This stated the education reform plan and changed the federal role in education by keeping the schools accountable to describing the success of their student in terms of what each student is accomplishing (Boehner, 2002). This act created pressure on the schools to perform on the statewide tests. Teachers then needed to adopt the method of 'teaching to the test' if they wanted to retain their jobs. This did not respond to America's dynamic economy and focused too much on test scores instead of the improvements of the resources offered to students. My school district places a firm emphasis on test scores, specifically at each school in regards to WASC accreditation and this becomes a barrier to ensuring we're supporting all students. This forces us to focus too much on test scores rather than individual needs.

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This act was initially added in 1998 but then restructured in 2004. "It provides assistive technology to persons with disabilities so they can more fully participate in education, employment and daily activities on level playing fields with other people in their communities" (Relton, 22005). This act was so important because technology is now such a part of education that there needed to be laws enforcing that schools should provide their students with special needs, the technological rights to access equal education. We use text to speech as a feature when working on reading comprehension exercises in my class, and I've seen it benefit my students' SBAC scores tremendously. In California, schools are allowed to offer their students assistive technology to better help them access statewide assessments. At my school district, we have a designated assistive technology director and department. There is a referral process to obtain these resources for our students, but the T department will attend our IEPs and offer help as needed. This helps our students participate in the general education curriculum.

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In 2004, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act adopted a new provision that required the special education, related services, and supplemental aids and services that are authored in the student's IEP to be based on evidence-based and peer-reviewed research (Reauthorization of the IDEA 2004, 2020). This reauthorization now keeps IEP teams accountable to meeting the individual needs of each student in special education, rather than attempting to utilize a one-size-fits-all method. This reauthorization has helped my school district shape our related services pages in our IEPs to reflect the addressing of our students' supports that we are offering. We are required to document the offer of FAPE in the notes of our IEPs so that school registrars and future case managers can see the agreed-upon supports discussed in the most current IEP.

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The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the primary federal program that authorizes state and local aid for special education and related services for children with disabilities. On December 3, 2004, President Bush signed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, a major reauthorization and revision of IDEA. The new law preserves the basic structure and civil rights guarantees of IDEA but also makes significant changes in the law. Most provisions of Public Law (PL) 108-446 go into effect on July 1, 2005. The requirements regarding "highly qualified" special education teachers became effective immediately upon signature.

Regulations

Statute: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended in 2004, PL 108-446, 20 United States Code (USC) 1400 et seq.

Part A - General Provisions Findings Highly qualified special education teacher definition (Title I, Part A, Section 602(10)
Part B - Assistance For Education Of All Children With Disabilities

Main section of the act describing special education services and procedural safeguards.

Part C - Infants And Toddlers With Disabilities Part D - National Activities To Improve Education Of Children With Disabilities

Section 1450 Findings

Subpart 1 - State Personnel Development Grants, sections 1451-1455

Subpart 2 - Personnel preparation, technical assistance, model demonstration projects, and dissemination of information

TITLE II - National Center For Special Education Research

TITLE III - Miscellaneous Provisions Effective dates (Title III - Miscellaneous Provisions, Section 1400 Note

Order print version of the IDEA, as amended in 2004, from

Technical Assistance Tools

Improving Teacher Quality State Grants, ESEA Title II, Part A Non-Regulatory Guidance (PDF)
This Non-Regulatory Guidance explains how State educational agencies, local educational agencies, and State agencies for higher education can effectively and correctly use Title II, Part A funds to ensure that all teachers are qualified and effective.
This revised guidance, now issued separately from the guidance on Highly Qualified Teachers (HQT), does not depart significantly from the previous version, August 3, 2005. The portion of the guidance that covers HQT is under revision and will be released in the near future.

California Statute Changes, October 7, 2006

Legislation was introduced during the 2007 state legislative session to align California Education Code ( EC) to the final IDEA regulations.

State Assembly Bill 1662 (Lieber and Daucher) made changes to California special education statutes to bring them into harmony with federal changes enacted through the 2004 reauthorization IDEA. The bill was signed by the Governor on October 7, 2005.

Assembly Bill 1841 (Buchanan) aligns EC 56346 with the amended IDEA Part B regulations at 34 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 300.300(b)(4). This regulation requires that parental revocation of consent for the continued provision of special education and related services must be in writing, and that upon revocation of consent, a public agency must provide the parent with prior written notice, in accordance with 34 CFR Section 300.503. A letter, alerting all local education agencies addressing this issue, was mailed January 6, 2009.

The Special Education Division is developing a new database for searching state and federal laws and regulations. Until this database goes online, please use the following:

California Legislative Information
Access to California statutes, including Education Code, Government Code, and Welfare and Institutions Code.

California Code of Regulations
Access to the California Code of Regulations, Title 5, Division 1, Chapter 3, Individuals with Exceptional Needs, sections 3000-3100.United States Code, Title 20, Education of Individuals with Disabilities, sections 1400-1482 (PDF) Code of Federal Regulations, Title 34, Part 300, Assistance to States for the Education of Children with Disabilities (PDF) If you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact Allison Smith, Special Education Consultant, Special Education Division, by phone at 916-319-0377 or by e-mail at ASmith@cde.ca.gov.

Resources:

Training:

IDEA Regulation Training

Building the Legacy: IDEA 2004
This US Department of Education Web site was created to provide a "one-stop shop" for resources related to IDEA and its implementing regulations including training and technical assistance references.
Tool Kit on Teaching and Assessing Students with Disabilities (NASDSE)
Research briefs, technical assistance, and information for improving instruction, assessment and accountability for students with disabilities. (Apr-2006)

IEP Web Module
This self-paced Web training module provides information on how to write IEP goals tied to standards, student focused, and measurable.

Last Reviewed: Friday, March 13, 2020

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The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) is the primary federal program that authorizes state and local aid for special education and related services for children with disabilities. On December 3, 2004, President Bush signed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, a major reauthorization and revision of IDEA.

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Boehner, J. A. (2002, January 08). H.R.1 - 107th Congress (2001-2002): No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. Retrieved from https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-congress/house-bill/1

Craft, P. (2016, November 08). Handicapped Children's Protection Act. Retrieved from https://www.craftlegal.com/2016/11/08/handicapped-childrens-protection-act/

Education For All Handicapped Children Act (1975 - S. 6). (2004). Retrieved from https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/94/s6

Reauthorization of the IDEA 2004. (2020, March). Retrieved from https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/se/lr/ideareathztn.asp

Relton, J. (2005, January). The Assistive Technology Act of 2004. Retrieved from https://www.afb.org/aw/6/1/14652

Statute and Regulations of the IDEA. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://sites.ed.gov/idea/statuteregulations/

The Rehabilitation Act of 1973. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.eeoc.gov/statutes/rehabilitation-act-1973

US Department of Justice. (2020, February). A Guide to Disability Rights Laws. Retrieved from https://www.ada.gov/cguide.htm

What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)? (2021, March 11). Retrieved from https://adata.org/learn-about-ada