# data[].attributes.body
Brown, F., McDonnell, J., & Snell, M.E.. (2020) Instruction of Students with Severe Disabilities. (9th ed.). Pearson.

# data[].attributes.body
Lee, A. M.I. (n.d.). What is the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act (IDEA)? Understood for All. Retrieved September 7, 2023, from https://www.understood.org/en/articles/individuals-with-disabilities-education-act-idea-what-you-need-to-know

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
At a glance

IDEA is the nation's special education law.

Schools must find and evaluate students thought to have disabilities - at no cost to families.

To qualify for IDEA services, a child must have a disability and need special education to make progress in school.

To get special education services for a child, you have to follow a legal process. The most important law for this process is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

IDEA is the nation's special education law. It gives rights and protections to kids with disabilities. It covers them from birth through high school graduation or age 21 (whichever comes first). Parents and legal guardians also have rights under the law.

IDEA places two big responsibilities on states and their public schools.

Schools must find and evaluate students who may have disabilities, at no cost to families. This is known as Child Find. If a child has a qualifying disability, schools must offer special education and related services (like speech therapy and counseling) to meet the child's unique needs. These are provided through an Individualized Education Program (IEP). The goal is to help students make progress in school.

Second, schools have to give parents a voice in their child's education. At every point in the process, IDEA gives parents specific rights and protections. These are called procedural safeguards. For example, one safeguard is that a school must get consent from parents before providing services to kids.

The reach of IDEA goes beyond traditional public schools. It includes public magnet and charter schools. The law also provides early intervention services to infants and toddlers up to age 3. Finally, IDEA may impact some students in private schools.

Dive deeper

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
What is the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)? IDEA is a federal law that lays out children's rights in special education. Here's how it works.

# data[].attributes.headline
How can the family can make sure IDEA is consistently implemented? 

# data[].attributes.subject
How can the family can make sure IDEA is consistently implemented? 

# data[].attributes.body
1. FAPE - Parents of a child with a disability can not be asked to pay for special education services.
2. Appropriate Evaluation - Schools partner with families to conduct the evaluation.
3. IEP - A student with an IEP gives families legal protections as well as involvement in decisions that impact their child's education.
4. LRE - Students who are put in their Least Restrictive Environment can succeed when they are provided with the necessary support system; be sure the school provides your child with necessary support in the general education classroom.
5. Parent and Student Participation - Parents have the right to access their child’s school records and keep these records private.
6. Procedural Due Process/Safeguards - Parents have to consent to the initial evaluation, a re-evaluation, and placement of their child into special education.

# data[].attributes.body
IDEA Parent Guide. (2006). National Center for Learning Disabilities, 3.106. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED495879.pdf

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
NCLD has created the IDEA Parent Guide to help you become an informed and effective partner with school personnel in supporting your child's special learning and behavioral needs. Use this guide to understand:

How the federal law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), generally works in most states;

What the law requires to determine whether your child has a learning disability;

What is new to IDEA since Congress last updated the law in 2004;

What questions you should ask and what information you should prepare in order to be a full and active advocate for your child, and

What resources are available to you.

In developing the IDEA Parent Guide, we worked with parents of students with learning disabilities from around the country. NCLD is thankful to these parents for their invaluable input. Together, we have tried to address the questions, challenges and barriers parents face as they navigate their way through the special education process. Parents have also contributed their own personal stories so that you can hear firsthand that you are not alone in this journey.

NCLD has created the IDEA Parent Guide to help you become an informed and effective partner with school personnel in supporting your child's special learning and behavioral needs.

Download Report

To access the full report, please provide your information

Tell Congress: Pass the RISE Act

We need your help! Ask your member of Congress to support students with learning and attention issues.

Support NCLD

Thanks to support from generous partners like you, we are able to create programs and resources to support the 1 in 5 individuals with learning and attention issues nationwide.

$20$50$100$250$500 Other amount

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
NCLD has created the IDEA Parent Guide to help you become an informed and effective partner with school personnel in supporting your child's special learning and behavioral needs. Use this guide to understand: How the federal law, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), generally works in most states; What the law requires to determine [...]

# data[].attributes.body
Parent involvement in their child's education is very crucial to the student's motivation and success. Parents can frequently stay in touch with the child's special education teacher and attending their child's IEP meetings with their own concerns and comments regarding their child and his/her education. Parents can ask about additional services available to their child.

Parents have the right to request a meeting regarding their child's special education at any time as well as attend and be an active participant in all of their child's IEP meetings.

# data[].attributes.headline
How does IDEA support and provide the best education for your child?

# data[].attributes.subject
How does IDEA support and provide the best education for your child?

# data[].attributes.body
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act is the most important law to get special education services for a child that follows a legal process. IDEA is the nation's special education law that gives rights and protections to children with disabilities. It covers them from birth through high school graduation or age 21 (whichever comes first). Parents and legal guardians also have rights under the law.

# data[].attributes.body
Procedural due process/safeguards ensure accountability throughout the educational process and additionally afford parents rights if concerns arise about the educational procedures or the quality of the education provided to their child.

This helps the child because if the procedural safeguards are followed, they will help facilitate appropriate decision-making and services for children with disabilities.

# data[].attributes.body
Parent and student participation ensures participation in the educational process and promotes shared decision-making.

This helps the child because a child's education can be made more effective when a parent's roles and responsibilities are strengthened.

# data[].attributes.body
Least restrictive environment ensures the child access to the least restrictive and most appropriate educational environment to implement IEP/IFSP goals.

This helps the child be exposed to the general education curriculum with the accommodations and modifications specified in their IEP.

# data[].attributes.headline
1. Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)

# data[].attributes.subject
1. Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)

# data[].attributes.body
Free and appropriate public education is a rule that requires educators to comply with all IDEA processes and thereby benefit the student.

This helps the child because it enables students to have a right to related services that are necessary to ensure the student receives FAPE.

# data[].attributes.body
Appropriate evaluation helps determine the eligibility for special education services and to determine the type of special education and related services needed.

This helps the child because it eliminates bias which ensures results are valid and reliable.

# data[].attributes.headline
3. Individualized Education Program (IEP)

# data[].attributes.subject
3. Individualized Education Program (IEP)

# data[].attributes.body
An individualized education program is a map that lays out the program of special education instruction, supports, and services a student with disabilities needs to thrive in school.

An IEP gives the child legal protections and student rights when it comes to school discipline.

# data[].attributes.body
1. Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)
2. Appropriate Evaluation
3. Individualized Education Program (IEP)
4. Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)
5. Parent and Student Participation
6. Procedural Due Process/Safeguards

# data[].attributes.headline
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

# data[].attributes.subject
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)

# data[].attributes.body
The IDEA is a system that provides all students with disabilities a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the least restrictive environment (LRE). This framework establishes a partnership between educators and the parents or children with disabilities.