ECD310 EXCEPTIONAL LEARNING AND INCLUSION WEEK 2 ASSIGNMENT

HISTORY OF INCLUSION WK1 DQ 1

To understand the timeline of inclusive education, it should be noted that historically it was not until the 1700s and 1800s that people with various impairments began to be treated with some form of humanity. Also, during the 1800s in the United States, students who were deaf or blind received the most attention in comparison to students who may have had developmental or intellectual disabilities. With the onset of Civil Rights there were laws being changed for the inclusion of African Americans and women. During this time, there were individuals who believed students with disabilities had and should be provided specific civil rights.

The federal law, Education of All Handicapped Children Act EAHCA or EHA), is also known as PL 94-142. This law laid the groundwork for other laws of inclusion to come. PL 94-142 was a law that required schools to provide education to students with disabilities, in the general classroom, also known as a least restrictive environment (LRE). One component of this law was that public schools must guarantee Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE), if they wished to receive continued funding. There are other components that include a team of professional in developing an individualized education plan (IEP) and due process. In 1990, PL 94-142 was reauthorized and renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). This amendment included students from ages 3 to 21. This amendment would go through other transitions for the improvement of education for students with disabilities. In 2004, IDEA was reauthorized as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA), commonly known as IDEA 2004. There are thirteen disability categories of IDEA 2004 that were qualifications for special education services. Those categories are: autism, deaf-blindness, deafness, emotional disturbance, hearing impairment, intellectual disability, multiple disabilities, orthopedic impairment, other health impairment, specific learning disability, speech or language impairment, traumatic brain injury, and visual impairment.

The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), was also instrumental in enforcing the inclusion of students with disabilities. One important component was that this act demanded students to be taught by highly qualified teachers with the use of evidence-based practices.

These laws would affect educators, mostly within the public schools. Teachers would be expected to accommodate students with disabilities in their classrooms. Teachers must also be knowledgeable on specific special needs of their students. The ability to handle and manage their classrooms is one difficulty teacher have expressed. For many students, teachers along with other education personnel are expected to use the IEP as a guideline for how a student should be taught, according to the article, Special Education Trends from Children’s Therapy Place.

More than 50 years ago, which would be around the 1960s, there had not been many laws for the inclusion of students with disabilities. Student with disabilities most likely did not attend school or went to a specialized school for their disability, if their families could afford to send them. In the United States, we have certainly progressed in the area of civil rights, however there is still a way to go. It is wonderful to see in the classrooms I work in, students being mainstreamed in classes with other students with and without disabilities. I believe the current laws are in place for inclusion, and it gives families the support they need for their children. They can rest assure that teachers and other education personnel are knowledgeable and prepared for an inclusive classroom.

Reading through the history of the laws of inclusion, I did not realize that there were so many changes for the better throughout various years. It was interesting to read that because of the Civil Rights Act, advocates for students with disabilities had the courage to stand up for what they believed for these students. These laws have helped bring awareness to us as a culture, here in America. These students deserve the exact same opportunities in education as their peers. Implementing IEP’s has been of great use, and I see this in the school I work with. Teachers are very serious about assisting the students within our school and I commend them for this. It is of the upmost importance that we understand these policies and laws, and things like the IEP. This will only help us in the future, should we become educators.

References:

Children’s Therapy Place. (2015, August 20). Special education trends. Retrieved from  http://childrenstherapyplace.com/special-education-trends/Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)

Powell, S.R., & Driver, M.K. (2013). Working with exceptional students: An introduction to special education. Retrieved from  https://content.ashford.edu/Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)