UNDERSTANDING SPECIAL
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Understanding Special Education
Jesseria C. Brown
School of Education, Liberty University
Author’s Note
Jesseria C. Brown
I have no known conflicts or interests to disclose.
Correspondence concerning this paper should be addressed to Jesseria C. Brown
Email: Jbrown254@liberty.edu
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Abstract
Everyone deserves an equal opportunity at learning. All students’ needs should be met in a
classroom environment. Regardless of their social background, language, and learning
disabilities. In 2001, an act known as the NCLB (No Child Left Behind), was passed by
President George W. Bush. The bill was made to be applied to all grade levels K-12. Though the
bill didn’t become active until 2002, one of the main focal points of this act was inclusion of
special education students in general education class settings. Lee (2021) stated that before
NCLB, many schools didn’t focus on the progress of the disadvantaged students. In contrast to
the policy of NCLB, special needs students were not provided adequate services in general
education. They were often outcasts. Nevertheless, the NCLB was the beginning of change for
special education communities. It helped shape their educational experience forever. In this
paper, we will discuss the importance of special education, vital components, and characteristics
shown in both the students and learning environments of special educational. The goal of this
paper is to educate, in detail, what special education consists of.
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Introduction
Special education is more than just a categorized setting for students with special needs, it’s an
entire way of learning that is created to fit different learning abilities. So, what exactly is special
education? Special education is different services that are provided in multiple ways in and out of
classroom settings. According to Morin (2021), there is no “one-size fits all” approach to special
education. This means that no matter how similar a child learning capability may be to another,
their learning plan will still differ because the approaches are individualized. Special education is
vital in general classrooms. Its ability to cater to students with disadvantages is one of the
important factors. Special education focuses on students with learning disabilities in efforts to
create a less restrictive learning environment. This approach helps with the inclusion of all
students in one classroom setting. Imagine being a child that has learning disadvantages and only
being restricted to one classroom all day away from all your other peers and classmates. A
classroom that is not a reflection of the real world or what you see in everyday life? Do you think
this would have affected your learning experience? Yes, I am sure it would have. It is written in
the King James Bible (1769/2017), There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free,
there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28). This scripture
alone represents one inclusion of special needs in general classrooms that should be practiced.
No one is more valuable than the next, we all are worthy of accommodation in all aspects of life.
Laws
The advocacy group known as the CEC (Council for Exceptional Children), which promotes
programs for children who have any learning disability (Orlich, Harder, & Trevisan, 2017, p.6).
They are the founders of IDEA (Individuals with Disabilities Education) act. This act was also
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known as the “Education for All Handicapped Children Act” or in congress as PL94-142. This
act was passed in 1975. According to Lim (2022), IDEA focused on six major principles: zero
rejection, non-discriminatory evaluation, free appropriate public education (FAPE), Least
restrictive environment (LRE), procedural due process, and parent participation. Zero reject is
the sense of presenting all students with accommodation despite their learning differences. Non-
discriminatory evaluation is giving children with disabilities a judgment free evaluation. Instead
of being monitored on their disadvantages they should be evaluated on their abilities. Procedural
due process gives children with disabilities access to the best possible learning experiences. This
principle can also be seen as the development of IEP (Individualized Educational Plan), which
allows students, parents, and school officials to create a learning plan that helps promote
resourceful learning to the child’s need. And lastly parent participation ensures that the parent is
vocal in their child(ren) learning. Besides, this the most important principle because children
learning begins in the social environment. We will discuss FAPE (Free Appropriate Public
Education) and LRE (Least Restrictive Education) in the next two paragraphs.
Free Appropriate Public Education was mandated for all schools to give students with disabilities
free appropriate and accommodating educational practices that contributed to their learning
growth. Cowin (2018), stated FAPE, which requires school districts to provide each qualifying
child with an individualized education program (IEP) and any accompanying services that the
school deems appropriate (p. 589). One of the most influential concepts in FAPE is an IEP. IEP is
a layout of instruction and programs that will be used to help students with special educational
needs excel in and outside a general classroom setting. This can include meetings, specialized
instructions, small group interactions, and one-on-one interactions. IEP are tailored to each
student individually. This type of learning structure is only for students who have special needs
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and are deemed a necessity after evaluation. Most IEP plans are made and discussed amongst a
team that includes parent(s), general educator, administrator, special education teacher, and
school psychologist. The goal of an IEP is to create a plan that supports needed services, the
student’s strengths and needs, performance levels, accommodations, and create goals for the
student to reach.
The principle of LRE (least restrictive environment) is the idea that all students should be
accommodated within the same class environment. Remember growing up and seeing some
students in smaller classrooms? They looked just like you, but you knew that they may have been
behind on the learning curve. Didn’t it make you as a kid feel a certain way? Maybe you even
felt a tad bit of sadness, because you never understood how they weren’t allowed the same
learning opportunities as you. If you are remembering this feeling, then you know and
understand why LRE is important. The LRE mandate provides a clear preference for educating
students with disabilities in general education (GE) settings unless the individual needs of the
students cannot be met in these settings (Williamson, Hoppey, Mclaskey, Bergmann, & Moore,
2020, p. 236). So, for clarity, a least restrictive environment is the best learning environment for
students with special needs. This type of accommodation allows students with special needs to
receive additional aid or help within a general classroom environment. Different types of aid can
include one-on-one help with a teacher’s assistant or shadow, or the child is seen by another
professional for a time period outside the classroom. A general classroom offers a sense of
belongingness and a great social environment, which can help in the process of any student’s
learning experience.
Special Education Services
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Most students who are entitled to special education services show various amounts of
characteristics. They are usually delayed in more than one area. These areas include physical,
communication, cognitive, social, and emotional development. This can be narrowed down to
students who have very poor reading skills, difficulty comprehending and retaining information,
inability to form words/sentences, difficulty solving problems. These disadvantages can be
evaluated and scored based on grade level standards to determine if students should be eligible
for an IEP to help them excel in school. Orlich, Harder, and Trevisan (2017), if school
professionals and the parents believe that a student labeled “developmentally delayed” continues
to need special services, then the school conducts an evaluation to determine eligibility (p. 48).
How do students become eligible for special education services? In order for a student to receive
special services they must be thoroughly evaluated by a team of school officials. This team may
include the special education teacher, school psychologist, occupational or physical therapist,
speech/language pathologist school nurse and counselor (Orlich, Harder, and Trevisan, 2017,
p.48). Throughout the observation, students are tested in areas that included academics, their
abilities, language, mobility, and behavior individually. Once the assessment data is recorded and
studied, the interviewers must follow federal guidelines to make sure that the student’s
disadvantages meet the criteria for special needs services. It must be noted that no assessment
can take place without the consent of the student’s parent(s) or guardian(s).
What type of services can be provided? Because there are a wide range of disabilities,
students with special needs are offered a multitude of accommodations. Depending on the needs
of the student, transportation, nursing, language interpretation, and assistive technology can be
offered if needed within a special education learning environment. Those who benefit more from
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a LRE can receive a one-on-one learning experience, assistive technology, and special
instruction.
Services Delivery Models
Since the implementation of an equal based learning environment for all students, it is important
that all teachers adopt RTI. RTI (response to intervention), is a model for providing effective
instruction for all students (Orlich, Harder, and Trevisan, 2017, p. 59). A RTI has a three-tier
approach method. Tier 1 is based off evidence; it sets in place the importance of effective
instruction that is provided to all students present in the learning environment. Tier 2 are for
students who are not making much progress within Tier 1 and require a small focal group for
instruction. And Tier 3 is for students who do not respond well to either Tier 1 or 2. Tier 3
includes an even smaller group or one-on-one session for instructional learning per individual.
If we had to categorize these by restrictive to least restrictive, the order of the number
would be Tier 3, Tier 2, and Tier 1. Though each instruction offers services needed for individual
needs, the idea of how it is achieved determines whether it is restrictive or not. Tier 3 as stated
above are for students who do not respond well to small groups, meaning this student is more
than likely to be pulled aside within the classroom for individual coaching or even outside the
classroom for a trained professional for their learning disadvantage. This is the most restrictive
because it isolates the student from a general educational environment. This instruction would
probably be most suited for students with speech/learning impairments or those who have
difficulty comprehending and retaining information. or Tier 2 is restricted, but not as restrictive
it gives the student learning limitations are working in a small group, with the benefit of still
receiving general education amongst peers. This would be a learning structure for students who
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may need additional help with math and reading due to them having a hard time comprehending
information depending on how it is presented. Tier 1 is the best learning environment for all
students. It is a prime example of LRE. It offers a range of instructions to cater to the needs of all
students without being divided. “The focus is always on providing as much of their education as
possible in the general education setting (ie, the least restrictive environment)” (Orlich, Harder,
and Trevisan, 2017, p. 51). This instruction would be more for students who have ADD or
ADHD.
Conclusion
In conclusion, special education has evolved throughout the years. Historically, special education
has not always been widely accepted into general education nor was it vouched for as much by
government officials as something that needed to be renewed. As we reflect, we learned that the
advocacy group CEC (council for exceptional children) made a lot of new rules possible for
children with special needs in education. By them forcing government officials to mandate the
implementation of IDEA (individuals with disabilities education act) students would not be
awarded aid and services needed to help special needs achieve a fair and appropriate education.
Which also included access to general education, that allows them to be present in a least
restrictive class environment. “Open thy mouth, judge righteously, and plead the case of the poor
and needy” (King James Bible, 2017, Proverbs 31:9).
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