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History of Special Education

  • American School for the Deaf

    American School for the Deaf

    In 1817, Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet created the first school for the deaf, after meeting with a young child who was deaf and learning more about the art of teaching the deaf. This school was also the first school for children with disabilities in the Western Hemisphere.
  • Beattie v. Board of Education

    Beattie v. Board of Education

    In this case, a student that had a disability that caused him to drool, have involuntary facial contortions and have speech problems. He was expelled from school because the condition “nauseated the teachers and other students”. The case was taken to the Supreme Court and the judge ruled that school officials could indeed exclude students with disabilities.
    https://casetext.com/case/state-ex-rel-beattie-v-board-of-edn-city-of-antigo
  • Classification of Autism

    Classification of Autism

    Leo Kanner published the first systematic description of early infantile autism. His conclusions were the Autism was a neurodevelopmental disorder. He also said that these children have come into the world with an innate inability to preform the most usual of instruction.

    https://www.ted.com/talks/steve_silberman_the_forgotten_history_of_autism/transcript?language=en
  • National Association for Retarded Citizens

    National Association for Retarded Citizens

    The NARC was formed by 23 individual advocacy that had the same belief. This group consisted of over 200,000 members. This group also helped with litigation and making sure all parts of the judicial system were upheld when dealing with children with disabilities.
  • Brown v. Board of Education

    Brown v. Board of Education

    This was a landmark court case that overturned Plessy v. Ferguson case saying that “separate but not equal”. This case brought attention to not only the problem between blacks v. whites, but also special needs children as well. Thus case encouraged groups to inform the public of need for special education programs.
  • Education for All Handicapped Children Act

    Education for All Handicapped Children Act

    This act made sure that all students with disabilities had a right to learn in public schools. This included providing special education, zero reject, supplemental services, and due process. This act also made sure that children with disabilities were in a less restricted environment and were provided free education.
  • Least Restrictive Environment

    Least Restrictive Environment

    With a students IEP, the student must be in as many general education classrooms as possible. This is because, students who are involved in general education classes, generally have more social experiences.
  • Handicapped Children’s Protection Act

    Handicapped Children’s Protection Act

    Signed by Ronald Reagan, the HCPA was a law that gave parents of children with disabilities a say in the development of their childs IEP (individual education plan) This is offered for students between the ages of 3-5. The HCPA amended the EAHCA, and granted the courts authority to award attorney's fees to parents or guardians if they prevailed in their actions pursuant to the law

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