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The Connecticut Asylum for the Education and Instruction of Deaf and Dumb Persons was the first permanent school for those who were deaf and mute. This came about from parents who felt like their deaf children should be educated. They advocated for their children to learn to read and understand the bible. As well as religious instruction, they were educated in math, reading, writing, geography, and history. -
PARC (now known as The Arc) started as a group of parents and advocates for educating children with disabilities. At this point in time, children with disabilities were sent to institutions to be cared for as there wasn’t much research or resources for them. Thankfully, this group grew larger and larger and fought for rights for their children. Today, it is still relevant. They still advocate and get involved in policies involving children with disabilities. -
Brown v Board of Education was a very crucial starting point in inclusive education. This is the case that banned segregation in school and began our integration of diversity in the classroom. This case reversed the "separate but equal" conclusion from Plessy v. Ferguson -
Pennsylvania Association for Retarded Children (PARC) v Commonwealth of Pennsylvania was the beginning of special education. The state of Pennsylvania was no longer allowed to prevent children with disabilities from entering school, and these children were finally allowed in free general schools. After this, more supreme court cases came up with similar issues of states denying public school for children with disabilities. link text -
The first mainstreaming law. It extended the age of FAPE requirements to 3- to 5-year-olds. It also started the “early intervention program” which is for birth to 2 years old to start the integration process. -
Board of Education of Hendrick Hudson Central School District v Rowley clarified what a free and appropriate public education (FAPE) really means. FAPE is a very important legislation to this day. The definition has been altered and enhanced over the years but it’s crucial to the success of children with disabilities. FAPE requires states to have sufficient support for students to allow them to benefit from public education equally. -
This replaces the first mainstreaming act, EAHCA. It establishes “person- first” language and adds two categories of disability: traumatic brain jury and autism. One of the biggest aspects of this act is the addition of transition services. This prepares children with disabilities for the “real world” whether it be college, a career, or otherwise. Another important part of this act is the extension of due process and confidentially along with more services provided. -
The most current mainstreaming act. It has increased the federal funding for early intervention for all students as well as creating policies to prevent overrepresentation of black children in special education. These policies are trying to be inclusive of everyone and create a proportionate representative of all students. Another improvement of this act is the elimination of a child needing a severe disparity between ability and achievement to qualify for a response-to-intervention (RTI) model. -
Winkelman v Parma City School District decided that parents are allowed to pursue IDEA on the behalf of their child’s rights. If parents don’t believe they are getting the free support FAPE requires, they can argue it and get what their children deserve. IDEA protects the child, and to do this, parent involvement and communication is required. This step into parent involvement is a crucial one as children with disabilities can be vulnerable, so having a parent every step of the way is important. -
Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) replaced the NCLB to further flexibly at the state and district level even further. This act provided that the federal government has less involvement in decision making. It also required schools to have at least one indicator of the quality of the school; whether it be engagement, safety of campus, or postsecondary readiness. link text