-
Rev. Thomas Gallaudet established the first school focused on special education in the United States, inspired by the various efforts in France to teach students with disabilities and deficiencies. At this time, they were relegated to these types of separate facilities instead of normal schooling. Read more here. -
By 1918, all states passed compulsory education laws requiring all children to attend school. Children with disabilities, however, often stayed at separate institutions, which were later challenged in the same way that racially segregated schools were challenged. -
The landmark case which ruled that segregation in schools by race was unconstitutional would go on to provide a precedent for the argument that segregation by mental capacity was equally unconstitutional. "Separate, But Equal" -
Provided federal funds to schools around the country such that they could purchase learning materials, offer assistance to low-income families so that children living in poverty could still receive an education, and involve parents in the learning process. The provision of federal funds made public schools benefitting from this bill susceptible to anti-segregation acts that included children with disabilities, like IDEA. -
A congressional investigation via the Bureau of Education for the Handicapped found that millions of children were receiving an insufficient education. Also, they were being made dependent on government institutions and resources when they could instead be taught to contribute to society and lead meaningful lives. Congressional Investigation -
Geraldo Rivera exposes the deplorable conditions under which mentally handicapped inmates of the Willowbrook institute were being held, bringing greater attention to the state of disabled people's treatment and possibly influencing the congressional investigation into the state of disabled children's education the same year. Willowbrook: The Last Great Disgrace -
Outlawed discrimination on the basis of disability when hiring for federally-funded programs and businesses. Would go on to serve as a precedent for the inclusion of children with disabilities in public schools. -
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act A re-naming of the 1975 Education for all Handicapped Children Act, IDEA established many of the tenets of special education such as:
1. Require an Individualized Education Program for affected students (IEP).
2. Guarantee Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE).
3. Promote Less Restrictive Environments (LREs). -
One of the No Child Left Behind Act's requirements was that schools provide yearly progress assessments for their students with disabilities, meaning that they had to take yearly exams to gauge growth. This necessitated accommodations for students with disabilities, such as larger fonts for students with vision impairments, longer testing time, or more appropriate testing environments. -
ESSA replaced the No Child Left Behind Act, and is the latest iteration of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. It held states accountable for meeting their own standards for student achievement, once approved by the US Department of Education, instead of holding all states accountable to the same federal standards as in NCLB. Under this act, most disabled students are held to the same standards as their peers, with accommodations available for them to succeed during testing.