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Brown v. Board of Education was the landmark case that ruled that segregation in schools was unconstitutional. While this case ruled specifically against racial segregation, it laid the groundwork for later rulings and laws against all kinds of segregation, including educational separation based on disabilities. -
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act provided federal funding to schools for a myriad of reasons, including funds for resources to support the educational needs of students and professional training for teachers. This law is aimed at making education equally attainable for all students specifically by using federal funds. For students with disabilities, this means that those in lower-income areas were able to attend school with their non-disabled peers for the same education. -
PARC v. Pennsylvania is a ruling that states that each state is responsible for providing free public education to students with intellectual disabilities and requires them to receive the same quality of education as other students. PARC sued over the law that allowed public schools the ability to turn down students of 8 or older who had not reached the mental age of 5, which had also been used to turn away students with difficulty integrating into the classroom. This later helped pass EHAC. -
This case expanded the PARC v. Pennsylvania finding to include those who are physically disabled. The case ruled that all children are entitled to a free public education and that the district must serve all children regardless of mental or physical disability. The ruling also found that the Board of Education must front all costs to serve these students and could not turn them away due to the expense. This finding later helped pass the EHAC. -
The Rehabilitation Act, specifically Section 504, mandated that all federally funded institutions, including public schools, have services for those with disabilities. The act extended and broadened the idea of civil rights to those with disabilities, one of the first to do so. These services include access to buildings, special study areas, and additional assistance when required. -
The EAHC required all schools with federal funding to provide equal access and equal education to all students in the least restrictive environment. The act had four main goals: to make sure that special services are available to those who need them, to make sure that decisions about said services are appropriate and fair, to establish specific requirements for special education, and to provide federal funds to educate students with exceptional abilities. -
The ADA is a civil rights law that prohibits discrimination based on any kind of disability. It requires reasonable accommodations in places of employment and dictates requirements for accessibility in public places, including schools. Specifically, Title 3 prohibits discrimination in public places or accommodations so that those with disabilities are able to use public facilities to the fullest extent. -
IDEA has 6 main pillars: 1. the individualized education plan (IEP), 2. free appropriate public education (FAPE), 3. the least restrictive environment (LRE), 4. appropriate evaluation, 5. parent and teacher participation, and 6. procedural safeguards. The act was aimed at fixing the implementation problems that had resulted once those with disabilities were guaranteed access to public education. The name was changed to Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) in 2004. -
The act rewards schools that see students with disabilities progress in their standardized testing. Those with IEPs and 504s are counted the same as other students' scores. NCLB has changed the way that people view students with disabilities and their expectations for them. In contrast to the individualized instruction called for by IDEA, NCLB tests all students on the same tests with the same benchmarks, which is cause for concern for some critics. -
This act replaced the NCLB. Most students still have to take the same assessments as their peers, but the ESSA allows for 1% of students to be excused from the standardized assessments. This 1% is reserved for those with severe cognitive disabilities who are still required to take an alternate assessment. The act allows for each state to make its own requirements for who is allowed to take the alternate assessments.