It is essential that today’s educators and school leaders are more informed about the legal rights and entitlements of students with disabilities. This resource provides eight easy-to-implement lesson plans on special education law that require no legal knowledge and can be facilitated by school principals, special education directors, teachers, or university instructors. In short one-hour sessions, participants learn by engaging in practical activities instead of only passive reading about the law. All of the lessons utilize actual situations that have led to expensive litigation and each includes the following sections: Introduction for Facilitators; Materials Needed; Background, Purpose, and Objectives of the Lesson; Hook; Activity; Questions for Conversation; Test Your Knowledge; and Additional Resources. This one-of-a-kind book will help schools and districts reduce the time and energy devoted to dealing with violations of the law, resolving parental complaints, correcting errors by school employees, and more. Book Features: A focus on important special education legal issues occurring in schools today. Field-tested lesson plans that can be adopted by schools nationwide because they are based on federal law. Everything needed to teach the lessons, including materials, scripts, interactive activities, and discussion questions. Measurable objectives and assessments to ensure the participants have learned the intended content of the lesson. “School boards spend far too much money on special education litigation—funds that could better be used to provide educational services to children. This book provides a workable framework for school administrators to give their staff the knowledge needed to make legally-correct decisions and avoid costly litigation.” —Allan Osborne, Former Principal, Snug Harbor Community School, Quincy, MA

Legal Issues in Special Education provides teachers and school administrators with a clearly written, well-organized, and understandable guide from the perspective of the practitioner without formal legal training. Even though over 50 percent of students with disabilities are now educated in general education classes, most teachers are not required to complete coursework in special education law and can unwittingly expose themselves and their schools to liability for violating the rights of students with disabilities. This practitioner’s guide explicitly addresses the major issues and legal complexities educators inevitably face when dealing with special education legal and policy issues. Using case-based learning to synthesize important legal concepts and principles from leading special education legal cases, this text guides educators, administrators, and parents alike toward a thorough understanding of, and the ability to navigate, many of the current and pressing legal concerns in special education.

Disability law can be complex and intimidating, so how can concerned parents use it to ensure their child with a disability receives the appropriate education they are legally entitled to? A Guide to Special Education Advocacy gives strategies for advocating for better provision of special education in schools. Despite the many services and accommodations that have been made for students with disabilities, such as the use of Braille or providing specialized education in a regular or special classroom, many children with disabilities do not get the services they need and are not placed in appropriate programs or settings. Because of this, the perception of disability often remains unchanged. Matthew Cohen's insightful manual gives a practical vision of how a parent or a professional can become an advocate to achieve a more inclusive and rewarding education for the child with a disability. This book will provide parents, people with disabilities, professionals and clinicians thinking about special education advocacy with an overview of current disability law and how it works, identifying practical ways for building positive and effective relationships with schools.

The ultimate resource for success in special education—newly updated! Authored by two past presidents of the Educational Law Association, this essential guide translates legalese into your language and allows you to focus on your core competency: providing excellent education for students with special needs. Updated to reflect significant court decisions and new developments, the book features: Extensive coverage of IDEA’s reauthorization, Section 504 and the ADA, and FAPE and LRE New analysis of parent and student rights Guidance on discipline A preventative approach to special education litigation Focus on federal and state interpretations of the law

During the mid-to-late 20th Century, education law emerged as a distinct area of practice and scholarship in the United States. Attorneys began to develop specialties representing school districts, students, parents, and teachers, while law schools and colleges of education started to offer courses about the legal regulation of K-12 public schools. The statutory and common law governing schools grew rapidly, and developed in a manner that often treated public schools differently from other governmental entities. Now, law schools and colleges of education regularly offer an education law course. Many states' school administrator certificates require some familiarity with education law. The scholarly field of education law is rich and deep. Attorneys play a key role in education policy, as do state and federal legislatures and regulatory agencies. The issues range from school funding to supporting English learners; from racial equality to teachers' labor laws; from student privacy to school choice. Addressing those issues and more, The Oxford Handbook of U.S. Education Law provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of K-12 education law in the United States. A number of foundational chapters present a synthesis of general areas of law for those who seek an introduction. Dozens of other chapters build on those foundations, diving into various topics in a nuanced, yet accessible, way, creating value for those who seek to deepen or reframe their knowledge about a specific issue. Throughout the volume and especially in the last section, the authors also look to the future and thus help shape the direction of the field.

This report focuses on issues relating to the development of individualized education programs for and placement of students who are classified as having mental retardation, learning disabilities, behavioral disabilities, or serious emotional disturbances. The U.S. Commission on Civil Rights examined present-day barriers and inequities that deny students with these types of disabilities an equal opportunity to participate in educational programs. The report analyzes and evaluates the Office for Civil Right's (OCR) implementation, compliance, and enforcement efforts for Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. It discusses other Federal disability laws, such as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, to the extent that they relate to Section 504.