Putting IDEA into Practice

What is Special Education?

Before you dig in, please watch this brief overview of special education: What is Special Education? (01:35).

Special education involves instruction that is specially designed to meet the unique needs of children who have disabilities. Special education and related services are provided in public schools at no cost to parents and can include special instruction in the classroom, at home, in hospitals or institutions, or in other settings. This definition of special education comes from IDEA, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. This law gives eligible children with disabilities the right to receive special services and assistance in school.

More than 6.8 million children ages 3 through 21 receive special education and related services each year in the United States. Each of these children receives instruction that is specially designed:

to meet their unique needs (that result from having a disability); and

to help them learn information and skills that other children are learning in the general education curriculum.

Who Is Eligible for Special Education?

Children with disabilities are eligible for special education and related services when they meet IDEA’s definition of a “child with a disability” in combination with state and local policies. This definition lists 13 different disability categories under which a child may be found eligible for special education and related services. These categories are linked below. IDEA describes what each of these disability categories means. You will find these descriptions online at Categories of Disability Under Part B of IDEA.

Services to Very Young Children

Infants and toddlers can also have disabilities. Services to children under three years of age are part of IDEA as well. These services are referred to as early intervention services and can be very important in helping young children develop and learn. For information about early intervention, visit this website: Overview of Early Intervention.

How Do You Find Out if a Child is Eligible?

A parent can ask the school to evaluate their child. They can call or write to the director of special education or the principal of their child’s school and request an evaluation under IDEA to see if a disability is involved.

The public school may also be concerned about how the child is learning and developing. If the school believes that the child may have a disability, then it must evaluate the child at no cost to the parent. The school must ask for parental permission and receive written consent before it may evaluate the child. Once consent is provided, the evaluation must be conducted within 60 days (or within the timeframe that the state has established).

However, the school does not have to evaluate a child just because of a parent’s request. The school may not think that the child has a disability or needs special education. In this case, the school may refuse to evaluate the child. It must let the parent know this decision in writing as well as why it has refused to conduct the evaluation. This is referred to as giving the parent prior written notice.

In a later course, you will dive deeper into families’ rights and due process for schools and families if either the school or family refuses services.