The Vocational Rehabilitation Act free essay sample

Education is regarded as a fundamental right in the United States. We will write a custom essay sample on The Vocational Rehabilitation Act or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Up until the 1970’s, however, children with disabilities were being denied this right. Congress passed landmark legislation to redress this injustice, beginning with the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and culminating with the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act. These new federal laws strived to end educational discrimination against children with disabilities, by guaranteeing all children have access to a free and appropriate education in the best environment possible. These laws made clear what schools and other public entities obligations were for the education of the disabled, and also proposed specific measures to be taken for their protection, thereby ensuring that all citizens had access to an education and the self-sufficiency and education provides. The Impact of Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004, on the Education of Children with Disabilities The notion that public education is essential for a well functioning republic has a long history in the United States. The chief goal of an education is to produce a measure of self-sufficiency in an individual (Hannon, 1997). An individual is expected to determine his or her own course and not to be dependant, but function independently, and an education is the means to achieve this goal. Up until the 1970’s, education for those with disabilities did not foster independence, in fact the result was the exact opposite. People with disabilities weren’t expected to be self-sufficient, instead often ended up dependent on public funds and programs for support. (Stroman, 2003) In order to change this prevailing notion about disability, Congress first had to recognize that the rights of a section of the population were being denied, and second, they had to enact laws to safeguard the rights of these citizens. With Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (P. L. 93-112) and the first Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 1975 (P. L. 94-142), the federal government took the first steps in making sure that all with disabilities were guaranteed a â€Å"free appropriate public education† that was to be provided in the â€Å"least restrictive environment. † (Switzer, 2003) These new guiding principles were to ensure that children with disabilities were to obtain the education they deserved. These two federal laws changed how children with disabilities were educated by 1) clearly defining disabilities, 2) making education meet the needs of an individual, instead of a one-size-fits-all solution, 3) clearly defining the school’s responsibilities, and 4) adding procedural safeguards to protect the rights of the children. Education as a fundamental right for all is based on the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States. (Hurwitz, 2008) The amendment protects us from any state depriving us of life, liberty or property, without due course of law. Children with disabilities were being deprived of an appropriate education. In its landmark decision, Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the Supreme Court affirmed that educational opportunities fell under the protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, and that state laws denying black children equal educational opportunities was unconstitutional. (Hannon, 1997) The language the court used made it clear that denying any group or classification of people educational opportunities was unconstitutional. (Stroman, 2003) Education had to be extended to all, on equal terms regardless of race or disability. Federal legislation was necessary to standardize all of the existing laws different states had regarding the education of children with disabilities. Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was designed to protect students with various educational handicaps, either physical or mental. (Hurwitz, 2008) Any entity that received funding from the federal government was now barred by law from discriminating against anyone with an educational handicap. This new law defined a â€Å"qualified handicapped person† as someone who had a physical or mental impairment that significantly limits one or more major life activities. (Sattler, 2008) A major life activity is defined in terms of function. Does the impairment limit functions, like walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, or learning? With this broad definition of disability, a wide range of individuals are covered under this act. Children that require special education, as well as children with various medical conditions that prevent them from functioning adequately in the classroom, are all protected under Section 504. The language used in Section 504 reflects the time period in which it was written. Stroman, (2003) points out that what was once cutting edge scientific terminology may over time take on new meanings which could have negative connotations with the public. In the United States â€Å"handicap† has been replaced with the term â€Å"disabled. † Legislation subsequent to Section 504 has reflected this change. Section 504 requires schools to provide a free and appropriate education for all children with disabilities. It further mandates that children with disabilities be educated in the least restrictive environment. Sattler, 2008) This requirement forces schools to accommodate children with disabilities so that their education is comparable to those children without disabilities. While it’s not always possible to accommodate every condition, the schools must make an appropriate effort. Some examples of accommodation include, giving preferential seating to a child with difficulty walking, or providing a structured learning environment to child with a learning disability. Schools are also required to provide special education services to accommodate children with more severe types of disabilities. Under Section 504, schools are required to establish procedural safeguards to protect the rights of children with disabilities and also their parents or guardians. (Sattler, 2008) Parents are encouraged to work with the schools to ensure their children are receiving appropriate assessments, along with reasonable accommodations from the schools. There must also be periodic reviews of the child’s education plans. If the parents don’t agree with the schools’ assessments, they have the right to take the school districts to federal court. Section 504 was an important first step in providing a free and appropriate education for all children in this country. It has had a meaningful impact on the education of children with disabilities by first, defining who is protected, and the school’s responsibility in meeting the educational needs of those children, and second, setting up procedures to ensure the rights of these children and their parents are protected. Perhaps more importantly, Section 504 laid the groundwork for the disability legislation that followed it. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Congress enacted the first Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1975. The law was originally called the Education for all Handicapped Children Act and has been subsequently updated, expanded, and amended several times. (Hurwitz, 2008) In 1990, President Bush signed into law the act that changed the name of the Education for all Handicapped Children to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. (Jacob amp; Hartshorn, 2003) The law introduced several important concepts that have become hallmarks of special education today. In providing a free and appropriate education for children with disabilities, IDEA introduced the concept of an individual education plan for children in special education. Schools could no longer take a one-size-fits-all approach to special education. (Switzer, 2003) Each child with disabilities would be provided with a plan on how to receive an appropriate education. Another important concept introduced in IDEA was â€Å"zero reject† (Hurwitz, 2008). No child could be rejected from receiving services, no matter how severe the disability. Whereas Section 504 interpreted disability in a broad sense, IDEA defines disability very specifically. The law defines 13 distinct categories of disability, including impairments such as mental retardation, emotional disturbance, and autism. (Sattler, 2008) All of these disabilities require special education services from the schools. A child with a medical disability, such as diabetes, while eligible for accommodation under Section 504, would not be covered under IDEA, because its narrower definition of disability. IDEA deals specifically with children in special education. Even with narrowing its definition of disabilities, IDEA covers a wide range of disabilities. The education for a child with a disability such as deaf-blindness, would be very different from the education of a child with autism, both covered by IDEA (Hannon, 1997) In order to provide an appropriate education for children with diverse kinds of disabilities, IDEA has mandated that all children have an individualized educational program (IEP). An IEP is a written document that explains the child’s needs and how the school or public agency is going to meet those needs. Sattler, 2008) An IEP must include information like the child’s present level of performance, goals, services needed, and accommodations needed. The IEP must be renewed annually and it is transferable if the child moves. In this way IDEA attempts to provide unique solutions for children with specific educational needs. In addition to providing an IEP for children in special education IDEA also requires school s to provide a full and appropriate individual initial evaluation to determine the child’s disability and educational needs. (Sattler, 2008) Specific criteria must be applied to the evaluation. The evaluation must use multiple assessment tools and strategies. It must use multiple types of information, such as academic, developmental, and medical information. The evaluation must use technically sound instruments, administered by trained and knowledgeable personnel. The assessment procedures should be non-discriminatory in nature and comprehensive in scope. This type of comprehensive evaluation is hoped to identify the nature of the child’s disability and the measures necessary to provide and appropriate IEP. Schools are also required to provide an education in the least restrictive environment under IDEA. If possible, children with disabilities should be educated in a general education classroom with an appropriate accommodation. (Hurwitz, 2008) This practice is called â€Å"mainstreaming† or â€Å"inclusion. † The rationale behind inclusion is that it may increase children’s academic achievement and self-esteem, and decrease the stigma associated with disabilities. (Sattler, 2008) IDEA also includes many procedural safeguards to protect the rights of children with disabilities and their parents. Under Section 504, parents can go directly to federal court in order to resolve disputes with schools. IDEA requires parents to try and find an administrative solution before allowing them to go to court. (Sattler, 2008) However, IDEA stresses the importance of parents being involved in all of the decisions regarding their children’s education. Parents of children with disabilities are to be given the opportunity to be members of the groups that make placement decisions, such as the IEP team. Parents also have the right to have independent evaluations of their children, at no cost to the parents. Finally parents have the right to a due process complaint. The complaint can be regarding any matter relating to the identification, evaluation, or placement of the child. The complaint must be heard and resolved in a reasonable time frame. If the school and the parent cannot resolve the complaint, the next step is mediation, where an independent mediator attempts to resolve the issues. If mediation fails, a due process hearing is convened, where an impartial hearing officer hears evidence from both sides and makes a decision based on the evidence whether or not the child received a free and appropriate education. Finally, the parents have the right to appeal the decision of the due process hearing. Sattler, 2008) Under IDEA the procedural safeguards are clearly defined and designed to ensure a free and appropriate education in the least restrictive environment. Conclusion Although Section 504 and IDEA both require schools to provide a free and appropriate education to all children, IDEA strives to clarify just what exactly that phrase means and how to achieve that goal. The definition of disability is narrowly defined. A method for meeting the needs of each individual child with disabilities is provided in the form of the individualized education program. A school’s responsibilities are also more clearly defined under IDEA than Section 504. Finally, the procedural safeguards are also more specific. Implementation of IDEA has not been without problems. In fact, school districts lobbied against the bill because of the costs. (Switzer, 2003) In defining a free and appropriate education, IDEA makes it clear that school districts and public entities must provide an appropriate education free of charge if the child is covered under the law. (Hurwitz, 2008) Problems with assessment have also arisen. IDEA mandates the usage of technically sound instruments in the assessment of disability. Flanagan (1995) pointed out that a more reliable measure was needed for the assessment of emotional disturbance, one of the 13 disabilities defined by IDEA. Finally, arguments have been made against the least restrictive environment clause. McDonough (2008) argues that a relaxing of the mainstreaming requirement of IDEA would benefit students with autism spectrum disorders, allowing them to receive the specialized education they require, and reliving the burden on general education teachers from the classroom disruptions common to the disorder. Unfortunately there is a huge amount of litigation associated with these two federal laws. The vague language used in these laws is open to many different interpretations. Who is to say what is â€Å"appropriate† in a â€Å"free and appropriate education? † How can you quantify a â€Å"substantially† limited â€Å"major life activity? † And just what constitutes a â€Å"major life activity? † Parents and school districts, alike, aren’t sure how to interpret some of these phrases, and are quite willing to litigate in order to clarify the issue. (Switzer, 2003) This leaves some important educational decisions in the hands of the courts instead of educators. Controversies aside, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as well as Section 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act, have had a profound impact on education in the United States. Both laws seek to identify individuals who had previously been denied access to education, and provide them with a means obtaining the self-determination that an education can provide. Finally, both laws try to hold those accountable for providing an education to all of the citizens of our country. Self-determination is a privilege most of us take for granted.