Special Education

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Carter’s Service Dog Case

March 8, 2010 in Service Animals, Special Education | No comments

In a previous blog article (“Are IEPs Necessary for Service Animals?“), I argued that a child with a disability does not need an Individualized Educational Plan (“IEP”) in order to bring a service dog to school. At the time I wrote and published that article, there was an Illinois state case pending which involved a School District that refused to allow Carter, a five year child with autism, to bring his service dog to school (Kalbfleisch v. Columbia Community Unit School District Unit No. 4).

In that same blog article, I mentioned that the Columbia School District had argued that Carter could not bring his service dog to school because it was not in his IEP. I wondered how a judge would respond to that argument.

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College Bound Students with Intellectual Disabilities

March 1, 2010 in Special Education | No comments

Many people are surprised when they hear that individuals with intellectual disabilities can attend college. Yes, college is possible for students with intellectual disabilities. In 2006, the New York Times ran a story about Katie Apostolides, a young lady with Down’s Syndrome who was attending a liberal arts school in Massachusetts. In 2009, Katie had graduated with an Associates Degree from a college in Pennsylvania. Katie’s story is remarkable, and she is part of a larger group of individuals with intellectual disabilities who have benefited from the college experience. According to UCLA Professor Olivia Raynor (see video below), there are over 10,000 students with intellectual disabilities attending college across the country.

Along with other special education attorneys who blog, I have previously discussed the importance of IEP transition planning (“The Day After Graduation“). I have written that it is never too early to think about what happens to your child the day after graduation. By the time 9th, 10th, or 11th grade rolls around, some students with disabilities, including those with intellectual disabilities, will start thinking seriously about going to college.

It is important individuals with intellectual disabilities who plan to go to college have a basic understanding of disability rights laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitiation Act of 1973.

In addition, it is important to have some familiarity with the Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA). Many parents and students with disabilities have not heard of this law. At the time of this writing, even Wikipedia did not have an entry for HEOA (though it does have an entry for the Higher Education Act of 1965). This is not surprising since the HEOA is a fairly recent statute that President George W. Bush signed into law on August 14, 2008.

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Guest Blogger at Connecticut Special Education Lawyer Blog

February 25, 2010 in Special Education | No comments

This month, I am a guest blogger at Jennifer Laviano’s Connecticut Special Education Lawyer Blog. This is an outstanding honor. I’ve long admired Jennifer’s blog and was very happy when she and I discussed the possibility of my writing an article for her blog.

I’m glad that Jennifer found my article, “The Day After Graduation,” worthy of publication on her blog. This is an article that encourages parents who have children with disabilities to think about what will happen to their children after they graduate from school. I feel that this is an important article because I have, unfortunately, seen parents who realize too late that their children aren’t ready for graduation–either the annual IEP goals were not met, or the transition planning were not developed properly.

After reading “The Day After Graduation,” be sure to check out the many, many special education articles posted on Jennifer’s blog.

Thank you again, Jennifer!

Whither Aspergers?

February 17, 2010 in Special Education, Uncategorized | No comments

The news that Asperger’s Syndrome may be removed from the next edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (better known as “DSM”) is spreading like wildfire. There is already intense debate. Bloggers are writing about it too:

Although the final edition of the proposed DSM-V will not be published until 2013, some people find the move to “merge” Asperger’s with autism disturbing.

Autism spectrum is a neurological disorder. It affects learning, language, social development, and behavior. But not all people with autism are the same. People with Asperger’s are regarded as high functioning individuals who are extremely intelligent, yet their social interactions are poor and their behavior may be awkward. In contrast, some people with autism may have extremely low IQs, as well as poor social and behavioral developments. The differences between a diagnosis of ‘Aspergers’ and ‘autism’ can be significant.

What are the reasons that the American Psychiatric Association (APA) wants to eliminate ‘Aspergers’? According to this report, one reason is because ‘Aspergers’ has become “too vague.”  I found this rationale very interesting since the next edition of the DSM eliminates “substance abuse” and will be replaced by more specific diagnoses, such as “cannabis-use disorder” and “alcohol-use disorder.” Why, then, does the DSM propose to eliminate Asperger’s and opt for generalization such as “low functioning autism” and “high functioning autism”?

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Special Education Services in Charter Schools

February 1, 2010 in Disability Discrimination, Special Education | No comments

Education Week recently published a very interesting article titled Charters: Students With Disabilities Need Not Apply? Although charter schools have existed since the early 1990s, many people do not understand what it is and how it works. The almost always reliable Wikipedia provides a nice overview of charter schools; and in the very first sentence, we learn that:

Charter schools are elementary or secondary schools in the United States that receive public money but have been freed from some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools in exchange for some type of accountability for producing certain results . . .

In Charters: Students With Disabilities Need Not Apply?, Thomas Hehir reminds us that charter schools are not exempt from special education law. Indeed charter schools must comply with the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act, Section 504, Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as applicable state anti-discrimination laws. Randy Chapman, the Director of The Legal Center for People with Disabilities and Older People in Colorado, provides a concise overview of the laws that charter schools must comply with in The IDEA and Charter Schools. For more specific examples in Question and Answer Format, see the Pennsylvania Education Law Center’s pamphlet, Students With Disabilities Attending Public Charter Schools.

Yet, according to studies and anecdotal evidence that Mr. Hehir cites, charter schools apparently serve few students with disabilities and may be discouraging students with disabilities from enrolling.

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Addressing Behavior to Promote Learning

December 21, 2009 in Special Education | No comments

One does not need any formal schooling to observe that behavior can affect learning. When a student misbehaves, the mind shuts off and is oblivious to acquiring any new information that is being taught in the classroom. A student who misbehaves is no laughing matter. It impedes the student’s education. It can affect the learning environment for other students in the classroom. It can also agitate teachers and upset parents. Thus, it is important that we ask: “Is the student’s behavior voluntary or a manifestation of a disability?” If we do not ask this question, we have failed the student.

Generally speaking, parents will claim that their child’s misbehavior is involuntary and a manifestation of a disability.

In contrast, teachers and school administrators may claim that there is nothing wrong with the child’s health: the child’s misbehavior is voluntary and willful. The child is simply “lazy,” “stubborn,” “insolent,” “maladjusted,” “high-strung,” or “anti-social.”

Consider these examples:

  • A student is unable to focus on any particular subject for longer than 10 minutes at a time and can only complete a portion of the work within a specified period of time (laziness or a possible manifestation of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder?);
  • A student repeatedly talks out loud in the classroom at inappropriate times (stubbornness or a manifestation of Tourette’s Syndrome?);
  • A student refuses to listen to the teacher’s instructions (insolent or a manifestation of Oppositional Defiant Disorder?);
  • A student becomes irritated and uncooperative when subjects are not being taught according to the regular schedule (maladjusted or a manifestation of Asperger’s Syndrome?);
  • A student must repeatedly leave the classroom to wash her hands at inappropriate times (high-strung or a manifestation of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder?);
  • A student is unable to respond appropriately when assigned to a partner or team (anti-social or a manifestation of autism?).

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Tests, Measurements, and All That Jazz

December 7, 2009 in Special Education | No comments

Mastery of special education legal issues requires knowledge of several things:

It also requires a good appreciation of the following:

  • How a particular disability impacts the student’s education at school;
  • The different tests that have been designed to measure the student’s deficiencies;
  • How these tests differ from each other; and
  • What is being measured and what the scores indicate.

Practicing attorneys will be well versed in any particular area of law that they focus on. Procedural issues are usually straightforward in most cases. But perhaps the most challenging aspect of trying special education cases is understanding the different tests that psychologists utilize and what the scores indicate.

In every special education case, attorneys must constantly ask: (1) What test was implemented? (2) Why was this test implemented? (3) Are we sure that this is the right test? (4) Why not this test or that test? (5) What does the test measure? (6) How do these numbers (scores) explain the student’s deficiencies? (7) How can we show that this test or that test is a better measurement of the student’s deficiencies? (8) Shouldn’t more tests be conducted? (9) Should we get another evaluation? (10) Where do we go from here?

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Students with Disabilities and Extracurricular Activities

November 16, 2009 in Disability Discrimination, Special Education, Student Rights | 4 comments

One of the most important aspects of school is non-academic extracurricular activities. Students who participate in extracurricular activities, such as sports, chess, music, student government, yearbook clubs, and other special interest clubs, develop talent, skill, and teamwork. By participating in extracurricular activities, students have an opportunity to make friends they would not otherwise have made during the regular school day.

The importance of extracurricular activities cannot be overemphasized, particularly for students with disabilities who are mainstreamed because it provides an opportunity for them to learn new skills, improve their talents and self-esteem, and develop relationships with their peers. In addition, when students with disabilities participate in extracurricular activities, other “nondisabled” students will look past one’s “disability” and focus more on one’s talents and skills.

Therefore, it is important that parents understand that students with disabilities have the right to participate in extracurricular activities at school.

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Are IEPs Necessary for Service Animals?

November 9, 2009 in Disability Discrimination, Service Animals, Special Education, Student Rights | No comments

In a very controversial and widely publicized case in Illinois that involves a child with autism who wants to bring his service dog to school, the school district is arguing (among other things) that the child cannot bring his service dog to school because it is not in the child’s IEP. It will be interesting to see how a judge responds to that argument.

In a previous blog post, I discussed the law and issues relating to service animals who accompany children with disabilities to school. Thus far, I have not discussed whether it is necessary to have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) in order to bring a service animal to school. Those of you who have been reading my blog for some time probably know the answer to this question.

Caption: A boxer dog lies down with her head on a laptop.

Caption: A boxer dog lies down with her head on a laptop.

Briefly, an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) is a written document that consist of goals and objectives agreed to by the parents and school district on behalf of an eligible child with a disability. The IEP will also contain the necessary accommodations, modifications, and services that the school must provide in order for the eligible child to gain a meaningful and beneficial education.

The IEP is governed by a federal law known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA [but commonly referred to as IDEA]), which guarantees eligible children a free and appropriate education.

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Copyright © 2009 Matthew Stoloff All Rights Reserved