School psychologists are well served to stay up to date on trends in special education law, particularly with respect to determinations when school teams' decisions are challenged. This allows them to focus on proactive best practices that foster accurate specific learning disability (SLD) identification and active collaboration with parents. This…

For this 23rd article in the series reviewing recent court decisions concerning appropriate school psychology practice from both professional and legal perspectives, the topic is the substantive standard for free appropriate public education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), with a focus on the classification of…

The Zero Tolerance policy was intended to eliminate learners who are a danger to a learning institution (Henson, 2012). The development of this policy was to assist schools with better policing approaches of students conducts by employing tough disciplinary action and subsequently provide a safer learning environment. While the Zero Tolerance…

This article begins by describing a scenario in which a fourth-grade learning disabled student's individualized education program (IEP) team came together to develop his IEP and in so doing made a number of procedural and substantive errors. The purpose of this article is to examine the procedural and substantive requirements of the Individuals…

This third article in a series of reviewing recent court decisions concerning appropriate school psychology practice from both professional and legal perspectives, asks readers to consider the summary of a Maine case presented with regard to the issue of eligibility under the classification of specific learning disabilities (SLD) under the…

Specific learning disability (SLD) identification and eligibility practices are evolving and sometimes contentious. This article describes the historical context and current status of the SLD definition, legislation, regulation, and case law related to the identification of students eligible for special education services. The first part traces…

This article provides a concise and objective synthesis of the federal legislation, regulations, and agency policy interpretations; state laws; and case law, including hearing officer and complaint investigation decisions, concerning specific learning disability (SLD) identification since the 2006 IDEA regulations. The results reveal wide latitude…

Given their pivotal position, school psychologists have understandable concerns about the possibility of becoming the target of the relatively frequent legal proceedings under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Indeed, the threat of litigation can contribute to a flight from the profession (Lange, 2011). Yet, an informal…

In this article, the author provides legal explanations to the following concerns: (1) case law on specific learning disability (SLD) eligibility; (2) recent developments on response to intervention (RTI); (3) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) rules; and (4) the Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) regulation. The author's…

Students with specific learning disability (SLD) continue to account for a higher proportion of all special education enrollments than any other classification under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Probably the most frequent topic in the special education literature since the 2004 amendments to IDEA has been the movement…

This article provides an update of a previous analysis of the case law concerning manifestation determinations culminating in the revised pertinent provisions of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) 2004. Specifically, the update consists of a synthesis of the legislative history, Office of Special Education Programs…

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to step into one of the most contentious and costly areas of special education law by accepting a case involving a parent's efforts to seek public reimbursement for a private school placement of his child. In this article, the author talks about the case entitled, "New York City Board of Education vs. Tom…

For years, Marilyn Arons, 67, has taught parents how to use the main federal special education law to get the most appropriate education for their children. And now, the role of experts such as Ms. Arons is at the center of a U.S. Supreme Court case that will be heard next week. The case, which began in 1997, involves New York state's Arlington…

Greg is 13 years old, and currently in seventh grade; he entered an unnamed District ("the District") school in fourth grade as a student with a specific learning disability; he had been identified as eligible for special education programming and services during second grade. During fifth and sixth grade Greg was provided services…

Discusses the implications of "Gluckenberger v. Boston University," a case involving the claim of discrimination against students with learning disabilities. The discussion focuses on the inherent conflict between enforcing antidiscrimination law and the freedom of a university to control its own academic standards in the context of dealing with…