The U.S. Supreme Court has heard several cases regarding special education. These cases have resulted in decisions that have addressed issues involving special education programming and procedural issues. On March 21, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous ruling in "Perez v. Sturgis Public Schools." This decision, which was the…

Germany's education system is continually evolving and advancing, especially within special education. The country's history and the laws that have been implemented significantly shape special education as we know it today, yet unresolved issues persist in this field. One notable challenge is the divide between mainstream and special education,…

With the looming reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), it is important for parent input to inform legislative changes. Unfortunately, parent input has been limited in past IDEA reauthorizations. Thus, it is critical to develop and test interventions to improve parent legislative advocacy. With 37 parents of…

The Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) advocates for the full participation of all children and youth with disabilities and/or identified as gifted and talented in educational programming that promotes positive academic, social emotional, and adaptive/independent living outcomes and sets the stage for lifelong success. This position statement…

The purpose of this article is to provide special educators with significant and perhaps surprising recent lessons in special education law. These lessons under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act range from the threshold issues of child find and eligibility through the central obligation of…

Child applications and awards for U.S. Supplemental Security Income (SSI) fell sharply at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Cumulative applications from April to September 2020 were about 30% lower than applications over the same period in 2019 with substantial variation in rates of decline across local areas. In this article, we explore the…

In 1974, the Education for all Handicapped Protection Act was signed into law by President Gerald Ford. This law which was renamed the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 1990, established a federal entitlement to special education for eligible students with disabilities. In 1982 and again in 2017, the U.S. Supreme Court…

How do special education-related professionals parenting children with disabilities experience the special education system? This qualitative exploratory study delves into the experiences of 25 mother-educators who are special education-related professionals navigating the special education system for their children with disabilities. Through…

The purpose of this article is to examine the free appropriate public education (FAPE) requirements of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The authors first briefly examine the definition of FAPE in the IDEA. Second, they delve into the U.S. Supreme Court's decisions in "Board of Education v. Rowley" and "Endrew…

This article is part of a case study of federal leadership in special education from the perspective of those who served in the roles of assistant secretaries of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS) and directors of the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), or their equivalents in the former U.S. Office of…

This qualitative interpretive descriptive study examined the process used by multidisciplinary teams during initial special education evaluations for different disability categories. The problem addressed the fact that there are no aligned norms for initial eligibility processes and procedures in special education from one school, district, or…

Family-early educator partnerships are foundational to early childhood and early childhood special education, and collaborative decision-making regarding child and family need is recognized as a critical component of these partnerships. This study investigated how two Part C early intervention home visitors and four parents communicated during…

The long-term academic outcomes for many students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are strikingly poor. It has been decades since students with ADHD were specifically recognized as eligible for special education through the Other Health Impaired category under the Education for all Handicapped Children Act of 1975, and…

The movement toward collaborative models of preservice early childhood preparation, those that attempt to "blend" preparation for both early childhood education (ECE) and early intervention/early childhood special education (EI/ECSE), is entering its fourth decade. This position paper presents a historical analysis of the blended…

Center-based community early childhood programs are essential options for pre-kindergarten care and education. Consistent with federal legislation (IDEA, 2004), these settings should be accessible so that young children with disabilities can receive their special education services there. In the United States, fewer than 50% of children who…