What Is I.D.E.A. and How Does It Effect Students of Color?

Mid-Term

What is I.D.E.A.

&

How Does It

Affect

Students of Color?

Written By

Sarah Pullano

ED U570

Prof. Wolfe

February 26, 2004

The United States is home to hundreds of different types of peoples and cultures. We have always prided ourselves on our achievements as a nation, but now there is a problem. In the past century we have discovered that it is inhumane to hide away people that are different from us. It is an atrocity to deny one child an education just because he/she can't see, hear, speak, walk, or even think like 'normal' people. Now is the time for change and from this time, we are introduced to I.D.E.A. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act was passed so that all children might be able to receive a free, appropriate public education. We have had the law for a few decades now, but what exactly is I.D.E.A. and how is it really helping the disabled students of America?

According to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, a child with a disability is a child with mental retardation, hearing impairments (including deafness), speech or language impairments, visual impairments (including blindness), serious emotional disturbance (herinafter referred to as emotional disturbance), orthopedic impairments, autism, traumatic brain injury, other health impairments, or specific learning disabilities. This definition is for a general child. If the child is younger, age 3 through 9, a child with a disability can include any child that is experiencing developmental delays, as defined by the State and as measured by appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures, in on or more of the following areas: physical development, cognitive development, communication development, social or emotional development, or adaptive development. Both of these categories include any child, by reason thereof, that needs special education and related services. (IDEA '97)

Now that we know what classifies a disabled child, what exactly are these disabilitie?. The following will be definitions of what each of these disabilities entail.

1) Mental retardation - Characterized by IQ level below 70 and must have significant limitations in adaptive functioning in at least 2 of the follwing skill areas: communication, self care, home living, social/interpersonal skills, use of community resources, self direction, functional academic skills, work, leisure, health and safety. (APA)

2) Hearing impairments - permanent or fluctuating impairment in hearing that adversely affects educational performance. (Schwab Learning)

3) Speech or language impairments - includes communication disorders, language impairments, voice impairments that adversely affects educational performance. (Schwab Learning)

4) Visual Impairments - impairment in vision that even with correction, adversely affects a child's educational performance. The term includes both partial sight and blindness. (Arbeiter)

5) Emotional Disturbance - Characterized by one or more of the following conditions over a long period of time: An inability to learn that cannot be explained by intellectual, sensory, or health factors; an inability to build or maintain satisfactory interpersonal relationships with peers and teachers; inappropriate types of behavior or feelings under normal circumstances; a general pervasive mood of unhappiness or depression; or a tendency to develop physical symptoms or fears associated with personal or school problems. (NICHCY)

6) Orthopedic impairments - includes impairments caused by congenital anomaly (e.g., clubfoot, absence of some member, etc.), impairments caused by disease (e.g., poliomyelitis, bone tuberculosis, etc.), and impairments from other causes (e.g., cerebral palsy, amputations, and fractures or burns that cause contractures). (IDEA '97)

7) Autism - brain disorder that begins in early childhood and persists throughout adulthood; affects three crucial areas of development: communication, social interaction, and creative or imaginative play. (NIDCD)

8) Traumatic brain injury - includes acquired injury caused by external physical force and open or closed head injuries that result in impairments; does not include congenital or degenerative brain injuries or brain injuries caused by birth trauma. (Schwab Learning)

9) Learning disabilities - childhood disorders characterized by difficulty with certain skills such as reading or writing in individuals with normal intelligence. (NIDCD)

10) Developmental delays - When a child has not begun certain activities by the age most children can perform the activity; they may be slow to talk, walk, feed and dress themselves, read, write or do other things; children may show a delay in one or more areas or may have overall delays. (MOFAS)

All of these are classified as disabilities because if a child has one or even more of these serious problems, that child will have a much harder functioning in life. I.D.E.A.'s main goal is to allow all children to have an equal opportunity to learn. Whether or not a child is disabled, all children alike have a right to learn.

Not all disabilities are created equal. There are two groups of disabilities, which are defined as high-incidence disabilities or low-incidence disabilities. High-incidence disabilities are also often referred to as mild disabilities. Included in this category are all learning disabilities, mild mental disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, and Emotional Disabilities or Behavioral Disorders. By far, students are faced with more learning disabilities than anything else. Approximately 51 percent of students with exceptional needs are identified as having a learning disability. (PGPBSU)

The next category is known as low-incidence disabilities. These are the more complicated ones including moderate and severe mental disabilities, autism, and multiple disabilities. (PGPBSU) Also included in this list is orthopedic impairments, however, the majority of the time, these students do not require academic adjustments, but rather physical adjustments to the classroom environment.

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act has done much to reform the American system so that all children